Can Brian still do it?

[Jay]

I was reading the opinions of people on the GIOMH topic, and a few questions came to me that I thought I'd ask the more knowledgeable people here. My question is, can Brian still produce an album totally on his own, from start to finish? I know that many people don't like the backing vocals on GIOMH, so I'll make this a little easier. Is Brian still capable of leading his touring band through sessions for an album? Can he still be the "boss", like he was in circa 1966? Is he still mentally capable of it ? Is he emotionally capable of it? Has he ever gotten over his post 1960's Smile failure? What I mean is, does he still get the urge to "give up", like most accounts of him from the mid 1970's talk about?

[Ron]

See his 2005 Christmas Album for all you need to know about this topic

Also, go over to his website and watch the videos of him in the studio recording the Christmas album. 

[Wirestone]

Jay: I think a more important question is this. Why is it important?

If he can, does it make things better? Most feel even his best albums since the 60s have been helped along by others; even on "Love You," Carl tied together the loose ends. So if he still has the ability, he hasn't often used it.

If he doesn't, then he's just been doing the best he can, but we have to accept that he isn't what he once was.

Either case doesn't give you an answer that I expect you want. He's either 1.) been lazy and not bothering to do his best or 2.) just not capable of it.

I think a lot of BW fans espouse #1 but fear #2.

Myself, it's not so important. I will enjoy what I get and let history sort out and fight out the rest. I care about BW as a person, of course, but I feel reasonably confident that he's being looked after -- certainly not drugged to the gills and videotaped like he was in the Landy years. And beyond that, I don't know what else I should want or expect.

[Jay]

I agree with you totally, claymcc. It was just a thought that I had. I guess I'm just sick of all the YouTubers making comments, and making it seem like Brian is either a raving lunatic, or a vegtable.

[Andrew G. Doe]

I was reading the opinions of people on the GIOMH topic, and a few questions came to me that I thought I'd ask the more knowledgeable people here. My question is, can Brian still produce an album totally on his own, from start to finish?

No. His solo career since 1986 is ample proof of this.

[Andrew G. Doe]

See his 2005 Christmas Album for all you need to know about this topic

Also, go over to his website and watch the videos of him in the studio recording the Christmas album. 

Staged - and I have this from the very best of sources.

[matt-zeus]

AGD, when do you reckon was the last time that Brian was really on top form, do we have to go back 40 years ago?

[Ron]

I hope, and I pray that I never get so fucking cynical that I no longer believe my eyes or my ears.  What a horrid place that must be. 

[Andrew G. Doe]

I hope, and I pray that I never get so fodaing cynical that I no longer believe my eyes or my ears.  What a horrid place that must be. 

OK - let's have a look.

Brian Wilson - co-produced with Russ Titelman, Jeff Lynne, Andy Paley, Lenny Waronker and an uncredited Gary Usher.

I Just Wasn't Made... - co-produced with Don Was

Imagination - co-produced with Joe Thomas

GIOMH - produced on his own, even though he didn't want to do it.

BWPS - 'produced' on his own, with heavy assists from his 'musical secretary'

WIRWFC - as above.

If being cynical is noting the album credits, and talking to people who were there that I trust - then yes, I'm cynical.

I'd have to say that the last album that was a solo Brian Wilson production from start to finish was Pet Sounds. Love You is a largely BW work, but Carl added the final polish, and 15 Big Ones is a similar story.

[matt-zeus]

I must add that I have enjoyed much of Brians 80s to current day material (songwriting wise), regardless of whoever was 'really' in charge....
It's funny really, because the production on a lot of the last 20 years of stuff has been pretty duff, if they'd just left Brian to it (no matter how rough it was at the time), it would probably sound less dated today.

[yrplace]

See his 2005 Christmas Album for all you need to know about this topic

Also, go over to his website and watch the videos of him in the studio recording the Christmas album. 

Staged - and I have this from the very best of sources.
[/quote

Saw this thread and felt I should respond as I think calling the video clips "staged" is a bit harsh and unfair.....

Having a camera in your face while recording is extremely distracting for everyone and counterproductive , and even if it were not you would need a lot of cameras and a ton of tape to document a session properly.  Brian , myself and the band were there to make a record 1st and foremost not to perform for the camera.

The single camera video crew was only present at the sessions for a very short time, so some  (but not all) of the video filmed during the making of the Xmas album was done to playbacks. However they do show what the sessions were actually like,  with Brian in total control and very creative during the recording of  the album.

Mark Linett

[onkster]

So then, what about the recording session footage for the BWPS DVD?

Staged?  Recreated?  Bogus?  For real?

[brother john]

See his 2005 Christmas Album for all you need to know about this topic

Also, go over to his website and watch the videos of him in the studio recording the Christmas album. 

Wittingly, or unwittingly, this totally answers the initial question. The answer is somewhere between Unlikely and No.

More interestingly, we should ask the questions: Why do we still care? And, why is there a part of us that still believes that Brian might wake up one morning with all the lucidity of '66 and produce another masterpiece, even if he does go back to sleep again afterwards.

[Andrew G. Doe]

See his 2005 Christmas Album for all you need to know about this topic

Also, go over to his website and watch the videos of him in the studio recording the Christmas album. 

Staged - and I have this from the very best of sources.
[/quote

Saw this thread and felt I should respond as I think calling the video clips "staged" is a bit harsh and unfair.....

Having a camera in your face while recording is extremely distracting for everyone and counterproductive , and even if it were not you would need a lot of cameras and a ton of tape to document a session properly.  Brian , myself and the band were there to make a record 1st and foremost not to perform for the camera.

The single camera video crew was only present at the sessions for a very short time, so some  (but not all) of the video filmed during the making of the Xmas album was done to playbacks. However they do show what the sessions were actually like,  with Brian in total control and very creative during the recording of  the album.

Mark Linett

Point taken - shall we say not 'staged', but in some cases, 'recreated' ?

[Amy B.]

See his 2005 Christmas Album for all you need to know about this topic

Also, go over to his website and watch the videos of him in the studio recording the Christmas album. 

Staged - and I have this from the very best of sources.
[/quote

Saw this thread and felt I should respond as I think calling the video clips "staged" is a bit harsh and unfair.....

Having a camera in your face while recording is extremely distracting for everyone and counterproductive , and even if it were not you would need a lot of cameras and a ton of tape to document a session properly.  Brian , myself and the band were there to make a record 1st and foremost not to perform for the camera.

The single camera video crew was only present at the sessions for a very short time, so some  (but not all) of the video filmed during the making of the Xmas album was done to playbacks. However they do show what the sessions were actually like,  with Brian in total control and very creative during the recording of  the album.

Mark Linett

Can we take this to mean that the answer to the original post question is "yes"?
Glad to hear from such a reliable source that Brian in control and being creative during the making of the Christmas album, whether he did or did not produce the entire thing from start to finish. His enthusiasm on that video certainly doesn't seem to be acting.

[carl r]

Wouldn't it be fair to say that Brian Wilson was only in total overall control of whole albums for a few years in the mid-60s (maybe '64-'66) ?

That before that time, and after then, he's generally worked with other people, apart from some songs where he "seized the reins," normally to make a particularly great track...?

I'm not saying this is true, but it kind of gives that impression...

[Mark H.]

Doesn't make a dimes worth of difference.  How many over 60 artists produce themselves?  If I were Brian I'd focus on doing the vocal arrangements and let some young "hot-shot" do the rest.  Have a beer, a steak, and finish off with a piece of birthday cake.

And by golly get a good lyricist if VDP isn't available.

[the captain]

Love You is a largely BW work, but Carl added the final polish.

There are two terms I never thought I'd hear together: Love You and "final polish."

[donald]

Love You.  Polished with cannibis butter.  (see Marilyn thread)

But seriously.  A lot of the legendary artists who still work and make albums are not creating like they did in their prime.

There are producers, managers, co-writers, consultants and so on.  Nothing wrong with that per se.  No one can be endlessly inventive and creative year after year. 

But fans want new material.  Record companies want new product and they want it atributed to the legend getting paid the  big bucks.

So we settle for a few gems from time to time.  And I have to say Brian has done that albiet fewer and farther between as the years have gone by.

[Sheriff John Stone]

AGD said what I wanted to say, but better...

I will add this, however. Of course, Brian CAN produce an album, but look at the results. I mean, listen to GIOMH and What I Really Want For Christmas Are My Old Teeth. For someone of Brian's reputation, that quality is so below his past standards, IMO.

Some people will dispute/differ on the quality of the Christmas album. But I come back to Clive Davis. After BWPS, Clive was so excited to sign Brian for the follow-up, which turned out to be WIRWFC. I haven't heard so much from old Clive in his desire to sign Brian for another project.

[Amy B.]

Some people will dispute/differ on the quality of the Christmas album. But I come back to Clive Davis. After BWPS, Clive was so excited to sign Brian for the follow-up, which turned out to be WIRWFC. I haven't heard so much from old Clive in his desire to sign Brian for another project.

Do you really think that Clive Davis cares about album quality? Look at the other artists he represents. He cares about sales, sales, sales. And for a Christmas album, I don't think Brian's sales were half-bad. For a Christmas album.

As far as the quality goes, the main complaint I hear is that it's a Christmas album. For what it is, I don't see how you can do much better. Even the BB 1964 Christmas album wasn't fully produced by Brian-- he didn't arrange the traditionals. This supposedly was, and I think it's pretty darn good. If you like Christmas albums. I do, and I enjoy WIRWFC. Brian's presumably going to release TLOS on CD. Let's see what happens there.

BTW, I'll agree with the people who say that it's okay if Brian can't "do it all" anymore. The mere fact that he can still arrange harmonies is enough for me, and a lot of his latest music has been far above what some of his contemporaries are doing, in my opinion. Paul McCartney's "Dance Tonight," anyone? Yuck.

[Sheriff John Stone]

Amy, nobody likes Christmas music more than me! The first day the temperature falls below 60 degrees, I'm getting the stuff out, which won't be long now. Actually, I was listening to some Perry Como "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" this past July.

Anyway, I respect your opinion on the Christmas album, I just don't care for it. To me, Christmas music is either spirited (on the fast songs), or spiritual (on the carols). WIRWFC is neither. It just doesn't touch me. Brian's thing used to be the "spiritual"; he wrote the book on it. I was glad he attempted a Christmas album, I looked forward to it, although I wish it would've been a Beach Boys' Christmas album. Everytime I listen to it (which is hard to listen to in its entirety - too much yelling), I can't help but think what Brian used to do with those kind of spiritual tracks. "Joy To The World" comes close, even with the dit-dits...

[Amy B.]

I can't help but think what Brian used to do with those kind of spiritual tracks. "Joy To The World" comes close, even with the dit-dits...

Maybe someone over there should give Joe Thomas a call (I kid, I kid).
Actually, I really like Joy to the World too.

[the captain]

(Warning, this rambles.)

Not to give Bill Clinton answers ("It depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is."), but I think the title of this thread would be impossible to answer without parsing the sentence and defining words. Luckily, the original poster also asked additional questions so I will try to get to the point of his primary question:

- Can Brian still produce an album totally on his own, from start to finish?
- Is Brian still capable of leading his touring band through sessions for an album?
- Can he still be the "boss," like he was in circa 1966?

And others.

Each of these really amounts to something different unless you're looking for an end result: not only can Brian produce an album or lead a band, but will the resulting album be as good as Pet Sounds was. If that's the intent of the question, I think almost anyone would have to say no. But that isn't an insult to Brian Wilson any more than it is to McCartney to say he can't do another Pepper or Dylan unable to do Blonde on Blonde, etc. People by definition rarely top their best work. If Brian couldn't in 1964, 1965 or 1967 do better work than Pet Sounds, it seems unlikely that he could now.

However, the man has a tremendous amount of musical talent. He's certainly capable of compiling a list of songs he's written or likes. He's certainly capable of explaining to musicians how he'd like it played. He's certainly capable of arranging vocals and explaining those parts to musicians. The results will be different because everyone's results are always different, even after six months. This man is 40 years past his greatest work, his voice is in rough shape and he has suffered various amounts of mental and physical damage from various causes. None of those things would prevent him from leading a group through an album if he wanted to do it.

If he doesn't do it on his own, there is a good chance he isn't interested in doing it. That's different than "can't." If he doesn't give something the attention listeners would like, there is a good chance he isn't interested in doing it. I mean, seriously: would anyone tell me with a straight face that Brian Wilson--BRIAN WILSON--cannot hear the sloppy vocal performances on parts of GIOMH? I have to believe he is perfectly capable of identifying the difference, and he knows perfectly well that the way to fix it is sing it again, or get someone else to sing it again. His failure to do so doesn't really mean he can't. It means he won't. Or hasn't recently.

In case that rambled as much for you as it did for me, what I mean by summary is this:

Brian Wilson is an immensely talented musician, and some of those gifts he was born with or worked for don't just go away. You don't forget those things. He could still produce an album. He is fully capable. He has the know-how. But if you're looking for an artistic breakthrough, that's an entirely different thing, and it is probably fair to say his era for such things is long past. Sexagenarians don't generally break new ground. More likely is a continuation of the less-stressful collaborations on material that feel good to him--music that fits within established ground he has long since explored.

[the captain]

A quick comment on whether WIRWFC's spiritual nature: I'd say that is a tough ground to cover or define. I mean, I am not a spiritual person in any way. I have no particular affinity for Christmas, sentiment about it or religious beliefs with regard to it. And yet some of the moments on that album are more "spiritually" touching to me than plenty of other Christmas (or non-Christmas) music.

The quality of the playing and singing on that album is pretty strong. The arrangements are decent-to-very good. The new songs are quality. To me, those things are measurable, and they're measurably good. The spiritual nature is a "to each his own" kind of thing. (Some people probably hear BW's "spiritual love" in the 88 solo album, and to me that sounds as dead as can be.)