Born in Inglewood, California back in 1961, Brian Wison was a fundamental part of the Beach Boys, alongside his brothers Carl and Dennis Wilson. Often called by his peers as a musical genius, Wilson was the mastermind behind most of the band’s hits and especially their groundbreaking album “Pet Sounds” (1966).
Over the decades he talked about many of his peers and bands he liked. The musician once said which was the coolest album he heard in his life.
The album Brian Wilson said is the coolest one he heard in his life
It’s not a secret that Brian Wilson is a big fan of The Beatles and was inspired by them. In an interview available on Youtube (Transcribed by Rock and Roll Garage), he was asked if he recalled the first time he heard their album “Rubber Soul” (1965). The musician answered and said he felt like it was the coolest album he heard in his life.
“I remember, (it was) sometime in 1965. Late 1965 and I was smoking pot, I tripped out and said ‘That’s the coolest album I ever heard in my life’. It blew me out so much”. Curiously, that album was a direct inspiration for Wilson to the making of “Pet Sounds” released one year later. Then The Beach Boys album influenced The Beatles to make “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” (1967).
In a post on his social networks in 2023, the musician explained more why the album influenced him a lot. He even mentioned a few songs that blew him away. “I remember being blown away by ‘You Won’t See Me” and ‘I’m Looking Through You’ and ‘Girl.’ It wasn’t just the lyrics and the melodies but the production and their harmonies. They had such unique harmonies, you know?”
Brian Wilson continued:
“In ‘You Won’t See Me,’ Paul sings low and George and John sing high. There’s an organ drone in there, a note that’s held down for the last third of the song or so. Those were touches they were trying – almost art music. What was so great about the Beatles was you could hear their ideas so clearly in their music,” Brian Wilson said. Released in 1965, “Rubber Soul” was The Beatles sixth album. It had famous tracks like “Drive My Car”, “Nowhere Man”, “I’m Looking Through You”, “In My Life” and “If I Needed Someone”.
Although over the years the media said The Beach Boys and The Beatles had a rivalry, they were actually great friends. Obviously, whenever one of the bands released something really good, there would always be the desire to top that. As Wilson told Smashing Interviews magazine in 2022, he said that there was a “mutual admiration” between them, not a competition.
“Pet Sounds” is one of Paul McCartney’s favorite albums
Paul McCartney is a huge fan of Brian Wilson and especially of the Beach Boys album “Pet Sounds”. He even said that he believes no one is educated musically until they hear that record. That’s why he gave one copy of that album to each one of his kids when they were growing up.
He is a good friend of Wilson and they had the chance to perform together once. The sang the classic “God Only Knows”, which is Paul’s favorite Beach Boys track. Actually, he already said it might be his favorite song of all time.