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Poll
Question: Rate Wouldn't It Be Nice?: My Own Story
5 - 9 (19.1%)
4 - 2 (4.3%)
3 - 8 (17%)
2 - 5 (10.6%)
1 - 6 (12.8%)
0 - 17 (36.2%)
Total Voters: 38

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Author Topic: Wouldn't It Be Nice?: My Own Story  (Read 52414 times)
mikeyj
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« Reply #50 on: December 12, 2008, 08:14:35 PM »

Mike has praised that song, and it was also among those aired in 2-71 on a New York radio station. If Mike hated it would he have let it be brought in?

Well I don't know MBE, Bruce has quoted that SOMEONE wasn't a fan of 'Til I Die... so if it wasn't Bruce or Mike... it was either Al, Dennis or Carl... and besides opinions change over time of course so maybe Mike didn't like it at the time, but changed his opinion later on?... And who says Mike "let it be brought in"? They were a band of course, so maybe the other guys (there was more than just Mike on that broadcast right?) wanted it to be played.
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« Reply #51 on: December 15, 2008, 10:26:45 AM »

Those are valid arguments but my contention is that Gold guessed it was Mike based on Bruce's quote for Leaf. Sad thing is that now it's gone down as history that Mike hated the song. Who knows 100 percent but I for one don't trust Gold's writing at all.
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carlydenise
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« Reply #52 on: February 03, 2009, 12:17:19 PM »

I had read "Heroes and Villians" prior to reading WIBN...it only took a few pages to realize this didn't even remotely sound like the last book.  But, like a train wreck...I...must.....not....look.....I ended up reading it anyway, with a grain of salt, of course.  I liked some of the pictures.  I have read the Timothy White book, also, but found myself skimming over the stuff that didn't directly relate to the band.  It too is an interesting read.  Summer is coming, I need another BB book to read....
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Jay
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« Reply #53 on: May 10, 2009, 12:52:34 AM »

Several of the actual song titles quoted, and lyrics listed in the chapter about Smile are wrong. That tells you about all you need to know about how accurate this book is. The thing that I'm curios about is, why didn't Brian sue Landy and Gold when this book came out? If I were Brian, I would have sued Landy for completely fucking up my life in every possible way. I mean, the poor guy got sued by HIS OWN MOTHER over this book.
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the captain
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« Reply #54 on: May 10, 2009, 07:25:58 AM »

Brian couldn't have sued Landy over the book because Brian was a participant in the book: I mean, he did promotional book-signing behind it. It wasn't as if Landy did it without Brian knowing. And if I recall Andrew Doe's statements on it correctly, they probably were trying for a more accurate book than they had gotten, but when most celebs' ghost writers get decent interviews from their "author" subjects, Brian was in one-word-answer mode and Gold had to be a bit more creative.
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OGoldin
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« Reply #55 on: May 10, 2009, 07:48:19 AM »

Has anyone ever tracked down Gold and asked him?
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Disney Boy (1985)
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« Reply #56 on: February 25, 2012, 03:07:46 PM »

According to this book, Al is a racist. 'Does he really have to put his arm around her' says Al. (Later he apparently makes a mocking remark regarding Brian's, er, shoes).

I mean, really...? The problem with this book is that it just clearly has such an agenda (Landy's) and as such it is frequently - page after page - utterly unbelievable! Nothing fits. People's personalities seem to bare absolutely no resemblence whatsoever to those they have in real life. Poor Carl is just destroyed in this book, it's a disgrace. No mention is made of his songwriting/producing talents. Meanwhile more attention is paid to Dennis apparently beating up a young girl then his writing any songs. In fact, Brian seems entirely unsure of what he himself did and didn't write (he was actively involved in Sunflower, as the writing credits show, yet he claims otherwise here).

It's such a shame this book excists.
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Myk Luhv
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« Reply #57 on: March 01, 2012, 11:14:09 PM »

I've never read this book but I knew enough about it being a Landy vehicle (and only minimally, if at all, genuine Brian) that when I watched The Devil and Daniel Johnston I felt really bad, both for him and his parents, when Daniel Johnston's parents were talking about how -- after Johnston became obsessed with Brian/The Beach Boys -- they had begun reading Brian's "autobiography" to see what they might do differently to prevent Johnston from ending up the same way.

Also, this thread kinda makes me want to read it~
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Lonely Summer
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« Reply #58 on: March 17, 2012, 06:01:00 PM »

It's interesting that a lot of Dennis' foibles are mentioned - in passing - in this book, but yet he is kind of held up as the one member of the family/band that will stick up for Brian. Carl, on the other hand, is opposed to Brian at every turn - despite the fact that Carl took the initiative to bring Landy back into the picture the second time. Obviously, Landy was furious with Carl for trying to have him removed when it became clear that the doc would never choose to leave on his own. I look at the pics of Brian from the mid/late 80's, and he looks fantastic, so athletic, even youthful - but at what cost? Sure, Landy got Brian off "drugs" - and replaced them with "meds". What a nightmare.
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lee
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« Reply #59 on: March 18, 2012, 07:11:31 AM »

Those are valid arguments but my contention is that Gold guessed it was Mike based on Bruce's quote for Leaf. Sad thing is that now it's gone down as history that Mike hated the song. Who knows 100 percent but I for one don't trust Gold's writing at all.

I know this is talked about in the Catch A Wave book by Peter Carlin (I just read it recently). It wasn't stated that Mike hated the song but thought that the lyrics were a downer.
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Disney Boy (1985)
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« Reply #60 on: March 25, 2012, 06:06:38 AM »

Mike seems to tie himself in knots with his contradictions (or alleged contradictions): there he is in the Endless Harmony doc complaining of how the record company promoted them affected them being taken seriously ('in light of the war in Vietnam and the student demonstartions, it was completely ridiculous') and yet it seems to have always been him who objected to attempts by other band members at more artistic, serious or (supposedly) downbeat work.
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Sav-Man
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« Reply #61 on: July 08, 2012, 05:47:14 AM »

According to this book, Al is a racist. 'Does he really have to put his arm around her' says Al. (Later he apparently makes a mocking remark regarding Brian's, er, shoes).

I mean, really...? The problem with this book is that it just clearly has such an agenda (Landy's) and as such it is frequently - page after page - utterly unbelievable! Nothing fits. People's personalities seem to bare absolutely no resemblence whatsoever to those they have in real life. Poor Carl is just destroyed in this book, it's a disgrace. No mention is made of his songwriting/producing talents. Meanwhile more attention is paid to Dennis apparently beating up a young girl then his writing any songs. In fact, Brian seems entirely unsure of what he himself did and didn't write (he was actively involved in Sunflower, as the writing credits show, yet he claims otherwise here).

It's such a shame this book excists.

I agree. If you've ever listened to Brian on interviews and heard the way he speaks (no matter what time period) and then read the text of WIBN: MOS, it's obvious that it's just not Brian talking. Also, I have serious, major doubts about the chapter claiming that Landy sent Brian on an Outward Bound adventure by himself. The one constant thing that you always hear about the Landy program was that Brian was never (or at least, almost never) allowed to be by himself, ever. Even if the story is true, and even if, for instance, Landy did swear the Outward Bound folks to secrecy or whatever, think about it: Brian Wilson hiking, climbing mountains, etc., would be too juicy of an event for the OB people not to gossip about, resulting in it making the news, which it never did. At least I don't remember any BB or BW-related stories back in 1984-85-86 mentioning it! A more appropriate title for the book would have been Wouldn't It Be Nice If It Were My Own Story!
« Last Edit: July 08, 2012, 05:48:35 AM by Sav-Man » Logged
Disney Boy (1985)
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« Reply #62 on: July 08, 2012, 05:55:37 AM »

It'd be nice in Brian would finally publicly denounce the book, purely out of respect for Carl if nothing else. And not in any kind of half-hearted shrugging 'aw i've never even read it' way...
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Sav-Man
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« Reply #63 on: July 08, 2012, 07:13:44 AM »

It'd be nice in Brian would finally publicly denounce the book, purely out of respect for Carl if nothing else. And not in any kind of half-hearted shrugging 'aw i've never even read it' way...

Well, Timothy White's book The Nearest Faraway Place says that during the depositions in the case where Brian was sued by Mike, Carl, Audree, etc. for the content in WIBN, Brian was quoted as saying that the book was "absolute bullsh*t," "total fiction" and "all garbage" (or something to that effect). Even though White doesn't elaborate, I'm guessing that what might have happened during said deposition was that perhaps parts of the book were read to Brian and he might have then and there confirmed what most BB fans suspect. I seriously doubt that Landy and his goons would have let him read it, so Brian probably wasn't kidding about not having seen the final manuscript. From what I've seen, except for the interview on Larry King's show from 2004, Brian for the most doesn't like to talk about Landy or the time he was under his program all that much, and I can't say I blame him. Because of that, I doubt that he'll ever publicly denounce that book or even talk about it in a future interview. I'm sure that he probably settled things w/ Carl privately before Carl died.
« Last Edit: July 08, 2012, 07:15:08 AM by Sav-Man » Logged
bluesno1fann
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« Reply #64 on: September 16, 2013, 09:14:56 PM »

I was at first interested in obtaining this "autobiography" until I found out this wasn't even written by Brian Wilson.
This was written by Eugene Landy, so I wouldn't trust this book one bit!
But then again, I haven't actually read the book. I'm just going to have to see what other people think of this.
I expect negative reviews. For now:
1 out of 5
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catlag
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« Reply #65 on: February 22, 2016, 09:35:37 AM »

I'm actually reading the notorious book and I'm halfway through.

At first, I didn't even want to read it because I had heard only bad things about it. After a couple of months, curiosity got the best of me.

I'm not yet into the Landy years (year/years) but I find this read most fascinating. I never expected it to be written "by" Brian - I mean, who can expect that? I think Gold did a fine job of putting Brian's inner turmoil into words. I actually think it's quite touching, the way it's written. Simple. Of course I agree that some of it is harsh on Carl and Marilyn, but I think there can be truth in Brian not seeing, as ill and self-consumed as he was, that anyone truly loved him and cared for him as best they could. "He" talks about how he did not get help from people around him and that must have been a large part of his experience. Feeling alone and no one who could understand the depth of his suffering.
 
Anyway, that's what I'm getting from it and I really appreciate the new perspective. When it comes to Brian and the Beach Boys, one can't read only one book and claim to know the truth. The truth is what people make of it, in a particular time and place. I believe a lot of it is true, even though these are not Brian's own words. I think his own words and thoughts can only be found in his music.

As for Brian calling it "all garbage" in court, well, I'm not surprised. Once the book came out and seeing the shitstorm caused by it, I can't think of any other reaction of Brian's other than to disavow the whole thing. Just to get away from the storm.

+ About Landy: even though most of us don't like him for his methods and the way he manipulated and isolated his patient,  Brian has numerous times said that he really loved him and was grateful for what he did, despite the bad stuff. I think this has to be taken into consideration.
« Last Edit: February 22, 2016, 09:44:31 AM by catlag » Logged

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JK
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« Reply #66 on: February 22, 2016, 12:25:30 PM »

This is the book (a birthday present in 2003) that re-introduced me to Brian and The Beach Boys. So I'm biased in its favour, if only for that reason. 

I thought it was a fantastic read and still do (I've read it at least twice). 

There are others far more in the know than myself about how things were----I wasn't there. However, as a book, a page-turner if ever there was one, in the words of Janice Nicholls on Thank Your Lucky Stars, "Oi'll give it foive". 
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