John Stebbins FAQ Book: Rather harsh on Brian's Solo Tours and Handlers?

[Ray Lawlor]

I am probably going to catch some hell personally for some of what I am going to put forward here, but I have had it with this constant barrage of Landy comparison’s ; especially since I don’t think anyone posting this stuff has clue # one about what they are talking about, and I am fed up as well with some of the agenda’s that are becoming rather apparent to me. Ok; I will start here” “but really, how different is this from the “cajoled circus animal “ Leaf described “.  
Let’s compare the Landy era (both of them) and the post Landy era.
The objective of the first Landy era was to get Brian back to be a functional Beach Boy. So; hire the worst charlatan “doctor” imaginable. Twice. Check. Get him off recreational drugs. Check.  Get him on a diet. Check. Get him back in the studio. Check; didn’t matter if he was ready or healthy enough to do so.  Get him up on stage with The Beach Boys. Check. Didn’t matter if he was mentally prepared . Surround him with surf-nazi bodyguards 24 hours a day. Check.  Get him writing songs for the Beach Boys again. Check.  
Results:
Landy 1
Brian on stage with The Beach Boys; getting shoulder and back rubs from Scott Steinberg during concerts;
Brian 90 pounds or so lighter;
Brian solo on Saturday Night Live and Mike Douglas
15 Big Ones and Beach Boys Love You;
Landy One terminated by Steve Love
Dr Steve Schwartz, whom Brian liked , is hired as Brian’s new therapist. He is unfortunately killed in an accident , and Brian’s care is turned over to Stan Love, Steve Korthof and Rocky Pamplin. They ultimately get canned and Brian’s care is taken over by a team of revolving nurses.
Brian , under this regime,  quickly goes into a downward spiral , culminating with The Beach Boys hiring…
Landy 2, the sequel .

Get Brian off recreational drugs. Check . Get him on a diet. Check. Get him back in the studio and on stage with The Beach Boys. Check. Getting him writing songs for The Beach Boys. Check. Then Landy , knowing what a dysfunctional mess it really was , shifts gears and  then it really gets interesting; we head into Phase 2 of Landy 2.
Isolate Brian from all family including his mother, brother , daughters, as well as all his friends. Check. Move Landy and his girlfriend into Brian’s house in Pacific Palisades, and Brian moves to a complete dump of a tiny shack in Malibu. Check. Put Landy lyrics on everything Brian writes. Check. Control Brian with cocktails of illegally prescribed prescription drugs. Check. Have Brian attend every high profile Beach Boy event ( examples : Reagan inaugural ball, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame). Check. Have Brian record solo record with Landy as Executive Producer. Check.  Have Brian’s will amended to making Landy and Morgan the recipient’s of 80% of Brian’s estate. Check. I can keep going. But let’s tabulate the results of Landy 2:
Brian contributes a few mediocre songs to BB 85 LP; as well as BB “Still Cruisin’” LP ;
Brian writes “Let’s Go To Heaven in My Car” ; released as a single and for the movie “Police Academy whatever number;
BW 88 Solo album released;
Sweet Insanity rejected due to lyrical and production contributions from Landy;
Brian sings background vocals for Linda Ronstadt’s version of Jimmy Webb’s “Adios”;
The Landy inspired “Wouldn’t it Be Nice” alleged autobiography comes out ; Brian later admits under oath he had nothing to do with it and never even read it;
Brian completely isolated from all family and friends;
Have I forgotten anything ?
Landy removed by the State of California; too complicated to go into all that here.

Let’s move to the post Landy/Melinda Wilson era;
Melinda Ledbetter and a close friend whom I won’t mention here, meet with Dr. Jolyon West; Director of the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute, and beg him to get involved in the Brian Wilson case. Dr. West is known for performing Jack Ruby’s psychiatric evaluation; his main area’s of focus were drug and alcohol abuse, cults and brainwashing. He subsequentally agrees to take on Brian Wilson as a patient. Based on this meeting; Dr West and his team were assigned by the court during the conservancy hearings post Landy.
Brian gets married to Melinda Ledbetter;
As Brian’s COURT APPOINTED conservator, after Carl Wilson refused the role,  Melinda Wilson retains Dr.’s West, Marmer and Connor; ironically headquartered at UCLA , only a few miles from 10452 Bellagio.
So in this new environment, and with the right team of real doctors, let’s review what has been accomplished:

Real doctors, real diagnosis, real treatment. Check.
Move from shack into real house. Check.
Take a few years off to recover from Landy. Check.
Conservancy removed. Check.

Management team of Jean Sievers and Melinda Wilson involved in or responsible for:
“I Guess I Just Wasn’t Made For These Times” film and soundtrack.
“Orange Crate Art” with Van Dyke Parks
“Imagination”
Brian Wilson starts solo tours.
“ Live at the Roxy”
“An All-Star Tribute to Brian Wilson” live at Radio City Music Hall in NY; as well as DVD
“Brian Wilson On Tour “ DVD
“Pet Sounds “ Live ; tour and CD
“Getting’ In Over My Head”
“ SMiLE” live
“Brian Wilson Presents Smile”
“What I Really Want For Christmas”
“ Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin” CD and tour
“Songs in the Key of Disney”
“That Lucky Old Sun” tour and CD
The Beach Boy’s C50 tour
“That’s Why God Made the Radio”
“ The SMiLE Sessions” box set
Ivor Novello award in London
Inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame in New York
Musicare’s Man of the Year Award
Queen Elizabeth’s 50th Jubilee ; Buckingham Palace, London
Kennedy Center Award , Washington DC
Two Grammy’s.
Paul McCartney’s Minefield Event

I may be forgetting something but you get the drift. Does anyone with the sense that God gave grapefruit thinks that all of that could be “coerced” out of Brian , or any other artist ? Yes; sometimes Brian has to be pushed , that is part of his illness and you know what he says each and every time ? “Thank you so much for pushing back on me with that ; it was great and you helped me make it happen.” Everything that has been done, with respect to the health and welfare of Brian Wilson , both professionally and personally, has not been done in a vacuum.  Unless you have walked in Melinda Wilson’s shoes , or in Jean Sievers shoes, then you are oblivious of what either one of them does or has accomplished.

At the end of the day , after all of the above, the ultimate accomplishments are Brian's.  He is the one who pulled it all off, from putting together what has been called the best band in the world ( and they are), writing , arranging and producing  alot of great music, them performing it live on the road and getting it out there.  Ultimately, its his show, with a little help from his friends and immediate family.

G’Day.

[mikeddonn]

Ray, you missed out:

back in touch with his daughters, records with them, goes to Mike's wedding with Melinda, adopts his kids, new album coming out, new book, new film etc, etc

Seriously though, if your post is not the best post on here I don't know what is! .   You have hit the nail on the head by laying it all out in such a manner.  I think the point you make about nobody being able to coerce that much out of an artist is a very salient one.  Landy and his methods couldn't do it and if Brian wasn't content and happy post Landy I very much doubt he would participate in all that he has since he's been with Melinda.  Well said!

[KittyKat]

Great guy, that Ray Lawlor, violating Brian's doctor/patient confidentiality issues and his privacy. Oh, but he's a well-paid aviation executive with enough time and money to go around chasing after his so-called friend. The friend who no longer apparently speaks to either David Leaf or Van Dyke Parks, for whatever reasons (wonder what happened to those relationships of Brian's). Every time Ray comes on to a thread, a chill comes over and everyone starts talking about beer. Whatever. I guess I have an agenda. He reminds me of Frank Lima, a sycophant of Ray Davies who follows Ray around on various tours and has lunch and dinner with him. Frank also participates in Kinks message boards, but at least he's nice to fans and doesn't try to be high-handed and try to set the record straight. As if he'd know, because he doesn't.

I'm waiting for Mike Love to send me a check. Because every time someone says something vaguely critical of Team Wilson or his friends (who for all anyone knows may have been sent here by Melinda, in exchange for continued access to Brian, or they did it on their own with that thinking in mind), people are accused of being closepersonafriends of Mike Love. Flame away.

[SMiLE Brian]

Wow, we have the best and worst posts in the board's history in one thread. Kudos to Ray setting everybody straight and shame on Kittykat for being an asshat.

[18thofMay]

Great guy, that Ray Lawlor, violating Brian's doctor/patient confidentiality issues and his privacy. Oh, but he's a well-paid aviation executive with enough time and money to go around chasing after his so-called friend. The friend who no longer apparently speaks to either David Leaf or Van Dyke Parks, for whatever reasons (wonder what happened to those relationships of Brian's). Every time Ray comes on to a thread, a chill comes over and everyone starts talking about beer. Whatever. I guess I have an agenda. He reminds me of Frank Lima, a sycophant of Ray Davies who follows Ray around on various tours and has lunch and dinner with him. Frank also participates in Kinks message boards, but at least he's nice to fans and doesn't try to be high-handed and try to set the record straight. As if he'd know, because he doesn't.

I'm waiting for Mike Love to send me a check. Because every time someone says something vaguely critical of Team Wilson or his friends (who for all anyone knows may have been sent here by Melinda, in exchange for continued access to Brian, or they did it on their own with that thinking in mind), people are accused of being closepersonafriends of Mike Love. Flame away.

What the actual f*** do you ever add to any post or thread. And who the hell do you think you are?

[Mendota Heights]

Great guy, that Ray Lawlor, violating Brian's doctor/patient confidentiality issues and his privacy. Oh, but he's a well-paid aviation executive with enough time and money to go around chasing after his so-called friend. The friend who no longer apparently speaks to either David Leaf or Van Dyke Parks, for whatever reasons (wonder what happened to those relationships of Brian's). Every time Ray comes on to a thread, a chill comes over and everyone starts talking about beer. Whatever. I guess I have an agenda. He reminds me of Frank Lima, a sycophant of Ray Davies who follows Ray around on various tours and has lunch and dinner with him. Frank also participates in Kinks message boards, but at least he's nice to fans and doesn't try to be high-handed and try to set the record straight. As if he'd know, because he doesn't.

I'm waiting for Mike Love to send me a check. Because every time someone says something vaguely critical of Team Wilson or his friends (who for all anyone knows may have been sent here by Melinda, in exchange for continued access to Brian, or they did it on their own with that thinking in mind), people are accused of being closepersonafriends of Mike Love. Flame away.

I am not even gonna flesh this out, but here are some bullet points:

- Ray is a great guy.
- What parts of Ray's post are confidential?
- Ray is not "chasing after his so-called friend", he is hanging out with and supporting his friend.
- Friendships come and friendships go, the circle of our social lives.
- People like beer.
- Yes, you have an agenda and you act like the human version of SiP.

[ontor pertawst]

Kittykat bringing buckets of class along as usual. Personal attacks, slander, conspiracy theories, and never a good word to say about anybody. Rob is right, your agenda is showing! Might want to feign more concern about BW's back to show how well-intentioned this all is.

Go on, distract everybody with more personal attacks. You think that'll somehow distract everybody from Ray's points, right? Hint: it won't. It's so hilarious that in the same paragraph you can accuse people of being "sent here by Melinda" you manage to express such shock horror of being accused of being J. Love, A. Love, or a Love. Can you not take a step back and realize you're doing the same damn thing?

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

Wow, we have the best and worst posts in the board's history in one thread. Kudos to Ray setting everybody straight and shame on Kittykat for being an asshat.

He strikes me as a particularly ornery person. He basically told me to get lost and post somewhere else when I bumped a couple SMiLE threads because he didn't want talk about it. Nevermind that if that's the case, anyone could just, y'know, scroll down to another topic they *do* wanna talk about. And now it looks like he's doing the same thing here and shaming someone for talking about a different topic.

I don't get it. I thought discussion was the whole point of a forum. If you have nothing to contribute, or you don't like the topic, move on to one you do. But coming into threads just to silence other people who are passionate about the subject at hand and have worthwhile things to say is nothing but detrimental to the board and a waste of his own time. 

[ontor pertawst]

We ARE discussing, Mujan. You made some good points too. Let's not pretend we're being silenced or shut down here!

[SMiLE Brian]

EDIT

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

Mujan, that Is not Ray Lawlor at all. I think you are confusing him with somebody else.

No, I'm talking about Kittykat. I thought that was clear

[Mendota Heights]

Mujan, the reason I got confused is I see Kittykat as a she, not a he.

[halblaineisgood]

Might want to feign more concern about BW's back to show how well-intentioned this all is.

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

We ARE discussing, Mujan. You made some good points too. Let's not pretend we're being silenced or shut down here!

I didn't mean in this thread, I was talking about my past experiences with Kittykat. I thought that was clear but I guess not.

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

@Mujan

Big edit.

Once again, I was talking about Kittykat, not Ray.

[SMiLE Brian]

Mujan, that Is not Ray Lawlor at all. I think you are confusing him with somebody else.

No, I'm talking about Kittykat. I thought that was clear

Sorry, will edit that out.

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

Mujan, that Is not Ray Lawlor at all. I think you are confusing him with somebody else.

No, I'm talking about Kittykat. I thought that was clear

Sorry, will edit that out.

It's all good.

[ontor pertawst]

Huge apologies! Somebody mention beer. f***, I'm not much of a drinker. Useless in these situations.

[mikeddonn]

Is KittyKat a man?  For some reason I always thought he was a she!  Anyway, I don't think Kitty is J. Love or A. Love but maybe A. Morgan!

[Mujan, 8@$+@Rc| of a Blue Wizard]

Huge apologies! Somebody mention beer. f***, I'm not much of a drinker. Useless in these situations.

No worries. Guess I should have specified.

[♩♬🐸 Billy C ♯♫♩🐇]

Great guy, that Ray Lawlor, violating Brian's doctor/patient confidentiality issues and his privacy. Oh, but he's a well-paid aviation executive with enough time and money to go around chasing after his so-called friend. The friend who no longer apparently speaks to either David Leaf or Van Dyke Parks, for whatever reasons (wonder what happened to those relationships of Brian's). Every time Ray comes on to a thread, a chill comes over and everyone starts talking about beer. Whatever. I guess I have an agenda. He reminds me of Frank Lima, a sycophant of Ray Davies who follows Ray around on various tours and has lunch and dinner with him. Frank also participates in Kinks message boards, but at least he's nice to fans and doesn't try to be high-handed and try to set the record straight. As if he'd know, because he doesn't.

I'm waiting for Mike Love to send me a check. Because every time someone says something vaguely critical of Team Wilson or his friends (who for all anyone knows may have been sent here by Melinda, in exchange for continued access to Brian, or they did it on their own with that thinking in mind), people are accused of being closepersonafriends of Mike Love. Flame away.

And that, my friends, is the very last post you will EVER see of this asshat. I don't care if somebody spams my PM box begging for his/her/it to be reinstated. It will NEVER happen. KittyKat is now at the bottom of the litter box and will never return.

Edit-

In case anyone asks, KittyKat's banning has nothing to do with being critical of Brian*; he/she/it has been asking for it for well over a year now (literally...I've never had anybody *dare* me to ban them before). It's one thing to have an opinion. It's another to actively try to start sh*t, like this feral freak has done pretty much since registration. This was more along the lines of a 'last straw' type of deal.

*-Oddly enough, I've had a a couple of people accuse me of being Brian-biased AND biased towards Mike. Guess it depends on the season and alignment of planets

[Autotune]

I appreciate Ray's excellent last post, and his answers to a series of questions I'd raised. Just to clarify: I am a regular fan who lives in another country, 10.000 miles from L.A., with no agenda regarding the BBs organization whatsoever. Anyone who's watched a BW show is entitled to their concern about this beloved musician, as much as close acquaintances are entitled to set the record straight when needed. All is fine; I'm glad Brian is around playing and recording music and living in a loving and caring environment. But please don't blame me or any other fan for being concerned by some of Brian's expressions or behavior; not all of us are insiders and thus need to ask questions.

[Peter Reum]

As a witness to Landy's first AND second eras, as well as his time with Melinda, I can tell you that milieu therapy was needed for Brian to be able to break the self-destructive patterns he had established. The problem that occurred with Landy the first time was that he became greedy financially and was sacked. The second time he did a solid job using milieu therapy to detox Brian and to help him to establish healthy habits. The rub was that Dr. Landy thought he knew more about psychotropic medications than he really did, and a toxic mix caused very serious health problems for Brian as he got into his late 40s and 50s. Melinda, to her credit, saw the warning I gave the people who needed to separate Landy and Brian, and took that warning seriously. The guardianship was a legal status NOT a psychiatric status. Landy had insinuated himself into the medical, social, and most egregiously, the financial part of Brian's life. A team of advocates worked with the late Carl Wilson to "Free Brian." Afterward, the presiding judge required that a conservatorship be established to prevent Landy from returning and to keep Brian's finances and medical situation from further deteriorating. That Melinda Wilson took the conservatorship was needed, because Carl Wilson was caring for his and Brian's mother, who was not well. It is tragic to think that Carl died so young, instead of seeing his family expand. Melinda discharged her conservatorship with the SUPERVISION of the court.  Brian had his conservatorship stopped due to his psychotherapeutic progress and vastly improving physical health. He married Melinda, and their union has lasted nearly 20 years. They have adopted 5 children, who adore their dad. The music progress that Ray Lawlor cites is impressive. But none of it would have happened without  Melinda, and Ray Lawlor and Jerry Weiss. This "circle of support" as we term it in therapy, helped Brian feel safe enough to take risks musically that he never dreamed were possible. This would include playing live, which gave him the tangible and real adoration he needed to be validated for creating gorgeous music, thereby helping him to feel safe and motivated to open the spiritual spigot that he needs to compose all those great songs. Is he still affected by his neurochemical imbalances in his brain? YES. Do these neurochemical imbalances have to hinder him from writing music, playing  live and feeling love of the audience wash over him, and produce and arrange new music? NO! As long as that circle of support, people who love him as he is, not how they want him to be, he will be free to create as his spirituality moves him for as long as he lives.

[Mendota Heights]

Wonderful post, Peter.

[NHC]

Great guy, that Ray Lawlor, violating Brian's doctor/patient confidentiality issues and his privacy. Oh, but he's a well-paid aviation executive with enough time and money to go around chasing after his so-called friend. The friend who no longer apparently speaks to either David Leaf or Van Dyke Parks, for whatever reasons (wonder what happened to those relationships of Brian's). Every time Ray comes on to a thread, a chill comes over and everyone starts talking about beer. Whatever. I guess I have an agenda. He reminds me of Frank Lima, a sycophant of Ray Davies who follows Ray around on various tours and has lunch and dinner with him. Frank also participates in Kinks message boards, but at least he's nice to fans and doesn't try to be high-handed and try to set the record straight. As if he'd know, because he doesn't.

I'm waiting for Mike Love to send me a check. Because every time someone says something vaguely critical of Team Wilson or his friends (who for all anyone knows may have been sent here by Melinda, in exchange for continued access to Brian, or they did it on their own with that thinking in mind), people are accused of being closepersonafriends of Mike Love. Flame away.

Holy crap.  What?