{"id":629471,"date":"2026-10-13T16:24:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-13T16:24:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/629471\/"},"modified":"2026-10-13T16:24:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-13T16:24:10","slug":"al-jardine-on-his-beach-boys-reunion-show-mike-loves-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/629471\/","title":{"rendered":"Al Jardine on His Beach Boys Reunion Show, Mike Love’s Health"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tWhen Al Jardine<\/a> phones up Rolling Stone, it\u2019s a little over 12 hours since he got offstage at his surprise reunion concert<\/a> with former Beach Boys<\/a> bandmates Bruce Johnston and David Marks at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts in Cerritos, California. It was an incredible night of music that also featured unannounced appearances from Carnie Wilson, Marilyn Wilson, and Jan and Dean\u2019s Dean Torrence<\/a>. Jardine calls us shortly before boarding a flight, and continues the conversation once he takes his seat and awaits takeoff.<\/p>\n

\n\tThere\u2019s much to discuss. The Cerritos show marked Jardine\u2019s first time sharing the stage with Johnston in well over a decade, the live debut of the 1979 Beach Boys deep cut \u201cIt\u2019s a Beautiful Day,\u201d a rare opportunity for fans to see Marks play classics like \u201cSurfin\u2019 Safari\u201d and \u201cLittle Deuce Coupe\u201d that he recorded as a teenager in the early 1960s, and only the second time that Marilyn Wilson has performed the Beach Boys Love You favorite \u201cLet\u2019s Put Our Hearts Together\u201d since laying down the original vocal in 1977.<\/p>\n

\n\tBy total coincidence, this was taking place at almost the exact same time<\/a> that a frail Mike Love<\/a> was playing a show 2,000 miles away at Nashville\u2019s Ryman Auditorium, which could wind up being his final public performance after well over 7,000 concerts across the past 65 years. Jardine isn\u2019t in regular contact with Love, and they\u2019ve had their disagreements over the years, but it was still devastating for him to witness his former bandmate in his condition, even from afar. But we started the conversation with the happier topic of the Cerritos show.<\/p>\n

\n\tHow was last night?
It was great. It was a huge, huge show. It felt like a reunion of sorts. Bruce, David, and Dean all joined me for the encore. There was good energy, very positive.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhen did you start planning that show?
It\u2019s been on the books for about six months.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhy did you want that one to be special with so many guests?
I guess because it\u2019s an L.A. show. We had an opportunity to do one of my favorite songs about L.A. called \u201cIt\u2019s a Beautiful Day.\u201d It\u2019s the first time ever performed. It went over great. The band loves the song. It\u2019s a tribute to L.A. with Carl signing the refrain. He sounds magnificent. It\u2019s an outtake from a couple of sessions we did. It\u2019s really clever. It has an open, welcoming feeling to it. I always remember Carl singing the refrain. I loved it.<\/p>\n

\t\tEditor\u2019s picks<\/p>\n

\n\tTell me about getting Bruce Johnston to perform with you.
Bruce and I have been communicating for a while, just talking, chatting, because he just was no longer touring with Mike. So we had a chance to catch up and I invited him to the show because I thought we\u2019re coming to L.A., why not bring out the old gang together, me and him, and just have some fun? And we had a very short rehearsal. As most things go, the show is always better when you have your friends around you, companions, familiar faces and good energy. And let\u2019s not gorget about Dave, for God\u2019s sake.<\/p>\n

\n\tDave was the biggest surprise because he carried the load. He was a totally different David Marks. He came right up there and did all the right parts, sang great. He did Mike\u2019s leads on a couple of songs, and I backed him up and tried to make him feel comfortable because he hadn\u2019t sung for months. It was a long time he hadn\u2019t been on a stage and he was overwhelmed. He was emotionally fulfilled, he said. It was the best night of his life. Isn\u2019t that great?<\/p>\n

\n\tYeah. I love seeing him play the parts he originated back in 1962.
Yeah. But now, he\u2019s singing lead. And he didn\u2019t sing that much before. Not at all, really. Now, he\u2019s totally reborn. So between he and Bruce, they were singing together for a while on the mic all on the encore and they were just taking over the show. I just was glad to be there.<\/p>\n

\t\tRelated Content<\/p>\n

\n\tDean Torrence too.
He actually did his classic falsetto parts on my mic. I couldn\u2019t believe I was listening to \u201cBarbara Ann\u201d again, because he\u2019s the one that double-tracked Brian on that song. And I thought, \u201cHey, he can still do it.\u201d It was fun.<\/p>\n

\n\tCarnie and Marilyn also came out.
Oh my gosh. There\u2019s so much dynamics up there. Marilyn did a great job. She was just perfect, as usual. I mean, everyone up there had credentials. They were way overqualified. I felt like, \u201cWell, what am I doing here?\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tYou certainly belong there too. It was your band.
Well, yeah, but the truth is I\u2019m just riding the wave right now. I\u2019m an excellent surfer. I\u2019m just on top of the wave.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhat\u2019s it been like emotionally reconnecting with Bruce? I\u2019d imagine you hadn\u2019t really talked for a long time.
No, we didn\u2019t talk at all for a while and I felt bad for him when he got jettisoned from the Love band. So that\u2019s what\u2019s kindled it really.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tHe offered to come, and he didn\u2019t want to do more than two songs. I said, \u201cWhy don\u2019t you just stick around and sing some of the Pet Sounds stuff with us? Because you were on the recording.\u201d And he said, \u201cNo, I just want to do those two songs, and that\u2019s that.\u201d He was very emphatic. He usually knows just how to set the borders. But he did join us on the encore.<\/p>\n

\n\tDo you know why Mike jettisoned him?
Yeah. We talked about it. Well, I don\u2019t believe there\u2019s an answer. Bruce just felt it was time for him\u2026 He said, \u201cIt was time for me to go,\u201d because he could see it going south. That\u2019s really basically what he told me.<\/p>\n

\n\tGoing south in terms of Mike\u2019s health?
I\u2019m sure that\u2019s part of it because when you\u2019ve been with someone for 65 years, you can see if changes are happening. You\u2019ll notice. So I assume that\u2019s probably what he saw, but just generally he didn\u2019t want to be part of that any longer. That was his way of putting it.<\/p>\n

\n\tTell me a little more about what it meant for you to be up there with so many old friends.
Oh, it\u2019s great. They\u2019re the best background singers on the planet right behind me. I had a wonderful mix. Normally, I\u2019m not that happy with the sound. But we spent a lot of time sound-checking, so we finally got our blends together, and it was powerful. And singing with the old crew, and my new band\u2026these guys are so sharp. Of course, [keyboardist] Darian [Sahanaja]<\/a> rehearses the guys relentlessly, and it really pays off.<\/p>\n

\n\tDo you know who is the unsung hero of the band? [Keyboardist] Debbie Shair. She makes the show possible because of her genuine love of the music. She\u2019s on so many levels better than the rest of us. I know it sounds weird that I\u2019m gushing. But I told her the other night, \u201cDebbie, the light was on you tonight.\u201d Not only is she beautiful, but when she performs, she does everything that the guys wish they could do, technically. She helps everyone set up the show before the show could even be possible. And then she has one of the best voices onstage.<\/p>\n

\n\tDuring \u201cSloop John B,\u201d the teleprompter went down. Fortunately, I know the lyrics, so I really don\u2019t need it. But it was bouncing around and not functioning right, even before that. I had to be on my own cognizance. But she ran over to my wife, MaryAnn, the teleprompter person. She runs over, resets the teleprompter, since it\u2019s on the same wifi as her cellphone. She fixes the glitch, and runs back before the song is over, and we\u2019re ready for the next one. I don\u2019t know what she can\u2019t do. She\u2019s going to be very embarrassed, but she never gets any credit for anything.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd unlike the Beach Boys, we\u2019re allowed to have a female in our band. Believe it or not, the license prohibits that in the Beach Boys. It\u2019s one of those funny deals that I can never figure out. We used to have Toni Tennille in the band, but that\u2019s when we were all Beach Boys.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tIn this case, I\u2019m blessed with Debbie. She\u2019s Darian\u2019s significant other. She\u2019s always played second fiddle, but she plays her butt off, and sings great. And she\u2019s the joy factor. She gets into every song, and she actually dances during \u201cJohnny Carson.\u201d You\u2019ll see actual choreography there, which she invented herself. That\u2019s nothing she can\u2019t do.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tWhat\u2019s the plan for next year? Are you booking more shows?
There aren\u2019t a whole lot of things on the book, but I permitted the agent to book a couple of shows just to have them in our pocket, just to see how things flesh out with Mike and what he\u2019s going through. It\u2019s so sad to see him in that condition that it\u2019s hard to make plans. I don\u2019t know. I\u2019m just going to do what I\u2019ve been doing until something else happens. But right now, this band is so sharp, I haven\u2019t got really any other motive to do anything else.<\/p>\n

\n\tAre you hoping to bring out Bruce and David at future shows?
It\u2019s really up to Bruce. He\u2019s got so much going on now. He said to me, \u201cI didn\u2019t know I\u2019d ever be this famous.\u201d It\u2019s funny because people all want a Q&A with Bruce or a story or a new song. He\u2019s always got something going on, so he\u2019s really happy. But he\u2019ll come to some of the bigger\u2026I would say the higher profile events. He would love to come to those kinds of things, but he doesn\u2019t want to be tied down, let\u2019s put it that way.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tAnd I don\u2019t know about David. David\u2019s health is getting better and he sounds great. We\u2019ll just see what happens. Right now, probably more of the California-based shows, but we\u2019ll see. We\u2019ll see if there\u2019s a demand for it. Someone has to ask for that kind of a show, and then we can talk about it.<\/p>\n

\n\tMight you invite Blondie Chaplin to some future shows?
Definitely. He was going to come to this one, but I think for health reasons, he wasn\u2019t able to make it this time. So we\u2019ll see. We\u2019ll see what happens.<\/p>\n

\n\tHave you seen the footage at Mike at the last couple of Beach Boys concerts?
Well, yes, it\u2019s shocking and I was really depressed. I had to really shake myself out of it just to get onstage. Just the optics of it were just awful and I\u2019m speechless.<\/p>\n

\n\tI can\u2019t imagine they\u2019re going to do many shows with him like that.
I would hope not. That\u2019s just not right, that I can see. Obviously, he\u2019s a total pro. He wants to be onstage, but he just doesn\u2019t know how not to do it. He doesn\u2019t know what else to do, so I think he\u2019s trapped.<\/p>\n

\n\tIf he can\u2019t play shows any more, what happens to the Beach Boys name?
I think the brand will go on and on and on. I don\u2019t know about performing. Performance-wise, I haven\u2019t a clue what would happen. We\u2019ll find out. I don\u2019t know if I want to be called the Beach Boys or not. But if it made sense, if there was some sense to tie that into the Pet Sounds Band name. It\u2019s hard to get all those words. But if there\u2019s a way to combine the bands in a way that made sense, that might fly.<\/p>\n

\n\tIrving Azoff\u2019s Iconic Artists Group bought the Beach Boys brand.<\/a> Is he the one who will determine who can tour under that name?
That\u2019s a very good question. To be honest with you, I don\u2019t know. Knowing Irving, he probably has something to say about it. He bought our brand, and he\u2019s really buying publishing. That\u2019s really what these guys do. They buy publishing. I don\u2019t know how he feels about the performance band, to be honest with you.<\/p>\n

\n\tI could imagine something like the Beach Boys featuring Al Jardine and the Pet Sounds Band.
I\u2019d be honored if it came to that. There\u2019s a complexity to it, but it\u2019s also a good one. It works. I don\u2019t know if I can get my buddies, the other Beach Boys, to come out at every show though. We\u2019ll see what happens.<\/p>\n

\n\tCould the current band just kept touring as the Beach Boys without Mike?
Well, you need the lead singers. If you don\u2019t have that, who do you have? I mean, at least I can still sing, so that really helps.<\/p>\n

\n\tThat definitely helps indeed.
Actually, I do a darn good job. I pride myself with being almost as good as Mike on his leads, because someone has to do them. I mean, it\u2019s just the way it is. And I always enjoy doing them, so that really helps. If you don\u2019t enjoy it, don\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe timing of the show was pretty bizarre in that you\u2019re doing this grand reunion with Bruce, David, and Dean while Mike was doing what could be his last concert in Nashville.
Isn\u2019t that ironic? That\u2019s so true. It wasn\u2019t lost on me either. But being hyper-focused, I wasn\u2019t focused on that. We had a lot of guest stars up there.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tYeah. Carnie was great too.
She introduced her husband, Rob, who is an extraordinary guitar player, ten times better than me, and her mother. We\u2019re just loaded with talent. It\u2019s amazing. I mean, [keyboardist] Gary Griffin has been in the band for eons. He\u2019s our Dennis Wilson voice now. He does that character. He also does some of Mike\u2019s leads.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe thing we wanted to do, but couldn\u2019t because of Mike\u2019s obviously failing health, was a shtick with Gary singing Mike\u2019s leads since he sounds just like Mike. He has that look down. And it was meant to be fun, not ridiculing. It added a dimension. But we wanted to keep it straight. Gary has been with us since M.I.U. [Album] 50 years ago. Can you believe it? \u201cIt\u2019s a Beautiful Day\u201d is a hidden gem, and the crowd loved it because it has that refrain \u201cliving out in L.A.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tNext year is the 60-year Smile anniversary. Are you going to add more of those songs into your set?
Geez. Wow. We\u2019ve fantasized going back to London and re-imagining the Love You album there like Brian did Smile at the Royal Festival Hall. And I think that\u2019s what we\u2019d like to do, is just go on beyond Smile. I have to look at Darian. I mean, he\u2019s really up to his neck in so many things and so many of these albums. We just have to hope Darian can hold up under the pressure because that\u2019s a task. But thank God we have most of the players who\u2019ve been there and done that, so that\u2019s our plus, is that these guys are already well-honed in all of the practical matters. Musically, I mean. I\u2019d enjoy doing at least a week of it maybe, but again, that\u2019s up to Darian.<\/p>\n

\n\tDoing a week of Love You as opposed to Smile, right?
Yeah. I\u2019d rather focus on Love You than Smile, to be honest with you.<\/p>\n

\n\tDo you think Mike should stop doing these shows?
I think he needs to repair himself too. But see, he\u2019s a consummate professional. He lives for the stage, so I don\u2019t think any amount of coercion or suggestion is going to change his mind. He lives for that.<\/p>\n

\n\tI\u2019d imagine you wouldn\u2019t want to be on a concert stage in that condition.
No, I wouldn\u2019t want to be put in a wheelchair and go out and attempt to\u2026Well, what we do is sing. That\u2019s our job. That\u2019s what we do. We sing, we\u2019re professionals, and you can\u2019t do that in his condition now. So I would think at some point, he\u2019ll\u2026 He\u2019s probably trying to pass the torch, is what I\u2019m thinking. We\u2019ve never really talked about it, but that\u2019s what it feels like. Maybe to his son. And him being there is a symbol.<\/p>\n

\n\tDoesn\u2019t logic dictate that the Beach Boys torch goes to you?
Well, and the Pet Sounds Band. Holy crap. I mean, I\u2019m sitting on a rocket, on a booster rocket right now. I can hardly keep up with these guys. And it\u2019s nice to be able to stand there and just listen to the background harmonies. I often tell the crowd, \u201cIt\u2019s like being in a studio in front of an audience now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIt\u2019s so clear. It\u2019s so nice to hear that. And these are just regular guys. They\u2019re not professional, union singers. They\u2019re just guys that Darian had the wisdom to insert into the band.<\/p>\n

\n\tDo you think about Brian a lot when you\u2019re onstage?
Oh yeah, I always do, on \u201cSolar System\u201d especially. I love that one because I tell the story about Marilyn and him going to the astronomy class at UCLA. That\u2019s one of my favorite stories, and about how he played the song for the students. And they really liked it, but the teacher said, \u201cI don\u2019t think that\u2019s going to go very far, Brian.\u201d I always tell those little stories because it\u2019s true. Marilyn told me herself. And I had no idea he took a night school in astronomy.<\/p>\n

\n\tI love that you\u2019re playing songs like that. The Beach Boys live experience for so many years, decades even, was basically the same 25 or so hits.\u00a0
Exactly! It got to be like a traveling jukebox, which we joked about, but that\u2019s exactly what it was. And now I have a chance, thanks to all this additional talent, to extend the career by quite a ways, and even go back 50 years and catch ones we haven\u2019t done before.<\/p>\n

\n\tI wrote the last verse to \u201cIt\u2019s a Beautiful Day\u201d before soundcheck. And Debbie caught it. She caught me rehearsing it, put it on her phone, sent it to the teleprompter, and it was on the teleprompter before I even finished soundcheck. The lyrics are so weird. When we wrote it, I don\u2019t know what Mike and I were doing, since we didn\u2019t do drugs. But it didn\u2019t make sense, and I was having trouble memorizing it, so I wrote a new one. I thought, \u201cYou know what, I can do better than this.\u201d Debbie doesn\u2019t miss a thing. She also makes Darian laugh, which isn\u2019t easy. The two of them were built for each other, and they compete with each other in a really quiet way. [Laughs] As a woman being surrounded by men, she handles that really well. She\u2019s kind of like my wife. They are compatriots. They don\u2019t take no for an answer. They know what they\u2019re talking. There\u2019s no bullshit there.<\/p>\n

\n\tAre you hoping you\u2019ll be able to do a bunch of shows next year?
Well, I\u2019ll have the energy if we have the right transportation. Right now, we\u2019re doing airports, and it\u2019s pretty crowded now and it\u2019s pretty rough. Mike has a NetJet, believe it or not. He actually can avoid some of these difficult holidays and stuff because he has an interest in this company called NetJet. I may have to graduate. I may have to ask for Mike\u2019s ticket to ride.<\/p>\n

\n\tYou really do need an airplane.
Yeah, I need an airplane. Or a bus. It was more fun with the Brian band, well, Pet Sounds band I\u2019ll call it, when we had our own bus. That was really cool. Never had to go to an airport. We all were able to talk about the show afterwards. We could watch a movie. We could get good rest. And that\u2019s how I think we\u2019re going to do it. That would be my guess.<\/p>\n

\n\tSo if you had that bus, you\u2019d be prepared to be gone from home for months at a time and really tour hard?
Yes. If we can get a proper itinerary. That\u2019s been the problem lately is that we\u2019ve been hopscotching all over the country with one-offs, and that\u2019s been a burnout for me. I think we can fix that, especially when the price of fuel goes down.<\/p>\n

\t\tTrending Stories<\/p>\n

\n\tIf Mike\u2019s not out there competing with you, you\u2019d think demand would go up.
That\u2019s a good point. But I feel so bad for him. I really do.<\/p>\n

\n\tHe had a great chance to say goodbye to the fans at the Ryman.
It\u2019s really tough to quit something that you\u2019ve been doing for 65 years. We can\u2019t imagine life any other way. It might work better if Mike were on the side, sitting in the wings, rather than that center position. I don\u2019t know whose bright idea that was. But I really pity his situation, as we all do. It\u2019s horrible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When Al Jardine phones up Rolling Stone, it\u2019s a little over 12 hours since he got offstage at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":629472,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[152478,143213,156,266388,157,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-629471","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-al-jardine","tag-beach-boys","tag-entertainment","tag-mike-love","tag-music","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629471","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=629471"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/629471\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/629472"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=629471"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=629471"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=629471"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}