Fire Side Chat - The Magic of The Beach Boys and Brian Wilson

 I knew from day one of TMA 112 that when the fireside chat would come around that I would talk about Brian Wilson and the way his music has influenced my life. I’ve always felt like sharing my thoughts and feelings about his music, but in my classes I’d never have a chance to go on and on about how I feel about his music in an appropriate context.

So when the Fireside Chat did come around, and I had to think about how I would communicate my feelings about his music in four minutes or less, I decided that it would be best to have some of his songs playing as I discussed how his music changed my life. I felt that if I was just talking I would not be able to get the point across.

Before I decided which tracks I would use, I first had to formulate my thoughts in an organized and coherent way such that my words could still stand on there own and wouldn’t necessarily need music to at least make my perspective clear. I decided that I could best do this by simply telling my story about first listening to the Beach Boys because it made me happy, and then move onto my experience with overcoming depression and bonding with my dad through Love & Mercy and The Pet Sounds Sessions.

So, from there I had to decide which songs I would play, and how to coordinate that music with my thoughts. I decided that I would first play In My Room, since I would start by talking about how his music was always something I could relate with, even before I discovered the true beauty and genius of Wilson’s music. In My Room is particularly relatable because when I was growing up I always felt safest all by myself in my bedroom, where I could listen to music and spend time with myself.

When I shifted my discussion to my depressive episode and how I pulled myself out of it, I chose the backing track to one of my all time favorite songs (ever)- Wouldn’t It Be Nice. As I explained during the fireside chat, I felt that by choosing a track from the Sessions the song would speak for itself in terms of the beautiful instrumentation accompanied by the backing harmonies, without the leading vocals. This song is also significant because it was when this song played during Love & Mercy that my dad and I shared a special moment for the first time in years. So, in terms of accompanying my verbal thoughts, it worked really well.

Something unexpected also occurred while this song was playing. My classmates spoke with me after the fireside chat and had some really nice things to say about how the music itself (not just how it worked with what I was saying) complimented the emotions I was putting on display in front of everyone. It is hard for me to formulate how I myself experienced that, which I think explains why one of my classmates said that he wished someone had filmed my part of the chat so I could see what they meant. I suppose that is part of the magic of these fireside chats, and about what we’ve talked about film in the class over the semester- how what we share with each other can impact others in unexpected ways that can’t really be anticipated or planned. It made me really happy to see that, and it really spoke to me about why we share art with each other in the first place- to uplift, expand perspectives and share spontaneous magical moments.