Editing Brian Wilson (section)

==1967–1973: Decline==
===Home studio transition===
[[File:EastGateBelAir.JPG|thumb|left|upright=0.9|[[Bel Air, Los Angeles]], where Wilson relocated to in April 1967 and [[Beach Boys Studio|set up a home studio]].{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=180}}]]
''Smile'' was never finished, due in large part to Wilson's worsening mental condition and exhaustion.{{sfn|Granata|2003|p=204}} Associates often cite late 1966 as a turning point, coinciding with erratic behavior during sessions for the track "[[The Elements: Fire|Fire]]" (or "Mrs. O'Leary's Cow").{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=163}} In April 1967, Wilson and his wife relocated to a newly purchased mansion on 10452 Bellagio Road in [[Bel Air, Los Angeles|Bel Air]].{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=180}}{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=180}}{{refn|group=nb|Marilyn cited Wilson's desire for a larger home,{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=180}} while Badman writes that the move aimed to distance them from his entourage of "hanger-ons".{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=180}} Marilyn later installed security measures, including a brick wall and electronic gate.{{sfn|White|1996|p=270}} }} There, Wilson began constructing [[Beach Boys Studio|a personal home studio]].{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=180}} By this time, most of his recent associates had departed or been excluded from his life.{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=153–180}}

{{Quote box|align=|quote= When I was younger, I was a real competitor. Then as I got older, I said, "Is it worth the bullshit? To compete like that?" And I said, "Nah." For a while there, I just said, "Hey, I'm going to coast. I'm going to make real nice music. Nothing competitive."|source=—Brian Wilson, 1994<ref name="IJWMFTT"/> |width = 25% }}

In May, Derek Taylor announced that ''Smile'' had been "scrapped".{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=165, 185}} Wilson explained in a 1968 interview, "We pulled out [...] because I was about ready to die. I was trying so hard. So, all of a sudden I decided not to try any more."{{sfn|Dillon|2012|p=134}} That July, the Beach Boys released "[[Heroes and Villains]]" as a single; its mixed critical and commercial reception further strained Wilson's morale, with biographers citing it as a factor in his professional and psychological decline.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=291}}{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=122}} He later acknowledged that upholding his industry reputation "was a really big thing for me" and that he had grown weary of demands to produce "great orchestral stuff all the time".<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Hughes|first=Rob|title=Brian Wilson – Album By Album|url=https://www.uncut.co.uk/features/brian-wilson-album-by-album-28238/|magazine=Uncut|date=November 22, 2012}}</ref>

Beginning with ''[[Smiley Smile]]'' (September 1967), the band shifted recording operations to Wilson's studio, where they worked intermittently until 1972. The album marked the first time production was credited to the group collectively instead of Wilson alone.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=200}}{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=124}} Producer [[Terry Melcher]] attributed this change to Wilson's reluctance to risk individual scrutiny, saying he no longer wanted to "put his stamp on records".{{sfn|Leaf|1978|p=169}} In August 1967, Wilson briefly rejoined the band for two live performances in Honolulu, recorded for an unfinished live album titled ''[[Lei'd in Hawaii]]''.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=198}}

[[File:Three Dog Night 1969.JPG|thumb|Wilson produced recordings for the band Redwood, later known as [[Three Dog Night]] (pictured 1969).]]

During sessions for ''[[Wild Honey (album)|Wild Honey]]'' (December 1967), Wilson encouraged his brother Carl to contribute more to the record-making process.<ref name="MF1976"/> He also began producing tracks for [[Danny Hutton]]'s group [[Three Dog Night|Redwood]], recording three songs including "[[Time to Get Alone]]" and "[[Darlin' (The Beach Boys song)|Darlin']]", but the project was halted by Carl and Mike Love, who urged Brian to prioritize Beach Boys commitments.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=130}} The band's June 1968 album ''[[Friends (The Beach Boys album)|Friends]]'' was recorded during a period of emotional recovery for Wilson.{{sfn|Granata|2003|p=210}} While the album featured increased contributions from other members, Wilson remained central, even on tracks he did not write.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Hermes |first1=Will |author-link=Will Hermes|title=How the Beach Boys' Lost Late-Sixties Gems Got a Second Life |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/how-the-beach-boys-lost-late-sixties-gems-got-a-second-life-779012/ |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |access-date=January 16, 2019 |date=January 15, 2019}}</ref> He later described ''Friends'' as his second "solo album" (after ''Pet Sounds'')<ref name="Oui"/> and his favorite Beach Boys album.{{sfn|Dillon|2012|pp=159–168}}{{sfn|Granata|2003|p=210}}

===Reduced activity and "Bedroom Tapes"===
For the remainder of 1968, Wilson's songwriting output declined substantially, as did his emotional state, leading him to self-medicate with overconsumption of food, alcohol, and drugs.{{sfn|Matijas-Mecca|2017|pp=xxi–xxii, 83, 113}} As the Beach Boys faced impending financial collapse, he began to supplement his regular amphetamines and marijuana with [[cocaine]],{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=139}} which Hutton had introduced to him.{{sfn|Kent|2009|p=44}} Hutton later stated that Wilson expressed suicidal ideation during this period, describing it as the onset of Wilson's "real decline".{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=139}}

In mid-1968, Wilson was admitted to a psychiatric hospital, possibly voluntarily.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=141}} His hospitalization was kept private, and his bandmates proceeded with recording sessions for ''[[20/20 (The Beach Boys album)|20/20]]'' (February 1969).{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=141}} Once discharged later in the year, Wilson rarely finished any tracks for the band, leaving much of his subsequent output for Carl to complete.<ref name=Bedroom2014 /> Journalist [[Nik Cohn]] wrote in 1968 that Wilson had become the subject of rumors describing him as "increasingly withdrawn", "brooding", and "hermitic" {{sic}}, with occasional sightings of him "in the back of some limousine, cruising around Hollywood, bleary and unshaven, huddled way tight into himself."{{sfn|Cohn|1970|pp=103–104}} 

{{Quote box
|align=left
|quote=Brian went through a period where he would write songs and play them for a few people in his living room, and that's the last you'd hear of them. He would disappear back up to his bedroom and the song with him.
|source=—[[Bruce Johnston]]<ref name=Chidester2014>{{cite magazine|last1=Chidester|first1=Brian|title=Busy Doin' Somethin': Uncovering Brian Wilson's Lost Bedroom Tapes|url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2014/03/busy-doin-somethin-uncovering-brian-wilsons-lost-b.html?a=1|magazine=[[Paste magazine|Paste]]|access-date=December 11, 2014|date=March 7, 2014|archive-date=December 11, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141211033306/http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2014/03/busy-doin-somethin-uncovering-brian-wilsons-lost-b.html?a=1|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Bedroom2014" />
|width=25%}}

Wilson typically stayed secluded upstairs while the group recorded below, joining sessions only to suggest revisions to music he had overheard.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=221}} He occasionally emerged from his bedroom to preview new songs for the group. Melcher likened these appearances to [[Aesop]] delivering a [[Aesop's Fables|new fable]].<ref name="Chidester2014" /><ref name="Bedroom2014" /> Journalist Brian Chidester later coined the term "Bedroom Tapes" to refer to Wilson's unreleased output between 1968 and 1975, most of which remains unheard publicly.<ref name=Bedroom2014>{{cite news|last=Chidester|first=Brian |title=Brian Wilson's Secret Bedroom Tapes|url=http://www.laweekly.com/2014-01-30/music/brian-wilsons-secret-bedroom-tapes/|access-date=February 1, 2014|newspaper=LA Weekly|date=January 30, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302064422/http://www.laweekly.com/2014-01-30/music/brian-wilsons-secret-bedroom-tapes/?showFullText=true|archive-date=March 2, 2014}}</ref> 

According to Mike Love, Wilson had "lost interest in the mechanical aspect" of recording, deferring technical work to Carl.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=300}} Band engineer [[Stephen Desper]] said that Brian remained "indirectly involved" with the group's productions through Carl<ref name="songwriter">{{cite AV media|title=Brian Wilson – Songwriter – 1969–1982 – The Next Stage|type=Documentary}}</ref> and that Brian's reduced contributions stemmed from "limited hours in the day", as well as his aversion to confrontation: "Brian [...] doesn't like to hurt anyone's feelings, so if someone's working on something else, he wasn't going to jump in there and say, 'Look, this is my production and my house, so get outta here!'"{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=151}} Conversely, Dennis stated that Brian had "no involvement at all" with the band beginning with the ''20/20'' sessions, forcing them to salvage and assemble fragments of his earlier work.<ref name="DW76"/>{{refn|group=nb|Dennis also refuted claims that the Beach Boys excluded Brian, explaining that he repeatedly visited Brian's home to prioritize his health over recording.<ref name="DW76">{{cite interview |subject=Wilson, Dennis|interviewer=Pete Fornatale |title=WNEW-FM |type=Interview: Audio |location=New York City |date=November 1976}}; {{YouTube|cVItbEJBkJM|Dennis Wilson – Pete Fornatale Interview 1976}}</ref>}} Marilyn recalled that her husband withdrew because of perceived resentment from the group: "It was like, 'OK, you assholes, you think you can do as good as me or whatever—go ahead—''you'' do it. You think it's so easy? You do it.'"<ref name="IJWMFTT">{{cite AV media notes|title=[[Brian Wilson: I Just Wasn't Made for These Times]]|year=1995|last=Was|first=Don|author-link=Don Was|type=Documentary film}}</ref>

===Sea of Tunes sale and Reprise signing===
Early in 1969, the Beach Boys commenced recording ''[[Sunflower (The Beach Boys album)|Sunflower]]'' (August 1970).{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=240}} Wilson contributed numerous songs, though most were excluded from the final track selection.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=151}} He co-wrote and produced the single "[[Break Away (The Beach Boys song)|Break Away]]" with his father in early 1969, after which he largely withdrew from studio work until August.{{sfn|Matijas-Mecca|2017|p=93}} The group faced difficulties securing a new record deal, attributed by Gaines to Wilson's diminished standing in the industry.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|pp=221–222}} In May 1969, Wilson disclosed the band's near-bankruptcy to reporters, which derailed negotiations with [[Deutsche Grammophon]] and nearly jeopardized their upcoming European tour.{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=243–244}}{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=222}} That July, he opened a short-lived health food store, the [[Radiant Radish]], with cousin Steve Korthof and associate Arny Geller.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=252}}

In August, the Beach Boys' publishing company, [[Sea of Tunes]], sold their song catalog to Irving Almo Music for $700,000 (${{Format price|{{Inflation|US|700000|1969|end_year={{Inflation-year|US}}}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}}).{{sfn|Love|2016|p=226}} Wilson signed the consent form under pressure from his father.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=145}} Marilyn later stated that the sale emotionally devastated him: "It killed him. ''Killed'' him. I don't think he talked for days. [...] Brian took it as Murry not believing in him anymore."{{sfn|Gaines|1986|pp=224–225}} During this period, Wilson reportedly engaged in self-destructive behavior, including an attempt to drive off a cliff and a demand to be buried in a backyard grave he had dug.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=288}}{{refn|group=nb|David Leaf, writing in his 1978 biography of the band, said that Wilson's family and friends had dismissed these incidents as jokes.{{sfn|Leaf|1978|p=147}}}} He channeled his despondence into writing "[['Til I Die]]", later calling the song a summation of "everything I had to say at the time."{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=257, 288}}

Later in 1969, Wilson produced poet [[Stephen Kalinich]]'s spoken-word album ''[[A World of Peace Must Come]]''.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=253}}{{sfn|Matijas-Mecca|2017|p=93}} That November, the Beach Boys signed to [[Reprise Records]], a subsidiary of [[Warner Bros. Records|Warner Bros.]],{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=258}} with contractual terms requiring Wilson's active participation in their albums.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=150}}{{refn|group=nb|Though Wilson never personally signed the agreement, the band's corporate structure allowed it to pass with three of five member votes.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=233}} }} In March 1970, Wilson briefly substituted for Mike Love on tour.{{sfn|Leaf|1978|p=132}} In April, he attempted to produce a [[country and western]] album for co-manager Fred Vail, later known as ''[[Cows in the Pasture]]''.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=266}}

===''Spring'' and ''Mount Vernon and Fairway''===

[[File:Brian Wilson 1971.png|thumb|left|Wilson in a 1971 ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' advertisement for ''[[Surf's Up (album)|Surf's Up]]'']]

Wilson's disappointment over the poor commercial reception of ''Sunflower''{{sfn|Leaf|1978|p=135}} led him to reduce his contributions to subsequent Beach Boys recordings.{{sfn|White|1996|p=286}} Bruce Johnston described his involvement in the ''[[Surf's Up (album)|Surf's Up]]'' sessions (August 1971) as that of "a visitor."{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=298}} In November 1970, Wilson performed with the band at the [[Whisky a Go Go]] for one-and-a-half dates. Intense discomfort forced him to leave mid-performance during the second show.{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=278–279}}{{refn|group=nb|Wilson recalled, "On the second night, I started [...] feeling dizzy and I told the guys I had to stop. It felt like I was killing myself."{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=279}}}} Following this experience, he told ''Melody Maker'' that although he was "quite happy living at home", he felt less creative and less engaged with the band. He described himself as "a kind of drop-out".{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=279}} In September 1971, Wilson told a reporter he had recently returned to arranging rather than writing.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=209}} In December, at a [[Long Beach]] concert, manager [[Jack Rieley]] persuaded Wilson to perform with the Beach Boys, though his appearance lasted only minutes.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=301}}

From late 1971 to early 1972, Wilson and musician David Sandler collaborated on ''[[Spring (American Spring album)|Spring]]'', the first album by Marilyn Wilson and Diane Rovell's new group, [[American Spring]].{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=300}} As with much of his work in this period, the extent of his contributions varied,{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=176}} but it was his most involved production effort since ''Friends'' in 1968.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=321}} <!--- Released in July 1972, ''Spring'' was critically acclaimed but failed to chart.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=321}} ---> During the recording of ''[[Carl and the Passions]]'' (April 1972), Wilson rarely left his bedroom, though [[Blondie Chaplin]] recalled, "when he came down his contribution was amazing."{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=308}} Wilson's unavailability was such that his image had to be superimposed into the group portrait included in the record sleeve.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=174}}{{refn|group=nb|Bruce Johnston left the band during these sessions partly due to his unhappiness with Wilson's creative withdrawal.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=308}}}}

During the summer of 1972, Wilson joined his bandmates when they temporarily relocated to Holland after persistent persuasion.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=317}} Residing in a Dutch house known as "Flowers" and repeatedly listening to [[Randy Newman]]'s album ''[[Sail Away (Randy Newman album)|Sail Away]]'', he was inspired to write a fairy tale, ''[[Mount Vernon and Fairway]]'', drawing on memories of listening to the radio at Mike Love's family home in his youth.{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=317, 326}} The group declined to include the fairy tale on their next album, ''[[Holland (album)|Holland]]'' (January 1973), and instead released it as a bonus EP packaged with the album.{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=254}} That April, Wilson briefly joined his bandmates onstage during an encore at the [[Hollywood Palladium]].{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=328}}