A tour rider used on The Beach Boys‘ live gigs across the globe has been uncovered.
Tour riders are used by artists to make sure a venue has the right provisions, including food, towels and transport. Some bands may also offer instructions to venue staff, as Van Halen did when it came to the specifics of their lighting crew. The Beach Boys’ rider has since been shared by fans, and it features some unique requests, including an “on-call doctor” and a complete ban on “green lighters”. A post to the r/TheBeachBoys subreddit has since seen fans comment on a rider used by the band during an undated tour.
There may be reason for the requested “no green lighters” which can be seen on The Beach Boys’ rider. Some have suggested the band behind Pet Sounds had a similar tour rider strategy to Van Halen. The legendary rock group would allegedly make a note to remove all brown M&Ms from their dressing room. But it was not because the group were divas, it was a tactic deployed by the band to make sure the venue were paying attention to requests.
Fans believe the “green lighters” request from The Beach Boys, while weird, is a chance to make sure the venue are paying attention to their litany of food, towel and transport requests. One fan suggested: “My guess is it’s doing the same thing as ‘no brown M&M’s’ on Van Halen’s tour rider.
“They did that so that they could make sure the production company read the rider properly and got all details, ie, stage safety. If they had brown M&M’s, that was an obvious sign they didn’t read it carefully, and it might be hazardous.”
Another user pointed out the irony of requesting a tray of fruits and vegetables to go along with their request for Marlboro brand cigarettes. One user wrote: “The vegetable tray seems appropriate. But it doesn’t necessarily sit well alongside the ESSENTIAL ITEM Marlboro Lights.”
Among the shared tour rider documents were requests for the venue to provide recyclable products, as well as recycling bins, in their dressing room. One page reads: “Whenever possible we would like to have recycling bins in the catering area for aluminium, glass, and paper products. And again we do not want any Styrofoam cups or plates. The Beach Boys and the planet thank you!
Also featured was a request for a doctor and masseuse on the property. It reads: “Purchaser agrees to arrange for the services of a licensed physician, qualified in internal medicine who can be available as needed throughout Artist’s stay in the city, and wo has admission privileges at a first-rate hospital in the vicinity.”
A request for a masseuse “qualified in either Swedish or Oriental deep muscle massage” is also requested for the day of the show.
