Just watched the BBC documentary on Dennis today - well done and long overdue !!! I am left with some questions about Dennis, though, and it has long intrigued me. Although he was able to complete POB and started work on Bambu, I have always felt that Dennis' music in the period from 1968-1972 was actually some of his finest and most complex work. I get chills every time I hear the instrumental version of "Be With Me", and of course Sunflower is a great showcase for not only his writing, but his vocals as well; he was in top form then. Why does there seem to be a bit of a gap in the chronicalling of this period of his life? It tends to get a quick once-over, with very little in-depth looks at his life and musical works of those years. Is there any chance that tapes from that period will ever be heard? What about his brief foray as a solo artist as Dennis Wilson & , Rumbo, or his stuff like "It's A New Day", "California Slide", work with Darryl Dragon etc. I've heard stories from that period on this board, but I would LOVE to see these years given a more detailed look - and of course I want to hear more snippets of his music from that time! Thoughts ???

I think the main reasons would be that unlike the POB era, Dennis lacked a studio home to woodshed his work in prior to 1975. Although Daryl Dragon was a great help to him, it was nothing compared to the spiritual guidance and monetary support Jimmy Guercio supplied him with -- coupled of course with the free use and safety of Brother. I've personally been fascinated by the '71 "Poops" sessions which produced "Cuddle Up," "Barbara," "I've Got A Friend," and "Make It Good." Had we had more time for it in the doc, it would've been hit upon, but as it was with only an hour there's only so much ground that can be covered.

Seeing as how it's Brother/Capitol and not Guercio who owns those Dennis '71-era recordings, the chance for any legitimate release via a Capitol/EMI project sadly shrinks with every passing day.

Howie nailed it pretty much with "Dennis lacked a studio home to woodshed his work", except that he did have a great home studio during that earlier period, namely the one at Brian's on Bellagio. That's where at least the basic tracks & arrangements for the songs Howie name-checked came about, as well as Dennis' habit of working at odd hours... Steve Desper wound up literally sleeping & living at the studio, so he was always at Brian's beck & call. When Brian began to need him less and less, Dennis started to keep him up!
The gap happens to coincide with Marilyn's insistence that the studio be removed, as well as the studio's move to Holland, which Dennis wasn't in favor of at all!. Plus, he took some time to ponder Hollywood, too... There were many other deeper personal reasons, too, (as well as his problems with the group), but he did do his best work when he had the liberty of having a studio at hand whenever the muse struck.

O.K. - I get that without a permanent recording base like Brother Studios Dennis wasn't as able to work as freely. I guess my real question is why are the stories from the 1968-1972 era so few & far between? I'd love to know in more detail what was going on with Dennis when he put out his solo single "Sound Of Free"/"Lady", the "Sunflower" era, the whole deal with getting the role in "Two Lane Blacktop", just more detail in general about his writing & works. I've always been fascinated that such a prolific & creative period has been more or less gloseed over in the telling of Dennis' story, and I'm always hoping for more details!

Maura,

I totally agree and hope for the same. Naive question: What is the reason why Guercio wouldn't want a release of these songs? No interest, some personal grudge or something like that? In the days of iTunes and other MP3 stores, it should be worthwhile to put out music even for a small audience. Anyway, for me this would be the crown jewels to get some of these songs. I can't believe that even "Sound Of Free" which was officially released as a single never appeared on a CD or as official download version.

Having said that, I was overjoyed to be able to watch the BBC documentary. Great, great stuff and many thanks to the people who made that happen.

Martin (from Switzerland)

Guercio has not put out those songs because he does not have the rights to them. I thought Howie kind of made that clear. Brother Records Inc/Beach Boys has the rights to all the pre-1975 or pre-Caribou Dennis Wilson material. Your issue of why it has not come out is with them, and not Jimmy G.

So Jon or Eddie - What can you share about Dennis when he decided to record "Sound of Free"/"Lady", how he got the role in "Two Lane Blacktop", and how a GREAT song like "California Slide" never made it onto a Beach Boys record? What can you share about Dennis the person during this most creative of periods in his life?

Maybe I'm being naive, but this sounds to me as if there is a good chance, that one day these songs will be released, too.

Martin