Two of pop music's greatest composers were born two days (and an ocean) apart in 1942.
Paul McCartney (born June 18th) lived in Liverpool, England ... and Brian Wilson (born June 20th) grew up in Hawthorne, California.
Today (the day between their birthdays!) seemed to be the perfect time to salute each of them.
McCartney just released a deluxe 4-box cd set of music spanning his solo career. (I hesitate to call it a "greatest hits" collection because the selection, personally chosen by Paul himself, is pretty random. Top 40 Hits were left off the box in favor of very obscure album cuts that never really gained much recognition at the time of their release ... nor did they retain any staying power thereafter. Paul says he just picked songs that he thought would sound good together on a long drive over the weekend.)
Brian Wilson is currently on tour celebrating the 50th Anniversary of The Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" album, a landmark LP that was truly Brian's brain child. He and his stellar new band perform the complete album in its entirety, start to finish, and then fill out the set with numerous other Beach Boys and solo hits.
Both musicians literally changed the world ... impacting the way we heard music, the way albums were made and often inspiring each other to greater heights throughout the '60's. ("Rubber Soul", "Revolver" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" inspired ... or were inspired by ... "Summer Days And Summer Nights", "Pet Sounds" and the aborted "Smile" album, during which the pressure simply became too much for Brian Wilson, who withdrew for years trying to sort things out.) It was the golden era of the '60's and together they raised the bar with every new release.
Today (the day between their birthdays!) seemed to be the perfect time to salute each of them.
McCartney just released a deluxe 4-box cd set of music spanning his solo career. (I hesitate to call it a "greatest hits" collection because the selection, personally chosen by Paul himself, is pretty random. Top 40 Hits were left off the box in favor of very obscure album cuts that never really gained much recognition at the time of their release ... nor did they retain any staying power thereafter. Paul says he just picked songs that he thought would sound good together on a long drive over the weekend.)
Brian Wilson is currently on tour celebrating the 50th Anniversary of The Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" album, a landmark LP that was truly Brian's brain child. He and his stellar new band perform the complete album in its entirety, start to finish, and then fill out the set with numerous other Beach Boys and solo hits.
Both musicians literally changed the world ... impacting the way we heard music, the way albums were made and often inspiring each other to greater heights throughout the '60's. ("Rubber Soul", "Revolver" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" inspired ... or were inspired by ... "Summer Days And Summer Nights", "Pet Sounds" and the aborted "Smile" album, during which the pressure simply became too much for Brian Wilson, who withdrew for years trying to sort things out.) It was the golden era of the '60's and together they raised the bar with every new release.
Today we feature a couple of tracks by each of these incredible talents ... one with the band they helped lead to the top of the charts and one from their solo careers.
Happy 74th Birthday to Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson.
(Oh my God ... have ten years REALLY passed already since we saluted Paul McCartney with his very own "When I'm Sixty-Four"?!?! Where does the time go???) kk
Happy 74th Birthday to Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson.
(Oh my God ... have ten years REALLY passed already since we saluted Paul McCartney with his very own "When I'm Sixty-Four"?!?! Where does the time go???) kk
