Brian Wilson 2002-07-20
"Art That Shook The World" - Pet Sounds, BBC TV program, UK
Set 1
"What would make Pet Sounds stand out from the pack, lyrically at least, was its naked insecurity and its blind faith in teenage romance." - Mark Lamarr
Brian Wilson, the creative genius behind Pet Sounds, grew up in Hawthorne, a suburb of Los Angeles, along with his two brothers Carl and Dennis. Their father Murry, an aspiring singer and songwriter himself, was a strict disciplinarian and the sensitive Brian found his father at times a terrifying figure. Brian?s happiest moments were at family sing-alongs around the piano and he spent many hours in his room listening to music and practicing harmonies.
While still in high school the boys formed a band, with Murry giving them plenty of encouragement. Brian?s friend Al Jardine joined them, and with cousin Mike Love, the brothers began looking for material to write songs about. Dennis was a keen surfer and suggested that as a theme.
Murry won them an audition with a local label and in 1961 they recorded Surfin? USA. Picked as winners in a phone-in contest, the boys found they had their first hit. Murry negotiated a deal with Capitol Records, realising that their sound could take off nationally, even internationally. Everyone wanted a piece of the Californian dream.
For many years Murry and Capitol pushed Brian hard to come up with a stream of hits. Although Murry kept firm control of the band, marketing their clean cut image, it was clear that Brian was the creative force. Increasingly he battled with Murry in the studio, taking over as producer, as well as composer and arranger, all the time becoming frustrated by the strict musical formula he had to work to.
The stress of touring also grew worse for Brian and he eventually broke down on a plane flight to Texas. Soon afterwards Brian quit touring altogether, with Bruce Johnston being brought in to replace him.
Freed from the stress of touring Brian was free to write songs. Taking his inspiration from The Beatles? album Rubber Soul, Brian determined to make a great album, moving away from the bland pop songs he had produced thus far. This was the start of the creative process that was to produce possibly the greatest album of all time.
1966 was one of the great years for pop, with Dylan, the Stones and The Beatles all producing their greatest work, but Mark Lamarr argues that the greatest album of that incredible year was the Beach Boys? Pet Sounds.
Brian Wilson, the creative genius behind Pet Sounds, grew up in Hawthorne, a suburb of Los Angeles, along with his two brothers Carl and Dennis. Their father Murry, an aspiring singer and songwriter himself, was a strict disciplinarian and the sensitive Brian found his father at times a terrifying figure. Brian?s happiest moments were at family sing-alongs around the piano and he spent many hours in his room listening to music and practicing harmonies.
While still in high school the boys formed a band, with Murry giving them plenty of encouragement. Brian?s friend Al Jardine joined them, and with cousin Mike Love, the brothers began looking for material to write songs about. Dennis was a keen surfer and suggested that as a theme.
Murry won them an audition with a local label and in 1961 they recorded Surfin? USA. Picked as winners in a phone-in contest, the boys found they had their first hit. Murry negotiated a deal with Capitol Records, realising that their sound could take off nationally, even internationally. Everyone wanted a piece of the Californian dream.
For many years Murry and Capitol pushed Brian hard to come up with a stream of hits. Although Murry kept firm control of the band, marketing their clean cut image, it was clear that Brian was the creative force. Increasingly he battled with Murry in the studio, taking over as producer, as well as composer and arranger, all the time becoming frustrated by the strict musical formula he had to work to.
The stress of touring also grew worse for Brian and he eventually broke down on a plane flight to Texas. Soon afterwards Brian quit touring altogether, with Bruce Johnston being brought in to replace him.
Freed from the stress of touring Brian was free to write songs. Taking his inspiration from The Beatles? album Rubber Soul, Brian determined to make a great album, moving away from the bland pop songs he had produced thus far. This was the start of the creative process that was to produce possibly the greatest album of all time.
1966 was one of the great years for pop, with Dylan, the Stones and The Beatles all producing their greatest work, but Mark Lamarr argues that the greatest album of that incredible year was the Beach Boys? Pet Sounds.
Set 2
Set 3
Comment
Air date: 2002-07-20
Sources
| SHNID | Date | Venue | City | State | Archive Identifier |
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Created At
Sat Nov 23 2002 04:41:57 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Updated At
Fri May 02 2003 19:55:22 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
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