Brian Wilson Christmas Interview - The Beach Boys

Once again I’m happy to see the smiling face of the leader of

This popular group here in the studio, Brian Wilson

Good to see you again, Brian

Hi, Jack

This Beach Boys' Christmas Album is really something

Ah, Dick Reynolds did the arrangements, I guess, huh?

Yes, he did.

He did a beautiful job, a wonderful job

Is this the first time you’ve worked with him?

Right.

I’d been, uh, wanting to meet him and work with him for quite a long time

Now who’s idea was it to have you featured on this, uh, one particular tune--I

I was particularly impressed with it--«A Blue Christmas.»

Well, I… sort of picked out that song to sing for myself

I, I love the song and uh, I’ve always wanted to sing it, so I thought I’d sing

it

Well, maybe this will be the start of a whole new career, huh?

I don’t know, that’s… It, it could, and it couldn’t.

Ah… I really don’t know

Well, let’s leave it to the listeners to see what they think of it

Right

I notice this album has uh, ah, along with some of the popular things like, uh

«I'll Be Home For Christmas,» uh, «Auld Lang Syne,» and uh, um, «We Three Kings»

And some of the traditional things, that you have a couple of your

Your own, uh, Beach Boys type sounds in the LP, too

Uh-huh, we’ve more or less made one side, uh, our own style, and…

Kind of a teen side and an adult side

Uh-huh, right, um-hm.

Contrasting

Uh-huh.

Now, we have, uh, one of your originals coming up here, Brian

Uh, «Christmas Day.»

You wrote this for the album specifically?

Yes, I did.

Uh-huh

Uh-huh.

And now, do you do your, the vocal arrangements

Or did Dick Reynolds handle all of that?

Dick handled the vocal arrangements on the, ah, the modern side

--the traditional side--and I did the, ah, vocal and the

Arrangements of the music on our own style--our basic style--side

Dick did the strings, also, on the, uh, on the modern side

Coming up now, ah, a very sentimental type Christmas song

Particularly for those who are away from home during this time of year

--«I'll Be Home For Christmas.»

Any, ah, thing particular about this

This tune that you’d like to say, Brian?

Ah, well, I guess there’s something very obvious when you hear the song

It’s, ah, there’s a very definite influence of the Four Freshmen

On the arrangement as well as the delivery, and, uh, obviously

We all look up and admire the style of the Four Freshmen and

Uh, I feel this has been the greatest--one of the greater--

Vocal influences, ah, in the world today

Well, it’s certainly been, uh, nice of you to take the time to come

By again here for our special Beach Boys' Christmas show

You have a fine album here and, uh, I hope you’ll be home for Christmas

Well, I hope I will, too.

I hope everyone’s home for Christmas

I do, too.

Brian Wilson, thanks again for coming by

Thank you very much, Jack

And here again, the Beach Boys' Christmas Album