Dumb Angel - Duglas T Stewart and David Scott meet Brian Wilson

For Brian Wilson, music was the voice of God. The religious analogy is most fitting. His disciples (fans) tend to display a rather religious like fervour and fanaticism. Not content with our own private worship of all things Brian and beautiful, we feel the need to go out and convert non-believers. Perhaps the greatest pleasure for one of our creed is to introduce Brian's monumental masterpiece Pet Sounds to new ears. Paul McCartney gave copies of it to his children regarding it as an essential part of their education. After all it was the album that inspired Macca to make Sgt Pepper. Pet Sounds was every bit as innovative as Pepper but in a more subtle, underrated way. More than just clever it was beautiful. A tomb to Brian's own longed for lost innocence.

For me what makes Brian a genius is his ability to take complex musical ideas and make them seem simple, accessible and human. When people like Pink Floyd and Frank Zappa tried it the result was elitist and over self-consciously clever. Brian however is not just a one trick pony. The range of his work is incredibly diverse from the almost Stax like soul of Darlin' to his girl group productions for The Honeys and American Spring, to the rockin' sea shanty Sail On Sailor and the naïve beauty of the album, Beach Boys Love You.

Love You is perhaps Brian's masterpiece. If Pet Sounds is the masterpiece of sophisticated pop music, Love You is the exact flip side, the masterpiece of primitive pop. It almost seems like the front runner to the likes of Daniel Johnston and Lou Barlow and I know it's a big fave of other American musicians like Sonic Youth and Yo La Tengo.

Brian's music has had a particularly prevalent influence on many of the new generation of Scottish bands: Teenage Fanclub, BMX Bandits, Jesus & Mary Chain, The Pastels, Pearlfishers, Superstar, 18 Wheeler. Our mission continues. We hope to save some more souls. Have you heard the voice of God?

At 8.30pm on the 29th of January 1996 my good friend David Scott (lead singer of the aforementioned Pearlfishers) and I were standing in a hotel lobby near Hyde Park in London waiting to meet Brian Wilson. We had been invited by famed 'Beach Boys' historian and now Brian's manager, David Leaf to video a short interview and message to be shown at a Brian Wilson tribute show we were organising. The show would feature versions of Brian's songs performed by the Pearlfishers and the Pendletones (featuring Norman from Teenage Fanclub, Joe and Jim from Superstar and Sushill, Francis and me from BMX Bandits) as well as a live performance of Brians fairytale, Mount Vernon and Fairway.

Mike Love was wandering about reception area looking as though he wanted us to acknowledge we recognised him. He smiled smugly over at us, we sheepishly smiled back at him but said nothing. Brian's new wife, Melinda appeared as if by magic and led us into a small lounge to meet Mr Wilson… and there he was sitting on a couch smiling at us. Wow! He looked a little tired, jet lagged, but in good shape and handsome. Not at all a shell of a man we saw in TV interviews from those dark days of Doctor Landy. Melinda was great, very warm, friendly and funny lady. She also seemed genuinely caring and supportive of Brian. Introductions were made and then the interview began….

David: It seems there are lots of really positive things happening in your life, the collaboration with Van Dyke Parks, the Documentary, getting married and working with Andy Paley. Do you feel like you're at a new junction in your life?

Brian: "Yeah, it's all happening very fast. My head's swimming a little bit but I feel good about it".

David: Could you tell us something about the Fairytale from the Holland album? It seems very autobiographical.

Brian: "It's about Mike. He didn't even know that. See the title of the fairytale, Mount Vernon and Fairway, those were the two streets he lived on when he was a kid. So I guess he might have figured out I was talking about him".

Duglas: It seems the wild west is a recurring theme in your work in tracks like Heroes and Villains, Cabinessence and Rio Grande. Did you have a particular love of Western movies?

Brian: "Yeah, I loved all those kinds of movies and they were a great inspiration for us".

David: Can you tell us something about recording Rio Grande?

Brian: "We recorded it at a bunch of different studios all over Los Angeles. We took the tape around from studio to studio and dubbed on different things".

David: Is that difficult?

Brian: "Not if you're good at it. When you're good at it, it's not difficult".

Duglas: A lot of Scottish musicians really love and have been influenced by The Beach Boys Love You album but it seems to have been overlooked by a lot of other people. How do you feel about that album?

Brian: "That is my favourite album we did. I like the Johnny Carson song, all the stuff we did. The lyrics were good. It was almost like a little folk album. It wasn't really hard rock except Let's Go On This Way was harder rock. I enjoyed doing that album, I feel it was well worth the time. The Night Was So Young that's my favourite, I love that song".

David: Can you tell us about Solar System (a favourite of Alex Chilton's)?

Brian: "I can't remember how it was written or what I was going through at the time, but it had to do with being scared at night and that you can always call somebody or be with somebody when you're scared".

Duglas: I recently became a father so I have a soft spot for I Wanna Pick You Up.

Brian: "I love that song. Wow, I really love that song".

Duglas: I'm glad to hear you like the album as much as we do. How did it feel singing all those old songs in the documentary, some of which you didn't originally do lead vocals on? It was a beautiful reading of Meant For You.

Brian: "I know, Mike originally sung that. I think overall we did a better job than the originals".

David: I've watched it a few times and the documentary seems so much fun. That seems to be where you're at just now, happy and having fun.

Brian: "Yeah"

Melinda: "Tell them about the car scene in the film".

Brian: "It was like getting towed by a tow truck and we were talking and looking around. We went to see the house where I lived when I was a kid. It had been demolished because of a Freeway Project. It was gone…it was gone".

Duglas: It seems now you are surrounded by people, like Melinda and Andy Paley, who are real friends to you. Is that helping your work?

Brian: "It makes it a little easier when there is some emotional stability present. I think it's very important to have that. If you expect to do anything good".

Melinda: "Everybody in this whole world needs people around them that love them, that's how it works".

David gave Brian some famous Scottish smoked salmon that Brian tore open with his teeth and gobbled most enthusiastically. We then took some snapshots of us with Brian and Brian with Melinda. We obtained our Brian autographs while Brian and Melinda enthused about the Pet Sounds box set that Brian has been working on. We then said goodnight to Mr and Mrs Wilson. Brian warmly shook our hands and said, "Thank you guys. We really appreciate what you're doing"…

Thank you Brian.