RIP Brian Wilson

[Mr._Graybeard]

Don't forget that evil mother****er Col. Tom Parker

Yeah, I hate him too. And all those stupid movies.

 

[Driftwood]

 

[swingline]

The image the Beach Boys created in my mind made me want to attend UCLA. Surf, sun, sand and sexy coeds — what more could a flyover boy want?

Alas, I went to school 30 miles from home.

 

[maumann]

As a graduate of a California public high school, the kids in my neighborhood who really wanted the University of California beach experience went to UC Santa Barbara because it's right on the Pacific Ocean, while UC San Diego is a hop, skip and a jump over Torrey Pines Road to the canyons.

UCLA is more than seven miles (and God knows what traffic conditions) away from Santa Monica, although you might take a detour at the aptly-named Stoner Park.

Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine are pretty damn close to the water, too.

Stupid 17-year-old me went to Fresno instead of trying to get into UCSB. I'm still paying for my stupidity, obviously.

 

[Brooklyn Bridge]

For those of you with Sirius X/M, they have a Beach Boys remembrance of Brian Wilson on channel 79.

 

[Neutral Corner]

I want to get it. I just don't think my brain understands. I say that as someone whose life is dominated by constant music because I like to bee-bop along through life singing songs (badly).

I'll take a bit of a whack at it. Brian Wilson took some music classes in high school and at least one in college, although I think he failed it in college. He wasn't great at transcribing what he wanted, but he had a gift for hearing a melody in his head, and he could get it at least somewhat into a written score. (Although Carol Kaye says that once in a while he'd write the notes backwards.)

When it comes to "Pet Sounds", by that time he was a recognized star, and he used The Wrecking Crew, the best group of studio musicians in L.A., to record. This was in great part the same group that had backed Phil Spector on his Wall of Sound recordings, as well as playing on literally hundreds of Top 40 records. Wilson might have a written score, or he might just sing the melody he was after, or he'd play the melody on the piano. He could play the drums fairly well so he could get across what he was after there and then let Hal Blaine take it over.

The thing was that he'd have an entire multi part, multi instrumental score, multi part vocal in his head. He knew what he wanted, but generally it took many hours in the studio to get it all pieced together. "Good Vibrations" was recorded over six months in four different studios. It didn't help that in some cases he'd have a single instrument, say a triangle or a particular percussion beat that he was after, and it would be a five second bit of tape, repeated perhaps twice, which eventually would be dropped into the mix at just the right spot to be the accent Wilson intended - but there was nothing obvious about it to the people playing it, why he wanted it, or how it would fit in. There were endless retakes, changes, things tried, added, subtracted, edited out. Think about how intricate "Good Vibrations" is, how many times it changes the melody line or the beat. Brian was the mad chemist mixing all the various ingredients.

There are a number of clips of Brian in the studio, and they would be doing say a horn track, and they'd play and he'd interrupt, saying that he wanted these three beats a bit faster and closer together, and then the fourth beat to be louder and sharper. Stuff like that. Over time he'd take hundreds of yards of tape, parts from various takes, and splice and mix and whittle away at it all until he eventually achieved what he was hearing in his head. It was like a huge jigsaw puzzle and no one could see the picture on the cover but Brian.

It was frustrating as hell for the studio musicians sometimes, but they still competed to be on the call list, partly because it was challenging, partly because they'd come out on the other end with something of high quality, and partly because they were on the clock and Capitol Records was paying for many many hours of prime studio musician's time.

He was incredibly gifted, and every bit as damaged mentally. He left behind some absolutely amazing music. RIP to a giant.

 

[ChrisLong]

As a graduate of a California public high school, the kids in my neighborhood who really wanted the University of California beach experience went to UC Santa Barbara because it's right on the Pacific Ocean, while UC San Diego is a hop, skip and a jump over Torrey Pines Road to the canyons.

UCLA is more than seven miles (and God knows what traffic conditions) away from Santa Monica, although you might take a detour at the aptly-named Stoner Park.

Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine are pretty damn close to the water, too.

Stupid 17-year-old me went to Fresno instead of trying to get into UCSB. I'm still paying for my stupidity, obviously.

Pepperdine and UC Santa Barbara are both on the beach. When they meet in basketball, it's billed as "The War By The Shore."

In 1984, when Jerry Pimm got the basketball coaching job at UCSB, his first event was a preseason intrasquad game on a Saturday afternoon. He pulled up and saw a full parking lot and thought this job was going to be easy, look at how much interest there is in an intrasquad games. Oops, the arena parking lot was also the beach parking lot. There weren't more than a dozen people in gym, beach was crowded.

 

[Shropshire Slasher]

As a graduate of a California public high school, the kids in my neighborhood who really wanted the University of California beach experience went to UC Santa Barbara because it's right on the Pacific Ocean, while UC San Diego is a hop, skip and a jump over Torrey Pines Road to the canyons.

UCLA is more than seven miles (and God knows what traffic conditions) away from Santa Monica, although you might take a detour at the aptly-named Stoner Park.

Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine are pretty damn close to the water, too.

Stupid 17-year-old me went to Fresno instead of trying to get into UCSB. I'm still paying for my stupidity, obviously.

I’ve driven those 7 miles from Westwood to the pier. It makes the 405 jealous.

 

[cyclingwriter2]

I'll take a bit of a whack at it. Brian Wilson took some music classes in high school and at least one in college, although I think he failed it in college. He wasn't great at transcribing what he wanted, but he had a gift for hearing a melody in his head, and he could get it at least somewhat into a written score. (Although Carol Kaye says that once in a while he'd write the notes backwards.)

When it comes to "Pet Sounds", by that time he was a recognized star, and he used The Wrecking Crew, the best group of studio musicians in L.A., to record. This was in great part the same group that had backed Phil Spector on his Wall of Sound recordings, as well as playing on literally hundreds of Top 40 records. Wilson might have a written score, or he might just sing the melody he was after, or he'd play the melody on the piano. He could play the drums fairly well so he could get across what he was after there and then let Hal Blaine take it over.

The thing was that he'd have an entire multi part, multi instrumental score, multi part vocal in his head. He knew what he wanted, but generally it took many hours in the studio to get it all pieced together. "Good Vibrations" was recorded over six months in four different studios. It didn't help that in some cases he'd have a single instrument, say a triangle or a particular percussion beat that he was after, and it would be a five second bit of tape, repeated perhaps twice, which eventually would be dropped into the mix at just the right spot to be the accent Wilson intended - but there was nothing obvious about it to the people playing it, why he wanted it, or how it would fit in. There were endless retakes, changes, things tried, added, subtracted, edited out. Think about how intricate "Good Vibrations" is, how many times it changes the melody line or the beat. Brian was the mad chemist mixing all the various ingredients.

There are a number of clips of Brian in the studio, and they would be doing say a horn track, and they'd play and he'd interrupt, saying that he wanted these three beats a bit faster and closer together, and then the fourth beat to be louder and sharper. Stuff like that. Over time he'd take hundreds of yards of tape, parts from various takes, and splice and mix and whittle away at it all until he eventually achieved what he was hearing in his head. It was like a huge jigsaw puzzle and no one could see the picture on the cover but Brian.

It was frustrating as hell of the studio musicians sometimes, but they still competed to be on the call list, partly because it was challenging, partly because they'd come out on the other end with something of high quality, and partly because they were on the clock and Capitol Records was paying for many many hours of prime studio musician's time.

He was incredibly gifted, and every bit as damaged mentally. He left behind some absolutely amazing music. RIP to a giant.

Probably my favorite scene from Walk Hard was the “Brian Wilson” phase. Though this clips cuts out before my favorite line of “velvet pancakes.”

 

[Brooklyn Bridge]

I'll take a bit of a whack at it. Brian Wilson took some music classes in high school and at least one in college, although I think he failed it in college. He wasn't great at transcribing what he wanted, but he had a gift for hearing a melody in his head, and he could get it at least somewhat into a written score. (Although Carol Kaye says that once in a while he'd write the notes backwards.)

When it comes to "Pet Sounds", by that time he was a recognized star, and he used The Wrecking Crew, the best group of studio musicians in L.A., to record. This was in great part the same group that had backed Phil Spector on his Wall of Sound recordings, as well as playing on literally hundreds of Top 40 records. Wilson might have a written score, or he might just sing the melody he was after, or he'd play the melody on the piano. He could play the drums fairly well so he could get across what he was after there and then let Hal Blaine take it over.

The thing was that he'd have an entire multi part, multi instrumental score, multi part vocal in his head. He knew what he wanted, but generally it took many hours in the studio to get it all pieced together. "Good Vibrations" was recorded over six months in four different studios. It didn't help that in some cases he'd have a single instrument, say a triangle or a particular percussion beat that he was after, and it would be a five second bit of tape, repeated perhaps twice, which eventually would be dropped into the mix at just the right spot to be the accent Wilson intended - but there was nothing obvious about it to the people playing it, why he wanted it, or how it would fit in. There were endless retakes, changes, things tried, added, subtracted, edited out. Think about how intricate "Good Vibrations" is, how many times it changes the melody line or the beat. Brian was the mad chemist mixing all the various ingredients.

There are a number of clips of Brian in the studio, and they would be doing say a horn track, and they'd play and he'd interrupt, saying that he wanted these three beats a bit faster and closer together, and then the fourth beat to be louder and sharper. Stuff like that. Over time he'd take hundreds of yards of tape, parts from various takes, and splice and mix and whittle away at it all until he eventually achieved what he was hearing in his head. It was like a huge jigsaw puzzle and no one could see the picture on the cover but Brian.

It was frustrating as hell for the studio musicians sometimes, but they still competed to be on the call list, partly because it was challenging, partly because they'd come out on the other end with something of high quality, and partly because they were on the clock and Capitol Records was paying for many many hours of prime studio musician's time.

He was incredibly gifted, and every bit as damaged mentally. He left behind some absolutely amazing music. RIP to a giant.

That must’ve been an absolute nightmare for the people editing the recording. All that tape has to be cut and spliced together, which is how it was done in those days. It’s much easier nowadays, as everything is digital.

 

[Neutral Corner]

Six months for "Good Vibrations". I've spliced tape, and I can't imagine how insane I'd have gone trying to deal with that.

 

[dixiehack]

I mean, Wilson did drive himself insane trying to replicate that level of precision.

 

[garrow]

Maybe The Beach Boys have got you now
With those waves singing "Caroline"
(Oh "Caroline, No")
Rolling down that empty ocean road
Getting to the surf on time​

 

[ChrisLong]

I've driven those 7 miles from Westwood to the pier. It makes the 405 jealous.

Even if you know the side streets, it's a nightmare. But nobody goes to the pier, it's too crowded.

 

[Huggy]

Even if you know the side streets, it's a nightmare. But nobody goes to the pier, it's too crowded.

King's Head Tavern is a good alternative

 

[ChrisLong]

King's Head Tavern is a good alternative

I played a lot of darts at the King's Head (Ye Olde Kings' Head if you're a stickler for accuracy). For a time, our home bar was the Crown & Anchor on the pier. McGinty's was a favorite, too. Only played a couple of times at the Mucky Duck.

 

[swingline]

That's funny. McGinty's is my bar here in flyover country. When I lived across the street in college, it was Skip's. We were too poor to darken the door more than once.

 

[ChrisLong]

That's funny. McGinty's is my bar here in flyover country. When I lived across the street in college, it was Skip's. We were too poor to darken the door more than once.

McGinty's was on Wilshire, near 26th. On the same block, were The Horn, which had live entertainment, and The Ball, which was a membership-only total nude place that did not have alcohol. Across the street was the Fox Inn, owned by Bill "Fox" Foster (Google him), who played a piano and sang dirty German beer-drinking songs. His attraction was gulping a beer in a half-second and standing on his head while he drank a beer. He did a cameo on "Cheers" and was a regular on "The Man Show." At least once a night, he would run out into the middle of Wilshire Blvd. and shout "The Horn blows" and "The Ball sucks."

 

[Shropshire Slasher]

Even if you know the side streets, it's a nightmare. But nobody goes to the pier, it's too crowded.

Thanks for the advice 10 years later! :D

 

[Neutral Corner]

It's funny what the algorithm serves up. I had heard that Brian didn't surf, but seeing him on a surfboard with the skeg in the front pretty much confirms it.