The Astrology of the Beach Boys

[TMinthePM]

Mr. Newcombe:

WaddamIgonnadowidyou (says he as he slaps palm to forehead)

Why don’t you lend a hand instead of just sitting there criticizing all the time?

Do I have to do everything around here?

Once, just once I’d like a little cooperation.

Why, when I was your age I had to walk a mile thru the snow – in sandals – just to cop a hit.

[Iron Horse-Apples]

I'm sure you did slap your forehead

BW 88

1990

[TMinthePM]

Love You is more like 77 isn't it?

and BW 88 is of course 88

and Imagination is 98 I know because I drove out to Portland to see Gary Rydout that year

But it is important to think of the waxing and waning of astrological influences like the onset of dawn or dusk. The lights don't simply switch on or off, but rather rise in intensity and fade.

[TMinthePM]

 

[TMinthePM]

Of course, one might place the genesis of Pet Sounds in 65, or even a year earlier during the composition of Today. Which would then more comfortably situate Love You - demented tho it is.

[bossaroo]

wait... there's a MALE astrologer in the UK?!?!?!!! surely you jest.

Science gives us mere explanations. It does not give us the truth.

That is the worst nonsense ever written here.

as I stated earlier, science can explain the hows of existence, but not the whys. It tells us how our bodies function, how the world turns... it attempts to explain existence. Do these explanations amount to the deeper truth? Do they explain why we exist? To me, that is the truth. Science stays away from all that.

Do you think astrology is a sport or a language? It is an ancient and highly in-depth form of study based on very real events in our solar system. The study of real events=a form of science, in my mind. Astrological charts are open to interpretation, but the charts themselves are solidly based in fact. They simply state where the moon and planets are located in relation to the Earth at a specific time. Predictions can be drawn based on knowledge of the path that planets take and where they will be in the future. That is all very scientific.

It is highly unlikely that the movement of celestial objects has had any influence on the lives and politics of a species of ape on a small planet in a solar system on the edge of the Milky Way. How is this possible?

a lot of people don't consider the human race a species of ape, so right away we have a severe difference of opinion. I looked at your website Stephen and you state "Music Is A Science" ...another huge difference of opinion. So Astrology is centuries-old hogwash, but music is science? and we're all apes. ok, man.

- the premises for your inquisition is flawed since you assume the existance of something signifies that there must be a purpose with its existance.
- define 'deeper truth' without pseduscientific/philiosophical jargon.
- science doesn't "stay away from that". everything there is is science. everything can ultimately be explained. some things are too hard for us to explain as of now.

edit: I now saw your disagreement with the fact that we are descended from apes. you can live with your illusions, but please don't post them here. I thought you were trying to put light on the Beach Boys/astrology connection but the result is you are here only to preach your opinions. these opinions are of no use and of no interest on this board.

Don't tell me what I can and cannot post here, thanks. I am not here to preach anything. Stephen is the one who called humans "a race of apes" and I disagreed as do many others. I am not a Christian or religious in any way. I believe in evolution. But I also believe in the soul. I believe that we are souls inhabiting human forms which have evolved over time. Can you see now how it is possible to have several beliefs that actually complement, rather than refute the other(s)?

- the premises for your inquisition is flawed since you assume the existance of something signifies that there must be a purpose with its existance.

I could say the same about your premises, but vice versa. You assume there is no purpose. A highly flawed outlook in my view.
I do not believe that we are just here by chance, that we simply crawled out of the muck millions of years ago, and that things like love, emotion, music, art, and beauty are just a by-product of biological evolution. Sorry.

Most people, even scientists, believe in some sort of higher power or intelligence. Especially people like The Beach Boys. These guys are spiritual people. What's the Carl Wilson quote: people resonate with music because it's an expression of spirit, and people ARE spirit.

What has Brian said over and over... that he was creating music that conveyed spiritual love.

Spirituality is central to the music of the Beach Boys and music in general. If you want to deny that spirit exists because we can't see it, or science hasn't proven it... go right ahead. But don't come on here preaching about it. Stay home and p!ss in your own corn flakes.

- define 'deeper truth' without pseduscientific/philiosophical jargon.

i think the OP said it best:

I certainly don't argue in opposition to the scientific outlook, but consider the rational faculty of mind one facet in our psychic composition.

- science doesn't "stay away from that". everything there is is science. everything can ultimately be explained. some things are too hard for us to explain as of now.

I agree that everything can be explained. But there are some things which science may never be able to explain... or admit. One might call these things "deeper truths".

[bossaroo]

as I stated earlier, science can explain the hows of existence, but not the whys. It tells us how our bodies function, how the world turns... it attempts to explain existence. Do these explanations amount to the deeper truth? Do they explain why we exist? To me, that is the truth. Science stays away from all that.

Science doesn't stay away from this. Its just you get answers you don't want, such as it is likely we are; all here by chance; there is no creator; no grand design; no afterlife;  no meaning of life.

And is my life empty because of my acceptance of these likelihoods. Far from it. I see the beauty of the wonderful ecosystem of laws and processes of which I am part. How wonderful that we have, in our skulls, one of the most complex things in the universe. This is where my sense of wonderment comes from. The real stuff all around me.

a lot of people don't consider the human race a species of ape

Well we are, so those people are morons. Denying evolution is as ignorant as maintaining the world is flat.

Science doesn't give me answers I don't want. I don't look to science for answers. Science is knowledge that explains our physical reality. I'm all for science. Knowledge is good... knowledge is power.

If you truly believe that we are here by chance, that there is no grand design and no meaning of life, and if science helps you bolster those opinions... good for you. I am not trying to convince you otherwise.

All I'm saying is science can't explain everything. You seem to be saying that if science can't explain it, it doesn't exist.


As stated above, I don't deny evolution. I believe that we are souls residing in human form. The human form has evolved and is therefore most likely still evolving. I believe that the soul also evolves. Both individually and as a whole.

You know what else is evolving? Science. At one point in time, science stated that the world WAS flat. Now we know better.

If my beliefs are really too much to accept, then let's just agree to disagree. We won't be the first to do so.

[TMinthePM]

Bossaroo - " I believe that we are souls inhabiting human forms which have evolved over time."

You just nailed it with that one, man!

Even the soul evolves.

[bossaroo]

Stephen, this really has me scratching my head. I'm not even sure where to begin.

[TMinthePM]

I'm sure you did slap your forehead

BW 88

1990

Newcombe - Love your website - now I'm an official fan!

[leggo of my ego]

I will scan the article if you like. It's 10 pages so gimme a minute.


Andrew-
thanks for the lesson on what constitutes a science, but comparing astrology to religion or football is utter nonsense. Astrology is based on actual events, the movement and placement of the planets in the solar system at any given time, and is calculated down to the exact second. There's a reason that every newspaper issued in the last several decades has a horoscope column. And while it is mainly for entertainment in that medium, it is still based on a very real, tangible, and yes, scientific, discipline.

Stephen-
I realize you may not have meant to sound sexist with your initial remark, but you did nonetheless. You defined believers of astrology as female. Regardless of the statistics in the UK or whether any of your male friends believe in it, there is still a significant percentage of males that practice astrology. And it is common knowledge among fans that members of The Beach Boys practice astrology to this day. You conveniently forgot these facts and made a sweeping generalization.


having said that... does anyone know the exact time and location of Carl Wilson's birth?  

My mom had a little Buddah statue, she rubbed his tummy and made a wish every day. She also read her Horoscope everyday and held just about every other superstition imaginable.

None of that rubbed off on me.

[GoodVibrations33]

here's the article. download HERE for higher resolution.

The author of this article used to post on the blue board.  Don't know if he still does or not, and apologies if it's been mentioned already or mentioned in the article as I didn't read it.  He used post some in depth astrology related messages.

[Mike's Beard]

Sooooooo, Brian became a fat, unwashed, mentally disturbed drug vacuum because a certain star or planet was in a certain place in the cosmos at that point in time? Interesting theory.

[TMinthePM]

"Sooooooo, Brian became a fat, unwashed, mentally disturbed drug vacuum because a certain star or planet was in a certain place in the cosmos at that point in time? Interesting theory."

In essence - yes, but not necessarily.

[TMinthePM]

Can anyone out there tell me the meaning of Feel Flows?

[TMinthePM]

I think there may be three ways in which the music of the Beach Boys reflects an astrological impulse:

1. songs that specifically reference things astrological - Solar System, Funky Pretty, Strange Thins Happen, There's So Many.

2. songs that reflect the zeitgeist lyrically. I'm thinking here mostly of the eco-theme that emerges in their work in the early 70s - Don't Go Near the Water, Day in the Life of a Tree, Beaks of Eagles

3. lyrics can sometimes mask a deeper zeitgeist that is more effectively conveyed by the music alone. I am thinking here of Warmth of the Sun and its connection to the Kennedy assassination.

[Iron Horse-Apples]

as I stated earlier, science can explain the hows of existence, but not the whys. It tells us how our bodies function, how the world turns... it attempts to explain existence. Do these explanations amount to the deeper truth? Do they explain why we exist? To me, that is the truth. Science stays away from all that.

Science doesn't stay away from this. Its just you get answers you don't want, such as it is likely we are; all here by chance; there is no creator; no grand design; no afterlife;  no meaning of life.

And is my life empty because of my acceptance of these likelihoods. Far from it. I see the beauty of the wonderful ecosystem of laws and processes of which I am part. How wonderful that we have, in our skulls, one of the most complex things in the universe. This is where my sense of wonderment comes from. The real stuff all around me.

a lot of people don't consider the human race a species of ape

Well we are, so those people are morons. Denying evolution is as ignorant as maintaining the world is flat.

Science doesn't give me answers I don't want. I don't look to science for answers. Science is knowledge that explains our physical reality. I'm all for science. Knowledge is good... knowledge is power.

If you truly believe that we are here by chance, that there is no grand design and no meaning of life, and if science helps you bolster those opinions... good for you. I am not trying to convince you otherwise.

All I'm saying is science can't explain everything. You seem to be saying that if science can't explain it, it doesn't exist.


As stated above, I don't deny evolution. I believe that we are souls residing in human form. The human form has evolved and is therefore most likely still evolving. I believe that the soul also evolves. Both individually and as a whole.

You know what else is evolving? Science. At one point in time, science stated that the world WAS flat. Now we know better.

If my beliefs are really too much to accept, then let's just agree to disagree. We won't be the first to do so.

Science as we know it, i.e, forming a hypothesis then finding facts to fit that hypothesis (rather than coming up with an idea and shoehorning in the facts to fit it and disregarding those that don't) only came into existence during the rennaisance, but really came into it's own in the 18th century. It was people refuting ancient "wisdoms" such as flat earth theories and astrology, and looking for evidence of what was real, that lead to modern science.

I'm glad you know evolution is true. Much confusion is caused by the scientific meaning of "theory"

Your beliefs aren't too much to accept, as long as you say they're just beliefs. It's you saying "there is definitely  something to it" which I took exception to. As I said many posts ago, the onus of proof is on you. You have yet replied to that.

As for the soul thing. If our soul is "us", our "essence", explain why someone's personality can change drastically when something happens to the brain?  What makes us "us" is so obviously neurological, to believe otherwise is, again, willful ignorance. If there is a soul, what is it's purpose? It's like saying the kidney does not clean waste from your blood, that function is instead performed by a strange mystical force, which floats out of your body when you die. When you think of it like that, you see what a ridiculous concept the soul is. Be happy though The human brain is the most complex thing we know of in the universe. Now that is amazing!

I'm happy to talk about my music theories, but you must see that my website is obviously tongue in cheek. (Thanks for visiting by the way, not many people do!) I personally do find the process of composing music to be about method and number crunching. Music is obviously not a science though. I like to think of it as the sound of numbers.

Of course we can agree to differ, as long as you know that my opinions are based on known facts, and yours are based on nothing more than wishful thinking. So at least we can agree that any argument is therefore pointless.

[Iron Horse-Apples]

I'm sure you did slap your forehead

BW 88

1990

Newcombe - Love your website - now I'm an official fan!

Thanks! I've grown to really like you too. Your tenacity is admirable, and I mean that genuinely.

It is my duty as a  humanist to refute your claims though.

[TMinthePM]

Here is what I have distilled from the John Etherington article. Thanks again to Bossaroo:

Brian has a late Taurus ascendant and Uranus rising in early Gemini
Uranus conjunct Venus in the 12th House both trine Neptune in the 5th House
Venus and Neptune relate to musical talent
Uranus and Neptune relate to genius

Aquarius mid-heaven

The placement of Uranus in Brian’s chart explains both his original and experimental approach to his work, as well as his eccentric and unpredictable behavior.

The Saturn Uranus conjunction encourages reworking of existing forms

Sun conjunct Jupiter in 2d house Cancer square Neptune in 5th house indicate heightened sensitivity and feeling of not being of this world, visionary qualities and attunment to spiritual reality.

Mercury retrograde in Gemini

Chiron in 4th house conjunct Mars and Pluto (which are themselves conjunct in 3d house manifests the misfortune of having suffered violent assaults, injuries

Moon in Virgo in 5th house, square Mercury, Saturn and Uranus aspires to perfection

Mars-Pluto conjunction, sextile Uranus indicates competitive streak

All planets being below the horizon indicates subjective nature

July 1964 – first number one single, I Get Around, as Jupiter conjuncts Venus (12 year peak period cycle)

December 1964 – lunar eclipse conjunct native Sun(Gemini?) – nervous breakdown

Introduced to the works of Hermann Hesse and Kahil Gibran

First known musician of the era to employ the services of a professional astrologer

Experiments with cannibis and lsd

1966 – Sun sextile Venus, and Mercury conjunct Jupiter – career peak

November 1966 – Uranus-Pluto conjunction, square Brian’s Mercury increase obsessions and eccentricity. Jupiter conjunct Mars in Leo stirs fire.

End of 1960s as Neptune opposes Brian’s Ascendant he fades

June 1973 Murry dies as Saturn conjuncts Brian’s natal Sun. Brian withdraws to bedroom.
December 1975 – Mars-Pluto conjunction square Uranus, Neptune square Moon, Solar eclipse in Taurus conjunct Natal Venus signify loss of power and emotional disintegration.

1976 Jupiter conjunct Venus (12 year peak cycle) Enter Landy

1981-2 Saturn conjunct Brian’s Natal Moon, Neptune opposed to Natal Sun, Uranus opposed its Natal position, a most negative planetary aspect presents the choice to live or die.

Reenter Landy – composite chart Brian/Eugene reveals a stellium of Moon, Mars, Mercury and Jupiter opposed Venus, 4 planets in Virgo, a Sun/Neptune conjunction, Venus-Mars opposition denoting magnetic attraction.

1983 Pluto trine Natal Sun – old wound brought to light, Chiron conjunct Natal Venus healing begins

1988 – Jupiter conjunct Venus (12 year cycle) first solo album produced

Beach Boys group composite chart focused on 5th house conjunction of Sun, Mercury and Mars, squaring Jupiter-Pluto conjunct in Leo, signifies creative and regenerative powers of the group.

[TMinthePM]

So now the Celestial Arc of the Beach Boys career - combined with the aspects in Brian’s chart - looks like this:

1. 1960-72: a conjunction between Uranus and Pluto  - compelling…consciousness-raising, and rebellious expressions…awakenings and liberation. The band is formed, finds its voice, produces music that reflects the concerns of its generation from early adolescence to young adulthood. Progressively runs out of creative steam as the aspect fades.

1a. Brian has a late Taurus ascendant and Uranus rising in early Gemini
Uranus conjunct Venus in the 12th House both trine Neptune in the 5th House
Venus and Neptune relate to musical talent
Uranus and Neptune relate to genius

Aquarius mid-heaven

The placement of Uranus in Brian’s chart explains both his original and experimental approach to his work, as well as his eccentric and unpredictable behavior.

The Saturn Uranus conjunction encourages reworking of existing forms

Sun conjunct Jupiter in 2d house Cancer square Neptune in 5th house indicate heightened sensitivity and feeling of not being of this world, visionary qualities and attunment to spiritual reality.

Mercury retrograde in Gemini

Chiron in 4th house conjunct Mars and Pluto (which are themselves conjunct in 3d house manifests the misfortune of having suffered violent assaults, injuries

Moon in Virgo in 5th house, square Mercury, Saturn and Uranus aspires to perfection

Mars-Pluto conjunction, sextile Uranus indicates competitive streak

All planets being below the horizon indicates subjective nature

July 1964 – first number one single, I Get Around, as Jupiter conjuncts Venus (12 year peak period cycle)

December 1964 – lunar eclipse conjunct native Sun(Gemini?) – nervous breakdown

Introduced to the works of Hermann Hesse and Kahil Gibran

First known musician of the era to employ the services of a professional astrologer

Experiments with cannibis and lsd

1966 – Sun sextile Venus, and Mercury conjunct Jupiter – career peak

November 1966 – Uranus-Pluto conjunction, square Brian’s Mercury increase obsessions and eccentricity. Jupiter conjunct Mars in Leo stirs fire.

End of 1960s as Neptune opposes Brian’s Ascendant he fades

June 1973 Murry dies as Saturn conjuncts Brian’s natal Sun. Brian withdraws to bedroom.
December 1975 – Mars-Pluto conjunction square Uranus, Neptune square Moon, Solar eclipse in Taurus conjunct Natal Venus signify loss of power and emotional disintegration.

1976 Jupiter conjunct Venus (12 year peak cycle) Enter Landy



2. The early 1980’s was epitomized by a conjunction between Saturn and Pluto… Saturn correlates with the desire for stasis, stability, and tradition. The band nearly breaks up (late 70s), salvages career by emphasizing its past glories - delivering powerful live set in Washington D.C. July 4, 1980.

2a. 1981-2 Saturn conjunct Brian’s Natal Moon, Neptune opposed to Natal Sun, Uranus opposed its Natal position, a most negative planetary aspect presents the choice to live or die.

Reenter Landy – composite chart Brian/Eugene reveals a stellium of Moon, Mars, Mercury and Jupiter opposed Venus, 4 planets in Virgo, a Sun/Neptune conjunction, Venus-Mars opposition denoting magnetic attraction.

1983 Pluto trine Natal Sun – old wound brought to light, Chiron conjunct Natal Venus healing begins


3.The late 1980’s,… conjunction between Uranus, Saturn, and Neptune…. Neptune dissolves structures not unlike a metaphysical solvent…. blurs distinctions, melts that which was once solid, and softens that which was distinct and hard. Brian Wilson returns from the creative dead with what is arguably his best work since 1966, but not as a Beach Boy.

3a. 1988 – Jupiter conjunct Venus (12 year cycle) first solo album produced


4. On February 15, 1993, Uranus and Neptune complete their conjunction in the sign of Capricorn… associated with hard work, grounded practicality, seriousness, traditionalism, stability, responsibility, self-discipline, cautious, perseverance. The Beach Boys soldier on, hitting the road year after year The band releases a well received retrospective box-set and tours behind it with sets that are more creative and diverse than any since the early 70s.

4a. Beach Boys group composite chart focused on 5th house conjunction of Sun, Mercury and Mars, squaring Jupiter-Pluto conjunct in Leo, signifies creative and regenerative powers of the group.

5. In late 1995, Uranus moved into the Sign of Aquarius…signifying a release from whatever confines… individuals…. On a personal level,…the movement into Aquarius represents a breakdown of limiting concepts based upon old paradigms…and .. When Uranus is in Aquarius, people are interested in radical departures from traditions and patterns.  The band breaks up following the death (departure) of Carl Wilson, putting an end to the structure that has served them for over 30 years. Brian Wilson breaks out of the Landy straight-jacket, remarries and sets upon a solo career.

6. Summer 2011 the Grand Cross will primarily feature Uranus, Saturn and Pluto, much like the decade of the 1960’s and these outer planets pack a punch. Uranus impulse to revolution, immediacy, emancipation, and freedom from restrictions opposes Saturns need for order, tradition, rules, boundaries, time and restrictions. Both are squared to Pluto (deep, elemental power, transfiguration, death and rebirth). The band reunites, produces an album that harkens back to 1965 and tours to ever mounting acclaim, but is bedeviled by divergent drives and tendencies. .

[TMinthePM]

Newcombe says: "Of course we can agree to differ, as long as you know that my opinions are based on known facts, and yours are based on nothing more than wishful thinking. So at least we can agree that any argument is therefore pointless."

Quite right says I. Let us agree to disagree.

And while we're at it - care for another Brandy old chap?

[Mike's Beard]

Can anyone out there tell me the meaning of Feel Flows?

Sure. Carl Wilson and Jack Rieley take lots of cocaine and decide to write a song about taking lots of cocaine.

[The Heartical Don]

Can anyone out there tell me the meaning of Feel Flows?

Sure. Carl Wilson and Jack Rieley take lots of cocaine and decide to write a song about taking lots of cocaine.

 

[TMinthePM]

So now the ideas of Gibran and Hesse can be added to the catalogue of influences coloring Brian Wilson's work in the 60s, however indirectly. I have not myself read either, although as a young man in the mid to late sixties I was aware of them thru friends who had. In any case they certainly were mystical in content.

And I don't believe these influences need have been expressed directly, but might have impacted attitudes as much as anything, particularly the opening to new and unusual ideas so prevalent in that era. George Harrison advises "Think For Yourself" on Rubber Soul and Brian responds by composing Pet Sounds utilizing what he called "feels," meaning, if I understand it right, unconventional chord sequences discovered simply by sitting down at the keyboard and feeling his way into a progression, painting with the colours of sound.

I don't know if "mystical" is the word that describes Pet Sounds, although mystical experience can be triggered by any number of things, love being the most obvious. But Good Vibrations definitely seeks to evoke the mystical, as does Smile and, to a lesser extent, Smiley Smile.

This other-wordliness would become a theme in the work of the Beach Boys in the years to come, and may be attributed in the first place to the influence of Uranus. 

[TMinthePM]

As I reflect on all of this I recall reading in the mid-70s David Leaf's book - what was it called, The Beach Boys and the California Dream?

Was in fact the first I ever read about the Beach Boys.

And I recall, generally, the chapter describing the Smile era, particularly the story of the portrait that David Anderle painted of Brian. And of how Brian found all sorts of numerological significances in it and afterwards cut himself off from Anderle as the Smile moment slipped away.

So, we might add numerology to the grab-bag of influences.

As I suggested at the top of this thread, artists do not work in a vacuum, but rather draw inspiration and influence from all that suits there need.