It is difficult to imagine a world without Brian Wilson’s contributions. The depth and richness of his music in the 1960s has inspired generations, and will doubtless continue to do so.
His was far from an easy life. He dealt with abuse, addiction, mental health struggles and exploitation, many of these factors being exacerbated by those closest to him. His father was a brute, and Brian, along with his brothers Carl and Dennis, endured a very harsh upbringing indeed. His father’s dictatorial grip extended to The Beach Boys.
The band was a family affair, with the Wilson boys, Brian, Dennis, and Carl, joined by cousin Mike Love and schoolfriend Al Jardine. This certainly did not prevent turmoil, however. Dennis suffered severe substance abuse issues and briefly associated with Charles Manson, before a tragically early death. Brian’s cousin Mike Love was an opportunist, and deeply exploitative, both financially, and in taking credit for many of Brian’s virtuosic musical contributions.
Brian, too, suffered from spells of substance abuse and mental struggle throughout his life. As early as 1964, he decided that touring was taking too much of a toll on him. Inspired by the Beatles’ masterpiece Rubber Soul, Brian immersed himself in the studio.
The results speak for themselves. While The Beach Boys’ early music gave the listening public a vibrancy and energy only matched by The Beatles, 1966’s Pet Sounds is a work of extraordinary depth and artistry, fully deserving of its reputation as one of the greatest ever albums. Brian’s songwriting conveys a depth of grief and longing rarely matched, and it is all amplified by the production and arrangement, which, again, we have him to thank for.
Each song is a mini concerto, with elegantly interplaying and ornate movements, of strange and beautiful chord changes, all lovingly and precisely arranged. The depth of the harmonies is extraordinary, and some of the isolated vocal audio can be truly haunting. After Pet Sounds, Wilson would continue to produce work of an extremely high grade, his creativity never dulled despite personal issues.
It took me some time to truly appreciate Pet Sounds, and The Beach Boys in general. Not that I didn’t like it, but I have always loved the Beatles more (which, to be clear, I still do, especially their mid-1960s efforts Rubber Soul and Revolver). After a few listens though, Pet Sounds began to make sense on a more fundamental level. It was no longer a brilliant album, but a genuine masterpiece. You begin to appreciate the depth of the music as it becomes clearer with each listen, as the chord changes become more familiar, and the lyrics more meaningful.
Already tributes have been pouring in. For figures as great as Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney to be so moved by you and your work is testament to your genius. McCartney even went as far as to claim Wilson’s ‘God Only Knows’ is the greatest song ever written.
Brian Wilson’s spirit is embedded in everything great The Beach Boys did, of which there was a great deal. Despite everything he had to deal with during his life, Brian Wilson’s creativity, and the beauty of his soul, shone through everything he did, and always will.
“Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys in West Los Angeles 1990 photographed by Ithaka Darin Pappas” by IthakaDarinPappas is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.