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Post by Kapitan on Mar 26, 2024 12:09:15 GMT
Here is an article I saw on Yahoo! but that is apparently republished from Woman's World on "the Beach Boy's singular legacy of perfectly crafted pop." (Yes, that's a singular possessive, as it is explicitly talking about Brian Wilson when it says "the Beach Boy's," not the band, "the Beach Boys'.") The article lists 10 Brian Wilson songs as something of a primer. It isn't accurate down to the details (e.g., it says these are the songs "that best showcase his potent lyrics and evocative production," when many of the songs' lyrics were not by Wilson), and it isn't particularly musically deep. But it does showcase a different set of songs than you'd usually see in a Top 10, Best Of, or Intro To kind of list. I won't tell you what's on it, but what is missing are songs like "Surfin USA," "I Get Around," "Fun Fun Fun," "Help Me Rhonda," "Do It Again"...you get the idea. This might be me reaching, or even stereotyping, but I wondered whether the selections are more representative of a female perspective, the story having started in Woman's World. (Not to say there aren't many women who love the aforementioned beach/car fun-in-the-sun songs, and men--myself included--who lean toward songs like these.) www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/brian-wilson-songs-exploring-beach-090022976.html
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 5, 2024 14:51:07 GMT
Ultimate Classic Rock published a list of the most expensive rock albums of all time, and a couple of them are relevant to our interests: I wonder what the costs of Smile were. I'd think it would have been up there with, or higher than, Pet Sounds. Neither of these (even in inflation-adjusted numbers) are anywhere near the most expensive anymore, by the way. The story says the most expensive album on the list (which was limited to rock records, but is also called the second-most expensive overall) was Guns n Roses' legendary-in-a-bad-way Chinese Democracy, at "just under $20 million." The story says Michael Jackson's Invincible is the most expensive of all time.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 8, 2024 11:15:35 GMT
This isn't news, it's really paparazzi stuff, gossip. But the UK's Daily Mail published a "story" that Brian Wilson appeared in public for the first time since the dementia diagnosis was made public: he attended last night's Lakers game (which the visiting Timberwolves won ). They make a point about him being pushed in a wheelchair, but that ought not be surprising, since he was using a wheelchair already 2-3 years ago to get on and off stage. A sports stadium is another environment where that should be totally expected.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Apr 8, 2024 11:27:19 GMT
This isn't news, it's really paparazzi stuff, gossip. But the UK's Daily Mail published a "story" that Brian Wilson appeared in public for the first time since the dementia diagnosis was made public: he attended last night's Lakers game (which the visiting Timberwolves won ). They make a point about him being pushed in a wheelchair, but that ought not be surprising, since he was using a wheelchair already 2-3 years ago to get on and off stage. A sports stadium is another environment where that should be totally expected. Considering Brian could've watched the game on a big screen TV sitting on a recliner in his living room - maybe (probably?) by himself - this news makes me very happy to read. I'm happy he's getting out of the house and doing things, interacting with people, living his life.
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Post by jk on Apr 10, 2024 8:31:14 GMT
I don't know whether this belongs here, but here's a project I was pointed at not too long ago. A Book of Brian is the brainchild of Jacob Hobbsen. I'm about four chapters in, with a long way to go. Fascinating -- and highly recommended!
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 10, 2024 18:01:56 GMT
I'm told elsewhere that Mike is not a drinker. I would be surprised, though, if he didn't take at least a sip of this stuff. I know it's a controversial subject, and I don't want to come across as Mr. Moral, but it bothers me that Mike Love is involved in the sale of alcoholic beverages. Over the years in several interviews, Mike has talked about his biggest regret(s) in his Beach Boys' career, and Mike did not hesitate in mentioning the effects and abuse of drugs and alcohol by some of the members of the group and family. You would think the last thing Mike Love would want to do is involve himself - in any way - in the sale, marketing, and promotion of alcohol. What I'm about to post isn't a direct response to you, Sheriff John Stone, because you're not the one saying what I'm about to say "people say." It's just that I can't quite place when and where it was said, and this is somewhat on the topic... With that disclaimer/advance apology out of the way... I've seen it said that Mike does not and never did drink alcohol. That people who have known him since the '60s say this to be the case. I'm sure I'd read of Mike drinking, though. At least one of the big books (Carlin's?) talked about him putting beer into a (non-transparent) plastic cup before or after shows so that it wasn't obvious he was drinking, because of the exact reason SJS mentions above, not wanting to promote it. As I keep working through the new Beach Boys book, I've come across a couple of examples of Mike himself talking about drinking alcohol. On page 63, Mike talks about how in 1962 he "used to carry a bottle of vodka in [his] saxophone case and David got into that when I wasn't looking." On page 174, talking about the recording of Party, he says "we brought our girlfriends, wives and friends over, drank stacks and stacks of beer, and we just got it on." To be clear, I'm not criticizing Mike for drinking alcohol at any point in his life, whether 1962, 1965, 1985, or 2024. I'm not even bothered by him promoting his brand of alcohol, though I see the irony in it. Just wanting to put it out there that, at the very least when he was a young man, according to his own words, Mike Love did indeed drink alcohol.
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Post by kds on Apr 10, 2024 18:44:36 GMT
I'm pretty sure, for one of Mike's recent birthdays, he posted a picture of himself with a glass of wine in his hand.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Apr 10, 2024 20:35:53 GMT
It does indeed bother me that Mike Love has chosen to market and promote an alcoholic beverage. Of all the products he would want to be associated with... You would think when Mike was approached to do it (I hope Mike himself didn't come up with the idea), Mike would've immediately thought/said, "You know, with all the pain and suffering alcohol and drugs have caused my friends, my family and my career, the last thing I want to do is promote it." I guess Mike didn't think that way.
However, that being said, I do want to defend Mike in this way. I have formed this opinion over many years. First, some personal background. When I graduated from high school, a bunch of us went to the Jersey shore for a week. Why there? Because the drinking age was 18 as opposed to 21 in Pennsylvania. So, every night we went to a bar and drank beer. A lot of beer. And you know what? I didn't enjoy it. I dislike(d) the taste of beer. It also gave me a headache and sometimes made me throw up. Why do I use past tense? Because I rarely drank beer or any alcohol after that week many years ago. Oh, there was the occasional wedding reception or birthday party or holiday when I had an alcoholic beverage (probably just one that I milked for an hour). And, a few years ago, my nephew gave me a bottle of Kahlua for Christmas which I very occasionally broke out and made a Kahlua and cream drink - at home while watching a sporting event on TV. 99.9% of the time I choose a soft drink when alcohol is available and/or being served. So, did I drink alcohol? There are obviously "witnesses" that would say yes. They saw me drink. They might've even served me. But I say no. I was not and am not a drinker. Alcohol has played 0% in my life.
Where am I going with this? Sure, if you go back and scour the last 83 years of Mike Love's life, you will find some isolated (isolated being the key word) occasions when Mike imbibed. As a freewheeling 22 year-old for a few weeks? At a recording session 59 years ago? Maybe the occasional glass of wine at dinner? If that's it - and I have no idea if it is - that hardly qualifies Mike Love as a drinker. Yet, some fans (and I'm not singling anybody out here) are quick to hang that on Mike, you know, "gotcha!" How dare you talk about Brian, Dennis, and Carl when you're just as bad. I highly doubt Mike drinks much. I highly doubt he got drunk often. I highly doubt alcohol plays a part in his life, personally or professionally - except for that one BIG way. It directly led to the self-destruction of people very close to him. How do I know that? Because Mike told us several times. So, while I do think Mike is guilty of major hypocrisy (I think he should be called out on it) and flat out stupid, I do not consider him a "drinker". That has too much of a negative connotation to hang on him. There's plenty of other negatives and criticisms we can apply to Mike if we choose to.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 10, 2024 21:31:33 GMT
I don't disagree with you at all. In fact, he's also quoted in the new book as saying something like "I've smoked my fair share of pot," I think in the Smiley Smile section (I don't have the book in front of me at the moment, so I can't get it quite accurately), but I also wouldn't say "haha, Mike does [or did] drugs!"
That's not what I meant or mean at all. Rather, it's just to point out that the idea that Mike is, was, and ever shall be a teetotaler--that's not accurate. He's clearly not an addict, either, and I don't mean to remotey imply he is or was. No character assassination intended, and no value judgment intended.
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Apr 10, 2024 22:01:41 GMT
I don't disagree with you at all. In fact, he's also quoted in the new book as saying something like "I've smoked my fair share of pot," I think in the Smiley Smile section (I don't have the book in front of me at the moment, so I can't get it quite accurately), but I also wouldn't say "haha, Mike does [or did] drugs!" That's not what I meant or mean at all. Rather, it's just to point out that the idea that Mike is, was, and ever shall be a teetotaler--that's not accurate. He's clearly not an addict, either, and I don't mean to remotey imply he is or was. No character assassination intended, and no value judgment intended. I wasn't addressing or referring to you or your post(s) with my post.
I am simply of the opinion that Mike's own...digressions...with drugs and/or alcohol over his 83 year-old life are minor, isolated, and not at all influential on his life, both personally and professionally. I consider them inconsequential, except for any judgment on hypocrisy where I find Mike guilty. I realize it's Mike himself who brought up some of these experiences in his book, though (and here I go again, "defending" Mike) I also think he's trying to appear cool and anti-square. Mike's always been considered the antithesis of Brian, Dennis, and Carl. I think Mike was always insecure in that way, not that he had to be. Feel free to disagree.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 10, 2024 22:14:56 GMT
I also think he's trying to appear cool and anti-square. Mike's always been considered the antithesis of Brian, Dennis , and Carl. I think Mike was always insecure in that way, not that he had to be. There's a lot there to consider. I am going to do so (and I have some ideas already), and I'll probably move that eventual discussion to a more appropriate thread, as we're meandering here. This is good stuff.
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Post by lonelysummer on Apr 11, 2024 7:21:25 GMT
This is an interesting - and balanced discussion. Glad we can do this hear. Out there in the wilds of the internet, such nuance is not possible. I got into a discussion with someone last year about a similar topic - performing enhancing drugs in sports. Someone said that Hank Aaron used amphetamines. Well, the man himself said he tried a greenie once back in the 60's, and it made him feel so ill, that he never used them again. Yet the person debating me comes back with "so Hank Aaron was a juicer!" and I'm coming back with "oh, so he took one once, and to you, that's the same as being addicted to them?" I'm glad Mike, for the most part, avoided drugs and alcohol. I say that without demonizing his cousins for using them. It was very common back then, and I can understand how they fell into that trap. I compliment Carl for cleaning up after hitting bottom; I wish Dennis had done the same.
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Post by kds on Apr 11, 2024 13:43:10 GMT
Frankly, I don't really care if Mike is a regular drinker, or just enjoys an occasional glass of wine, or totally avoids the stuff al together. He's a big boy, he's made it to his 80s, so he's doing alright.
But, I also think there's some nuance here. Where maybe Mike is the kind of guy who can occasionally enjoy a good libation without getting out of control. And, for a while there, his cousins were out of control. So, that's why I don't really have a huge issue with Mike's side hustle or the occasional social media post with a glass.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 22, 2024 11:42:58 GMT
A new Mike Love interview, published yesterday in the Arizona Republic, ahead of M&B's Beach Boys appearance at the country-oriented Stagecoach festival Friday. But I'll be a bit of a spoiler: it's a "greatest hits" interview, for the most part. Bruce introducing Pet Sounds to the Beatles and Who, Paul playing "Back in the USSR" to Mike (who came up with a bridge idea), Mike naming Pet Sounds, etc. He does comment briefly on TWGMTR (though nothing new about it), and he politely shoots down the question about another reunion (not in so many words, but by commenting on Brian's health and then redirecting the question to the documentary).
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Post by Sheriff John Stone on Apr 22, 2024 12:23:51 GMT
A new Mike Love interview, published yesterday in the Arizona Republic, ahead of M&B's Beach Boys appearance at the country-oriented Stagecoach festival Friday. But I'll be a bit of a spoiler: it's a "greatest hits" interview, for the most part. Bruce introducing Pet Sounds to the Beatles and Who, Paul playing "Back in the USSR" to Mike (who came up with a bridge idea), Mike naming Pet Sounds, etc. He does comment briefly on TWGMTR (though nothing new about it), and he politely shoots down the question about another reunion (not in so many words, but by commenting on Brian's health and then redirecting the question to the documentary). I do believe what Mike says about That's Why God Made The Radio (his not being able to write with Brian) and I appreciate his honesty. However, I'm a little surprised that he continues to bring it up in interviews. I can understand why he would mention it for a few years after the reunion/album, especially in light of the criticism he was getting in various outlets. But, I thought by now - ten plus years down the road - he might start to shed more of a positive light on the album including its critical and commercial success. In some aspects of The Beach Boys' career, the negative ones, Mike is now...not holding back...and telling it the way he sees/saw it, and letting the chips fall where they may.
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