The Beatles vs The Beach Boys

Taxman · 11-02-2013, 11:56 AM

oh, if Beatles' psychedelic period is not for you, may I ask then, do you like 'Smile' since it is much more psychedelic than those Beatles albums?
And yes, Brian had have very bad problems with his mentality. His father was very cruel and dominant person and so everyone of three Wilson brothers (Brian, Dennis and Carl) have been suffered from some kind of mental illness.
Brian locked himself in his room and spent many years watching pornography, so that how bad his state of mind was...

DriveYourCarDownToTheSea · 11-02-2013, 03:57 PM

Carl never really had mental issues, as far as I know. He did his fair share of drinking and drugs, but not to the extent of Brian and Dennis, as far as I know. He was probably the most "normal" of the Wilson brothers. Dennis' main "mental" issue was his problems with addiction. I guess that counts as a mental issue, I suppose.

Surell · 11-02-2013, 11:48 PM

Dependence can be part of mental ailments, wasn't he pretty lousy with women too? But yeah, Carl seemed the most stable, from what clips i've seen of him he was understated but also very charming and kind. He was probably among the closest to Brian because of his stability too. But really that's just speculation.

Taxman · 11-03-2013, 03:53 AM

Dennis tried to survive with alcohol and all, and as far as I know also Carl had some mental problems, but yes, not that bad as Brian's.
But as far as I know, Carl was very great as a person and he was very religious, (which is not always good thing but it seems to helped him) and also I believe too Carl was closest to Brian since Carl was so musical and all. But Dennis also was on Brian's side. Once Denny said 'Brian is the Beach Boys and we are just his ****ing messengers' and also Brian has appreciated Denny's songs very much.

Lisnaholic · 11-03-2013, 07:54 AM

Yes, Brian Wilson is hardly a happy-go-lucky stage performer; the young Brian Wilson suffered from stage fright and the older Brian Wilson has some facial paralysis, I believe; so despite all the fun, fun, fun songs, it was really stress, stress, stress for BW. The studio was where he prefered to be. Has anyone here read his autobiog, Wouldn´t It Be Nice ? That´ll really give you an insight into Brian Wilson´s troubled life.

BW´s abusive father saw his son as the goose that would lay golden eggs for him and (backed by the other Wilsons) BW was told, threatened and begged not to mess with the formula of those early pop hits. To his credit, BW had the courage to fight against all that inertia and came up with a string of fabulous songs on Pet Sounds, peaking, imo, with Heroes and Villains. That song is such a triumphant slap in the face to all those "don´t mess with the formula" guys!

Like one of the earlier posters here, I once spent a day listening almost exclusively to the BB´s and discovered what I see as the downside of BW´s songwriting. For my liking, he´s a bit too much of a romantic wimp; it´s like he can´t resist slowing down the tempo and laying bare his trembling heart. Is anyone else embarrassed -or impatient- when they listen to some of BW´s more confessional songs? Oddly enough, to bring this little rant back to the opening topic, there is a parallel with the later songs of John Lennon, who I suspect also thought that if a song was down-to-the-knuckle sincere, then that, in itself, was a worthy acheivement. My callous attitude is, "Save that whinging for the bedroom, guys! I wanna hear some rock!"

Quick final question for Taxman; yes, he spent years in a kind of self-imposed house arrest, but are you sure he was watching porn all the while? I thought he was struggling with more debilitating psychopathological demons.

Taxman · 11-03-2013, 09:16 AM

Well, not so sure about that pornographic thing, but I have been told so and it is good story anyway

Taxman · 11-03-2013, 09:22 AM

A Boy's own story | From the Observer | The Observer

Here it can be found. It says '...tells about his insanity, drugs and addiction to pornography'.

Lisnaholic · 11-03-2013, 12:20 PM

OK, thanks Taxman. Ten out of ten for doing a bit of research - it´s a very interesting article, isn´t it? My apologies for doubting your facts !

Quzi · 11-03-2013, 09:46 PM

I'd take Brian's "autobiography" with a huge grain of salt. Apparently it was ghost written by Landy, the psychologist illegally prescribed all sorts of meds that near killed Brian and left him with heavy neurological damage.

I think Brian as late as 1978 could have been "saved" to great effect. Love You showed that he still had some awesomely inventive arranging chops and then M.I.U. suggested he had a salvageable voice locked away too. Unfortunately whatever Landy did to the guy in the '80s caused him to lose complete nuance and control of his voice and made him have to rely on creative collaborators ever since.

Taxman · 11-03-2013, 10:44 PM

Yeah,I don't know what happened to his voice... It have changed a lot. But it is not that bad. For example, on,his album 'Reimagines Gershwin' there is some very good vocal performances.
In studio he has been able to come out with good vocal performances,but when he's singing live, he does not sound good.
Always found 'Love You' to be very good album.

Anyway, I have also heard that autobiography was mostly written by Landy and so I would not believe everything what it says.
And yes, that Guardian article was pretty interesting to read.

11-02-2013, 03:57 PM	#722 (permalink)
DriveYourCarDownToTheSea AllTheWhileYouChargeAFee Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Kansas City Posts: 1,172	Carl never really had mental issues, as far as I know. He did his fair share of drinking and drugs, but not to the extent of Brian and Dennis, as far as I know. He was probably the most "normal" of the Wilson brothers. Dennis' main "mental" issue was his problems with addiction. I guess that counts as a mental issue, I suppose. __________________ Stop and find a pretty shell for her Beach Boys vs Beatles comparisons begin here

11-03-2013, 07:54 AM	#725 (permalink)
Lisnaholic ...here to hear... Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: He lives on Love Street Posts: 4,444	Yes, Brian Wilson is hardly a happy-go-lucky stage performer; the young Brian Wilson suffered from stage fright and the older Brian Wilson has some facial paralysis, I believe; so despite all the fun, fun, fun songs, it was really stress, stress, stress for BW. The studio was where he prefered to be. Has anyone here read his autobiog, Wouldn´t It Be Nice ? That´ll really give you an insight into Brian Wilson´s troubled life. BW´s abusive father saw his son as the goose that would lay golden eggs for him and (backed by the other Wilsons) BW was told, threatened and begged not to mess with the formula of those early pop hits. To his credit, BW had the courage to fight against all that inertia and came up with a string of fabulous songs on Pet Sounds, peaking, imo, with Heroes and Villains. That song is such a triumphant slap in the face to all those "don´t mess with the formula" guys! Like one of the earlier posters here, I once spent a day listening almost exclusively to the BB´s and discovered what I see as the downside of BW´s songwriting. For my liking, he´s a bit too much of a romantic wimp; it´s like he can´t resist slowing down the tempo and laying bare his trembling heart. Is anyone else embarrassed -or impatient- when they listen to some of BW´s more confessional songs? Oddly enough, to bring this little rant back to the opening topic, there is a parallel with the later songs of John Lennon, who I suspect also thought that if a song was down-to-the-knuckle sincere, then that, in itself, was a worthy acheivement. My callous attitude is, "Save that whinging for the bedroom, guys! I wanna hear some rock!" Quick final question for Taxman; yes, he spent years in a kind of self-imposed house arrest, but are you sure he was watching porn all the while? I thought he was struggling with more debilitating psychopathological demons. __________________ "Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

11-03-2013, 12:20 PM	#728 (permalink)
Lisnaholic ...here to hear... Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: He lives on Love Street Posts: 4,444	OK, thanks Taxman. Ten out of ten for doing a bit of research - it´s a very interesting article, isn´t it? My apologies for doubting your facts ! __________________ "Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

11-02-2013, 11:56 AM	#721 (permalink)
Taxman watching the wheels Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Finland Posts: 470	oh, if Beatles' psychedelic period is not for you, may I ask then, do you like 'Smile' since it is much more psychedelic than those Beatles albums? And yes, Brian had have very bad problems with his mentality. His father was very cruel and dominant person and so everyone of three Wilson brothers (Brian, Dennis and Carl) have been suffered from some kind of mental illness. Brian locked himself in his room and spent many years watching pornography, so that how bad his state of mind was...

11-03-2013, 03:53 AM	#724 (permalink)
Taxman watching the wheels Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Finland Posts: 470	Dennis tried to survive with alcohol and all, and as far as I know also Carl had some mental problems, but yes, not that bad as Brian's. But as far as I know, Carl was very great as a person and he was very religious, (which is not always good thing but it seems to helped him) and also I believe too Carl was closest to Brian since Carl was so musical and all. But Dennis also was on Brian's side. Once Denny said 'Brian is the Beach Boys and we are just his ****ing messengers' and also Brian has appreciated Denny's songs very much.

11-03-2013, 09:16 AM	#726 (permalink)
Taxman watching the wheels Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Finland Posts: 470	Well, not so sure about that pornographic thing, but I have been told so and it is good story anyway

11-03-2013, 09:22 AM	#727 (permalink)
Taxman watching the wheels Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Finland Posts: 470	A Boy's own story \| From the Observer \| The Observer Here it can be found. It says '...tells about his insanity, drugs and addiction to pornography'.

11-03-2013, 09:46 PM	#729 (permalink)
Quzi Groupie Join Date: Mar 2013 Posts: 17	I'd take Brian's "autobiography" with a huge grain of salt. Apparently it was ghost written by Landy, the psychologist illegally prescribed all sorts of meds that near killed Brian and left him with heavy neurological damage. I think Brian as late as 1978 could have been "saved" to great effect. Love You showed that he still had some awesomely inventive arranging chops and then M.I.U. suggested he had a salvageable voice locked away too. Unfortunately whatever Landy did to the guy in the '80s caused him to lose complete nuance and control of his voice and made him have to rely on creative collaborators ever since.

11-03-2013, 10:44 PM	#730 (permalink)
Taxman watching the wheels Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Finland Posts: 470	Yeah,I don't know what happened to his voice... It have changed a lot. But it is not that bad. For example, on,his album 'Reimagines Gershwin' there is some very good vocal performances. In studio he has been able to come out with good vocal performances,but when he's singing live, he does not sound good. Always found 'Love You' to be very good album. Anyway, I have also heard that autobiography was mostly written by Landy and so I would not believe everything what it says. And yes, that Guardian article was pretty interesting to read.