Brian Wilson

Brian Douglas Wilson (June 20, 1942 – June 11, 2025) was an American musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who co-founded <a href="/facts/The_Beach_Boys/6CdaMJwW">the Beach Boys</a>. Often <a href="/facts/Brian_Wilson_is_a_genius/BSDnknkj">called a genius</a> for his novel approaches to pop composition 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 <a href="/facts/Harmonies/Uwagvon2">harmonies</a> and orchestrations, <a href="/facts/Vocal_harmony/StTLoXy5">vocal layering</a>, and introspective or ingenuous themes. He was also known for his versatile <a href="/facts/Head_voice/NLwWsvYm">head voice</a> and <a href="/facts/Falsetto/EKSCxHhz">falsetto</a>.
Wilson's formative influences included <a href="/facts/George_Gershwin/Dklzb4Ff">George Gershwin</a>, <a href="/facts/The_Four_Freshmen/jfBft3lf">the Four Freshmen</a>, <a href="/facts/Phil_Spector/SuAgFztt">Phil Spector</a>, and <a href="/facts/Burt_Bacharach/MWS9abrW">Burt Bacharach</a>. In 1961, he began his professional career as a member of the Beach Boys, serving as the band's songwriter, producer, co-lead vocalist, <a href="/facts/Bassist/fEAsWYr4">bassist</a>, keyboardist, and de facto leader. After signing with <a href="/facts/Capitol_Records/5parUIfs">Capitol Records</a> in 1962, he became the first pop musician credited for writing, arranging, producing, and performing his own material. He also produced acts such as <a href="/facts/The_Honeys/u8NjLSnw">the Honeys</a> and <a href="/facts/American_Spring/2j4F72Dy">American Spring</a>. By the mid-1960s he had written or co-written more than two dozen U.S. <a href="/facts/Top_40/vHTAW2M6">Top 40</a> hits, including the number-ones "<a href="/facts/Surf_City_(song)/Jl8y4qjp">Surf City</a>" (1963), "<a href="/facts/I_Get_Around/6PecddnC">I Get Around</a>" (1964), "<a href="/facts/Help_Me%2c_Rhonda/NhPkrUxB">Help Me, Rhonda</a>" (1965), and "<a href="/facts/Good_Vibrations/6mNKnS9M">Good Vibrations</a>" (1966). He is considered among the first <a href="/facts/Music_auteur/xQE1Tzyw">music producer auteurs</a> and the first rock producers to <a href="/facts/Recording_studio_as_an_instrument/9MlGALom">apply the studio as an instrument</a>.
Facing lifelong struggles with <a href="/facts/Mental_illness/EPNjFtFf">mental illness</a>, Wilson had a <a href="/facts/Nervous_breakdown/EPNjFtFf">nervous breakdown</a> in late 1964 and resigned from regular concert touring to focus on songwriting and production, leading to works such as the Beach Boys' <a href="/facts/Pet_Sounds/74MESBtf">Pet Sounds</a> and his first credited solo release, "<a href="/facts/Caroline%2c_No/CHWoJC37">Caroline, No</a>" (both 1966), as well as the unfinished album <a href="/facts/Smile_(The_Beach_Boys_album)/qjGhg9Xk">Smile</a>. By the late 1960s, his productivity and mental health had significantly declined, leading to periods marked by reclusion, overeating, and substance abuse. His first professional comeback yielded the almost solo effort <a href="/facts/The_Beach_Boys_Love_You/PM0b5m2v">The Beach Boys Love You</a> (1977). In the 1980s, he formed a controversial creative and business partnership with his psychologist, <a href="/facts/Eugene_Landy/duHaNAa0">Eugene Landy</a>, and relaunched his solo career with the album <a href="/facts/Brian_Wilson_(album)/Q2oqIcTX">Brian Wilson</a> (1988). Wilson dissociated from Landy in 1991 and toured regularly from 1999 to 2022. He <a href="/facts/Brian_Wilson_Presents_Smile/MINRQyBH">completed a version of Smile in 2004</a>, earning him his greatest acclaim as a solo artist.
Heralding popular music's <a href="/facts/Classificatory_disputes_about_art/RdhS8Qr5">recognition as an art form</a>, Wilson's accomplishments as a producer helped initiate an era of unprecedented creative autonomy for label-signed acts. He is regarded as an important figure to many music genres and movements, including the <a href="/facts/California_sound/hfXXX9pN">California sound</a>, <a href="/facts/Art_pop/CLAUoDBP">art pop</a>, <a href="/facts/Psychedelic_music/RkxWNDTa">psychedelia</a>, <a href="/facts/Chamber_pop/yIQmYv3P">chamber pop</a>, <a href="/facts/Progressive_music/NHY3DPem">progressive music</a>, <a href="/facts/Punk_rock/voBjpcpS">punk</a>, <a href="/facts/Outsider_music/yfmoo9rE">outsider</a>, and <a href="/facts/Sunshine_pop/HNH7EpcP">sunshine pop</a>. Since the 1980s, his influence has extended to styles such as <a href="/facts/Post-punk/y9REP8za">post-punk</a>, <a href="/facts/Indie_rock/WwHEa2bQ">indie rock</a>, <a href="/facts/Emo/SdGNr7kG">emo</a>, <a href="/facts/Dream_pop/bgYA9bVu">dream pop</a>, <a href="/facts/Shibuya-kei/Bou6wKSH">Shibuya-kei</a>, <a href="/facts/Chillwave/bYPR9qeV">chillwave</a>, <a href="/facts/Hip-hop/7HjAPIEh">hip-hop</a>, and <a href="/facts/Vaporwave/oxxyDGEr">vaporwave</a>. He received numerous industry awards, including two <a href="/facts/Grammy_Awards/2bxYJjPV">Grammy Awards</a> and <a href="/facts/Kennedy_Center_Honors/nxwfJFaa">Kennedy Center Honors</a>, as well as nominations for a <a href="/facts/Golden_Globe_Award/1v50C2Tb">Golden Globe Award</a> and <a href="/facts/Primetime_Emmy_Award/4eAaPW0F">Primetime Emmy Award</a>. He was inducted into the <a href="/facts/Rock_and_Roll_Hall_of_Fame/6hRagsTD">Rock and Roll Hall of Fame</a> in 1988 and the <a href="/facts/Songwriters_Hall_of_Fame/6uv4LrM0">Songwriters Hall of Fame</a> in 2000. His life and career were dramatized in the 2014 biopic <a href="/facts/Love_and_Mercy_(film)/V9bnW4F4">Love and Mercy</a>. He died in 2025 of respiratory arrest.

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Brian Wilson