Monday, June 20, 2005

SMiLE! - It's Brian Wilson's 63rd Birthday!

Today is Brian Wilson's 63rd birthday. I know you non-music geeks are tired of hearing about this "genius" and don't "get" The Beach Boys or Brian's music, but today is the perfect day to give his music a fresh listen.
 
  • Caroline No!
  • Warmth of The Sun
  • Let Him Run Wild
  • That's Not Me
  • Don't Cry (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)
  • Heroes and Villains
  • Cabinessence
  • Let's Go Away for a While
  • Plymouth Rock
  • God Only Knows
  • Surf's Up
  • Hang On To Your Ego
  • Vegetables
 
Are gorgeous pop songs (some of the most artistically beautiful you will every hear). At age 62, his masterpiece SMiLE finally came out, and it was better than I'd even hoped it would be (imagine if the new McCartney CD was as good as Rubber Soul!)
 
What most people forget, was how amazing their early material really was. Their pop melodies,  "do-wop" harmonies, surf guitar and teenage summer fun imagery was incredibly unique (try to find a surf song with vocal, let alone harmony before them!). But what they (especially Brian) really did was up the ante among the songwriters of the 1960's. John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Paul Simon, Pete Townshend, Ray Davies, Ron Argent, Crosby, Stills , Nash & Young, Sonny Bono, Jerry Garcia, The Hollies were given a "complete artist" to aspire to. They all tried to create this kind of music. Some succeeded, some failed. All at least attempted to write their "Teenage Symphony to God"  (Waterloo Sunset, She's Leaving Home, All You Need Is Love, Overture/It's A Boy, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Cary On, Needles and Pins, Imagine The Swan - there is almost a "lost" Beach Boys record right there!)
 
Then there is the next generation. Of course they saw the Beach Boys as an "Oldies" act (one of the first bands credited to this genre) but also saw the greatness in the catalogue and the quality of the songs and the sound. REM, The Ramones, Jellyfish, Squeeze, The Pixies, Big Star, The Posies, XTC (and their alter-ego Dukes Of Stratosphere), Teenage Fanclub, Oasis, Tears For Fears, David Lee Roth...basically any artist that put melody and creativity (and harmony) up front where it belongs, "got" The Beach Boys and the genius of Brian Wilson.
 
Happy Birthday Brian!
 

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