| I can if you really want... I do think Mike contributed over the years, possibly more in the early days just through enthusiasm and perhaps helping to focus. I think he was probably more willing to go along with some corny showbiz stuff than Brian was, and being older than the others, that probably carried enough weight to get the others to go along (again, in the early days). I think being family was probably helpful. He could sympathize enough and support the others dealing with Murray in the early days, but was enough of an 'outsider' that he wasn't going to be bullied by Murray like the sons were. Lyrically, I think he tries, and has had some moments of good or great lyrics. His push towards the spiritual led us to songs like 'All This Is That', for example (based on readings stemming from time with Maharishi). I wonder how much of the initial push towards the Maharishi was maybe riding the Beatles' coattails, but he seems to have stuck with it more than many over the years. As with many folks who get a lot of sudden fame/success, he was probably searching for deeper answers, and seems to have found some. Personality wise, based on enough interviews, he does seem to come across as a bit of an arrogant know-it-all, and that rubs me the wrong way. But... he contributed a lot to early success, has had some of his own good songs, and has kept the music alive touring longer than many expected. Interesting comparison about production/songcraft. Listen to his solo version of 'daybreak over the ocean', then listen to the 'Beach Boys' production version from That's Why God Made the Radio album. Assuming Brian had some production hand in the latter (along with others in the studio), but the BB one is simply a better listening experience, even though it's basically the same song. So even when Mike did something good, the "group" made it better. |
Might as well keep it going: Any thoughts on Al? I assume he always felt like a bit of an outsider because he was the only non-family member