VLVL Beach Boys

[Peter Petto]

I saw the Brian Wilson documentary when it first aired on VH1, and would
have attended the concert if I had the time for a road trip to exurban
Illinois.

It is a promotional piece bearing the heavy hand of his new record
company's promotion department. I agree that the praise in its particulars
is a bit over the top, but it's from a lot of musicians who learned a lot
from Brian's music, and really want to say "his music can't be praised enough."

Of course, Brian's best music combines exuberance and melancholy, and his
new album is much like Pet Sounds in that way.

Brian has come a long way, recovering from a highly dysfunctional family
life, schizophrenia, drug abuse, and more. He's made strong positive
progress throughout the last five or six years.

Brian has also produced a lot of excellent music throughout his "dark
years" which, amidst a labyrinth of legal battles, has never been released.

I don't see much parallel between BWs and TRPs personal situations, except
for the fact that they have both produced great art. I'm happy to see that
TRP seems to take as much joy from surf music as I do; and am tickled to
know that the two of them met on at least one occasion.

Oh, and Brian is doing a much better job now as a father, both with his two
older girls (The Wilsons, formerly 2/3 of Wilson Philips) and with two
girls he and Melinda recently adopted.