Scott Totten (born in
Orange County
Orange County most commonly refers to:
*Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Orange County may also refer to:
U.S. counties
*Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando
*Orange County, Indiana
*Orange County, New ...
, California) is an American musician, best known for his work as musical director, singer and guitarist in the current
Beach Boys touring band, which features original Beach Boy
Mike Love
Michael Edward Love (born March 15, 1941) is an American singer and songwriter who co-founded the Beach Boys with his cousins Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson and their friend Al Jardine. Characterized by his nasal tenor and occasional bas ...
and later addition
Bruce Johnston
Bruce Arthur Johnston (born Benjamin Baldwin; June 27, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who is a member of the Beach Boys. Johnston also collaborated on many records with Terry Melcher (his bandmate in Bru ...
.
Totten attended
Berklee College of Music, eventually earning a Bachelor of Music degree. Later he was a
Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
and
session guitarist
Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...
.
/ref> In the 1990s Totten played on albums and sessions by Grandmaster Flash, Angela Bofill
Angela Tomasa Bofill (born May 2, 1954) is an American singer-songwriter of Cuban- Puerto Rican origins. A New York native, Bofill began her professional career in the mid-1970s. Bofill is most known for singles such as, "This Time I'll Be Sweet ...
, Sybill, Donna Summer and Exposé. He also played on Broadway shows and tours such as ''The Who's Tommy
''The Who's Tommy'' is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Pete Townshend and a book by Townshend and Des McAnuff. It is based on the 1969 rock opera '' Tommy'' by The Who.
Productions
The musical opened at La Jolla Playhouse in San Dieg ...
'', ''Les Misérables
''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century.
In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its origin ...
'', ''Rent
Rent may refer to:
Economics
*Renting, an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property
*Economic rent, any payment in excess of the cost of production
*Rent-seeking, attempting to increase one's share of e ...
'' and '' Mamma Mia!''.
Totten began playing with the Beach Boys touring band on guitar in 2000. He moved to the position of musical director in 2008. In 2011, Totten was confirmed as performing alongside The Beach Boys on their 50th Anniversary Reunion Tour as music director and singer, also playing guitar, ukulele
The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings.
The tone and volume of the instrumen ...
and bass. Totten played on the band's subsequent studio album, ''That's Why God Made the Radio
''That's Why God Made the Radio'' is the twenty-ninth studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released on June 5, 2012 on Capitol Records. Produced by Brian Wilson, the album was recorded to coincide with the band's 50th anniversary. ...
'' (2012). He also played lead guitar on "Goin' to the Beach" from the ''Made in California
''Made in California (1962–2012)'' is a compilation box set by the Beach Boys, released on August 27, 2013. The set, released through Capitol Records, was designed by Mark London in a form emulating a high school yearbook. The set contains six ...
'' box set, and added vocals to the new single version of " Isn't it Time" from the same album. He also performed on Mike Love's solo albums ''Unleash the Love
''Unleash the Love'' is the second solo studio album by American singer Mike Love. It was released on November 17, 2017.
Background and production
Before ''Unleash the Love'', Mike Love had not officially released a solo album since 1981's '' ...
'' (2017) and '' Reason for the Season'' (2018).
In April 2023 Scott announced via a Facebook update that he had left the Beach Boys touring band after almost 23 years of service. [https://www.facebook.com/scott.totten.71]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Totten, Scott
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
The Beach Boys backing band members