IMAGINATION
 

THE WEB SITE FOR BRIAN WILSON AND THE BEACH BOYS
Bookmark this URL http://brianwilson.cjb.net

WHENEVER I FIND NEWS FROM ANOTHER SITE OR INDIVIDUAL AS YOU SEE BELOW, I ALWAYS GIVE CREDIT TO THAT PERSON OR SITE

FOR THOSE WHO USE NEWS POSTED HERE ON THEIR OWN SITES,I WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF YOU WOULD PLEASE GIVE CREDIT TO: Imagination- A Web site for Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys - URL http://brianwilson.cjb.net
 
 

NEWS
Updated 12/22/99

In it's latest issue, Endless Summer Quarterly Magazine is reporting that Capitol Records is planning to release, in the spring of 2000, a series of two-fer cd's namely Sunflower/Surf's Up, Carl And The Passions/Holland and 15 Big Ones/Beach Boys Love You WITHOUT bonus tracks. In the fall there are plans to release a Brothers Rareties CD which will include the tracks that were to be bonus tracks. No word as of yet regarding the In Concert CD

Brian Wilson to be inducted into Songwriters Hall Of Fame

Songwriters' Hall Elects New Inductees
 The Songwriters' Hall of Fame has elected 6 new entrants, who will be formally inducted at the group's 31st-anniversary awards dinner, scheduled for June 15 in New York. Joining the Hall are James Brown, James Taylor, BRIAN WILSON, Curtis Mayfield, and the Eagles' Glenn Frey and Don Henley.
From Billboard Online: Edited by Julie Taraska

Thanks to D474

Here's an article about the SMILE album from the Dec 14th Dallas Observer by Robert Wilonsky
 

The forever frown
More than 30 years later, Smile remains the subject of so much mystery.
 

It only grows bigger the further away it moves; object in rear-view mirror may be smaller than it appears. After all, it was only one album, one small collection of songs -- many of which have been officially released over the years. Who's to say how the world
might have changed had it appeared in record stores when it was
supposed to. Perhaps it would have ushered in revolution, led those who heard it to embark upon journeys previously unimagined, opened up
doors no one ever even knew existed. So many maybes, but only
one certainty: There has never been an official release of the Beach Boys' 1966 album Smile. And, for the time being, there never will be.

There have existed myriad bootlegs of the album, most of which are so
abbreviated that they're nearly emasculated, unlistenable -- so much
promise, cut and pasted into tiny little nothings. But that has never
stopped Smile from reaching mythic proportions; indeed, it has only
added to its lore. Even now, so many young bands ape the echoes, or
at least try to wrest them from thin air. The Olivia Tremor Control's
Black Foliage: Animation Music, released earlier this year, sounds
like something Brian Wilson left in the tape machine in 1966, its blips and beeps merging perfectly with sublime melodies and massed
harmonies that sound like made-for-radio hymns. (OTC also appears,
alongside the likes of Thurston Moore and Jim O'Rourke, on a
Japanese-only tribute to both Pet Sounds and Smile, released on Sony
Music last year.) Each generation has its devotees who sing the praises of a record they have never even heard, from Paul McCartney to Billy Corgan, Frank Zappa to Peter Buck. They propagate the myth by
celebrating that which does not exist.

The Internet overflows with essays devoted to this one lost album, the
most famous unreleased record ever made -- or not made. Books have
been written about the subject; in his 1993 novel Glimpses, Austin
author Lewis Shiner imagined going back in time and helping Brian
finish Smile. And Domenic Priore's 1997 scrapbook-plus Look!
Listen! Vibrate! Smile! offers every single word every printed on the
subject, in addition to the author's own rambling essay on the birth and death of Smile. Priore, like his fellow travelers, tells the story of how Brian Wilson set out to make the perfect record -- his "teenage
symphony to God," as he once said -- only to have his bandmates tell
him they did not want it released. Too f*cking weird, they told him.
Brian, forget it.

It is, essentially, as simple as that. For a moment, Brian Wilson had the chance to change the pop scene; his was to be an album of music and noise, absolute beauty and absolute chaos, that no one before him had ever imagined. Smile, with its a cappella harmonies and burning-house sound effects and off-kilter violins and plucked banjos and penny whistles and God knows what else (OK, everything else) piled up to the heavens, could well have been the most influential pop album of the 1960s. But Brian Wilson never had a chance: The Boys didn't want it out, Capitol Records didn't want it out...and soon enough, there would be no need for its release, as far as Brian was concerned. The Beatles, high on Brian's own Pet Sounds, struck back with Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967, and the rest would be history --theirs, not Brian's.

For years, stories had circulated that the album had been destroyed --
burned by Brian in a fire, reduced to ashes when he began fearing the
album was unleashing a psychotic bad vibe. That is hardly the case, as
the bootleggers have proven, releasing their abbreviated versions that
are sketches at best, consisting of loony tunes and other errata so
disjointed that it makes you wonder why anyone would crave such a
thing. Six years ago, Capitol Records did include several Smile songs
on its multidisc Good Vibrations box -- among them, "Heroes and
Villains" in two versions, "Wonderful," "Wind Chimes," "Do You Like
Worms," "Vegetables," "I Love to Say Da Da," and "Surf's Up" -- but
it was hardly enough to satisfy the casual fan, not to mention to the
completist. The songs were more like a tease, an appetizer offered to
the hunger-striker. After all, Smile was a concept album -- Brian
imagined it as a "psychedelicate" humor album made up of fragments of
every kind of American folk music that had ever existed -- and to hear
it only in fragments was to stumble across more questions than answers.

But last month, an astonishing new bootleg surfaced -- and, thus far, it appears to be the most complete document, containing three discs of
Smile sessions and another disc that purports to offer the album in its "completed" 43-minutes-plus entirety (though, in truth, no such thing could ever exist). Packaged not unlike Capitol Records' Pet Sounds Sessions, released in November 1997 after years of delays and
containing every thought Brian Wilson put to tape during the making of
that album, the newly available Smile boxed set is the combination of
several previously known boots.

About six months ago, the European-based Sea of Tunes label
-- a bootleg company devoted entirely to Beach Boys rarities, and a
subsidiary of a label named Midnight Beat -- released three discs of Smile sessions. (The collection followed closely after the label's "Good Vibrations" three-disc box, which consists of nothing but rehearsals and demos...for a single song!) The Smile box, subtitled Unsurpassed Masters Vol. 16 (1966-1967), featured more than three hours' worth of outtakes, including nearly 20 different "versions" of "Heroes and Villains" and "Vegetables" -- and snippets of Wilson and musicians in the studio. Around the same time, Sea of Tunes, which is named for the Beach Boys' publishing company, also issued a single disc of Smile, which begins with the stunning "Our Prayer" (which consists solely of the Boys singing a wordless hymn composed by Brian) and ends with a thrilling, epic rendition of the symphonic "Surf's Up" suite, penned by Brian and Van Dyke Parks, who wrote the poetic lyrics for the entirety of Smile.

When Midnight Beat was raided two months ago by European authorities, the label's back catalog was seized -- a total of nearly 10,000 discs, including Smile. (The label is currently in litigation overseas, where the penalties for bootlegging are relatively minor -- maybe a fine, and not a large one.) When word spread through the bootlegging community that the Smile discs were about to disappear, someone kindly packaged all four CDs in one box -- thus creating the most complete account of that album to date. Such handiwork has resulted in the re-creation of a long-gone yesterday still relevant today.

Of course, the question remains: Where did these tapes come from?
The quality of the recordings is immaculate, so pristine it's nearly
obscene; to own them is to feel as though you've confiscated a piece of history, stolen it out of Brian Wilson's back pocket (and, in truth, you have). To listen to these discs is to stand next to Wilson at the recording console as he dons his fireman's hat and whirls his way through these magnificent, otherworldly songs. Not a pop, not a scratch exists. Put them in the CD player, and mainline magic in its purest form-- get high on what was, what remains, and what still sounds like echoes from the future.

Capitol Records' vice president of catalog A&R, Paul Atkinson, says
he knows precisely where the tapes came from -- but he will not say,
citing an ongoing criminal investigation by the label, Beach Boys
management, the Recording Industry Association of America, and the
International Federation of Phonographic Industry.

"I know where they came from, but until they are arrested, I can't talk about it," Atkinson says. "We're working closely with the Beach Boys and their management and the anti-piracy people to put an end to it as much as possible. But these bootleggers are like cockroaches -- you exterminate them, and they come back. It's a constant problem, and
with the Beach Boys, it's an especially virulent problem."

According to one source, Brian had agreed in 1995 to a five-year plan
that would have, eventually, allowed for the release of Smile in some
form. But a holdup over the release of The Pet Sounds Sessions
essentially killed that: The boxed set was supposed to come out in the
spring of 1996, but the remaining members of the band took issue with
the original liner notes' celebration of Brian. They wanted their share of credit, even though they had little to do with Pet Sounds. Such infighting, so many years after the fact, ruined the chances of a Smile box.

After all, Mike Love and the rest of the Boys quite literally killed the record -- aborted it just as Brian was ready to usher it into this world and forever change it. Worse, the band -- which exists as a shadow of a vestige, its legacy long reduced to
parody and punch line -- has spent three decades pretending Pet Sounds and Smile never existed. When the Boys toured, without Brian, for all those years, they never once (?) performed songs from those albums, leaning instead on warhorse oldies -- "Fun, Fun, Fun," "Surfin'
U.S.A.," and all those other teenbeat anthems Brian wanted no part of
by 1966. They dismissed Brian's experiments -- and, by doing so, they
dismissed Brian. Once his bandmates -- his brothers, his cousins, his
friends -- killed Smile, they killed a little part of him as well. He would never be the same.

For Smile to finally come out after all these years would make fools of Mike Love, Bruce Johnson, and Brian's own flesh and blood. It's like getting away with murder, only to have the corpse reappear 33 years later, pointing fingers at the guilty parties.

Paul Atkinson hints that perhaps an official Smile release is not too far off in the future -- but he speaks in the record executive's bland, teasing  generalities. He says that next year, Capitol will restore the entirety of the Beach Boys' back catalog, including the post-Capitol albums released on the band's own Brother Records label (Sunflower, Surf's Up, and Love You, among many others). He also insists that he has done his best to delete so many of the best-ofs that have clogged the market -- even though the label has released three such discs within the past two years.

"Starting next year, we will release all of the albums in their original form," Atkinson insists. "There will also be a number of other releases I can't talk about."

When asked whether Smile is among those other releases, Atkinson
chuckles and says only this: "Obviously, Smile is a famous album, and
it's true to say we would love to release it. But it's up to Brian Wilson.Let me correct that. It's up to Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys."

If that is the case, then the future is not so promising. In 1995, Brian told Mojo magazine he wants nothing more to do with the aborted
project; he considers the music too "passé," better left to the past. In 1988, it was reported in the Los Angeles Herald Examiner and USA
Today that Brian had booked time at Capitol Records to finish the disc
for a summer 1988 release. Nothing, of course, came of it.

Brian's publicist, Jean Sievers, says he does not even want to talk about Smile -- not now, at least.

"He doesn't get why people want anything to do with Smile," she says.
"I'm not going to say someday he won't do anything with it, but he doesn't want anything to do with it right now."

So, for a little while longer, the record will remain unfinished and
unreleased -- and in the hands of only the fetishists who are willing to pay nearly $100 for the pleasure of discovering the unheard music.

"Smile is like the girl who got away," says one friend of Brian's. "He
had already made the best pop album with Pet Sounds and made the
best pop single with 'Good Vibrations.' He was growing exponentially,
and Smile was going to be the next step in his evolution. But it was the last time he was Brian Wilson; it was the last time he was in control of his art. There are a million reasons to long for Smile, not the least of which is because it's brilliant."

The following is a newswire report from the Associated Press:

Ex-Beach Boy Faces Lawsuit
 

 LOS ANGELES (AP) - Former Beach Boys band member Al Jardine is being sued by Brother Records, the band's corporation, over the use of the group's name.

A federal judge put off a ruling Monday on whether Jardine can use the name ``Beach Boys Family and Friends'' for his tour. Another hearing was set for Jan. 3.

The company, which holds the trademark to the Beach Boys, has licensed the act of the band's former lead singer, Mike Love, but not Jardine's tour.

Jardine's band has three female lead singers. After a Jardine concert in Florida, according to court papers, 1,700 angry ticket-holders who thought they were seeing the Beach Boys demanded their money back.

Thanks to Rob Morris

=============================================
Some happier news to report:
 

The Beach Boys Greatest Hits Volume 3 (Best of the Brother Years) 1970 - 1986' Set for Release On Feb. 1, 2000

     WOODLAND HILLS, Calif.--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--Dec. 14, 1999--

     CD Release Coincides With ABC-TV Broadcast Of New Miniseries

                 "The Beach Boys: An American Family"

     The third volume in EMI Music Distribution's new and definitive
"Beach Boys Greatest Hits" series has been scheduled for release on
Feb. 1, 2000 to coincide with the national broadcast of the ABC-TV
miniseries, "The Beach Boys: An American Family."

     "The Beach Boys Greatest Hits Volume 3 (Best of the Brother
Years) 1970 - 1986" focuses on what is often called "The Brother
Years," named after the legendary group's own Brother Records which
released a number of extremely noteworthy albums during the 1970 and
1980s.

     Although these years were overshadowed by difficulties, personnel
changes and the tragic death of Dennis Wilson, the Beach Boys
continued to produce artistic masterpieces, many of which are featured
on "The Beach Boys Greatest Hits Volume 3 (Best of the Brother Years)
1970 - 1986."

     The Volume 3 CD launches with the first single of "The Brother
Years," "Add Some Music To Your Day." Other tracks selected for "The
Beach Boys Greatest Hits Volume 3 (Best of the Brother Years) 1970 -
1986" include Carl Wilson's first vocal composition "Long Promised
Road," the Bruce Johnston song "Disney Girls," Alan Jardine's first
solo composition for the group "Susie Cincinnati," and "California
Saga (On My Way To Sunny Californ-i-a)" co-written by Jardine and Mike
Love.

     Also included are "Sail On, Sailor," "Rock and Roll Music," "It's
Okay," "Good Timin'," "Getcha Back," "Peggy Sue," "Come Go With Me"
and "California Dreamin'."

     The release precedes the broadcast of the new ABC-TV
drama-with-music "The Beach Boys: An American Family." Produced by
Storyline Entertainment's Craig Zadan and Neil Meron ("Annie,"
"Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella") and actor John Stamos ("Full
House"), who has toured as the band's drummer on and off since 1993.

     "I wanted to pay homage to my heroes," said Stamos. "This is a
dream come true."

     The four-hour miniseries will chronicle the early years of Brian,
Carl and Dennis Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine.
It will show their meteoric rise to fame and fortune from humble
beginnings as teenagers in Hawthorne, Calif. after they created the
West Coast "surf sound" with classics like "Fun, Fun, Fun,"
"California Girls" and "Good Vibrations."

     Although their sound epitomized America's optimism, behind the
popular songs was the dramatic story of the struggles between the
young men and their domineering father/manager, the women they loved,
and each other.

     The movie stars newcomers Frederick Weller as Brian Wilson, Nick
Stabile as Dennis Wilson, Ryan Northcott as Carl Wilson, Matt Letscher
as Mike Love and Ned Vaughn as Al Jardine.

     In conjunction with the movie, on Feb. 20, A&E will present
"Biography -- Brian Wilson: A Beach Boys Tale." The two-hour biography
includes 35 candid interviews with close friends and family,
never-before-seen-or-heard film footage, music recordings and concert
performances and features Brian Wilson's performances of more than 20
American classics.

     Also featured is music written by Brian Wilson heard for the
first time ever on television; original home movies, photographs and
sound recordings; and many television performances not seen since
originally broadcast decades ago.

     EMI Music Distribution (EMD) is one of the five largest
distribution companies in North America. EMD encompasses sales and
distribution for Capitol, Virgin, Capitol Nashville, Angel, Blue Note,
Christian Music Group, EMI Latin, Priority and The Right Stuff (one of
the top three reissue labels in the industry, with one of the largest
and most significant R&B catalogs).

     Also under the EMD umbrella are Caroline Distribution, Catalog
Marketing, Special Markets and Manufacturing. EMD can be found on the
World Wide Web at www.emidigital.com.

Tracklisting

1.       Add Some Music To Your Day
2.       Susie Cincinnati (see Note)
3.       This Whole World
4.       Long Promised Road
5.       Disney Girls (1957)
6.       `Til I Die
7.       Surf's Up
8.       Marcella
9.       Sail On, Sailor
10.      The Trader
11.      California Saga (On My Way to Sunny Californ-i-a) (se Note)
12.      Rock and Roll Music (see Note)
13.      It's OK (see Note)
14.      Honkin' Down The Highway
15.      Peggy Sue
16.      Good Timin'
17.      Goin' On
18.      Come Go With Me
19.      Getcha Back
20.      California Dreamin'

Note: Original Single Versions

"The Beach Boys Greatest Hits, Volume 3 (Best of The Brother Years)
1970 - 1986"

Street Date:  Feb. 1, 2000            Label:  Capitol
Order Date:  Jan. 7, 2000             Format:  CD and CS
Genre:  Pop/Rock                      UPC Codes:  72435-24511-2/8; 4/2
Running Time:  61:49

Updated 11/01/99

Published Monday, November 1, 1999, in the San Jose Mercury News
Musical Bridge
Lineup for Neil Young's annual benefit spans the generations of rock
stars

BY BRAD KAVA
Mercury News Pop Music Writer

When they put together the highlight reel from this weekend's star-
studded Bridge School benefit concerts, there is little doubt what
single moment will get the most footage.  That moment came when former
Beach Boy Brian Wilson, 57, sang ``Surfin' U.S.A.'' backed by Neil
Young, Eddie Vedder and Sheryl Crow. New wave crashed on old wave, and
while the performance wasn't particularly spectacular, it underlined
Wilson's contribution to music that began in 1962 and has since surfed
over trend after trend without a wipeout.  Propped up by a nine-person
band and a TelePrompTer, Wilson walked through a 40-minute set that
included ``California Girls,'' ``In My Room,'' ``Little Surfer Girl,''
``God Only Knows,'' ``Help Me Rhonda'' and ``Good Vibrations,'' as well
as a couple of songs from his latest solo album.

Between songs he talked mechanically, like a stroke victim, apparently
almost immobilized by stage fright.  ``Now, everybody stand up,'' he
said, not noticing that about 20,000 people already were on their feet
prior to what he called his best-known song, ``Good Vibrations.'' But
was there a person of any age at the show who couldn't sing along to
almost everything he performed?

While Young always invites some of the biggest names in rock to play the
show, this year's lineup -- with the Who, Pearl Jam, Tom Waits, Lucinda
Williams, Emmylou Harris and Smashing Pumpkins -- was likely the
strongest ever.  ``We're so lucky to have this going every year,'' said
Young during his own set at the Shoreline Ampitheatre. ``We don't know
how it got this good, but more power to it.''  In the past, it seemed
that Young cast a shadow that was as long, if not longer, than those of
his guests.

This time, it seemed clear that Wilson's songs stood the best shot of
being remembered and sung into the 22nd century.  Young said as much
with his body language: He bowed down in the Wayne and Garth ``we are
not worthy'' salute to Wilson after their song together.  There were
plenty of other highlights at this year's benefit, which, on Saturday,
started at 5:15 p.m. and stretched to 1:30 a.m. The show -- this year's
was the 13th in the past 14 years -- benefits the Hillsborough school
that helps developmentally challenged children master their world.  If
there was a theme for the older performers this year, it was back from
the dead. Waits, Wilson and the Who, who combined have been onstage
fewer times in recent years than two weeks of a Green Day tour, gave
plenty of reasons they should play more.

Edited and posted by David Foyle

California Girls
    In My Room
    Surfer Girl
    Add Some Music To Your Day
    Lay Down Burden
    God Only Knows
    Please Let Me Wonder
    Help Me Rhonda
    Surfin' USA
    Good Vibrations
    Love and Mercy

He will also be performing again this evening. Today the show starts at 5PM Eastern Time, 2PM Pacific.
 
 

Updated 10/30/99

Bridge School Web Cast Today

Despite reports elsewhere to the contrary, it appears that those of us,
(99 & 44/100% of humanity) who do NOT own computers with Intel Pentium III
processors still will be able to view and hear the Bridge School Concert on
the internet. It is available at three sites, two of which require the
Pentium III plus various others things, but the Bridge School home site , at
least right now, only requires Real Player or Media Player.

The concert begins at 5PM Pacific time(8PM Eastern) today and 2PM Pacific
Time (5PM Eastern) tomorrow. It appears that Brian will perform both days.

Here is the Bridge School hompage link:
http://www.bridgeschool.org/events.html

Thanks to Patrick McClellan

Brian's HBO Reverb Appearance In Doubt

In addition to the news that the live Brian Wilson cd has been scrapped, it also appears that Brian's appearance on HBO's "REVERB" show might be scrapped also. It had previously been announced by HBO, that Brian would be appearing with Wilco and Flaming Lips on show #8 due to air on November 9th. However, on the HBO Reverb site, Brian's name has been removed and replaced by the letters TBD, which I guess means 'to be determined" and there is no mention of Brian anywhere on the site.
Keep in mind that there were reports from fans that video was being shot at his most recent concerts on the west coast and that it is possible that all new footage is being shot, possibly because of the Wilson/Thomas legal problems, for a newer appearance to run at a later date.

 Brian Wilson Interview - LIVE CD DOOMED!!!

Beach Boys founder Brian Wilson remains one of era's consummate songwriters

By Ben Wener
The Orange County Register

When talking with Brian Wilson, it's impossible not to become cautious and self-conscious. No matter how commanding the man who virtually
gave Southern California a rock identity may seem, the interviewer is all-too-often struck by memories of his past frailty.

So two things emerge: fawning and the kid-glove treatment, in which otherwise tough-nosed reporters back off hard questions, favoring the
Diane Sawyer-chatting-with-Michael Jackson game of softball instead.

I ask, "Does all the constant adulation ever get to you?" He responds, enthusiastically, "Oh, no, I can never get enough of that. It's a wonderful
motivating thing. It makes me want to do a good job."

When, of course, that adulation was one of the things that made him a nervous wreck throughout the '70s and '80s. (Wilson has long battled
emotional breakdowns.) It's difficult to have the heart to hit him with that very thought, the clear follow-up question to his response.

It shouldn't be this way, but it is. Partly because Wilson's contributions to American songwriting are so important and influential, it's easy to
become awe-struck and glad-handing, a matter underscored by Wilson's infectious childlike nature. Talking with equally iconic but eternally
cranky legends such as Bob Dylan or Van Morrison wouldn't bring the same effect; they dish it out, they should be able to take it.

But Wilson still seems so glassy-eyed and full of wonderment, forever that young man locked in his room dreaming of the girls on the beach,
the warmth of the sun and how boss his little deuce coupe is -- while rarely taking part in any such fun, fun, fun.

He's sharper -- much sharper -- than any of this might lead you to believe. After all, it's this same supposedly fragile Wilson who put out a
much-overlooked second solo album last year, the winsome "Imagination." It's got nothing on his classics, but for a man all but written off as
terminally loopy, it was a crucial return to form, offering heartening proof that the brains behind such inspired, lasting treasures as "Good
Vibrations" and the whole of the "Pet Sounds" album has much creativity left.

More importantly, Wilson has returned to the stage. He does a few dates at a stretch, to stave off both ennui and bad habits.

Obviously, he's not the man he once was. His voice has changed -- quivering, somewhat hurt and tearfully bittersweet, attributes deepened by
the loss of brother Carl last year to cancer.

Yet his instincts for durable melodies and warm imagery are as sharp as ever. It's just that he isn't always so sure of himself, often still coming
across as easily led. In our brief chat by phone from his office in Los Angeles, he will lose focus, avoid issues, grow ornery and double back on
his answers.

And then he'll say something so plainly heartbreaking, you're drawn to him all the more. "Do you feel as though you've transcended those bad
times?" I ask.

"I think sometimes I do. From time to time, yeah, I can."

OCR: Why did you decide to tour again?

BW: My wife and my co-producer (Joe Thomas) thought it would be a good idea. I said, `I don't think I can.' They said (stern voice), `Yes, you
can do it, you know you can do it. You toured with the Beach Boys. You've done this before.'

OCR: What had you worried?

BW: I just didn't know if it would be received really well. I was paranoid about what would happen -- what would people think about how I
sound, how I sing, how the songs are received today. It's all different now.

OCR: But so many people still say that your music changed their lives.

BW: And that makes me feel like a king -- a king! It makes me feel fantastic. And now I do mostly Beach Boys songs anyway. I'm very proud of
those.

OCR: Your personal past is almost as famous as those songs, though, and it's long been said that that's what kept you away from recording for
so long. What finally made you want to come back?

BW: Well, yeah, I went through 10 years of not wanting to do anything -- nothing -- 'cause my first solo album didn't do too well. I didn't want
to do anything after that. . . . That time, it was all cloudy and muddy and messed up, and I progressed beyond that. I feel healthy now."

OCR: And that's what pushed you back in the studio?

BW: Partly, yeah. I wasn't sure what the true motivation was. But when it was done, I realized it was something better than I expected.

OCR: It almost seems as though, with `Imagination,' you've begun to put the Beach Boys legacy in perspective. The `Pet Sounds' box set also
did that, filling in the gaps of what went on in the studio. But will we ever see anything like that for `Smile'?

BW: (Sourly, adamantly) No. (Dead silence.)

OCR: Why not?

BW: Because I hate that (expletive) album. I don't like it. I don't like where it's coming from. It was a bad time, and it's not something I'm
especially proud of.

OCR: Does it bother you that so many fans and critics keep harping on about it?

BW: Yeah, it does. It's really a drag of an album, and it's a drag that people ask about it all the time. The things that were good about it already
came out, and there are other things I've done that I'm much more proud of. I don't need to hear about that one anymore.

OCR: How do you feel about there being two versions of the Beach Boys on the road but neither of them featuring a Wilson brother? Does it
bother you?

BW: No, not at all. Mike (Love) has licensed the name the Beach Boys, and he's holding up the fort well. He's keeping the spirit of the Beach
Boys alive. And I'm keeping love alive, too. And we're trying to work things out. We don't talk much anymore, you know, it's not the same
between us.

OCR: It really isn't the Beach Boys, though.

BW: No, it's isn't. But it's better than nothing.

OCR: Not to sound morbid, but given everything you've been through, did you ever think you would outlive both Dennis and Carl?

BW: I don't know. . . . It's a hard one for me to go through, you know. It's not something I try to think about all the time.

OCR: Did Carl ever hear `Lay Down Burden,' the song you wrote for him on `Imagination'?

BW: He knew about the song, but I don't think he heard much of it. Unless . . . well, maybe he did. . . . It's a tough one for me to do, that song.
It's just so much to think about it when I sing it. But it's only right that I sing a song for him.

OCR: What song are you most proud of?

BW: `California Girls,' because it's an anthem. It's the Beach Boys' anthem. It's our main record. It's everything that encapsulates who the Beach
Boys were.

OCR: But it's not very personal. You've written much more introspective songs.

BW: No, you're right, but it just depicts the mood of the group really well. The boys all sing very well on it. When I think of the Beach Boys,
that's what I think of. I don't need to hear the other songs so much anymore. I know other people like to hear them, and that's why I still play
them, but I don't get the same feeling from them.

OCR: Do you miss the old days?

BW: Oh, sure, I miss 'em. Just the thrill of being in front of people, the thrill of being together like we were.

OCR: I heard that you were planning a live album from this tour.

BW: Yeah, but we couldn't sell it. We tried to, but nobody in the industry wanted it. It's a shame, but we're not going to put it out.

OCR: That's not the first time we've been deprived of an album from you. `Sweet Insanity' never came out, either.

BW: Well, that got stolen. Someone stole the master tapes. It was a nice album, too. It was a little more rock `n' roll, had a little more spunk to it,
more energy.

OCR: How does it compare to `Imagination'?

BW: Well, `Imagination' is a flat album, I think. I don't think it had the energy it should have had. I don't think it was up to par. I can do better.

OCR: Will you?

BW: I don't know . . . maybe . . . hey, maybe next year I'll make another album. You never know.

OCR: That's not the first time we've been deprived of an album from you. `Sweet Insanity' never came out, either.

BW: Well, that got stolen. Someone stole the master tapes. It was a nice album, too. It was a little more rock `n' roll, had a little more spunk to it,
more energy.

OCR: How does it compare to `Imagination'?

BW: Well, `Imagination' is a flat album, I think. I don't think it had the energy it should have had. I don't think it was up to par. I can do better.

OCR: Will you?

BW: I don't know . . . maybe . . . hey, maybe next year I'll make another album. You never know.
=========================

Bridge School Benefit Concert To Be Webcast Live On The Internet
   Intel Corporation today announced it will Webcast the annual Bridge Benefit Concert on Oct. 30th and 31st, marking the first time this legendary concert has been broadcast in any medium. The concert, now in its thirteenth year, benefits the Bridge School, which offers assistive technologies and education services to children with severe speech and physical impairments so they may achieve full participation in their communities. This year's concert will feature performances by artists including: Neil Young, Pearl Jam, The Who, Sheryl Crow, Green Day, Billy Corgan and James Iha, Lucinda Williams, Brian Wilson, and special surprise guests.

 The Webcast is being made possible by a collaboration between the Intel(R) WebOutfitter(SM) Service, Yahoo!, and the Bridge School, and is available through www.intel.com and music.yahoo.com, as well as www.bridgeschool.org. Webcast attendees interested in donating to the Bridge School will be able to do so securely over the Internet. Donations made online may be directed either to the Bridge School Endowment Fund, established in 1998 to help secure the long-term financial stability of the school, or to support ongoing programs and services. In addition, concert footage from past performances, as well as video and still images of artists and Bridge School students, will augment the online concert. On Saturday, Oct. 30th, the concert will be Webcast starting at 5 p.m. PDT, and on Sunday, Oct. 31st, the Webcast will begin at 2 p.m. PST.

=======================
Review of Anaheim Concert

     It's harder to find the fun, fun, fun,
     but Brian Wilson gives it his best

     REVIEW: The former Beach Boy may not be the
     giant he once was, but his first solo O.C. show
     proves his career isn't over.

     October 26, 1999

     By BEN WENER
     The Orange County Register

     No matter how much its basic tenets
     dictate otherwise, the concept of
     retirement is alien to rock.

     It's a unique phenomenon. Dancers,
     for instance, know when to hang up
     their shoes. Actors, too, or at least
     they start taking roles befitting their
     age. Painters and writers and
     jazzbos and crooners? Well, they
     tend to improve over time.

     Rock 'n' roll, however, is a
     youngster's passion, though passion
     for it rarely fades with age. When
     titans of rock's old guard are faced
     with going gently into that good
     night, they tend to fight back.

     Sometimes they fail: the
     roots-rocker Dave Alvin once
     reminisced about seeing Gene Vincent in his waning years — how
     painful he was to watch, how awful he sounded, yet how much
     your heart went out to the guy. He was, after all, a legend.

     But it's safe to say by that point in Vincent's career he was, sadly, a
     has-been. Brian Wilson is not a has-been. He is still writing
     impressive pop that, sure, might not measure up to his genius but
     certainly shouldn't be discounted because of that. At 57, he is far
     from retirement.

     That said, Wilson, chronically disliking of the spotlight, is not a live
     performer — at least, not a trustworthy one. As such, his
     tour-ending performance Sunday night at the Sun Theatre in
     Anaheim, the former Beach Boy's first solo appearance in Orange
     County on what is really his first full-fledged tour, at first gave the
     impression he should stop.

     By the end, though, it had become the sort of smiling, bittersweet
     show that brings out the hypocrite in the critic.

     Anyone can tell that after years of emotional breakdowns, drug
     abuse and professional strain, Wilson isn't the giant he once was.
     It's become a sport among legions of Wilson followers: how sure of
     himself will he seem this time?

     Well, his voice aches and cracks and flattens and rarely soars — a
     far cry from the heartbreaking falsetto that adorned so many
     timeless tunes. In performance, he mumbles and mutters. He
     forgets lyrics. He occasionally drops out of the proceedings
     altogether. He gets distracted.

     He's just not all there.

     So why am I about to tell you that this show warmed my heart in
     ways few others have?

     It's too easy (and very insulting to Wilson) to suggest it's because he's a
     survivor, that his show elicited the same hopeful feeling one gets
     while watching someone who is physically challenged run the mile
     or sink a three-pointer. Wilson surely doesn't want our pity.
     (Though when he returned for the second half of his show,
     responding to the crowd's enthusiasm with a hearty "Yeah for
     Brian!," it was hard not to feel a twinge.)

     But as with challenged athletes, a simple question lingers. At some
     point during Sunday's show — whether it was when Wilson
     strained to reach the notes on "Wouldn't It Be Nice" or forgot a line
     of "Don't Worry Baby" or lost focus on "California Girls" —
     everyone in the mostly full house must have wondered: Why does
     he do it?

     Perhaps to prove he still can.

     And the truth is, he can, on some level. Yes, he sounds somewhat
     lost, almost childlike, and he often looks vacant staring at his
     TelePrompTer. Yes, his band — an incredibly impressive 10-piece
     unit built around the talents of L.A.'s the Wondermints and the
     remarkable skills of guitarist Jeffrey Foskett — covers for him,
     creating swirls of beautiful, Wilson-arranged harmonies that often
     (and rightly) overwhelm his fragile lead. (Indeed, the band was a
     treasure unto itself, capable of re-creating what once seemed
     impossible to re-create, including two note-perfect "Pet Sounds"
     instrumentals.)

     Oh, and ironically, he now sounds more like Mike Love than Brian
     Wilson.

     And yet ... and yet ... and yet. Much as common sense might tell us
     that this was a subpar show, proper context changes everything. If
     you want to see Wilson as a tired legend who should give up, you
     can. He makes it so easy for you — and gives you poignant new
     lines like "I miss the way I used to call the shots around here" for
     ammunition.

     If, however, you want to see him as a misunderstood dreamer who
     just wants to prove he's not the loon so many have made him out to
     be — that he can still have a blast on "Good Vibrations," still shake
     a tail feather to "Surfin' U.S.A.," still insist that a French horn grace
     "Kiss Me Baby" because it's how the song should be played —
     well, you can see that, too.

     Either way, it's undeniable that the nostalgia of Sunday's
     performance, abetted by a glitch-ridden 20-minute video before
     Wilson came to the stage, achieved a giddy high. As to whether
     Wilson really delivered or not — and by his own admission, the
    first half of his show was "lagging" — it's a moot point when you
     hear him nail American anthems like "All Summer Long" and "Fun,
     Fun, Fun," the sort of infectious glee that only a devoted cynic
     could hate.

     Listen, any critic will tell you that a great show is a matter of
     moments. From someone like Bruce Springsteen, we expect at
     least three hours of those moments, lest we feel let down. With
     Brian Wilson, it takes just one.

     And Sunday night there were two: a gorgeous reading of "In My
     Room" and a version of "Caroline, No" that was so eloquently
     delivered it brought a tear to the eye.

     Call it hypocrisy to be so lenient, but it's not. Wilson is an American
     (and, more importantly, a California) hero — and when heroes go
     down, they need all the cheering they can get to even make an
     approach to the top again.

     You give 'em hell, then, Mr. Wilson. There's much greatness left in
     you.

An interesting preview article by Miriam Jacobson from LA Weekly, mentions that Brian will be performing "Smile Era" material at some future concerts.

Here is the article:

================================
Here's a brief review of the Seattle Concert  from the
Seattle Post- Intelligencer
Wilson leaves fans cheering
    By GENE STOUT
    SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
   POP MUSIC CRITIC

    The vibrations were very,very, very good at Friday's Brian Wilson concert at the Moore Theater.

    The Beach Boys' co-founder and creator of a sound that defined California
    rock in the early '60s drew an enthusiastic crowd so enamored of the troubled
    genius that even a fumbling show would have been a treat.

    But the 57-year-old rocker and his relatively young 10-piece band were surprisingly entertaining. Despite some choppy surf,
    the longtime Beach Boy exceeded expectations.

    The show began with an overly long film on Wilson's life, including shots of him as grand marshal in a hometown Hawthorne,
    Calif., parade.

    Wilson, on piano and vocals, rolled out hit after hit, including "In My Room," "Surfer Girl" and the high-octane "I Get
    Around." The band helped camouflage Wilson's flubs and sour notes, and two instrumentals from the Beach Boys' "Pet
    Sounds" album were nearly note-perfect.

    The second half was better than the first, with smoother vocal harmonies and more energetic instrumentals. Wilson's vocals
    were touching on the wistful "God Only Knows."

    One could almost hear the surf pound in "Help Me, Rhonda" and "Fun, Fun,Fun," while "Caroline, No" was tender and
    atmospheric. Wilson closed with"Love and Mercy."

Thanks to Jon Kiger
====================================
More interviews with Brian, this one from the Contra Costa Times , by Paul Freeman
Interview

This one by Michael D Clark of the San Jose Mercury News
Interview

An interview with Brian by Joel Selvin appeared in todays San Francisco Chronicle

SF Chronicle Interview

Here's An Interview With Brian From Portland Weekly.
BY DAVE McCOY
dmccoy@wweek.com

INTERVIEW
Hang On To Your Ego
When our writer picked up the phone to interview legendary Beach Boys
genius-recluse Brian Wilson, he confronted more than a journalistic
minefield. He faced one of his childhood heroes.

To mainstream America, Brian Wilson is a Beach Boy. To skeptics, he's a
spaced-out drug casualty. Journalists know him as the toughest interview in
rock music.

To ardent fans--people like me--he's something else entirely. To those of us
who feel the magic, Brian Wilson is the greatest American composer of the
last half of the 20th century.

Years of alienation, paranoia and justified skepticism have left Wilson
emotionally sealed. Hundreds of eager journalists, pumped to talk to the
brilliant recluse, have come away frustrated and exasperated. Wilson avoids
questions like Felix Trinidad dodges punches.

So, knowing all this, what did I say when my editor asked me to tackle this
ultimate puzzle of music journalism? What do you think?

I was born and raised in SoCal. Hearing "Good Vibrations" is one of my
earliest memories. The Beach Boys' sun-kissed anthems of girls, cars and
surfing were the soundtrack of my adolescence. And then there's Pet
Sounds--an album unlike anything else I've ever heard, a gorgeous and
spirtual exploration of squashed innocence that's helped me survive numerous
depressions.

Yeah, it's probably better to kill your idols. Or at least avoid meeting
them. But how can you pass up the opportunity to talk to an artist you've
admired since you were a child?

I also knew that Wilson had been (relatively) better as of late. In May, for
the first time ever as a non-Beach Boy, he hit the road for live shows.
Backed by a 12-piece band including members of the Wondermints and Poi Dog
Pondering, Wilson played a four-show mini-tour in the Midwest, flooring
audiences and critics, then followed it with an east coast trip. His
two-hour sets included seven tunes from Pet Sounds (including both
instrumentals), "Good Vibrations" and a ton of other hits that had never
been played live.

Wilson not only survived this venture out of the house, he enjoyed it enough
to book a second tour, this time on the West Coast. His Portland shows will
be his seventh and eighth solo performances. Ever.

Maybe he'd be fine on the phone.

I consulted a former colleague who'd interviewed Wilson twice, once in
person and once over the phone. I told him my news. "Over the phone or in
person?" he asked. I told him. He laughed. "Good luck, man," he chuckled.
"The phone's almost pointless."

Wilson's publicist also had some words of wisdom.

"Engage him early," she advised. "Immediately talk about music, and save the
tougher questions for later." She added that Wilson's interview demeanor
depended on his mood: "I've seen him talk to someone for over an hour."

Sounds promising, I thought.

"I've also seen him hang up on someone after two minutes."
Oh.

I'm proud to announce that Brian Wilson didn't hang up on this geeky fan
after two minutes. No, I lasted 15, and we hung up mutually. Wilson now
holds the record for my shortest interview in 10 years. Twenty-five
questions asked in 15 minutes, including probing follow-ups that penetrated
nothing but dead air.

Interviewing Wilson feels and sounds a bit like talking to a tipsy
9-year-old. His words tumble quickly out of his mouth, and then he freezes
as if he may have said too much. Hardly. Despite being friendly and patient,
Wilson gave me absolutely nothing. Each question garnered a one- or
two-sentence response, max. Like this:

WW: After so many years, what made you want to go back on the road?
Wilson: My wife and my co-producer both said that the time is right.And so I
said, 'No, I don't think so.' But they convinced me, they logically
convinced me that it'd be a good thing to tour.

Was there any specific reason that convinced you?

They had an ingenious idea for me to go tour.
And so it went for another 14 and a half minutes. I asked him if it felt any
different playing solo than as a member of the Beach Boys. Yes, he liked it
more now. Silence.

I asked if he knew that he'd inspired a whole new generation of bands (the
Elephant 6 Collective, specifically). He said, "Who? I only listen to oldies
but goodies." Dead air.

The most enlightening moment came when he admitted being surprised by the
standing ovations he'd received during his first four shows. He refused to
discuss composing or songwriting or Pet Sounds.

Before we hung up, he thanked me warmly for the interview.
It's fitting that someone known for speaking his emotions musically can't do
so with words. Perhaps that's both his strength and his curse. When he
performs next week, the real Brian Wilson will emerge. Still, it makes me
wonder: Did Picasso give such terrible interviews?

Reports from fans who attended last nights Brian Wilson concert in Seattle WA, say he put on a great concert. The set list is the same as the one performed on the East Coast leg of his tour.

Set 1
The Little Girl I Once Knew
This Whole World
Don't Worry Baby
Kiss Me, Baby
In My Room
Surfer Girl
California Girls
Do It Again
I Get Around
Let's Go Away For A While
Pet Sounds
South American
Surfin' USA
Back Home

Set 2
Wouldn't It Be Nice
Sloop John B
Darlin
Add Some Music To Your Day
Lay Down Burden
God Only Knows
Good Vibrations
Your Imagination
Help Me Rhonda
Be My Baby

Encore:
Caroline No
All Summer Long
Barbara Ann
Fun, Fun, Fun
Love and Mercy

The Beckley , Lamm and Wilson cd, titled "Like A Brother" won't be released tomorrow  as was previously announced.  Gerry Beckley is still putting some finishing touches on it and it appears that it won't be released until sometime in December.

October 15 - Seattle Wa.- Moore Theater
October 17-18 -Portland Or. - Aladdin Theater
October 20 -San Francisco  Ca.- Warfield Theater
October 21 - Las Vegas Nv. - The Joint (Hard Rock Hotel)
October 23 - Los Angeles Ca. -The Wiltern (additional date is possible)
October 24 - Anaheim Ca. - Sun Theater
October 30,31 - Mountain View - Ca. Bridge School Benefit

Order Brian Wilson Concert Tickets Here

Brian Wilson is scheduled to appear along with Wilco, and The Flaming Lips  on Show #8 of the HBO series "REVERB" on November 9th

Brian will be performing an accoustic set of approximately 8 songs at the Neil Young Bridge School Benefit on Oct 30,31.

Tentative 'Bridge' set:
California Girls, Kiss Me Baby, Add Some Music, God Only Knows, Lay Down Burden, Caroline No, Surfin'USA,
Love and Mercy

Courtesy ofNew-Surf.Com

 DENVER, N.C. (Sept. 2, 1999)
 Air Jamaica Vacations, sponsor of AllCar Motorsports' No. 22 Chevrolet in the NASCAR Busch Series Grand National Division, has announced the details of its inaugural "Air Jamaica Vacations Race Fans Beach Bash," to take place in Negril, Jamaica, Dec. 4-11.

 The event will be a race-themed celebration featuring NASCAR drivers, crew chiefs, crewmembers and fans.

 For one price, race fans are invited to enjoy a week of racing and fun on the beaches of Negril with NASCAR Busch Series drivers Dale Earnhardt Jr., Mike McLaughlin, Hank Parker Jr., Randy LaJoie and Andy Santerre;
 NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver Steve Park; and NASCAR Winston Cup Series crew chiefs Robin Pemberton, Tommy Baldwin Jr. and Ryan Pemberton. More of the NASCAR "family" is expected to jump on board as the vacation date approaches.

 Scheduled activities include water sport competitions, concerts, live question and answer forums and nightly beach parties. Tuesday night, Dec. 7, rising country star Chad Brock will take over the beach with his No. 1
 hit "Ordinary Life." Thursday night, Dec. 9, the "Beach Boys Family and Friends" will perform live on the
 Caribbean shores.

More info here

Happy Birthday to Alan Jardine

Thanks to Tom Pantaleo

Capitol Beach Boys site

A & E , at their Biography site, is offering the Brian Wilson
    Biography video for $14.95. They also are offering
    a package deal with the video and the Pet Sounds box set for $44.95.
    Though the video alone is being sold to US and Canadian residents, the package deal is for the US only. You can order either from their website or by phone at 1-800-344-6336

 Biography Website

Hello Brian Wilson Fans,

We would like to let you know that Mail Mann will now be managing Brian Wilson's Breakaway Fan Club.  If you are already a subscriber, your subscriptions to the newsletters will be honored. If possible, would you please return via e-mailyour current status so we can double-check the files we've inherited.  This will greatly help us during the transition process to keep things running smoothly.

The Fan Club will be offering a Fan Club Kit, bio's, photos and surprises throughout the year.  If you are interested in joining the Brian Wilson's Breakaway Fan Club, please return e-mail your complete name and "snail-mail" address with Brian Wilson on the subject line and we'll send you all the information you'll need to join.

You can also "snail-mail" us at:  Brian Wilson Fan Club, 15030 Ventura
Blvd, #710, Sherman Oaks, CA, 91403.

We would like to thank you for your comments, interest and continued support.

MAIL MANN
Celebrity Merchandise
http://www.celebritymerch.com
celbmrch@ni.net