The Beach Boys are an American rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by their vocal harmonies, adolescent-themed lyrics, and musical ingenuity, they are one of the most influential acts of the rock era. They drew on the music of older pop vocal groups, 1950s rock and roll, and black R&B to create their unique sound. Under Brian's direction, they often incorporated classical or jazz elements and unconventional recording techniques in innovative ways.
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and mastery of recording techniques, he is widely acknowledged as one of the most innovative and significant songwriters of the 20th century. His best-known work is distinguished for its high production values, complex harmonies and orchestrations, layered vocals, and introspective or ingenuous themes. Wilson is also known for his formerly high-ranged singing and for his lifelong struggles with mental illness.
"California Girls" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1965 album, Summer Days . Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, the lyrics detail an appreciation for women across the world and a wish that they all lived in the band's home state, California. It was released as a single, backed with "Let Him Run Wild", and reached number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was also a top 10 hit in several other countries, becoming one of the band's most successful songs globally.
15 Big Ones is the 20th studio album by the American rock band the Beach Boys, released July 5, 1976 on Brother/Reprise. It includes a mix of original songs and renditions of rock 'n' roll and R&B standards. The LP was the band's first album with production credited solely to Brian Wilson since Pet Sounds (1966). As such, its release was accompanied by a controversial media campaign that declared his comeback as an active member of the Beach Boys' recording and touring group.
The Beach Boys Love You is the 21st studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released April 11, 1977 on Brother/Reprise. Sometimes referred to as the band's "punk" or "synth pop" album, Love You is distinguished for its pioneering use of synthesizers and its juxtaposition of adolescent-oriented lyrics with the adult band members' rough vocals.
The Beach Boys is the 25th studio album by American rock band the Beach Boys, released on June 10, 1985. Produced by Steve Levine, the album is the band's first after the drowning of founding member Dennis Wilson. The album saw the band incorporate 1980's contemporary musical styles into their own sound and was intended to be a "comeback" for the band. It was also the band's first album to be recorded digitally and the last released by James William Guercio's Caribou Records.
Eugene Ellsworth Landy was an American psychologist known for his unconventional 24-hour therapy and treatment of celebrity clients. His most notable patient was the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson, with whom he formed a controversial business and creative partnership in the 1980s.
Brian Wilson is the first solo album by American musician Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, released July 12, 1988 by Sire and Reprise Records. Promoted as a spiritual successor to his band's 1966 release Pet Sounds, the album is characterized for its rich, synthesizer-heavy orchestrations. It cost over $1 million to record and was the first album produced by Wilson since The Beach Boys Love You (1977). His former psychologist, Eugene Landy, was credited as "executive producer".
Marilyn Wilson-Rutherford is an American singer who is best known as the first wife of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. Raised in Los Angeles, she started her singing career in the late 1950s, initially as part of a family singing trio, the Rovell Sisters, with her siblings Diane and Barbara. Through a mutual connection with musician Gary Usher, Marilyn met Brian at a Beach Boys concert in August 1962 when she was 14 and Brian was 20. Brian subsequently renamed the Rovell Sisters to "the Honeys" and wrote and produced several of their records in the 1960s.
"Don't Worry Baby" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their March 1964 album Shut Down Volume 2. Written by Brian Wilson and Roger Christian, Wilson's lead vocal on the track is considered one of his defining performances, and he later referred to "Don't Worry Baby" as perhaps the Beach Boys' finest record. It was issued in May 1964 as the B-side of "I Get Around", and charted separately at number 24.
"Johnny Carson" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1977 album The Beach Boys Love You. It was written by Brian Wilson as a tribute to one of his idols, Johnny Carson. The recording features Mike Love on lead vocals, accompanied by an arrangement of synthesizers, organ, and piano.
"Honkin' Down the Highway" is a song by American rock band the Beach Boys from their 1977 album The Beach Boys Love You. It was written by Brian Wilson and sung by Al Jardine. The lyrics describe a man driving to a woman, at her father's behest, for an engagement that the narrator states will conclude with himself "Takin' one little inch at a time, now / 'Til we're feelin' fine, now".
Sweet Insanity is an unofficial album by American musician Brian Wilson that was produced in 1990 as the follow-up to his first solo album, Brian Wilson (1988). It was largely written and produced by Wilson alongside his former psychologist, Eugene Landy.
Love & Mercy is a 2014 American biographical drama film directed by Bill Pohlad about the Beach Boys' co-founder and leader Brian Wilson and his struggles with mental illness during the 1960s and 1980s. It stars Paul Dano and John Cusack as the young and middle-aged Wilson, respectively, with Elizabeth Banks as his second wife Melinda Ledbetter and Paul Giamatti as his psychologist Dr. Eugene Landy. The title comes from Wilson's 1988 song.
Adult/Child is an unreleased studio album by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was produced in early 1977. Similar to their previous effort, The Beach Boys Love You, the album was essentially a solo effort by the band's chief songwriter and producer, Brian Wilson. It consists of seven new songs, four of which feature orchestral arrangements by Dick Reynolds, along with five older tracks that had been unreleased by the band. Lyric topics range from healthy diets and exercise to shaving a tomboy's legs and waiting at a movie theater queue. Some of the tracks, including "It's Over Now" and "Still I Dream of It", were originally written to be recorded by a singer such as Frank Sinatra.
"Guess I'm Dumb" is a song recorded by American singer Glen Campbell that was released as his seventh single on Capitol Records on June 7, 1965. Written by Brian Wilson and Russ Titelman, it is a love song that describes a man who regrets ending a relationship after he realizes he still harbors deep feelings for his former lover. The single failed to chart.
"Sherry She Needs Me" is a song written in 1965 by Brian Wilson and Russ Titelman for the American rock band the Beach Boys. The recording was not released until decades later. As a solo artist in 1998, Wilson completed the song with lyric changes by Carole Bayer Sager; it was renamed "She Says That She Needs Me" and released on his album Imagination.
Wouldn't It Be Nice: My Own Story is the first memoir by American musician Brian Wilson, written with celebrity journalist Todd Gold and published by HarperCollins in 1991. The book was heavily criticized for the implausibility of Wilson being its actual author, and it inspired multiple defamation lawsuits from his family members and associates.
Melinda Kae Wilson is an American talent manager who is the second wife and longtime manager of Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys. She was formerly a model and car saleswoman. Ledbetter is credited with helping to initiate Wilson's court-ordered separation from his former psychologist, Eugene Landy, and leading Wilson to proper medical care. Her account of her early relationship with Wilson was dramatized for the 2014 biopic Love & Mercy, in which Ledbetter is portrayed by Elizabeth Banks.
The "Andy Paley sessions" is the unofficial name given to an unfinished recording project by American musicians Brian Wilson and Andy Paley. During the 1990s, the duo planned to record an album that would have comprised original material written and produced by themselves with participation from other members of the Beach Boys. It was the last time Brian worked with his bandmates before Carl Wilson's death in 1998.
