By Steve Marinucci
Published September 11, 1992, San Jose (CA) Mercury News
WITH their first album of the '90s, the Beach Boys are riding the waves of both the past and future.
''Summer in Paradise," their first album since 1987's "Still Cruisin' ," features a mix of new songs and remakes of old ones. The record was made completely on computer, utilizing the latest Silicon Valley technology. (In support of the album, the group performs Sunday at Shoreline Amphitheatre.)
The songs include an updated version of "Surfin,' " the band's first song, recorded in 1961.
''We wanted to do 'Surfin' ' as if we had started in the '90s," says singer-songwriter Bruce Johnston, 50, a member of the group since 1965.
In his room
One of the most notable differences between the original and the new version is the absence of composer and guiding light Brian Wilson, who isn't on "Summer in Paradise" at all.
Wilson was removed from the care of his controversial former therapist, Eugene Landy, last December in a ruling on a conservatorship suit initiated by Wilson's cousin, Stanley Love, brother of lead singer Mike Love. Wilson, though still a Beach Boy, has seldom performed with the group in recent years.
''He's kind of on ice," says Johnston, speaking by phone from New York. "It's his choice. He still gets paid royalties, and if we perform he gets paid for live shows even though he's not there, because we just figure he's on the injured list.
''We called him several times to try to get him to sing on the album, but the former regime (Landy) . . . never let it happen."
Since the album was finished, says Johnston, Wilson has "been calling Mike (Love) and leaving messages: 'Gosh, I have this great track. You gotta come and sing on it.' " However, Johnston cautions, "This guy can barely crawl, creatively. If he's available, that doesn't mean it's gonna be world-class."
Complicating things is a lawsuit recently filed by Mike Love against Wilson. According to press reports, Wilson, who recently won a $10 million out-of-court settlement for lost songwriting royalties against Irving Music Co., holder of the copyrights on Wilson and Love's Beach Boy hits, is now being sued by Love for $50 million.
''It's exactly the lawsuit Brian filed with the people who owned the publishing (rights)," Johnston says. "Mike claims that Brian's father and Brian did not credit him for any of the songs, like 'California Girls,' 'I Get Around' and 'Fun Fun Fun.' Mike was a young lead singer, chasing after girls when this was all happening, and didn't really think about it."
The Beach Boys rank as one of the oldest performing bands in rock 'n' roll, but the group relied on up-to-the-minute technology while making "Summer in Paradise."
Wouldn't it be nice?
Johnson says the recording and mixing were done entirely on computer, an "all-digital tapeless recording on a Quadra 900 Mac (Macintosh), which is their top of the line. Nothing ever went on tape. . . . It was all recorded into the computer using a company in Menlo Park (and a) Digidesign Pro Tools' 16 track." The Beach Boys are thought to have a large library of unreleased tapes, but Johnston says there are no plans to release any of them, including Brian Wilson's unfinished symphony, "Smile."
''There's nothing brilliant sitting in the can that should come out," says Johnston. "Believe me, if we had something wonderful, it would have been out." Although the group's long string of hits provides a constant income, Johnston says it is also something of a millstone.
''We are a . . . victim of the repackage. A lot of people find their parents' albums, and they go and listen to them and then they buy a Beach Boy album that's a repackage that takes a couple of tracks from each album. So they're not always aware of some of the art treasures."
They get around
Johnston says he's considering doing a solo project for release just in Japan. "I don't want to do one in America, because I don't think they matter after a certain age. I think it's more important to be thinking about how to keep your band strong."
But he quickly adds that the Beach Boys want to continue spreading the message of fun, fun, fun with both old and new songs.
''None of us would do it if we couldn't make an album once in a while or have a hit single.
''It sure it would be boring to only do hits."
Beach Boys
(box) Where: Shoreline Amphitheatre, 1 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View
(box) When: 7 p.m. Sunday
(box) Tickets: $12.50 lawn, $22.50 reserved
(box) Call: (408) 998-2277 or (510) 762-2277
