Child Is Father of the Man

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Brian had a fervent desire to re-invent himself as an individual, not as a boy, and that's what happened, I think. By the time I met him, he had already done "When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)"; he'd already raised the questions about being a man, and when I met him, that crisis was acute. I knew it was psychologically complex and over my head. The only way I could help with any of this, whatever it was he was going through, was refer him to that poem by Hawthorne [ sic ] from which the phrase "the child is father to the man" comes. He used it as part of his inquiry of Smile, as a lyric. [1]

Wilson's 2016 memoir states that "'Child Is Father of the Man' was about mental health and knowing yourself so you could do the right things in the world." [7]

Recording

The instrumental track for "Child Is Father of the Man" was recorded on October 7 ("Version 1") and October 11, 1966 ("Version 2") at Western Studio. The latter was logged as a "Cabin Essence" session. [8] Biographer Jon Stebbins described the track as "a brooding and expansive aura, with a plaintive harmonica [ sic ] line not dissimilar to those heard on Ennio Morricone Spaghetti Western soundtracks." [9]

Vocals were overdubbed by the group on October 12 and December 2 at Columbia Studio. [8] Band archivist Mark Linett later said that there are vocal parts obscured by Carl Wilson's singing on the track. Linett said, "When he's not singing, you can hear faint background vocal parts that no longer exist on the multitrack. They must have been in his headphones, and were picked up by the vocal mic. It could be that Brian decided he didn't need them, or that he was going to re-record them, but never did. You hear this sort of stuff throughout the tapes." [10]

A mix of "Child Is Father of the Man" was compiled in late 1966 and later released on the 2018 compilation Wake the World: The Friends Sessions . [11] In April 1967, the band revisited the song at Sound Recorders. Brian played grand piano while he and his bandmates sang vocals. The tape was logged as "Tune X" on the box and slated as "Nowhere" on the session tape. [8]

Legacy

In 1968, the song's chorus was rewritten and rerecorded as the chorus for "Little Bird" from Friends . [12]

In 1971, when the band completed "Surf's Up" for their album of the same name, the coda included a reworking of the chorus from "Child Is Father of the Man". [13] [14] Writing in a 1996 online Q&A, band manager Jack Rieley wrote that Brian had "stated clearly that it was his intent all along for Child to be the tag for Surfs Up." [15]

Personnel

Per band archivist Craig Slowinski. [8]

Version 1 (October 7, 1966)

Version 2 (October 11 –December 2, 1966)

  • Jimmy Bond – upright bass
  • Bruce Johnston – vocals
  • Al Jardine – vocals
  • Carol Kaye – Fender bass
  • Mike Love – vocals
  • Ollie Mitchell – trumpet
  • Bill Pitman – electric baritone lead guitar (chorus and verse)
  • Brian Wilson – vocals, tack piano (chorus and verse), grand piano (bridge), overdubbed snare drum in chorus (uncertain credit)
  • Carl Wilson – vocals, electric rhythm guitar (verse), overdubbed sleigh bells in chorus (uncertain credit)

Version 3 (circa April 10, 1967)

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References

Note

  1. ↑ Parks' father was a psychatrist and neurologist who studied with Menninger. [5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Priore, Domenic (2005). Smile: The Story of Brian Wilson's Lost Masterpiece. Sanctuary. ISBN   1860746276.
  2. ↑ Carter, Dale (2021). Reading Smile History, Myth and American Identity in Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks' Long-Lost Album. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. p. 57. ISBN   9780367622862.
  3. ↑ Priore, Domenic, ed. (1995). Look, Listen, Vibrate, Smile!. Last Gasp. p. 167. ISBN   0-86719-417-0.
  4. ↑ Nolan, Tom (November 27, 1966). "The Frenzied Frontier of Pop Music". Los Angeles Times West.
  5. ↑ Henderson, Richard (2010). Van Dyke Parks' Song Cycle. Continuum. p. 32. ISBN   978-0-8264-2917-9.
  6. ↑ Badman, Keith (2004). The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, on Stage and in the Studio . Backbeat Books. p. 166. ISBN   978-0-87930-818-6.
  7. ↑ Wilson, Brian; Greenman, Ben (2016). I Am Brian Wilson: A Memoir. Da Capo Press. p. 186. ISBN   978-0-306-82307-7.
  8. 1 2 3 4 The Smile Sessions (deluxe box set booklet). The Beach Boys. Capitol Records. 2011.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. ↑ Stebbins, Jon (2011). The Beach Boys FAQ: All That's Left to Know About America's Band. pp. 90–91. ISBN   9781458429148.
  10. ↑ Bell, Matt (October 2004). "The Resurrection of Brian Wilson's Smile". Sound on Sound. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
  11. ↑ Stone, Sam (December 7, 2018). "Wake The World: The Beach Boys Mine 1968 Vaults for Two New Copyright Extension Titles!". The Second Disc.
  12. ↑ Chidester, Brian (March 7, 2014). "Busy Doin' Somethin': Uncovering Brian Wilson's Lost Bedroom Tapes". Paste. Archived from the original on December 11, 2014. Retrieved December 11, 2014.
  13. ↑ Stebbins 2011, p. 91.
  14. ↑ Badman 2004, p. 296.
  15. ↑ Rieley, Jack (October 18, 1996). "Jack Rieley's comments & Surf's Up".
"Child Is Father of the Man"
Song by the Beach Boys
from the album The Smile Sessions
ReleasedOctober 31, 2011
RecordedOctober 11, 1966 –April 1967
Studio Western, Columbia, Sunset Sound, and Beach Boys, Los Angeles
Length2:14
Label Capitol
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Brian Wilson
Music video
"Child Is Father of the Man" on YouTube
The Smile Sessions
track listing
Other tracks
Derivative songs
Associated people
Related media
Other topics
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