A while back I was sitting at home watching "The List" on VH-1. The catagory was best comeback in rock history. Some of the names that were bantered about included Tina Turner, Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, and I think David Crosby. What shocked me was that none of the morons who were there that night mentioned Brian Wilson. How is that possible you ask? Well, to give you an idea of how stupid the guests on that show can be, I remember watching once when the catagory was best rock and roll movie. One of the guests was the actress Sherilyn Fenn. Her choice for the best rock movie of all time was, and I’m not making this up, "Spiceworld!" She actually said that on national T.V. Jesus wept!

Anyway, back to Brian Wilson. There has never been a comeback of this magnitude in the 45 year history of rock and roll. Nothing comes close. And unless you find yourself waiting in line next week for Jim Morrison or Elvis Presley tickets, nothing will ever come close. The fact that he’s back on stage, looking and sounding great, is nothing short of a miracle. It’s been 35 years since he’s fronted the Beach Boys.

"Live At The Roxy Theatre" is a celebration of this monumental and joyous event. It is a two CD set of Brian and his 10 piece band. The recording is crystal clear and, needless to say, I was blown away by it. Disc one includes "The Little Girl I Once Knew," "This Whole World," "Don’t Worry Baby," "Kiss Me Baby," "Do It Again," "California Girls," "I Get Around," "Back Home," "In My Room," "Surfer Girl," "The First Time," "This Isn’t Love," "Add Some Music To Your Day," and "Please Let Me Wonder." There’s lots of chatter between songs creating a warm and intimate feel.

The second disc includes "Til I Die," "Darlin’," Let’s Go Away For Awhile," "Pet Sounds," "God Only Knows," "Lay Down Burden," "Be My Baby," "Good Vibrations," "Caroline No," "All Summer Long,"and "Love And Mercy." The song "Pet Sounds" is the instrumental track from the album of the same name. Brian’s current summer tour features a full orchestra which Brian uses to perform the entire "Pet Sounds" album. These discs mirror his tour from a year ago and do not include the orchestra that Brian brought with him to the Uncas Pavilion last month or will have with him at Oakdale next month.

Brian sure did surround himself with a great team of musicians. Nearly all of them are multi- instrumentalists and nearly all of them sing. The harmonies are wonderful. I just can’t emphasize enough how much I love these discs. As a lifelong fan of the Beach Boys and especially of Brian Wilson I have to say that hearing this music, seeing some of his shows, getting to meet him and getting to talk to him has been a dream come true.

*****

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