'There's love in the music and people can relate to the love, regardless of whether you're two years old or 92 years old. For me, music is about love. Love is the message I want to share. I hope people feel that in my music. That makes the hard work worth it.' - Brian Wilson
Here, for the first time in print, is the history ofThe Beach Boys, by The Beach Boys.
Their only official book,The Beach Boys by The Beach Boysis the ultimate chronicle of one of the world's greatestbands. Through their unique sound, complex harmonies, sensational live shows and use of innovativerecording techniques, The Beach Boys became woven into the cultural fabric of America and influenced generations of musicians globally. This book documents how it happened.
Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine and Bruce Johnston together provide a combined career narrative especially for this book,and through meticulous compilation from sources worldwide, Carl Wilson and Dennis Wilson's words areequally represented. Documenting how they went from a Hawthorne garage band to a global phenomenon, theytell the astounding story of their ascent: perfecting their harmonies, initial fame as a surf group, and thentheir ultimate progression as pioneering recording artists to become one of the most musically complex ensemblesin history.
Their text is accompanied by iconic images, never-before-seen negatives and rare ephemera. Givenunprecedented access to their personal archives, The Beach Boys by The Beach Boys offers intimateinsight into the lives of the group. Also opening their archives are Brother Records and Capitol Records, allof which assist in illustrating their remarkable journey.
Expanding the narrative are a host of contributors who have been involved with or inspired bythe band's music,including Peter Blake, Lindsey Buckingham, Eric Clapton,Elvis Costello, Ray Davies, Bob Dylan,DefLeppard, the Flaming Lips, Bobby Gillespie, David Lee Roth, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Jim Kerr, RogerMcGuinn, Graham Nash, Jimmy Page,Carly Simon,Pete Townshend,Rufus Wainwright, Thom Yorke, andmany more.
A group collaboration,The Beach Boysby the Beach Boys is, in effect, The Beach Boys' autobiography. Like their music, it is poignant, frank, often humorous but always sincere.
Finally, here is The Beach Boys' own story.
'The environment in which we grew up and the things we chose to sing about primarily, which were the beautiful things about growing up in Southern California - the lovely girls, the lovely cars, the lovely weather and the lovely beaches - it was like an endless summer.' Mike Love
'We were just having fun and it developed into something else. It's funny. We were really an accident - but a good accident. And our first record seemed to be enough for us. We sure didn't think we'd be recording into the next century.' Al Jardine
'The music on the face of it is very simple. However, musically speaking, a lot of it is quite deep and complex. It was about going to the beach and having a car and the American experience, but a lot of the songs are master works.'Carl Wilson
