By the late 1990s, Brian Wilson had overcome his addictions, stabilized his mental health issues, remarried, and had broken free from the controlling behavior of his disgraced psychologist Eugene Landy. It was time to return to “Smile.” In the early 2000s, he reunited with Van Dyke Parks, to finish what they’d started 37 years earlier. In 2004, Wilson performed “Smile” live for the first time at London’s Royal Festival Hall before taking it on tour and releasing the album “Brian Wilson Presents Smile.”
“I was amazed when I finally heard it,” Wilson told Paste magazine. “It brought back a lot of memories. It sounded the way I anticipated it would when I first wrote it. We wrote a bit of new music because we didn’t think it was complete. We wanted to make it a little bit longer.” Paul McCartney was in the audience for the first London performance. In 2004, Wilson said “Smile” “wasn’t anything like The Beatles. It wasn’t pop music; it was something more advanced.” Tragically, the reason you don’t hear from Brian Wilson much anymore is due to his dementia and other health issues.
If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
