Brian Wilson is an award-winning songwriter and singer. He is one of the founders of the beach boys – even if he failed one music lesson. This is what the musician wrote about his experience in I am Brian Wilson: a memoir.
Brian Wilson played in the rock band The Beach Boys
God knows what fans would do without the Beach Boys. According to the Beach Boys websiteThis surf rock band was formed in 1961, with brothers Brian, Carl and Dennis Wilson, their cousin Mike Love and friend Al Jardine.
That means Brian Wilson was about 19 years old when they first created the group. Since then he has co-written hits such as ‘God Only Knows’, ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’ and ‘I Get Around’. He was even inducted into the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame for his arrangements – despite failing one music class at school.
Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys failed a music class at school
The Beach Boys were passionate about music before they were top musicians. Love explained in his memoir that his parents instilled a love of community – even if he disagreed with their taste in music.
In I am Brian Wilson: a memoir, Brian Wilson described his life before joining the surf rock band. So is his experience taking high school music lessons.
“When I first got interested in music, I took a class in high school with a guy named Fred Morgan,” Wilson wrote. “He was an interesting teacher. He taught us that music was a contrast, pale parts versus emotional parts and that not all instruments in a song had to go in the same direction.”
“He didn’t get me into the class because I didn’t know how to write classical music, but he got me thinking about some of the different ways music can work,” he added. “I later ran into him at a high school reunion. “You failed my class, but you scored big in music,” he said. My own ideas had only just begun…”
Some even say that the father of the Wilson brothers instilled a love of music. For a few years, Murray Wilson acted as the band’s manager before being fired for being “disruptive” during the Beach Boys’ recording sessions.
The Beach Boys released their song ‘Be True to Your School’
Before joining this band, Brian Wilson attended Hawthorne High School in California – his brothers Carl and Dennis attended the same school. The Beach Boys even mentioned their love for their alma mater in “Be True to Your School.”
The band initially recorded this song Small Deuce Coupe, which earned over a million Spotify streams. Mike Love returned to Full house to perform “Be True to Your School” on “Our very first Telethon.” Now music from the Beach Boys is available on most major streaming platforms.
