After months of last-minute cancellations and vague statements about Mike Love‘s health, the Beach Boys returned to the stage Saturday night at Cincinnati’s PNC Pavilion for their first public show since July. Before the music began, longtime band guest John Stamos took the stage and addressed the crowd. (Rolling Stone report).
“[Mike] is here tonight,” he said. “He’s been going through some health issues. He’s had to cancel some shows. But he would not miss tonight. We sort of said ‘stay home,’ but he was like, ‘No, I’m going to Cincinnati.’ … It’s what he loves the most. He loves the audience. He loves the music. He knows how important it is to all of you. We’re all here to support him and give him as much love as we can. So ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to Beach Boys.” Stamos then walked an alarmingly frail Love onto the stage and sat him in a chair, where he remained for the duration of the night.
In keeping with longtime tradition, they opened with “Do It Again.” Love usually handles the lead vocals on this song, but guitarist Brian Eichenberger sang it instead. The next tune, “Surfin’ Safari,” was handled by Mike’s son and longtime bandmate Christian Love, even though that’s another one traditionally done by his father. And for the remainder of the night, members of the band traded off lead vocals, with Mike Love joining in on background vocals at times. He didn’t say much, but did muster “thank you for showing up” after the opening song.
