On August 8, Rieley sent the band a six-page memo that explained how to stimulate "increased record sales and popularity". At the end of August, the group's latest record Sunflower was released as their first album on Reprise Records. It became the worst-selling album in the group's history. Band promoter and co-manager Fred Vail remembered one meeting with the band in which "we were talking about ... Sunflower not charting, and they were wondering why. I said to them, 'Listen, this is a phase right now. If you stay the course, your real audience won't forget you. They won't desert you.' But the Beach Boys really didn't believe in themselves." Vail was soon replaced by Rieley, primarily at the instigation of Love and Johnston.
Some of Rieley's earliest initiatives were to end the group's practice of wearing matching stage uniforms and to appoint Carl Wilson as the band's official leader. The group spent the majority of September and October rehearsing for upcoming concerts. On October 3, at the invitation of Van Dyke Parks, the band performed two sets at the eighth annual Big Sur Folk Festival in California to an audience of 6,000. According to music historian Keith Badman, the performances "help[ed] to establish the group's image in the eyes of the rock hierarchy, and they were subsequently 'rediscovered' as an important live act." Biographer David Leaf wrote that the concert inspired what was effectively an apologetic review from Rolling Stone co-founder Jann Wenner, who previously criticized the band for pulling out of the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival. A rumor circulated among news outlets that Brian was then writing music with Parks for an upcoming Beach Boys television special, H-2-0.
In early November, Brian temporarily rejoined the touring band to play four dates at the Whisky a Go Go. The group had not played a concert in Los Angeles since 1966, while Brian had not performed with the touring group since early 1970, when he briefly filled in for Love.. Guitarist Ed Carter and keyboardist Daryl Dragon accompanied the band on this tour, along with supporting act the Flame. Reports from this period suggested that the group was planning to move from Los Angeles to Britain once their recording commitments were finished. From January to early April 1971, they worked intermittently on their second album for Reprise.
Rieley encouraged them to write songs with more socially conscious and topical lyrics, although he stated in a 2013 interview, "It was not part of a master plan. ... We never had any 'What are we gonna write about?' meeting. Never once did anything like that ever occur." He assigned the project the brief working title of Landlocked to represent "a demarcation line, separating striped-shirted bullshit that had become irrelevant, an object of public scorn, from artistry, creativity and great new songs." An album cover was designed with this title, featuring white sans-serif letters printed atop a photograph of a dark field.
In 1974, Rieley stated that his growing involvement with the songwriting process attracted the ire of Love, Johnston, and Al Jardine, who "tried to force me to march into Mo Ostin's and sell him on their 1969 track 'Loop De Loop'". I refused and Brian, Dennis, and Carl backed me up." Due to Brian's reduced involvement, the vocal arrangements were not as dense as those for Sunflower. Johnston recalled, "It was strange to be doing vocal arrangements to make it sound like the Beach Boys when we were the Beach Boys. That's a little weird to me."
Dennis Wilson's songs "4th of July" and "(Wouldn't It Be Nice to) Live Again" were recorded in early 1971 but left off the record. In a September 1971 interview, Dennis stated, "I have a belief in my music. And it sounds nothing like it should on the album – it should have a flow from one song to another ... It didn't sound like The Beach Boys. They thought it did. I said ‘Bullshit’ and pulled my songs off." According to Rieley, the absence of any Dennis songs on Surf's Up was for two reasons: to quell political infighting within the group concerning the album's share of Wilson-brother songs, and because Dennis wanted to save his songs for a solo album, projected for release in 1971.
Rieley arranged for the group to appear in a series of commercials with the tagline "It's now safe to listen to the Beach Boys." He also arranged a guest appearance at a Grateful Dead concert at Bill Graham's Fillmore East in April 1971 to foreground the band's transition into the counterculture. For their performances this year, the Beach Boys enlisted a full horn section and additional percussionists. A journalist who attended the show later reported that Bob Dylan, who was watching from the sound booth, remarked aloud, "You know, they're pretty fucking good." Contrary to what is later written of the show, the Grateful Dead's audience was unfavorable toward the Beach Boys' appearance. On May 1, the band performed at The Peace Treaty Celebration Rock Show, an anti-war rally concert organized by the Mayday Collective, with approximately 500,000 people in attendance. Footage of the band performing "Student Demonstration Time" later appeared in the 1985 documentary An American Band.
On October 28, the Beach Boys were the featured cover story on that date's issue of Rolling Stone. It included the first part of a lengthy two-part interview, titled "The Beach Boys: A California Saga", conducted by journalists Tom Nolan and David Felton. Unusually, the story devoted minimal attention to the group's music, and instead focused on the band's internal dynamics and history, particularly around the period when they fell out of step with the 1960s counterculture. At the end of the month, Surf's Up peaked on the U.S. charts at number 29, becoming their highest-charting album there since Wild Honey (1967).
Music critic John Bush wrote "[Most of the] songs are enjoyable enough, but the last three tracks are what make Surf's Up such a masterpiece." Mojo critic Ross Bennett regarded Surf's Up as "the definitive version" of the Smile recordings, "with those crystalline vocals imbuing Parks' cryptic verses with a grace and simplicity missing from the 2004 reboot". Keith Phipps from The A.V. Club called it "the darkest album of the group's career, a record that also spotlighted a growing social conscience".
Credits per Craig Slowinski.
Badman 2004, p. 273. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 273. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 273. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 273. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
White, Timothy (2000). Sunflower/Surf's Up (CD Liner). The Beach Boys. Capitol Records. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved November 2, 2014. /wiki/Timothy_White_(editor)
Carlin 2006, p. 154. - Carlin, Peter Ames (2006). Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. Rodale. ISBN 978-1-59486-320-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=eYyovo_AbqAC
Badman 2004, p. 275. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, pp. 275, 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Nick Grillo remained the band's business manager until December 1971.[9]
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
From August 13 to late October, Dennis shot his parts for the Universal Pictures road movie Two-Lane Blacktop. Due to these commitments, he did not attend the rehearsals or the concerts, and was replaced by Mike Kowalski.[10] /wiki/Universal_Pictures
Leaf 1978, p. 138. - Leaf, David (1978). The Beach Boys and the California Myth. New York: Grosset & Dunlap. ISBN 978-0-448-14626-3. https://archive.org/details/beachboyscalifor00leaf
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 278. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, pp. 264, 278. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Brian only played the first two nights, as he experienced a panic attack on the second.[12]
Badman 2004, pp. 278–279. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Rieley later told a radio interview, "From an artistic stance, it was a disastrous tour" due to the Beach Boys' dissatisfactory performances.[15]
Badman 2004, p. 283. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
In one report, Rieley said they were "definitely leaving Los Angeles because of the smog."[16] /wiki/Smog
Badman 2004, p. 288. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 288. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
"Surf's Up" (portions recorded in 1966), "Take a Load Off Your Feet" (portions recorded in January 1970), "'Til I Die" (portions recorded in August 1970), and "Student Demonstration Time" (portions recorded in November 1970).[18] /wiki/%27Til_I_Die
Badman 2004, p. 274. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
These songs were "Loop de Loop", "Susie Cincinnati", "San Miguel", "H.E.L.P. Is On the Way", "Take a Load Off Your Feet", "Carnival", "I Just Got My Pay", "Good Time", "Big Sur", "Lady", "When Girls Get Together", "Lookin' at Tomorrow", and "'Til I Die".[20] /wiki/Loop_de_Loop
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
"The Life of RIELEY". Record Collector Mag. September 6, 2013. Archived from the original on September 26, 2013. Retrieved March 25, 2021. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; September 23, 2013 suggested (help) https://recordcollectormag.com/articles/the-life-of-rieley
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
It was long thought that Landlocked was a complete album that was scrapped by the Beach Boys in between Sunflower and Surf's Up, but this was not true.[20] Writing in The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary, Keith Badman states that Landlocked was nothing more than a provisional title for Surf's Up,[4] and in a February 1970 interview, the group referred to the Second Brother Album acetate as tracks that "might be on an album, but it's not a new album".[19]
Badman 2004, p. 297. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Desper, Stephen W. (October 14, 2021). "Re: Message From Stephen Desper". Endless Harmony Forum. Archived from the original on October 24, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021. /wiki/Stephen_Desper
Schmidt, Arthur (October 14, 1971). "The Beach Boys: Surf's Up". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 15, 2014. Retrieved September 19, 2020. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/surfs-up-19711014
Badman 2004, p. 288. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Leaf 1978, p. 144. - Leaf, David (1978). The Beach Boys and the California Myth. New York: Grosset & Dunlap. ISBN 978-0-448-14626-3. https://archive.org/details/beachboyscalifor00leaf
White, Timothy (2000). Sunflower/Surf's Up (CD Liner). The Beach Boys. Capitol Records. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved November 2, 2014. /wiki/Timothy_White_(editor)
White, Timothy (2000). Sunflower/Surf's Up (CD Liner). The Beach Boys. Capitol Records. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved November 2, 2014. /wiki/Timothy_White_(editor)
Carlin 2006, p. 161. - Carlin, Peter Ames (2006). Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. Rodale. ISBN 978-1-59486-320-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=eYyovo_AbqAC
Badman 2004, p. 288. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Carlin 2006, p. 162. - Carlin, Peter Ames (2006). Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. Rodale. ISBN 978-1-59486-320-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=eYyovo_AbqAC
Carlin 2006, p. 160. - Carlin, Peter Ames (2006). Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. Rodale. ISBN 978-1-59486-320-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=eYyovo_AbqAC
Badman 2004, p. 292. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Sessionography:
Doe, Andrew G. "GIGS70". Retrieved March 5, 2019.
Doe, Andrew G. "GIGS71". Retrieved March 5, 2019.
http://bellagio10452.com/gigs70.html
Doe & Tobler 2004, p. 77. - Doe, Andrew; Tobler, John (2004). Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys: The Complete Guide to Their Music. Omnibus. ISBN 9781844494262. https://archive.org/details/brianwilsonbeach0000doea/
White, Timothy (2000). Sunflower/Surf's Up (CD Liner). The Beach Boys. Capitol Records. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved November 2, 2014. /wiki/Timothy_White_(editor)
Sharp, Ken (July 28, 2000). "Alan Jardine: A Beach Boy Still Riding The Waves". Goldmine. http://troun.tripod.com/al.html
Badman 2004, p. 291. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Carlin 2006, pp. 162–163. - Carlin, Peter Ames (2006). Catch a Wave: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. Rodale. ISBN 978-1-59486-320-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=eYyovo_AbqAC
Leaf 1978, p. 144. - Leaf, David (1978). The Beach Boys and the California Myth. New York: Grosset & Dunlap. ISBN 978-0-448-14626-3. https://archive.org/details/beachboyscalifor00leaf
Badman 2004, p. 296. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, pp. 288–289. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Ruddock, Martin; Gater, Russ (September 2021). "Wouldn't It Be Nice To Live Again – The Dennis Wilson & Rumbo LP 'Poops'". Shindig Magazine. Retrieved October 24, 2021. https://www.shindig-magazine.com/?p=4986
Badman 2004, pp. 279, 283, 298. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
In December 1970, Dennis released the single "Sound of Free" (credited to "Dennis Wilson & Rumbo"), but the album project was ultimately shelved.[39] /wiki/Sound_of_Free
https://www.allmusic.com/album/r189381 https://www.allmusic.com/album/r189381
"Beach Boys Producers Alan Boyd, Dennis Wolfe, Mark Linett Discuss 'Made in California' (Q&A)". Rock Cellar Magazine. September 4, 2013. Archived from the original on September 30, 2013. Retrieved September 9, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130930143358/http://www.rockcellarmagazine.com/2013/09/04/made-in-california-producers-alan-boyd-dennis-wolfe-mark-linett-beach-boys-interview/2/
Stebbins 2011, p. 165. - Stebbins, Jon (2011). The Beach Boys FAQ: All That's Left to Know About America's Band. Backbeat. ISBN 978-1-4584-2918-6. https://books.google.com/books?id=YM-GDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT164
"Beach Boys Producers Alan Boyd, Dennis Wolfe, Mark Linett Discuss 'Made in California' (Q&A)". Rock Cellar Magazine. September 4, 2013. Archived from the original on September 30, 2013. Retrieved September 9, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130930143358/http://www.rockcellarmagazine.com/2013/09/04/made-in-california-producers-alan-boyd-dennis-wolfe-mark-linett-beach-boys-interview/2/
Badman 2004, pp. 288–289. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 289. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Legaspi, Althea (June 3, 2021). "The Beach Boys Detail Massive 1969-1971 Era Box Set, Share 'Big Sur'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 3, 2021. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-beach-boys-feel-flows-the-sunflower-surfs-up-sessions-big-sur-1177572/
Badman 2004, pp. 277–278. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, pp. 256, 273, 277, 371. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
https://www.allmusic.com/album/r189381 https://www.allmusic.com/album/r189381
Badman 2004, p. 273. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 274. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, pp. 274, 320. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 289. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Legaspi, Althea (June 3, 2021). "The Beach Boys Detail Massive 1969-1971 Era Box Set, Share 'Big Sur'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 3, 2021. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-beach-boys-feel-flows-the-sunflower-surfs-up-sessions-big-sur-1177572/
Badman 2004, p. 277. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Gaines 1986, pp. 241–242. - Gaines, Steven (1986). Heroes and Villains: The True Story of The Beach Boys. New York: Da Capo Press. ISBN 0306806479. https://books.google.com/books?id=-qkJvajmU4EC
Leaf 1978, p. 141. - Leaf, David (1978). The Beach Boys and the California Myth. New York: Grosset & Dunlap. ISBN 978-0-448-14626-3. https://archive.org/details/beachboyscalifor00leaf
Badman 2004, p. 290. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Biographer Steven Gaines wrote that the bootlegged tape of this concert "became legendary in the rock-and-roll business."[1] /wiki/Steven_Gaines
Badman 2004, p. 290. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
"Beach Boys feel the flow (Q&A)". Gold Mine Magazine. September 20, 2021. Retrieved July 1, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) https://www.goldminemag.com/features/beach-boys-feel-the-flow
"The Beach Boys - "Syracuse University, May 1, 1971"". tela.sugarmeds.org. Retrieved July 1, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) https://tela.sugarmegs.org/_asxtela/asxcards/BeachBoys1971-05-01Syracuse.html
Badman 2004, p. 290. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
The Beach Boys were the only major group to appear at the rally. David Leaf wrote: "People were shaking their heads in disdain when it was announced that the Beach Boys were going to play ... All of a sudden", following the concert, "the Beach Boys were relevant."[53] According to Keith Badman, the group's status "as a notable live act" was restored with this concert, and it was held just two days after performing to one of their smallest ever crowds, in Maryland, for an audience of 200.[50]
Badman 2004, p. 291. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 297. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, p. 297. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Gaines 1986, p. 242. - Gaines, Steven (1986). Heroes and Villains: The True Story of The Beach Boys. New York: Da Capo Press. ISBN 0306806479. https://books.google.com/books?id=-qkJvajmU4EC
White, Timothy (2000). Sunflower/Surf's Up (CD Liner). The Beach Boys. Capitol Records. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved November 2, 2014. /wiki/Timothy_White_(editor)
Gaines 1986, p. 242. - Gaines, Steven (1986). Heroes and Villains: The True Story of The Beach Boys. New York: Da Capo Press. ISBN 0306806479. https://books.google.com/books?id=-qkJvajmU4EC
Badman 2004, p. 298. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Badman 2004, pp. 299–300. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
Leaf 1978, p. 141. - Leaf, David (1978). The Beach Boys and the California Myth. New York: Grosset & Dunlap. ISBN 978-0-448-14626-3. https://archive.org/details/beachboyscalifor00leaf
Badman 2004, p. 300. - Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-818-6. https://archive.org/details/beachboysdefinit0000badm
The second part was published for the issue dated November 11.[56]
Hepworth, David (2016). Never a Dull Moment: 1971 The Year That Rock Exploded. Henry Holt and Company. p. 223. ISBN 978-1-62779-400-8. 978-1-62779-400-8
According to journalist David Hepworth, the style was unprecedented in the field of music writing, and the "story within was destined to become a classic piece from that brief interlude when pop writing collided with New Journalism ... It combined admiration for the group's achievements with distaste for their strange, inner world in a way that hadn't been done before".[57] /wiki/David_Hepworth
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From a performance standpoint, he cited 1971 as his favorite year of the group musically because their set lists focused on newer songs.[49]
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