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My hot take and speculative theory: I think there's more truth to this book than its reputation suggests at least for the pre-Landy years. I haven't finished the whole thing, and once it gets to the Landy years I have no interest due to the obvious bias, but since Brian's unfortunate passing Ive been thumbing through a copy on the Internet Archive and it's a very good read. Infinitely more digestible than the later autobiography and so far nothing has tripped my BS meter. I love how it goes into specifics of the acid trips and other anecdotes that you'd NEVER hear Brian talk about in the Melinda era, where all his controversies had to be smoothed over.

Im inclined to think Brian was candidly interviewed and then Landy peppered his self-serving propaganda after the fact, but that still means there's kernels of truth in here. Detractors often point to the bashing of the other bandmates as proof Brian couldn't have written it, which I think is borne out of a well-meaning but naive desire to see the group as this perpetually harmonious collective. While some of the bad words towards them may be politically motivated, especially with regards to Carl since he was fighting to free Brian, Im inclined to believe Brian was letting off some well-deserved steam after decades of (rightly) feeling taken advantage of. While he may be a gentle soul who doesn't like confrontation and doesn't talk smack in public interviews (at least not often) it'd be foolish to think there aren't genuine hard feelings after decades of drama. This book is more complicated than its current reputation warrants in my opinion, and I think after the satisfaction of letting off steam had subsided, Brian was all too eager to use the "Landy made me write it" excuse to avoid accountability for some of the things "he" had written. Basically, I'm saying neither Brian nor Landy are 100% responsible for this book--the truth of whose perspective we're really getting is more complex and probably shifts by what year is being recalled, etc.

As a bit of "proof" of this theory, I submit that Carl would not have been quite so upset with Brian in the years since had he (Carl) thought this was 100% a Landy hatchet job that Brian had NO say in. I think there was drama between the two because they both knew Brian had meant at least a little of what was said. Similarly, if this book was 100% a forgery I think Brian would've more vociferously denounced it and wrote his own "true" autobiography a lot sooner. But that's just my intuitive speculation.

I give this book a 3/5 for the directness, readable prose and (seemingly) honest account of the 60s years. It's at least as good as the garbled stream of consciousness with no drama allowed that is his 2016 memoir.

"Dr. Landy proved to be a hard taskmaster.  I gave him songs I thought were finished, and he handed them right back.  He often told me what I'd done would've been great in the sixties, but it was the late eighties and I had to bring it up to snuff."

The gall of that man!  To think he could deign to tell Brian Wilson how to write songs!    I'm sure that kind of talk really did wonders for Brian's confidence in his songwriting abilities.

I agree that it's audacious of Landy to tell Brian his songs weren't good enough as-is. But here's the thing...I believe that anecdote 100%. Thats what my ears tell me when I listen to BW88--"no way my Brian did that!" That album sounds so overproduced it's not even funny, and if Landy forced him to keep adding more to the production that explains so much.

I thought Mike's book was a very good read, and he did a good job telling the story of The Beach Boys.  

He may harp on some issues that have long since been resolved (ie. the song credit thing).  But to be honest, I can see why he'd be upset about not getting credit on those songs, and why he'd feel betrayed by his uncle and cousin.  

I thought he was complimentary towards the other bandmembers, Brian included.  

I can also see how Mike can feel a bit slighted by the hipsters crowd.  

A little TMI moment when he mentioned his encounter with Lorrie Morgan during the making of Stars and Stripes.  

I actually *can't* see why Mike is still that upset about the songwriting issue, in terms of present-day consternation. Why? Because everything about that case has been rectified as much as is humanly and legally possible, all in Mike's favor. Mike won the lawsuit over 20 years ago, got a pay-out and his name on the songs, and of course royalties going forward. Brian admitted to anyone and everyone that Mike wrote those lyrics. Other than Tony Asher questioning "Wouldn't It Be Nice" (and even then I don't think anyone was denying Mike wrote the four words in the playout, they were only questioning whether that warrants a co-write), nobody has questioned Mike's case.

I'll set aside any question of why Mike waited THREE DECADES to address the songwriting issue (I think there are some legit reasons someone wouldn't bring a valid case), and stipulate to the idea that Mike had a valid reason to be angry up to circa 1994 when the lawsuit was resolved.

But after that, and certainly nearly a quarter century *after* everything was rectified in his favor, his continued griping is 100% sour grapes and reeks of that (usually) old person we all know that reminds everybody of every bad thing that someone else did or that happened 50-plus years ago. That these complaints come from a guy that is rich as f**k, flaunts his wealth and happiness, just adds to the oddity of the whole thing.

As for the hipsters, the most telling thing about that factor is that Mike *won over* those hipsters in 2012 and then, upon ending the reunion, clearly showed that he gives precisely zero f**ks about having respect or "cred" from the music industry, or hipsters, or music critics, and has no interest in undoing his legacy in the band's history, as Howie Edelson put it, as a hun. Howie Edelson also put it best; Mike would rather be Lou Christie than Mick Jagger if it means being in charge of his own deal 100% and not having to answer for anything to Brian or Melinda or Al Jardine or anyone else.

I think it's because, in Mike's mind, the lack of credit has damaged his legacy as a musician. Instead of an equal partner to Brian, the McCartney to his Lennon, he became "that guy who sings a few leads." And honestly, he does have a legit grievance about that. Impressions are formed and they're hard to change, events lead to recursive outcomes, reputations get set in stone. It's definitely fair to say he would've gotten a lot more cred that built up over time if people had known what he really did for the band back when they were in their golden age. Of course, what Mike will never admit to is a ton of his negative image comes from his repeated behavior over the decades: cornball stage antics, perceived lack of humility or empathy to his cousins' struggles, the RNRHOF speech, etc. But I can see why he has a chip on his shoulder, even if objectively he'd be better off letting things go.

I will not rate this book because I haven't read it yet but Im glad it exists if for no other reason than to offer an alternate perspective and honestly Ive heard good things about it. I hope Mike will candidly talk about that mysterious year in the band's trajectory, 1967, as well as shed some light on his solo album. If he doesn't that's certainly a bummer.

It's alright. This group would've never gotten recorded had they not been tied to Brian and even with his help they still sank like a stone and without trying to be mean I think there's a reason for that.

The covers are noticeably inferior to the original, makes me wish I was listening to the Carpenters. I'd even take Stamos' version of Forever over this.

The vocals are competent but not particularly impressive. As someone else said, they don't sound like professionals. This is "my sister doing her best to sing along at the piano" vibes, which does admittedly add to the album's charm. It's not bad just not something that's gonna knock anyone's socks off.

3/5 and that's somewhat generous.

We need one for "A World of Peace Must Come" as that was produced by Brian. (It's not particularly impressive and I doubt many have heard it, but for the sake of completion. I give it a 1/5 personally.)

I think there ought to be a place for unreleased albums unless there is one already and Im missing it. Adult/Child and Sweet Insanity demand my 2/5 ratings!

Also one for the Honeys' various albums. It's Brian's wife and unrequited love, they should go in the "related" category.

I havent read the whole thing cover to cover but downloaded a digital copy to parse through and frankly Im a bit disappointed. It doesn't really go in-depth and I hate the way it jumps all around.

3/5

You can see from this album that Murry wasn't totally untalented. He definitely had a touch of the gift that Brian inherited and honestly, perhaps if he'd been in a position to experiment nonstop with Wrecking Crew musicians and the best vocalists in the world in his twenties, with a few acid trips under his belt he might've been hailed as a minor "genius" too. Or maybe not, who knows. Ok, probably not. But Murry here is sort of like "that guy down the street who writes music" level good and we're comparing him to arguably the best composer of the last 60+ years. It's just not a fair comparison.

This album isn't particularly impressive but neither is it in any way bad. It's a touch bland but in my personal opinion so is a lot of Brian's solo career. The same way I said of BW88 that I wonder if at least a few people aren't giving it a bit of extra credit because of who made it, I'd hazard a guess that if anyone but Murry's name was on this album if it wouldn't have a better rating. It may be the kind of music you hear in a corporate waiting room or a Yankee Candle store in the mall, but so is Orange Crate Art to my ears, and I'd prefer this to that anyday. So help me God, I prefer this to Imagination and BW88.

I like the production and melodies, though there aren't any gripping hooks or particularly interesting chord progressions that make it stand out. This is good "vibe" music to put on when you're doing housework or coming down from a bad trip, nothing more and nothing less.

As far as songwriting and production talent, it's Brian then Murry then Thomas.

3/5, give or take half a point depending on my mood. (Pun intended)

Nobody? Wow.

As I go through the Beach Boys catalogue these past 3-odd weeks, my opinion on this has improved somewhat. Id always liked it a lot but now...well, I like it even more, haha.

5/5

I really wanted to love this but I dont.

The production, to my ears, is incredibly overwrought and trying way too hard to be "genius-level." It's a self-conscious attempt to make a layered harmony like Brian Wilson would've done, without any restraint or good taste. I strongly suspect Landy tinkered with the arrangements and mixing to get more "depth" out of it, so he could say to the world "see how complex and orchestral Brian is again under my watch?! Not like that juvenile Mt Vernon and Love You nonsense, right?! Oh no folks, this is SMiLE level Brian again, and you all have me to thank!" It's not letting Brian be Brian. This album sounds fake.

For me, the production is straight up cacophonous and as soon as I get 1 minute into any of the songs, I want to turn it off. I could not write a single lyric, nor hum any melody, even though I've heard this twice now about 10 years apart (most recent being just yesterday). It just goes in one ear and out the other, and my brain's like "I aint devoting precious memory to that crap, sorry."

1/5. Im glad other people like it but I think it'd be an interesting experiment if you could somehow see what people would think of this same music if it WASNT Brian Wilson.

You're right, Brian's post Love You vocals are what they are. And I don't care for what they are. That's all. It's not so much the comparison to his 60's vocals, I just don't find his voice attractive.

One final point I didn't make on my original post. One aspect that is often ignored when discussing Brian's solo albums is that EVERY SONG features a lead vocal by him. And this is where he misses the Beach Boys most importantly. On the Beach Boys' classic albums, you had maybe 3 Mike vocals, 3 Brian vocals, 3 Mike and Brian shared leads, maybe 1 Al, and 1 Carl and/or Dennis. The lead vocals were shared. There was variety. Very important.

With Brian's solo albums, you have 38-45 minutes of ALL BRIAN lead vocals, and quite frankly, that's too much. I believe that is the MAIN reason for the relative lack of success of his solo recordings.

I completely agree with this point. Brian's vocals post ~1980 are alright in small doses but they drone on and on when it's for 30-45 minutes at a time. It's one of several reasons Ive never cared for his solo material, although it pains me to say so.

I really hate this album and everything it represents. Honestly, it's almost as bad as Looking Back With Love or even SIP to me, just a slog to get through with no redeeming tracks. I hate that arguably the last truly great dynamic Brian project w/ the Paley Sessions was killed off for this. It doesn't sound like Brian and it doesn't sound inspired in the least. A Joe Thomas album featuring Brian Wilson.

Actually, there was an article written back in '98-'99 by Paul Lester (thank you rocksbackpages.com!) that claims that Brian wasn't crazy about Imagination even then. In the article, unnamed sources close to Brian's situation reveal that as the sessions for the album went on, Brian started showing up less and less, missing several days at a time, as his enthusiasm for the project waned. Thomas went on recording the album without Brian, explaining why it doesn't sound very Brian. These sources also claim that it was completely Melinda's idea for Joe Thomas to be the producer and that she had helped push Andy Paley out of picture. One source kept complaining that Melinda wanted Brian to sound like Garth Brooks. The Paley situation is odd, as in that same article, I believe (it might have been a different article, I don't know, I've read too much on that site), there is an interview with Brian where he is very enthusiastic about the Paley songs, playing several of them for a reporter. Sean O'Hagan of the High Llamas, who met with Brian, seems to come to the conclusion that Brian will go along with whatever his management and wife wants as long as he gets to eat ice cream. So, when you heard him praising Imagination at the time, it was probably to make Melinda happy.  Sean has a couple of weird personal anecdotes about Brian and the Beach Boys, in fact, that are almost impossible to believe.

Whatever you do, don't PM me asking me for a copy of this interview, BECAUSE I WILL NOT DO IT EVEN IF YOU SAY PLEASE. Again, DON'T EVEN TRY TO PM ME!

Yeah, reading the wikipedia page for the Paley sessions is very eye opening. I think there's some skeletons in the closet of the 95-25 years that may never come out, but it makes you wonder how much Brian was really in control of his music at that time and how much of it was acquiescing to Melinda the same way he did for the Boys and then Landy before her. Poor guy almost never got the chance to express himself authentically without a bunch of hangers-on and handlers wanting to put their "spin" on his output. He's like the musical Orson Welles.