Brian Wilson-Genius or Over Rated One Trick Pony?

Brian's 2008 That Lucky Old Sun shows that he can still make great pop music.

I was lucky enough to see him perform the whole record live as I did with his Smile record- both performances had me tearing up from pure Joy!

PS. while it's true brian lives with mental illness I don't see him as being "fragile"- I see a man that has come to terms with it and his past addiction and has Grown strong with lots of love and support of his family/band and fans.

have you watched any of the dvd's of Smile/pet sounds or That Lucky Old Sun? there are great interviews with brian and his band and some behind the scenes in the recording studio.

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RE:

Brian Wilson-Genius or Over Rated One Trick Pony?

Pet Sounds was released back in 1966-thats 44 yrs ago,yet he's still held up as a musical genius.There were far more prolific artists around at the same time who never seem to get the column inches Wilson does.

Good Vibrations was co wrote with Mike Love.

God Only Knows was co wrote with Tony...

well, he was half deaf. Music literally flowed out of him, to the point where it began to alienate him from the rest of the Beach Boys. None of the other Beach Boys agreed with the direction Brian was headed with Pet Sounds, and they were all against Good Vibrations until it became their highest-selling single. Mike Love literally did nothing, but threaten and belittle Brian and take credit where it wasn't due. Brian wrote almost everything up until Pet Sounds, and still, the best songs from the late 60s and 70s Beach Boys output are written by Brian. If you're judging Brian Wilson's genius solely based on Pet Sounds, you need to look further beyond that. And it wasn't the drugs that ruined Brian Wilson, they simply fueled his unbalanced mental health. He had a horrible childhood, and it scarred him for life.

What Sad Eyed Lady said.

And...his falsetto vocals are nothing short of unearthly.

No, Brian Wilson is not an overrated genius. He is a genius and everytime I listen to a Beach Boys song I am fully reminded of what a genius he is.

He may have taken on too much as the chief songwriter, the arranger and producer of the Beach Boys, and that may have lead to his state of mental imbalance, in addition to the drugs; but there is no one (and I mean no one) who can match his ability to create an elegant pop song.

i think genius is a term thrown around way too often. no, brian wilson isn't a musical genius....it's not like he wrote symphonies while deaf. however, he did usher in many innovations in the recording process, wrote some great songs, and indirectly brought about sgt pepper through his influence on paul mccartney.

Wilson may not be quite in the same league as The Beatles but Paul McCartney rates him as a genius so that is good enough for me.

No,he is a genius. Even the arrangements on some of their surfin' hits still blow me away. Take a listen to 'Smile' it makes 'Sgt Pepper' sound like The Jonas Brothers. Though on a serious note, 'Sgt Pepper' has not dated as well as 'Pet Sounds' or 'Smile'.

He might not be a lyricist but at least he knows his limitations and sticks to what he is great at, beautiful melodies, mind blowing arrangements and those harmonies.