Teaser // Brian Wilson: AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE

Summary

Jokermen Podcast: Teaser – Brian Wilson: AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE

Date: January 29, 2026
Hosts: Jokermen (Hosts 1 & 2)
Episode Focus: Teaser discussion of the 2001 “Brian Wilson: An All-Star Tribute” TV special, reflections on early 2000s pop culture, and a critical look at the special's musical curation.

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Episode Overview

This episode serves as a lively and irreverent preview of the "Brian Wilson: An All-Star Tribute" TV special from 2001. Jokermen dive into the odd mix of early-2000s pop nostalgia, dissect the television network’s motivation behind casting choices, and critique standout performances—both good and bad. The hosts' casual banter and pop culture digressions create an entertaining mix of nostalgia and critical commentary for Beach Boys and Brian Wilson fans.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: 2001 Pop Landscape

• The hosts open by marveling at the times in which the tribute aired—populated by stars like Ricky Martin.
  • Host 2: “One of the things that you can just take right off the bat about what world is this? In 2001, we've got Ricky Martin.” (00:39)

2. Ricky Martin and “California Girls”—A Dubious Choice

• Criticism of the special’s opening act:
  • Host 1: “Boy, do we opening up this show. Noted heterosexual man, Ricky Martins singing California Girls.” (00:52)
  • The hosts clarify: Ricky Martin was not publicly out in 2001, adding an extra layer of context.
    • Host 2: “Is Ricky Martin gay?” (01:02)
    • Host 1: “Yeah, he's like famously gay.” (01:03)
  • Banter on living ‘La Vida Loca’ and 90s nostalgia—relating their own memories and highlighting Ricky's pop culture prominence.

3. Hit Clips: A Deep Dive Into Early 2000s Music Tech

• A tangent on “Hit Clips,” the tiny music players of the era:
  • Host 2: “Do you remember hit clips?” (01:34)
  • Host 1: “Is that like a little like keychain thing where you put like a little memory card into it and it plays like 30 seconds of a song?” (01:37)
  • Host 2: “That's right.” (01:46)
• Reflection on nostalgia and the fleeting appeal of Hit Clips:
  • Host 2: “Truly like only relevant. Only could have been interesting or marketable for like a period of about 18 months maybe.” (02:26)

4. Watching the Tribute—How to Follow Along

• Practical note:
  • Host 1 reminds listeners the tribute is available on YouTube (low quality, but “good enough”), inviting fans to watch along.
  • Host 1: “Hit that link, watch the whole thing. It's about 90 minutes and you can play along at home. It's an enjoyable document, the Brian Wilson All-Star tribute.” (03:09)

5. The “All-Star” Lineup: Misfires and Odd Fits

• Host 2’s withering review of Ricky Martin’s performance:
  • Host 2: “I found it maybe the beginning with Ricky Martin is pretty bad. I'm going to say that what he does to California Girls is despicable. I mean, it's just like he's not the man for the job.” (03:35)
  • Host 1 (deadpan): “He isn't? No. If it had been California Boys, that would have been another matter.” (03:53)
• Discussion of Ricky Martin’s unfamiliarity with the songs:
  • Host 1: “There's several lines between that and Rhonda. He does both of them and he just like, you know, is vaguely familiar with both songs at best.” (04:08)
  • Direct quote from Ricky Martin’s performance included (04:17-04:46)

6. Behind the Scenes—Why Ricky?

• Network pressure shapes the lineup:
  • Host 1: “He was not chosen for this show. This should be noted. ... But David Leaf produced this thing. ... This was kind of his baby. ... They ponied up like half the cost for it. And so one of the network notes was we need a big chart topping pop star who is relevant to audiences today. And so that ended up being Ricky Martin because he does sort of, I would say, stick out. ... He doesn't necessarily fit into a lot of the mosaic that the rest of the artists who I think in general are pretty strong choices.” (04:46–06:19)
  • Acknowledgement of industry context and producer intentions—adds a layer of understanding to the questionable booking.

7. Evan & Jaron—Who Are These Guys?

• Curiosity about obscure “all-stars”:
  • Host 2: “Evan and Jaron, you know Evan and Jaron.” (06:19)
  • Host 1 describes how label negotiation likely led to their inclusion as a package deal with Ricky Martin. (06:22)
• Attempt to recall their hit:
  • Host 2: “They seem to be a one hit wonder.” (07:04)
  • Host 1: “‘Crazy for this Girl.’” (07:11)
  • Host 2: “It was apparently on Dawson's Creek or something. Is that what I'm reading?” (07:31)
  • Host 1: “Evan and Jaren. What a great Jerren title. Jaren. That's right.” (07:50)
  • Joking about the era’s pop naming conventions:
    • Host 2: “That's like one of the, like an older example of like the Bradens of today. You know the cadence. The Graydons. The Jerren.” (07:56)

8. Pop Culture Digressions: Names, Memories, and Trends

• Continued playful riffing on names and trends of the late 90s/early 2000s
  • (08:08–08:25)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “He just completely butchers the lyrics on several [songs]. Like, I can't remember exactly what it is that he does...”
  — Host 2, 03:57

• “There's several lines between that and Rhonda. He does both of them and he just like, you know, is vaguely familiar with both songs at best.”
  — Host 1, 04:08

• “I found it maybe the beginning with Ricky Martin is pretty bad. I'm going to say that what he does to California Girls is despicable. I mean, it's just like he's not the man for the job.”
  — Host 2, 03:35

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:39: Opening remarks on the 2001 tribute and Ricky Martin
• 01:34: Hit Clips nostalgia
• 03:09: Watch the tribute free on YouTube and play along
• 03:35: Ricky Martin’s performance and why it’s panned by the hosts
• 04:46: Behind-the-scenes industry decisions leading to the Ricky Martin booking
• 06:19: Introduction to Evan & Jaron and “Crazy for this Girl”
• 07:31: Remembering Evan & Jaron and Dawson’s Creek connection

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Tone & Style

• Casual, irreverent, and nostalgic—the hosts blend personal anecdotes with sharp pop cultural critique
• Frequent asides, playful tangents, and tongue-in-cheek commentary

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Summary

In this teaser, Jokermen dissect the incongruous mix of talent on the Brian Wilson tribute, especially the inclusion of Ricky Martin (“he just completely butchers the lyrics... he’s not the man for the job” – Host 2, 03:35), and reminisce about the turn-of-the-millennium pop landscape through both personal memory and wider cultural context. The episode balances affectionate nostalgia (be it for Ricky Martin or ephemeral music tech like Hit Clips) with pointed criticism and behind-the-scenes industry insight, making it an engaging listen for both die-hard fans and broader pop culture enthusiasts.

Transcript

[Host 1]

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[Host 2]

One of the things that you can just take right off the bat about what world is this? In 2001, we've got Ricky Martin.

[Host 1]

Boy, do we opening up this show. Noted heterosexual man, Ricky Martins singing California Girls.

[Host 2]

Is Ricky Martin gay?

[Host 1]

Yeah, he's like famously gay.

[Host 2]

Oh, okay.

[Host 1]

He wasn't. I don't think he was out at.

[Host 2]

This time when Liv and La Vida Loca came out. He was. I remember being a little kid when that. So I. I really liked that song when it was like number one.

[Host 1]

Living La Vida Loca. I thought that were you living La vida Loca.

[Host 2]

You know, I want. I aspired to. And it was 99.

[Host 1]

99, okay. All right. Yeah, I guess you would have been like three.

[Host 2]

Do you remember hit clips?

[Host 1]

Oh, geez, that sounds vague. Is that like a little like keychain thing where you put like a little memory card into it and it plays like 30 seconds of a song?

[Host 2]

That's right.

[Host 1]

Wow. I can't believe I do remember. I haven't thought about that in 25 years, but there it is just sitting in my brain waiting to be recalled.

[Host 2]

Like a fake little Walkman that like you put in this tiny like quarter size, nickel sized chip. Like a. Like a. Looked like a little CD with like the art of the single on it. Be it, you know, in sync or Britney Spears or Ricky Martin and you could listen to like a 30 second.

[Host 1]

Little like crunchy 16 kilobyte bitrate version.

[Host 2]

Of this song that was. It's truly an anachronistic, truly like only relevant. Only could have been interesting or marketable for like a period of about 18 months maybe.

[Host 1]

Yeah, maybe. Boy, that's. So what you're saying is you have the Live in La Vida Loca hit clip clip.

[Host 2]

Yeah, that's right. W. I played that thing. I wore that thing out.

[Host 1]

Yeah, wore the grooves out on the hit clip. You were in training for your life as a podcaster from a very young age. That's very impressive. Before we start, we should, I guess, make it clear we'll have a link in the episode description. This whole thing is viewable on YouTube for free in not terribly high quality, but good enough quality. Certainly better than some of the videos that we've been forced to watch online. So hit that link, watch the whole thing. It's about 90 minutes and you can play along at home. It's an enjoyable document, the Brian Wilson All Star tribute.

[Host 2]

Yeah, I think it becomes slightly more enjoyable as it goes on.

[Host 1]

Interesting.

[Host 2]

I found it maybe the beginning with Ricky Martin is pretty bad. I'm going to say that what he does to California Girls is despicable. I mean, it's just like he's not the man for the job.

[Host 1]

He isn't? No. If it had been California Boys, that would have been another matter.

[Host 2]

No, no, no. That is not the reason. It's more that he just completely butchers the lyrics on several. Like, I can't remember exactly what it is that he does, but.

[Host 1]

Yeah, no, there's several lines between that and Rhonda. He does both of them and he just like, you know, is vaguely familiar with both songs at best.

[Ricky Martin]

The west coast has the sun and then all the girls oh, they get so tan I did good friends we came in a Hawaiian island Dolph and the palm tree in the sand I've been around this great big world and I've seen all kinds of girls but baby, I couldn't wait to get back to the st all the pretty girls from this world Everybody now come on.

[Host 1]

Now Interestingly, or maybe not interestingly, but perhaps significantly, he was not chosen for this show. This should be noted. I'm not gonna go into too much detail here. You can read David Leaf's book about it if you want further detail. But David Leaf produced this thing. Our buddy who's been on the show and whose biography we've been quoting from extensively throughout the program. He was involved with Brian and the Brian Wilson industry at this point. And so this was kind of his baby. Along with Chip Racklin, who we've talked about in spots here and there. He managed the Beach Boys for a period of time during the 70s and promoted like the Beach Boys Grateful Dead show at the Fillmore east in 1971. So a lot of people, Phil Ramone, also of Billy Joel World fame, I think, was involved as a producer as well. So we got some big names or big behind the scenes names involved in the production of this number. And yeah, went to tnt, the television network. They ponied up like half the cost for it. And so one of the network notes was we need a big chart topping pop star who is relevant to audiences today. And so that ended up being Ricky Martin because he does sort of, I would say, stick out. When you look at the rest of the special guests that appear here, he doesn't necessarily fit into a lot of the mosaic that the rest of the artists who I think in general are pretty strong choices.

[Host 2]

Evan and Jaron, you know Evan and Jaron.

[Host 1]

Well, it's funny because in the book I just read the chapter this morning, David has a, you know, half a chapter devoted to this. He says, you know, the network forced us to put a. Put a big pop star in this show, you know, to, you know, as one of their notes to make it relevant for a larger number of audiences. And so what went along with Ricky Martin was an additional artist from his label, but he didn't name who that actual artist was. And I'm looking back at the list of artists right now and it is almost certainly Evan and Jaron who I had never heard of before last night. Were you familiar with Evan and Jaron Lowenstein?

[Host 2]

No, but they have a song, I guess. They seem to be a one hit wonder.

[Host 1]

Crazy for this girl.

[Host 2]

Crazy for this girl.

[Host 1]

Yeah, yeah, maybe.

[Host 2]

Maybe. I know it. Let me just see if I can.

[Host 1]

I mean, I would expect. This is an ep. This is a famous Evan here. So I was, you know, I was thinking, I mean, look, his name is right there first. Evan and Jaron. It's one of the most famous.

[Host 2]

Evans, this song. Gosh, I feel like maybe I've heard this. It was apparently on Dawson's Creek or something. Is that what I'm reading? Yeah.

[Host 1]

Interesting. Crazy for this Girl.

[Host 2]

Included on the second volume of the soundtrack to the WB's television drama Dawson's Creek.

[Host 1]

Of course. Evan and Jaren. Evan and Jaren. What a great Jerren title. Jaren. That's right.

[Host 2]

Jaron. That's like a o n. That's like one of the, like an older example of like the Bradens of today. You know the cadence. The Graydons. The Jerren.

[Host 1]

Yeah, yeah. Bray. Brayden. Graydon. Not Graydon, but. Well, I know this great. And Cardiac. I know this song. You know this song.

[Host 2]

Yeah, but what's the chorus sound like? I don't know.

[Host 1]

Lyrics are. This is. This is very recognizable.

[Host 2]

We'll drop in a hit clip of it.