Talking of Grammy related tribute events, the great and good lined up to pay tribute to Brian Wilson on Friday night at the pre-Grammys MusiCares dinner in Hollywood. The fundraising event, which raises money for musicians in need, this year chose to celebrate the work of the former Beach Boy following his comeback with the long awaited release of ‘SMiLE’ last year.
Although the other surviving Beach Boys were notable by their absence,
Neil Young, Jeff Back, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the **Backstreet
Boys, the Barenaked Ladies, Earth, Wind & Fire, John Legend and Jamie Cullum** were among the artists who joined the tribute event by performing one of Wilson’s songs.
The
Chili Peppers kicked off the event with a rendition of ‘I
Get Around’, while the Backstreet Boys performed ‘When
I Grow Up (To Be a Man)’ and Earth, Wind & Fire sang
‘Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)’. Young dedicated ‘In My Room’ to both Wilson and his late brothers Dennis and Carl. Meanwhile Cullum and Back received standing ovations for their performances of ‘Sail On Sailor’
and ‘Surfin USA’ respectively.
The evening ended with Wilson performing a number of tracks, including
‘Love And Mercy’, ‘God Only Knows’ and ‘Good
Vibrations’.