Originally posted by eros:
Let me start by saying that I think Brian Wilson is a musical/production genius....
...but do people not hear his "affliction" when they listen to his newer records or see him live?
Does he get all this good press because he has overcome so much?
You know I'm really not too sure. I'm a huge huge fan and obviously I know that he's not quite right. His voice is shot and he's a little loopy to say the least. Hell...he was a little loopy starting in about 65 or 66. I think it was around '66 that he stopped touring with the band cuz it was just too hard on him, besides that fact he was just happier staying home and writing.
Smile is perhaps the greatest album that never was, if that makes any sense. I know I had planned on seeing the show just because for me, personally, it would be a landmark event much in the same way as the Arthur Lee and Love show was a while back. As it turns out I can't go to the show (I was just entering in my cc info on ticketmaster 5 minutes ago and realized I'll be out of town on the 10th) so that's too bad. Anyhow, that's my $.02.
For those that want to know more about the strange trip that is the life of Brian Wilson there's a great collection of writings by Nick Kent - he's a fairly famous English rock journalist - called The Dark Stuff. It's got chapters on Brian Wilson, Shane McGowan, Neil Young, Miles Davis, Sid Vicious, Syd Barret and others. The Brian Wilson chapter is the best portrait of tortured genious or rock and roll that i've ever read.