The Smiley Smile Message Board

I just read the interview with Bruce that was linked in another thread, and the answer below intrigued me. (I hope it's okay that I'm pasting it here, as I've put the source here as well.) I've always had this question about Bruce: He's said many times that he considers himself to be primarily a songwriter, and of course he wrote "I Write the Songs." It's my experience that creative people create, even if they don't show the world what they're doing. But Bruce says he "packed up" the song writing. Why hasn't he been writing all this time, and will he be able to flick the switch and turn it on again? Maybe he considers himself to be more of a craftsman than an artist...but does that yield decent songs?

http://popcultureclassics.com/bruce_johnston.html


PCC:
Are there any unfulfilled musical dreams for you?

JOHNSTON:
Well, my plan - can you believe a guy has a plan for 70 years old to 80? - but our whole country has gotten healthier, believe it or not, even though we see a lot of obese kids and stuff, we’re still aware of health and we’re living longer. And I look at Clint Eastwood and he’s smart enough to kind of get a little behind the camera and keep going. What I want to do is, I want to just cast my net.

You know, I did a Rip Van Winkle after I wrote ‘I Write The Songs.’ I just kind of packed up the writing and danced in the Beach Boy concert world. And some recording, of course, like ‘Kokomo.’ And raised a family, financially on it, beautifully, four sons, the third’s about to start graduate school. So I’ll have three grad school guys and one with a business degree, courtesy of anyone who’s going to read your interview.

So my little goal simply is casting the writing net. Because, when I watch the Academy Awards, when I watch the Emmys, that song, whatever it is, no longer is a song anybody knows, other than seeing it in the movie or hearing it on TV. Generally the songs today that get awarded are songs that you don’t hear. So I kind of thought, ‘Well, wouldn’t it be great to be a little old-school and write some great stuff, place it and actually get it so people hear it. So if it ever gets nominated or ever wins, it’s a song someone would know, as opposed to,’Gee, I haven’t heard that before.’

Randy Newman almost apologized for winning the Academy Award. I went to high school with him. He’s the greatest. But I get it. He knew he was Mr. Lucky this year.

So that’s the goal. We’ll see. I don’t know how long the Beach Boy thing will last with Mike. I don’t know. Do I know if we’ll do a reunion? We’ve talked about it, but I don’t think it would be weeks and weeks. It might be minutes, hours, who knows. But unfulfilled? My choice. I put it on Rip Van Winkle hold, because I knew I’d wrinkle, but my music wouldn’t.

One thing that I have, I have a talent for how to voice. And the best part of that is how to very conservatively present voicing, not how to show everybody how much I know, but make it the song first, voicing second.

Very humble interview from Bruce and a great read! I always loved his songs on the BB's records.

In an ideal world, Bruce would have spent the entire time composing melancholy masterpieces full of dense changes and lush harmony instead of writing the risible Goin' Public.

Interesting - but what the heath is he talking about? Casting the net? Obesity? Songs you don't know or never hear? Great, but totally obscure.

Bruce is great, a very talented man, and its a shame he gave up writing because he's obviously very good at it. The remastered Disney Girls on the Warmth of the Sun album was something of a revelation to me and really demonstrates an absolute mastery of his craft, and the pair on Sunflower are among my favourites too.

I Write the Songs, though... no thanks.  ;D