The Genius of Mike Love

[ontor pertawst]

It's really none of our damn business what people do in their personal lives, especially half a lifetime ago.

It does tend to make for interesting reading when you want to read books about bands with intricate histories that began more than half a lifetime ago, however.

[KittyKat]

It is relevant if you're writing a biography, though.  Biographies are people's personal lives.  You either have to whitewash it or bring it out. I'd like to think most of the Beach Boys have improved greatly as they've gotten older in the way they treat their women and kids.  To tell the truth, the only one of those guys I'd even want to meet is Al Jardine, and a lot of that is because he seems like a nice guy and that's based on the fact that there aren't too many stories about him being unkind to people in the past.

[Mike's Beard]

Al secretly kicks cats and small dogs when he thinks no one's looking. 

[ontor pertawst]

When he's not running his Harlem numbers racket and gunrunning concerns, anyway.

[Pinder's Gone To Kokomo And Back Again]

I'm done with this board too..... I shall lurk but not post or respond. No one will miss me, so it's no loss...

The Beach Boys exist and are kicking ass in the here and now, and I refuse to spend anymore time getting caught  in the same endless circles of "Mike's a merdahole"! "No he isn't" "Mike's a merdahole"! "No he isn't" ...... It's time to let go.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

  There is a certain hostility and pugnaciousness on this board, which is unacceptable.  For an BB author to feel the need to take a break, is unacceptable.  Even if this board is largely uncensored, which is a good thing, people need some boundaries and tolerance.   

1 million percent agreed.

[Zach95]

I'm done with this board too..... I shall lurk but not post or respond. No one will miss me, so it's no loss...

The Beach Boys exist and are kicking ass in the here and now, and I refuse to spend anymore time getting caught  in the same endless circles of "Mike's a merdahole"! "No he isn't" "Mike's a merdahole"! "No he isn't" ...... It's time to let go.

Aww come on Erik H I will miss you! When I was new here we had some excellent discussion about Surf's Up!

[hypehat]

I'll miss ya, Erik!

[Pinder's Gone To Kokomo And Back Again]

Thanks guys! Maybe I'll be back when the tour is over

[sea of tunes]

This distills the genius of Mike Love...

"I'm the surf word man, gimme some dooooooooo"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZBQCWwAp9I

[Danimalist]

This distills the genius of Mike Love...

"I'm the surf word man, gimme some dooooooooo"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZBQCWwAp9I

Damn you, JM. I nearly woke my six year old I was laughing so hard. Remind me not to take a drink as I open any of your future links. Some of it ended up coming out my nose.

[ontor pertawst]

Some day, he's going to find me and make me pay for making that.

[sea of tunes]

Some day, he's going to find me and make me pay for making that.

You made that thing?  You are a God among men.

[Autotune]

Brian Wilson: "Mike Love is a hero".

[sea of tunes]

I think it's possible to both appreciate and dislike a person all at the same time.  I'm a Cleveland sports fan, ask me about Lebron James.

As other posters have mentioned, there are a number of reasons to loathe Mike Love but also reasons to appreciate his contributions to the Beach Boys classic output.  It's impossible to think about the metioric rise of the band without seeing Love as the front man and co-writing with Wilson.  It's also important to remember the 'blend' of voices and that unique sound that only Love could bring to a song like "Add Some Music To Your Day". 

At the same time, it's nearly impossible to ignore the fact that Love has gone to great lengths to prove he is the most uptight TM practictioner the world has ever known.  There is great irony in both the man's last name and the fact that his public actions throughout his career have fed into the negative private rumblings about him.

I do not, for one, think Love is the ultimate reason for the failure to finish SMiLE.  That had more to do with a limitation of technology and the overwhelming pressure that I sense Wilson was under at the time.  Although, it could be rightly argued that Love definitely contributed to the pressure that Wilson felt creatively about the material.

I do think Love is a necessary portion of the Beach Boys blend and that he is probably the most negative cog in that wheel, but that is only my person opinion.  I choose to appreciate his talents for what they are but also cannot help but chuckle at his many public foibles. 

[oldsurferdude]

This distills the genius of Mike Love...

"I'm the surf word man, gimme some dooooooooo"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZBQCWwAp9I

[musicismylife101]

Also, haven't the BBs made enough money? How many millions has Mike made over his career? I think Brian got to a point where he felt, 'look, we've made enough money... let's take a chance on being artistic.' And Mike has never been able to understand that. He pretty much had a breakdown in the late '60s because of the BBs fall from the top of charts. Yes, he was also fasting a lot and etc., but what do you think drove him to such bizarre behaviors? Mike doesn't seem like a guy that would normally go on fasts for weeks.

In a way, Mike is kind of like Steve Jobs. Thou he has some serious hippie leanings, he also has some major insecurities that force him to engage in narcissistic, self-aggrandizing behaviors on a frequent basis.

Somebody needs to ask Mike about his breakdown, because it was far crazier than Brian's problems at the time.

Never knew about his breakdown until I looking at it here. What was going on around that time. Clearly his breakdown was more than a fast gone wrong. I've heard similar stories happen to other people going crazy due to malnutrition. In almost all cases, stress played a major role (example: forgive me for bringing him up but, that guy who made the Kony 2012 video, can't remember his name at the moment) Don't know too much about the BB's personal history other than what I see on the board but from what I hear, Mike comes from a dysfunctional family, which is not surprising because of who's he related to. What I wonder is how dysfunctional was his family? I think someone pointed out on the board that he also came from an abusive home, which is also possible because of his family ties.

I'm no psychologist but I believe that Mike might have some psychological issues or whatever. Just my two cents.

[startBBtoday]

I've either forgotten or never knew the crazy stuff Mike was doing in the 70s, anyone mind highlighting some?

[ontor pertawst]

FUN FACT: the first hit on a google search for "Tainted Wilson Blood" is an episode of House MD.

"Tainted blood has been known to cause a sense of impending doom..."

Gaines' book "Heroes and Villains" has a vivid section on it. Search the google books entry on it for "apple juice" and it should come up with a rousing page preview for you.

Despite teasing him relentlessly for months, gotta say he's putting out a merdaload of energy on the tour and I have to commend him for seemingly mellowing out a bit! His double act with Brian staring and blinking as the straight man in the press is just hilarious.

 I repeat: We kid because we Love. Michael Edward Love.

[Heysaboda]

I'll bet that was SOOOOO much cooler in your head. 

  

 

[Mr. Cohen]

I'm no psychologist but I believe that Mike might have some psychological issues or whatever. Just my two cents.

What's interesting is that the An American Family biopic everyone hates tries to address this. When Mike gets a girl pregnant while he's working at a gas station, his parents kick him out - it's not exactly a loving response, on top of whatever other issues Mike may have had with his family growing up. According to the movie, this a huge motivation for Mike when it comes to working with Brian. Mike needs money, and once he gets through the band, you get this sense that his attitude is: "I am NEVER going to let myself be put in a desperate situation like that EVER again." He's not going to be the Mike that pumped gas with had a kid on the way and no home, forced to beg Brian to start a band.

Ultimately, he seems to cope with the trauma of his formative ears by coveting money and success, viciously protecting the band's image because it's his "livelihood" and reputation at stake. The fact that he marries a girl he practically just met not too long after the BBs turn into a pop industry mainstay in the mid-60s shows he's a man with some desperation. There's some ideal of himself and his life that he dearly longs for.

Through the lens of the movie, Mike's breakdown is a clear reaction to the band's commercial downfall. Having to cancel a tour in 1968 because of lack of interest must've killed Mike inside, given his past. Just two years ago they were on top of the world! By Mike's own admission, he was seriously abusing alcohol and pot before he got into meditation and fasting. Had he not lost it going on extreme fasts and meditation binges, he could very well have fallen apart from substance abuse. He was trying to control some serious trauma, and he no longer had the fame and constant stream of money to fill the hole.

Mike's about control - whether it's in personal life, or the band. That's why he's so in love with meditation. Meditation promises you control over your emotions. As he sings on his solo album: "You need a cool head and a warm heart to get you through the day without coming apart."

[Mr. Cohen]

The BBs were in many ways a band of desperation. The Wilson brothers had a deep need to prove to the world - and proxy their father - their self-worth. Believe it or not, my mother was in many ways an emotionally abusive tyrant (and yes, even physically, although nothing like Murry... she just choked me on the couch once and threw glass at me a few times, and things like that), and I can see how that can create persistent self-esteem issues.

[Disney Boy (1985)]

This distills the genius of Mike Love...

"I'm the surf word man, gimme some dooooooooo"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZBQCWwAp9I

That made me laugh so hard i thought i was going to wet myself!! Fantastic. Yes, Mike wrote some nice lyrics, yes he did some great vocals, yes he's a talented frontman, but believe it or not he can do all that and still be a repellent, rather unlikeable, unpleasantly bullish person in private. And vast amounts of evidence suggest this is the case.

[KittyKat]

The irony of Mike is that he is intelligent but he has done things that seem rather stupid or make him look stupid.  If only he had let his work speak for itself instead of having to crow about it on top of sometimes suing for it. Mike could have done more with his life if he had not been a Beach Boy than just pumping gas if he had done his homework.  The fact he may not be sure he could have might be the reason he has done some of the bad stuff, because he has low self-esteem underneath.  He's not dumb, he had talents like having a nice deep speaking voice with good diction.  He also wasn't bad-looking with clean cut WASP looks.  He reminds me of those old-time game show hosts you see on reruns on Game Show Network.  If he weren't a Beach Boy and used his brain he could have been a TV announcer or a disc jockey with that speaking voice.

[Aegir]

I could totally see Mike hosting something like "Family Feud".