Brian Wilson Appreciation Thread

Brian Wilson always has and always will get a ton of appreciation on this site, but as we are losing so many legendary figures by the day I want to take an opportunity to thank him, for all of his wonderful music while he's still here. Even though he's never gonna read this, I want to say why he means so much to me while he's still alive. and for everyone who want to say how much he means to you while he's still here, please do. What has he meant to your personal life story?

Brian Wilson's genius knows no bounds, McCartney aside it's a struggle for me to think of any one pop writer who has has a hand in creating the music for as many incredible pop songs as he did over such a lengthy period. (plus producing/arranging/singing) I mean, it's almost a clique to say, but I would credit Pet Sounds as a major reason why i'm even still around today. He's got me through some of the best and worst times of my life. When I got married at aged 23, it was God Only Knows that played as I walked down the aisle. When I was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia at 25 last summer, it was the music of The Beach Boys that helped get me through some rough times i.e chemotherapy, stem cell transplant. Thankfully i'm on the road to recovery now.

Brian Wilson is and always will be a genius. That he is still alive and active after nearly 60 years of The Beach Boys is an amazing achievement.

I know no one asked me to make a long list, but below are some reasons why he will always be an all time great,
I'm not even saying these are all of his most popular/greatest songs either, just some of the notable tracks that make him one of the all time greats.



101 reasons to love Brian Wilson (and The Beach Boys)

1. Surfin' Safari
2. 409
3. Surfin' U.S.A
4. Shut Down
5. Lonely Sea
6. Surfer Girl
7. Little Deuce Coupe
8. In My Room
9. Catch A Wave
10. Be True To Your School
11. Little Saint Nick
12. Fun, Fun, Fun
13. The Warmth Of The Sun
14. All Summer Long
15. I Get Around
16. Don't Worry Baby
17. Little Honda
18. Wendy
19. The Girls On The Beach
20. When I Grow Up (To Be a Man)
21. Dance, Dance, Dance
22. Do You Wanna Dance
23. Please Let Me Wonder
24. Good to My Baby
25. Kiss Me, Baby
26. She Knows Me Too Well
27. In The Back Of My Mind
28. Help Me Rhonda
29. Girl Don't Tell Me
30. California Girls
31. Let Him Run Wild
32. You're So Good To Me
33. The Little Girl I Once Knew
34. Barbara Ann
35. Wouldn't It Be Nice
36. You Still Believe In Me
37. That's Not Me
38. Don't Talk (Put your Head on My Shoulder)
39. I'm Waiting For The Day
40. Let's Go Away for Awhile
41. Sloop John B
42. God Only Knows
43. I Know There's An Answer
44. Here Today
45. I Just Wasn't Made for These Times
46. Pet Sounds
47. Caroline No
48. Our Prayer
49. Heroes & Villains
50. Do You Like Worms?
51. Cabin Essence
52. Wind Chimes
53. Child Is Father Of The Man
54. Good Vibrations
55. Vega-Tables
56. The Elements: Fire (Mrs. O'Leary's Cow)
57. I Love To Say Dada
58. Wonderful
59. Surf's Up
60. Meant For You
61. Darlin'
62. Wild Honey
63. Aren't You Glad
64. Here Comes The Night
65. Let The Wind Blow
66. With Me Tonight
67. Friends
68. Wake The World
69. Busy Doin' Nothin'
70. Old Folks at Home / Ol' Man River
71. Can't Wait Too Long
72. Do It Again
73. I Went To Sleep
74. Time to Get Alone
75. Break Away
76. Add Some Music to Your Day
77. This Whole World
78. All I Wanna Do
79. Our Sweet Love
80. Cool Cool Water
81. Til' I Die
82. Marcella
83. California Saga (On My Way To Sunny Californ-i-a)
84. Sail On, Sailor
85. Funky Pretty
86. It's Ok
87. Let Us Go On This Way
88. The Night Was So Young
89. I'll Bet He's Nice
90. Still I Dream Of It
91. Good Timin'
92. Goin' On
93. Love And Mercy
94. Melt Away
95. Rio Grande
96. Soul Searchin'
97. Midnight's Another Day
98. That's Why God Made the Radio
99. From There to Back Again
100. Pacific Coast Highway
101. Summer's Gone

Thanks for all the amazing music Brian.

 

The intro says it all

 

Brian on Wouldn't It Be Nice:
"I was going for something I wanted to hear, and wanted to feel. A great feeling of great joy."

Another thing I love about Brian, he's not one for dissecting his own work in a scholarly manner, but for him it's all about feeling. The emotional aspect is what's important for him when crafting a song he truly cares about, and I think that's why something like the Pet Sounds album hits many of us so deeply.

 

He is definitely a genius. That tag is not overrated IMO. I dismissed the Beach Boys as "surf music" garbage for years and made fun of the songs and harmonies, until someone convinced me to listen to Pet Sounds several years ago. I balked at the suggestion, but as I respected this person's musical taste, I bit the bullet and bought the album. I was immediately blown away at the beautiful arrangements, melodies and harmonies. For a long time I still didn't like Brian or the Beach Boys very much, but I respected and loved that album. Slowly I started listening to Smile and other albums, including the "surf music" period which I always ignored. I even like that era now. Brian is one of the most gifted composers in popular music. He can write intellectually complex music and also make it emotionally stimulating. He can walk that fine line of nostalgia, where it can be both happy and melancholic at the same time. I just wish I had given him a chance earlier.

 

For me, there are only two true geniuses when it comes to the popular music of the latter half of the 20th century: Stevie Wonder and Brian Wilson. There are plenty of extremely good songwriters, but these two guys came up with stuff that didn't sound like anything else before...and both have the ability to hear a completed track in their minds before they ever record a note. Brian is the most revered musician in my life and his story is so compelling and heart-breaking and redemptive. I'm in my mid-60s now and I take each new celebrity death in stride as they happen closer and closer together...but when Brian Wilson dies, I'm gonna have a really hard time. Show me a mean-spirited Brian Wilson song; he's spoken for decades about how he just wants people to feel love from his music. I just hope that he feel some of the love from people like me.

 

Not a Brian Wilson song

Pete Townshend

 

growing up in the 60's I loved his voice on many of the songs he sang back then...it's so distinctive I go back to those glorious days when I hear it...

 

That's right.
The arrangement though is pure Brian Wilson 'Genius'.
To think Al Jardine brought this to the table,
'The Wreck Of The John B' - The Kingston Trio

This version of the song seems really 'bland' to me, even the version by Jimmie Rodgers.
Brian reconstructs it and turns it into a sonic bliss of audio, even without the vocals.
It's like going from 'Black and White' to 'Technicolor',
This is a perfect example of a great Brian Wilson production.

 

I get it but not just the lyrics but the melody is the same.
Not saying Wilson's isn't better but it's still a cover. Which is fine but I just don't feel it fits under the genius aspect.

 

I’m sorry, but your responses are absolutely bizarre. “Sloop John B” is on a list the OP labeled “101 Reasons to Love Brian Wilson”. You’re pointing out it’s a cover as if no one knew that, and then seemingly arguing that cover songs are not worthy of praise or that they can’t be loved no matter how drastically different and original (and, in the case of “Sloop John B”, downright breathtaking) the arrangement?

Again, just bizarre.

 

The vocal arrangement in "Sloop John B" is Brian absolutely entering his peak period, it's takes my breath away! The way the instruments drop out and just let the vocals shine is production genius. And that's not even getting into the brilliant backing track, the guitar riff an obvious "Ticket To Ride"-take off riff, embelished into baroque splendor; the ultra busy bass-line (plus the other bass-line!) is just awesomely written, the tightly controlled drumming and percussion, the glockenspiel or whatever it is. It's just brilliant. And the inversions of the chords give the whole song a grandeur lacking in the folky original.

And he arranged all that in one day.

 

Such posts are predictable de rigeur for Brian Wilson threads.

 

To that list i would add:

 

'Price' did say he thought it was the better version, just not 'Genius' and explained his reasons.
That word 'Genius' can come in many shapes and sizes too in the 'eye of the beholder'.
Personally, I think 'SJB' epitomizes his craft as a producer and arranger and a 'Genius'.

 

You’re a much nicer, more easy-going guy than me. I’m envious

And to not be further responsible for derailing this appreciation thread...

I adore the music of Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys. Pet Sounds and so much more of their material has gotten me through some tough times, and inspires me like little else. There are few musicians on Brian’s level as far as composition, arranging, and production, and his music has an almost supernatural ability to convey emotion. Just sit at a piano and play the chords, just the chords, to songs like “God Only Knows” or “Til I Die”, and it’s amazing. Throw the main melody on top and it’s even better. But the whole package, all those voices, all those instruments, working together to perform such superb music? There’s not much that can come close to the level of The Beach Boys music at its best.

One of the highlights of my life was seeing Brian perform Pet Sounds on that first Pet Sounds Symphony Tour when I was a teenager; not just because of performance (which was great of course) but because I got to meet David Leaf, Brian, and the band. It meant a lot being able to, however briefly, explain how much that music meant to me and to chit chat with various members of his band who had all obviously been in my shoes at some point or another as fans themselves. I had Brian sign my copy of Love You and we got to watch the soundcheck and hangout backstage after the show. Good times!

Aside from Pet Sounds and the SMiLE material, some of my favorite individual songs are “The Night Was So Young” and “I’ll Bet He’s Nice”, “Kiss Me Baby”, “Still I Dream Of It”, “Some Sweet Day”, “Melt Away”... I realize I’m picking mostly ballad-y stuff, but I love the uptempo stuff too. Hard to beat the hits, but a few others I’m fond of are “Pamela Jean”, “Sail On Sailor”, and “This Whole World”, “Aren’t You Glad”... all killer.

 

Haha!
Nah, just wanna see this thread thrive, and just trying to be 'nicer', I haven't always been.....
It's OK for people to have different opinions too....

Your story is far out!
Love your comments on playing 'Til I Die' and 'GOK'.
I was a guitar player, and trying to figure those songs out on a guitar, was a challenge.
Those songs are written and best played on Piano.
Structurally, they make more sense too.
You can do them on guitar, but they lack that Brian/Piano thing that he has with his songs.
I've seen Brian a handful of times too, and I think you are probably one of the lucky one's to have
seen Brian as his return performing peak.
The late 90's into the mid 2000's, he did some great and amazing shows.
Not all of them, even then Brian had 'off' nights as it's well been speculated.
The bootleg recordings reflect it too.
When he was on though, he was... um, in a Brian saying, 'Right the F%ck On!'

It's difficult seeing his performances now and comparing them to now.
It's also been another 20 years on his life!
Those early Pet Sounds tours were great, the 'SMiLE' tours were phenomenal to see and hear live!
I wondered prior how in the world they could perform this music live, but they did to precision.
So much about Brian I love.

 

I did not say being a cover made it bad. I said it for me doesn't qualify as genius. I can't assume he knows it's a cover. He's a young guy and only a few years ago on another site I was in a debate of sorts with a guy who was trashing The Beatles as overrated songwriters and how they can't touch the Beach Boys but the first song the guy used to support his claim was Sloop John B.
So that guy clearly didn't know.
I just don't think doing a cover and making it sound like your style, in this case sounding like a Beach Boys song, should fall under genius category. It's not such a drastic reinvention as say Joe Cocker's With A Little Help From My Friends.

 

It’s not even the only cover on that list since your keeping track, but thanks for sharing!

 

I figured with a list that long it probably wasn't but it was certainly the most notable.
If I was trying to be cynical I could have added that genius applies just as less to Surfin USA since it's clearly lifted from Sweet Little Sixteen.

 

there's a lot of great books out there on Brian Wilson and his composition process, writing collaboarations, arrangements, influences, etc, if you would like to learn more about it and maybe why he is regarded so well. Even despite such adversity as arranging a song written by another....

 

Al Jardine suggested the chord changes, probably should of shared the arrangement credit.

 

Thank you for singling out "Some Sweet Day", even now I find it's astonishing that there hasn't been a proper singular release of the mid 90s Wilson/Paley sessions. One of Brian's greatest periods of creativity since Love You. Releasing it (much preferably with the original vocal tracks) would let it comfortably sit right next to Brian Wilson '88 and Lucky Old Sun as his greatest solo work. (Presents SMiLE being another thing entirely) Yet that which has been released is mostly on obscure compilations, or in significantly weaker re-recordings (Getting In Over My Head)

Soul Searchin' has to be a big triumph, being the last great Carl lead on a Beach Boys song.



That Carl rejected recording anymore of those great songs in favour of Stars and Stripes Vol. 1 is just.... gah! I absolutely love Carl for the record, but in hindsight that was a big faux pas on his part.

 

I'm not doubting his genius and I know sometimes we use genius and brilliance interchangeably.
However, if there is a difference I'd apply brilliance to a reinvention of a cover and genius to an original invention.

 

I'm on board.

 

The Beatles have been a mainstay in my life since I was 12 and I still consider them an awesome foundation for my everlasting passion and musical curiousity, ranging from the sonic arts to folk and music from different cultures, some hiphop, modern RnB (as well as the historic incarnation), Goth, minimalism up to my deep love for Ambient Drones, and everything with a lot more in between. Drones are in fact also highly emotional for me when done good, shoutout to Mathias Grassow. If it wasn't so problematic I'd call his music spiritual. But even I am having troubles humming and singing along, which I do so very often with Brian's music, at least silently, with my inner voice.
I cannot count how often I have cried listening to Pet Sounds and what a deep emotional impact everything SMiLE made on me. Brian's music has helped me through many emotional dificulties, more than anyone's else's music. Seeing him doing Pet Sounds in 2002 will always be a highlight to remember and when he even announced Heroes And Villains or Surf's Up as "from SMiLE" I again almost cried. That was the moment I knew there was a chance to finally get SMiLE, we even got more, his own rerecording, the live set and then the box.
So much music out there, including The Beatles, is awesome and great. But Brian during his best moments adds an emotional level that truly sets him apart.