Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road

Can you imagine an adoption agency giving a bunch of kids to Joe Schmoe with tardive dyskinesia who talks like a first grader? But Brian Wilson? Sure! Take a bunch of kids

Alexa Demie’s adopted father

R1, is that you, Brian. Not following.

Who is Alexa Demie?

Alexa Demie= Maddie on Euphoria

OP, you might really like Love and Mercy, a biopic. John Cusack is miscast as older Brian, but Paul Dano is excellent as young Brian.

I watched the special last week - I really enjoyed it. I like how openly complimentary he was about Carl singing God Only Knows and about cousin Mike Love singing California Girls. …. He is still childlike - who was the the guy who died in Holland? Once it was mentioned - he was totally side tracked…… The special used the handsome blond from Foo Fighters - the one who passed away lately as a talking head.

One of the great American songwriters, although he self-destructed. Still, how many people wrote that many masterpieces?

They did indeed R7. Taylor Hawkins. One of the clips was Taylor talking about sensitive people being drawn to drugs and alcohol. Clearly it was autobiographical but we didn't know at the time.

R6: saw Love and Mercy a while back. It was quite well done. Thanks.

Does PBS still break into any remotely interesting show with a 20 min money grab? I've given up on this station all together because these endless interruptions.

It was very good. I was expecting to not learn anything new and to see him as more of a vegetable, but he's merely an eccentric old rocker who's lost his voice and plays with a low intensity band, which means he's like all the other oldies acts, only a little more crazy.

Unsaid is how brief his "genius" really was, mental illness and heavy drug use aside. Also, the "surf sound" owed a lot to earlier close harmony groups and duos, which is not mentioned. There is brief mention of Jan & Dean with whom the Beach Boys often were confused. Jan & Dean even recorded some of Wilson's compositions. They are warts and all regarding Landy but not heavy handed about it. The structure Landy provided probably was helpful in the beginning but it obviously turned into a power/money grab.

[quote] R1], is that you, Brian. Not following

Brian and his second wife adopted a shitload of kids. No way in hell a guy looking and sounding like Brian Wilson gets to adopt kids unless they have millions of bucks.

I enjoyed the doc. I'm a huge fan of TBB and of Brian Wilson's work.

The doc prompted me to check out Dennis Wilson's solo work... which is just not terribly interesting. (And he's no Carl or Brian Wilson in the vocals department.) But at least Dennis was undoubtedly the hottest dude in the band.

He was R13. Wasn’t he also friends with Manson?

Yes, there was that, alas...

Dennis Wilson was also the only Beach Boy who actually surfed despite all their surfing references in their songs.

From the link at R16

In 1968, Dennis met Charles Manson and immediately became fascinated by the strange character.

Months later, The Beach Boys drummer decided to end this new friendship because he thought Manson was, in fact, too strange. Charles Manson answered by leaving a bullet with a cryptic message at his house.

.... and he died by drowning.

More hot Dennis.

[quote]There is brief mention of Jan & Dean with whom the Beach Boys often were confused.

I’m ashamed to say I still get them mixed up when I hear certain songs.

I'll have to check this out; my dad used to play Beach Boys records all the time. The still sound to me like the official anthem of summer. I remember the first time I went to the Pacific Ocean (in San Diego) and it was cold, smelly with lots of seaweed & thought "this is it? THIS is what they were singing about?" I felt cheated.

Brian's voice, when he was young, was amazing, loaded with range.

But not great pitch control.

A little pitchy, Dawg.

The Pacific is a pretty disappointing ocean. Not very warm in sunny Southern California.

R23 Mike Love looked middle aged at 23.

Yes, Brian was pitchy, but his voice was beautiful, especially on Surfer Girl and In my Room.

Carl's vocal on "God Only Knows" is unsurpassed. Really beautiful.

I watched this last night. Brian is a sweet, with a sort of innocence, soul. Extremely talented with an incredible ear for different sounds and complicated musical combinations. With all that he's been through, with his breakdown and mental issues...he's the only surviving brother. He just turned 80 this month...6/20. He and Paul McCartney are the same age....with Paul's birthday on 6/18. I love The Beach Boys. Their music was huge in my youth, having a summer house at the Jersey shore. It brings back so many memories. Brian is still plugging along and continues with his music. He still sounds pretty good. The documentary is sad..Brian struggling so much in his life, and a reminder of a simplier and happier time of my youth.

He's opening for Chicago on tour this summer. Quite a change from quitting touring with the BB and being terrified to go outside.

Thanks so much for the recommendation, OP.

I’ll check it out this weekend.

Their bubble-gum surfer period is the least interesting, musically. I much prefer everything post panic-attack Brian.

I find them so strange and uneven. Sometimes transcendent and sometimes kind of nerdy.

Read a bio of Brian Wilson a long time ago and remember feeling so horrified at the abuse he and his brothers endured at the hand of their frustrated/failed musician of a father.

But he’s on the road again, at 80. That’s amazing.

I think he’s a bit overrated because Americans want to feel like they had a genius rock group like the Beatles during the 60s. He was good, but all his songs sound the same. I mean, Norman Whitfield was a great American songwriter & producer in the 80s, but you never hear about him.

Sorry, that’s a typo where I wrote 80s it was supposed to be 60s.

I've heard of Norman Whitfield, r34 r35, and I remember his songs, though I probably didn't associate his name with them as they were coming out. I listened to 77 WABC-AM starting in 1963. I know I didn't like "Pride & Joy" or "Too Many Fish in the Sea." I thought "Ain't Too Proud to Beg" and "Beauty's Only Skin-Deep" were alright, but I didn't like them enough to buy them.

"I Heard It through the Grapevine" I loved. I bought both Marvin Gaye's version and Gladys Knight's. I didn't buy 45s much after 1968 or so, but I did get "I Wish It Would Rain," "Papa Was a Rolling Stone," and "Just My Imagination."

Except for "Grapevine," "Just My Imagination," and "Papa," I didn't play these singles as much as I did my Beach Boys records. I guess I was just a white boy.

Now I'm a superannuated white boy, one who loves "He Was Really Sayin' Something," which I didn't know existed until I bought a compilation box set in the '90s.

I clench up thinking of Brian sorting through his demons one more time.....

Love him, and yet going through it again......