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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 4, 2019 8:20:24 GMT -5
I was at the concert in Het Nieuwe Luxortheater in Rotterdam yesterday (July 3rd). A good and solid show. See setlist below. I thought both Mike and Bruce's voice held up quite well. And Brian Eichenbacher and Christian Love leads were good imo. The number of leadvocs by John and Scott seem to decrease... Nice to hear Mike speak fondly on his memories of their stay in The Netherlands while recording the Holland album. The Dec. 1970 night concert in Amsterdam (which was delayed almost 5 hours due to fog) was mentioned as well. They do remember those bits of history.
The band (and families) are enjoying a free day today (very appropriate on July 4th). Tomorrow another show, near Rotterdam on the Tweede Maasvlakte. The exact location is unknown, but it's most probably on the beach. When travelling by car one apparently simply has to follow the signs when arriving in the area. From the parking lot busses will transport us to the venue. It's a concert with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. A relatively short set - 2 hours (starting at nine o'clock) including an intermission. Probably no rarities to be expected. But special nonetheless. This concert was organised by cruise company Spido to celebrate their 100th anniversary.
www.spido.nl/en/tochten-cruises/consert-the-beach-boys-en-het-rotterdams-philharmonisch-orkest (no English page available with general info or for buying tickets)
www.rotterdamsphilharmonisch.nl/en/agenda/176/The_Beach_Boys_en_het_Rotterdams_Philharmonisch_Orkest/100_jaar_Spido_The_Beach_Boys/
Setlist Rotterdam, July 3rd 2019:
First set:
1. Do It Again
2. Surfin' Safari
3. California Sun
4. It's O.K.
5. Surfin' U.S.A.
6. Surfer Girl (band)
7. Then I Kissed Her (Eichenbacher)
8. Dance, Dance, Dance
9. Do You Wanna Dance? (BJ)
10. Good To My Baby (Eichenbacher + ML)
11. In My Room (band)
12. When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)
13. Darlin' (Eichenbacher)
14. Cottonfields (Cowsill)
15. Warmth Of The Sun (Totten)
16. Getcha Back
17. Don't Worry Baby (Eichenbacher)
18. Little Deuce Coupe
19. 409
20. Shut Down
21. I Get Around
Second set
22. California Dreamin' (Cowsill)
23. California Girls
24. Sloop John B. (Totten + ML)
25. Wouldn't It Be Nice (Eichenbacher)
26. Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring (ML + BJ + Totten + Eichenbacher)
a few lines of I Write The Songs are played/sung during the introduction of grammy winner Bruce
27. Disney Girls (1957) (BJ)
28. Sail On Sailor (Christian Love)
29. All This Is That (Christian Love)
30. God Only Knows (Christian Love)
31. Pisces Brothers
32. Here Comes The Sun
33. Kokomo
34. All Summer Long
35. Help Me, Rhonda (Christian Love)
36. Barbara Ann (band)
37. Rock & Roll Music
38. Summertime Blues
39. Good Vibrations (Christian Love)
Encore:
40. Rockaway Beach
41. Fun, Fun, Fun |
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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 4, 2019 13:19:31 GMT -5
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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 6, 2019 4:22:09 GMT -5
I had a blast yesterday. The combination with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra worked out great. Will tell more later on. But here the setlist.  |
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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 6, 2019 7:51:33 GMT -5
Futureland, Tweede Maasvlakte, Rotterdam, July 5th 2019 This concert was a special one. The owner of the water tour company Spido wanted to celebrate their 100 year jubilee with a special concert. He had seen the Beach Boys perform in Rotterdam (Nieuwe Luxor Theater) in 2017 and had decided to get this group back in the Netherlands in 2019 for a special concert with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. And so it happened apparently. The location was a special one as well: in the heart of the industrial port area Tweede Maasvlakte. A "new" part of the Netherlands, built where used to be the North Sea. Between the transhipment companies, cranes, and containers a large stage was built where the band could perform. Attendants could go to the venue by boat from the center of Rotterdam (a 2 and a half hour trip with diner, and the same trip back with beverages and food, accompanied by a Joe Cocker tribute band). Or one could go by car, drive to a central parking spot and be transported by a shuttle bus. The latter being a lot cheaper of course. The venue was a closed area , enclosed by containers. Except for the typical sea-smell, the beach atmosphere was nowhere to been seen (except for a few fake palmtrees that were placed along the path from the harbour to the stage). But the location was special nonetheless, seeing the cranes in the distance being operated during the concert and large boats passing by. Mike even made a joke about it when they entered the stage ("you know... we're just doing it for the oil and gas..."). Within the concerts area there were several stalls with beverages and cold/hot snacks. As there were only limited seats available for the disabled and special guests, the atmosphere was that of a festival I had already heard from Scott that because of the venue's location, the scheduled starting time (21PM), and the fact that an intermission was planned, a shorter set would be played. The concert would end at 23PM with a firework show, which couldn't be shifted. The concert started 15 minutes too late though, due to the last boat with special guests (including the mayor) arriving too late at the venue. Because of that the intermission was shortened; the band only took a short break during the RPO’s rendition of In My Room. It was very interesting to see how the orchestra and band collaborated. Mind you that they only had time to talk and practice together during the afternoon prior to the show. And where normally a conductor leads the orchestra and band, in this case she had to follow the band, concentrating on both what the band did and lead the orchestra through it. And she - with the orchestra - did a heck of a job, giving many songs extra punch, or familiar studio sounds (like for example the cello in Good Vibrations). And the Beach Boys clearly appreciated that, letting us know that several times during the concert.
As you can see, compared to the set of two days earlier, they didn't just shortened it, a few other songs were thrown in as well (Catch A Wave, Kiss Me Baby, All The Love In Paris), and was reshuffled quite a bit. Also noticeable was that Scott didn’t do any leads due to a sour throat. The Boys were in good form again, clearly enjoying the collaboration with an orchestra and the location.
As said the show ended with fireworks, and it closed with the announcement that - because of the 100 year jubilee - Spido was awarded the title "Royal company" by the King of the Netherlands.
Setlist Rotterdam, July 5th 2019:
1. Overture (performed by the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra)
2. Do It Again 2. Surfin' Safari 3. Catch A Wave (ML + Eichenbacher) 5. Surfin' U.S.A. 6. Surfer Girl (band) 7. Getcha Back 8. Darlin' (Eichenbacher) 9. When I Grow Up (To Be A Man) 10. Kiss Me Baby 11. All The Love In Paris 12. Warmth Of The Sun (Eichenbacher) 13. Don't Worry Baby (Eichenbacher) 14. Little Deuce Coupe 15. I Get Around 16. Intermission / In My Room (performed by the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra) 17. California Dreamin' (Cowsill) 18. Then I Kissed Her (Eichenbacher) 19. California Girls 20. Sloop John B. (BJ/Totten + ML) 21. Wouldn't It Be Nice (Eichenbacher) the first 2 notes of I Write The Songs are played/sung during the introduction of grammy winner Bruce22. Disney Girls (1957) (BJ) 23. God Only Knows (Christian Love) 24. Pisces Brothers 25. Cottonfields (Cowsill) 26. Help Me, Rhonda (Christian Love) 27. Barbara Ann (band) 28. Good Vibrations (Christian Love) 29. Kokomo 30. Fun, Fun, Fun During the fireworks the Mike Love solo track Make Love Not War was played
Locations Rotterdam concerts Nieuwe Luxor Theater (right) and Futureland, Tweede Maasvlakte (left) The stage was located at where the bus is standing  |
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Post by Steve Mayo on Jul 6, 2019 10:10:42 GMT -5
Sounds like you had a blast. Glad you had a great time thanks for the reviews.
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Post by sneakypete77 on Jul 6, 2019 10:21:22 GMT -5
Another great thread from our very own Dutch Master. Thank you Klaas for all the details you include in your posts, you really make them come to life.
You mentioned that you had spoken with Scott; does that mean you may have encountered other band members too, perhaps Mike and Bruce? Would love to hear more.
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Post by Mikie on Jul 6, 2019 11:10:50 GMT -5
Thanks, Klaas!  Was just looking at the pictures of the band that Gabriel Witteveen submitted to the Summer ESQ issue of the May 13, 1972 gig at Sportpaleis Ahoy, Rotterdam Netherlands. |
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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 6, 2019 12:25:37 GMT -5
Pictures from the Luxor Rotterdam July 3rd concert  Do You Wanna Dance?  During the car medley  Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring  God Only Knows  |
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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 6, 2019 13:24:36 GMT -5
Thanks, Klaas! Was just looking at the pictures of the band that Gabriel Witteveen submitted to the Summer ESQ issue of the May 13, 1972 gig at Sportpaleis Ahoy, Rotterdam Netherlands. Yep, great issue. Have been a loyal reader for years. We haven’t contributed that much. Did a bit of research and Gabriël provided the Ahoy pics. So I much appreciate it being mentioned anyway. |
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Post by barnyard on Jul 6, 2019 14:41:39 GMT -5
Thanks, Klaas! Was just looking at the pictures of the band that Gabriel Witteveen submitted to the Summer ESQ issue of the May 13, 1972 gig at Sportpaleis Ahoy, Rotterdam Netherlands. The Dennis Wilson picture with the mike is from the Great Western Express Festival in Lincoln, not Rotterdam. I took that picture from a magazine many years ago and recently uploaded it somewhere, probably on the @beachboyslegacy Twitter account. |
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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 6, 2019 15:36:23 GMT -5
Thanks, Klaas! Was just looking at the pictures of the band that Gabriel Witteveen submitted to the Summer ESQ issue of the May 13, 1972 gig at Sportpaleis Ahoy, Rotterdam Netherlands. The Dennis Wilson picture with the mike is from the Great Western Express Festival in Lincoln, not Rotterdam. I took that picture from a magazine many years ago and recently uploaded it somewhere, probably on the @beachboyslegacy Twitter account.
I noticed that as well. We delivered another pic with Dennis and Blondie from that Ahoy concert. But I assume somehow that picture and the one shown in the mag got mixed up.
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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 6, 2019 16:18:01 GMT -5
Pictures and videosnippets from the Futureland, Tweede Maasvlakte Rotterdam July 5th concertArriving at the stage  At the dock, waiting for the ships to arrive  The promenade from the dock to the stage  The stage; the screen shows pictures of the Spido company from the early days  The first ship arrives; this one is well on time  Mike checking the stage – I think there two at most that recognized him (I was one of them); everybody kept chatting and drinking…  VIDEO-snippet: The orchestra starts with an overture The band joins, starting with Do It Again  VIDEO-snippet: Surfer Girl VIDEO-snippet: Kiss Me Baby During the shortened car-medley  Fun, Fun, Fun with Fireworks  VIDEO-snippet: Fun, Fun, Fun with Fireworks …and goodbye ! 
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Post by lonesurf on Jul 6, 2019 18:48:09 GMT -5
Great reviews and a wonderful thread. Looks like you had a wonderful week.
Thank you!
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Post by Autotune on Jul 7, 2019 10:03:11 GMT -5
Overall this seems like a great tour of Europe. I’ve been watching the Paris concert on YT and it is a pretty damn great show. I can’t help but notice that the guys look and sound rejuvenated. Bruce sounds great, and for Mike this reminds me of his vocal rebirth of 2008 or so, when he started singing in a smoother, effortless way. He also seems to have lost some weight in recent pictures (particularly those on the beach from 7/4) and seems more agile and dynamic on stage. Brian Ike provides a soulful and meaty high range, and specially a thick sound in the lower end of his falsetto, which is quite beautiful. This also the best Christian Love we’ve ever seen, I think. Anyway, what’s good is good. And this is good.
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Post by SMiLE-Holland on Jul 7, 2019 10:14:09 GMT -5
Another great thread from our very own Dutch Master. Thank you Klaas for all the details you include in your posts, you really make them come to life.
You mentioned that you had spoken with Scott; does that mean you may have encountered other band members too, perhaps Mike and Bruce? Would love to hear more.
I see what you did there, Peter!  I indeed had the chance to talk a bit with a few members of the band after the Luxor concert on July 3rd.
I had the chance to talk with Scott Totten after the show. And also with John Cowsill, and - at the end - Bruce Johnston. It was a very nice meeting, although it ended a bit weird.
As most of the band members had their families come over to Europe, it was (is) a holiday-time as well. That is, when there's spare time between the concerts. Which is not a lot, as this tour through Europe has a busy schedule. July 4th - how appropriate - happened to be a free day for the band, the next concert at the Tweede Maasvlakte being the 5th and with practice scheduled on that afternoon. Most of you probably already read Mike's FB post on their (family) visit to Knokke Beach where the BB had given a concert in 1987. I assume others took the time to cruise or walk around the area as well. When I met Scott after the Rotterdam Luxor concert, we talked about the next day off, a bit of family life, and of course the concert itself, and the upcoming concert at the Maasvlakte.
Then John passed by, was stopped by Scott to introduce me (calling me the biggest BB collector from Europe...), and we shaked hands. I took the chance to quickly grab a few South African single pressings of the Cowsills as a present. And he actually became very enthusiastic, telling us he wasn't sure he had these already. It seemed I found me another collector ! So the gift was appreciated. Can't say if they were rare as they were pretty popular there as well at the time. I was able to find them relatively easy as I visit South Africa regularly, but one rarely sees them being offered on Ebay and such.
Then my visit back stage took a strange turn. The conversations shifted to the Bruce Johnston Radio Veronica jingle (see the Baambrugge topic for more info on that jingle). And I grabbed my copy of a Dutch promo single with that jingle on it; all 5 seconds of it! (hey, you never know if someone's in the mood to sign something...). Then we got curious if Bruce remembered anything about it at all and Scott suggested to ask him about it. Bruce was still talking with some friends, but Scott kindly interrupted and introduced me to him, which lead to a handshake with both Bruce and his lady. And it turned out, he couldn't remember recording it at all. Didn't know about the single either. Or as he told me: " I couldn't care less about it". When I asked him, he was very kind for me to sign the sleeve. And then it went a bit surreal - he wanted to hear it, and I was suggested to look it up on Youtube. Conveniently, I had uploaded that jingle (the recording/built-up stage of the jingle), so I picked out my iPhone, sat next to hem and held the device to his ear.... After hearing a few seconds of it, he was clear in his verdict: "that's rubbish!" Stupid me did try to convince him that anything on YT sounds rubbish and that the jingle obviously was appreciated a lot by Radio Veronica, as they had played for many years. But he then replied saying "he could hear it well enough to tell it was rubbish anyway." . Hey, I didn't record it, so who am I to think otherwise, right? 
So while I was thinking how to turn this conversation into something else, one of the managers announced the taxies had arrived, and the band + entourage was kindly urged to pack up and walk outside. Guests were allowed to follow the same route. After a quick goodbye (heck, I again forgot to get a picture with Scott), we went down the stairs, and once outside split ways. A sudden end to a wonderful and unique meeting.
And just in case you wondered; throughout the conversation with Bruce was nice and friendly, if perhaps only a bit awkward. But imagine being one of the BB veterans, just having a played yet another 2 1/2 hour set, resting and enjoying some company, and at 11PM all of a sudden some weird Dutch collector asks you - of all things - if he can tell a bit about a Dutch jingle he recorded. I mean, who bothers anyway?! So I'm glad he took the time and told me what he thought about it, 48 1/2 years after the actual recording.
And if I haven't said it before, the band is really a cool bunch of people, and take their time to talk with you. It was an honour to have met some of them. If you ever have the chance to meet them, do so!
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I indeed had the chance to talk a bit with a few members of the band after the Luxor concert on July 3rd.