Posted on 09/03/2015 8:35:14 PM PDT by z taxman
The Beach Boys frontman opens up about his new solo album No Pier Pressure and alleged ‘rivalry’ with The Beatles. “Rubber Soul inspired Pet Sounds, which inspired Sgt. Pepper’s and that inspired me to make Smile,” Brian Wilson tells me, recalling his 1960s game of one-upmanship with the Beach Boys’ so-called rivals The Beatles.
“It wasn’t really a rivalry, though. I was jealous!” Wilson says with a hearty laugh. “It was really just mutual inspiration, I think. I would get to hear their records before they came out and I was totally blown away by Rubber Soul. And Sgt. Pepper’s? I was totally blown away by that. But it was inspirational, too. Then I did “Good Vibrations” and Smile and it was exciting. I got into it and really produced my head off.”
Wilson, 72, is still going strong, and his eleventh solo studio album, No Pier Pressure, featuring former Beach Boys bandmates Al Jardine, David Marks, and Blondie Chaplin, as well as a host of younger artists, including Kacey Musgraves, Fun.’s Nate Ruess, She & Him’s Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward, Peter Hollens, and Capital Cities’ Sebu Simonian, will be released Tuesday. While he originally intended it to be a follow up to the Beach Boys’ 50th anniversary release That’s Why God Made Radio from 2012, he changed course.
(Excerpt) Read more at thedailybeast.com ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIETb-6n1M8
I was too when it came out in 1965. To this day, my favorite Beatles album of all time.
If I Needed Someone is a great song. I also once sang Michelle to my highschool honey.
It was the kind of rivalry that drove both side to even higher levels of creativity. I think Brian learned that from his first rival, Phil Spector, who instead of competing with he quickly got on his side and did some of his best work with.
Brian may be a little nuts, but he’s a genius, too.
The Beach Boys coming to my humble burg next month; I have my tickets to complete one more thing on my bucket list before I die.
I named my daughter after that song.
When I was 12 got ‘Rubber Soul’ for Christmas, became a Beatle nut that night. Great album.
Won’t call it the greatest Beach Boys song, but it is damn good. Incredible that one man had and still has so much musical talent.
Yeah for sure. I get a little depressed though when I see him interviewed now... he just seems lost and kind of has that senile old man thing going for him. I prefer tho think of him in his prime, the genius with the shaggy hair and spectacles creating Pet Sounds.
I like the Beach Boys, but didn’t Glen Campbell and Carol Kaye play guitar on most all of their records (uncredited)? If Brian was a little nuts, what did that make Spector?
Yes, that's Glen Campbell on guitar on "Good Vibrations," and his guitar break on the original mono version of "Help Me Rhonda" is classic.
“Brian may be a little nuts, but he’s a genius, too.”
For years and years I kept hearing members of bands I liked saying that “Pet Sounds” was one of the albums that influenced them the most, and I didn’t get it.
At the time I thought the Beach Boys were a bunch of old fogey surfer dudes.
I finally gave in at about 19 years old and listened to the whole album.
I got it instantly. I understood what all those guys were talking about. It was ahead of it’s time, and INHO a solid work of genius.
I have had massive respect for Wilson ever since.
I just listened to the Brian Wilson song ‘On the Island’ with Zooey Daschenal, on youtube, pretty good.
Even downloaded it to listen to it later.
Zoey D. is a husky little minx
I like Brian Wilson but he really exaggerates his influence. If Brian Wilson had never lived there would have been a Sgt Pepper’s. The Beatles really did not need anything from Brian or the Beach Boys to do their own thing.
A murderer? No wait, that came later.
Spector like Brian Wilson, had this amazing gift to hear music in a way no one else could, and in his case it was the Wall of Sound. Brian was more into the interaction of complex vocal harmonies and those really unusual sounds and tone that he’d combine in unique ways. As soon as he hooked up with Spector and the Wrecking Crew studio musicians, Brian switched gears from being in a band to being a composer and producer, and using the best players in the business. Find a way to see the Wrecking Crew movie or read the book, it’s quite a story. To the musicians it was just good-paying work, but when they worked for Brian they knew it wasn’t just another 45 rpm single.
He also knows how to handle money, he handled all the Beach Boys money.
when I built the Cobra for Dennis to go drag racing I had to go to Brian for the money
He even handled the funds that were given to Dennis to live on.
Carol Kaye played the Bass on Sloop John B. Look on Youtube for Behind the sounds Sloop John B The Beach Boys and you'll see a lot of other well known back then names. Hal Blaine was the drummer. As the band progressed they did more and more of their own work. Carl Wilson was as talented in voice and instruments than Brian maybe more so and Carl was talented as well. BTW there is also a video of the making of Good Vibrations on Youtube as well look for the title The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations - Rare Studio Recording Fil.
Carl and Brian could sound so much alike it was hard to tell them apart. Sloop John B had two versions. The one on Pet Sounds is the one with Brian and Mike Love. But an alternate recording with Carl and Dennis singing it was also made.
The Henry Gross song "Shannon" Carl was going to do the chorus for it and couldn't make it for some reason. That song came from a conversation Carl had with Henry. All of The Beach Boys were good musicians in their own right.
The BBs started singing about cars when they realized the closest most of the country came to hearing waves break was holding a sea shell up our ears.
Little Deuce Coupe
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