“I was sitting backstage after the 1974 Grammys with Bernie Taupin (Elton John’s lyricist) and John Lennon. This was when Brian was really having some mental issues.
During the course of the conversation, I kept seeing Brian out of the corner of my eye, just kind of staring at us from different angles. Finally, he came up to the table, bent down and whispered in my ear ‘Hey Alice, introduce me to John Lennon.’ I couldn’t BELIEVE that these two men had never met!
They were virtually neck and neck in the 60’s as the greatest bands on the planet, and I’m SURE they must have crossed paths at some point. But then I thought to myself, ‘Wow, if they REALLY have never met, I’m going to be the one to introduce them and become a part of rock history!’
So I merely said, ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, this is Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was very cordial and polite, saying things like ‘Hello Brian, I’ve always wanted to meet you. I’ve always admired your work, and Paul and I considered Pet Sounds one of the best albums ever made.’ Brian thanked him and walked away, at which point Lennon went right back to his conversation like nothing had happened.
About ten minutes later, Brian came by our table again, leaned down and whispered something to Bernie, and all of a sudden, Bernie was saying ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was just as cordial and polite as the first time, saying essentially the same thing about always wanting to meet him.
As soon as Brian walked away, John looked at both of us and casually said in his typical Liverpudlian accent, ‘I’ve met him hundreds of times. He’s not well, you know.’
Alice Cooper talking about the time he 'introduced' Brian Wilson to John Lennon
Source: Alice Cooper radio interview

On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 9:13:41 AM UTC-7, Bruce wrote:
> “I was sitting backstage after the 1974 Grammys with Bernie Taupin (Elton John’s lyricist) and John Lennon. This was when Brian was really having some mental issues.
> During the course of the conversation, I kept seeing Brian out of the corner of my eye, just kind of staring at us from different angles. Finally, he came up to the table, bent down and whispered in my ear ‘Hey Alice, introduce me to John Lennon.’ I couldn’t BELIEVE that these two men had never met!
> They were virtually neck and neck in the 60’s as the greatest bands on the planet, and I’m SURE they must have crossed paths at some point. But then I thought to myself, ‘Wow, if they REALLY have never met, I’m going to be the one to introduce them and become a part of rock history!’
> So I merely said, ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, this is Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was very cordial and polite, saying things like ‘Hello Brian, I’ve always wanted to meet you. I’ve always admired your work, and Paul and I considered Pet Sounds one of the best albums ever made.’ Brian thanked him and walked away, at which point Lennon went right back to his conversation like nothing had happened.
> About ten minutes later, Brian came by our table again, leaned down and whispered something to Bernie, and all of a sudden, Bernie was saying ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was just as cordial and polite as the first time, saying essentially the same thing about always wanting to meet him.
> As soon as Brian walked away, John looked at both of us and casually said in his typical Liverpudlian accent, ‘I’ve met him hundreds of times. He’s not well, you know.’
> Alice Cooper talking about the time he 'introduced' Brian Wilson to John Lennon
> Source: Alice Cooper radio interview

John Lennon was damaged by LSD, but not to the extent that Brian Wilson was..

Wilson at one point stopped taking showers, because he thought that spiders, rather than water, would emanate from the shower head.

On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 11:30:58 AM UTC-5, Norbert K wrote:
> On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 9:13:41 AM UTC-7, Bruce wrote:
> > “I was sitting backstage after the 1974 Grammys with Bernie Taupin (Elton John’s lyricist) and John Lennon. This was when Brian was really having some mental issues.
> > During the course of the conversation, I kept seeing Brian out of the corner of my eye, just kind of staring at us from different angles. Finally, he came up to the table, bent down and whispered in my ear ‘Hey Alice, introduce me to John Lennon.’ I couldn’t BELIEVE that these two men had never met!
> > They were virtually neck and neck in the 60’s as the greatest bands on the planet, and I’m SURE they must have crossed paths at some point. But then I thought to myself, ‘Wow, if they REALLY have never met, I’m going to be the one to introduce them and become a part of rock history!’
> > So I merely said, ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, this is Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was very cordial and polite, saying things like ‘Hello Brian, I’ve always wanted to meet you.. I’ve always admired your work, and Paul and I considered Pet Sounds one of the best albums ever made.’ Brian thanked him and walked away, at which point Lennon went right back to his conversation like nothing had happened.
> > About ten minutes later, Brian came by our table again, leaned down and whispered something to Bernie, and all of a sudden, Bernie was saying ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was just as cordial and polite as the first time, saying essentially the same thing about always wanting to meet him.
> > As soon as Brian walked away, John looked at both of us and casually said in his typical Liverpudlian accent, ‘I’ve met him hundreds of times. He’s not well, you know.’
> > Alice Cooper talking about the time he 'introduced' Brian Wilson to John Lennon
> > Source: Alice Cooper radio interview
> John Lennon was damaged by LSD, but not to the extent that Brian Wilson was.
>
> Wilson at one point stopped taking showers, because he thought that spiders, rather than water, would emanate from the shower head.
In better days...
https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/music/1612380/the-beatles-john-lennon-the-beach-boys-brian-wilson

On Thursday, August 3, 2023 at 6:35:57 AM UTC-7, Pamela Brown wrote:
> On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 11:30:58 AM UTC-5, Norbert K wrote:
> > On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 9:13:41 AM UTC-7, Bruce wrote:
> > > “I was sitting backstage after the 1974 Grammys with Bernie Taupin (Elton John’s lyricist) and John Lennon. This was when Brian was really having some mental issues.
> > > During the course of the conversation, I kept seeing Brian out of the corner of my eye, just kind of staring at us from different angles. Finally, he came up to the table, bent down and whispered in my ear ‘Hey Alice, introduce me to John Lennon.’ I couldn’t BELIEVE that these two men had never met!
> > > They were virtually neck and neck in the 60’s as the greatest bands on the planet, and I’m SURE they must have crossed paths at some point. But then I thought to myself, ‘Wow, if they REALLY have never met, I’m going to be the one to introduce them and become a part of rock history!’
> > > So I merely said, ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, this is Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was very cordial and polite, saying things like ‘Hello Brian, I’ve always wanted to meet you. I’ve always admired your work, and Paul and I considered Pet Sounds one of the best albums ever made.’ Brian thanked him and walked away, at which point Lennon went right back to his conversation like nothing had happened.
> > > About ten minutes later, Brian came by our table again, leaned down and whispered something to Bernie, and all of a sudden, Bernie was saying ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was just as cordial and polite as the first time, saying essentially the same thing about always wanting to meet him.
> > > As soon as Brian walked away, John looked at both of us and casually said in his typical Liverpudlian accent, ‘I’ve met him hundreds of times. He’s not well, you know.’
> > > Alice Cooper talking about the time he 'introduced' Brian Wilson to John Lennon
> > > Source: Alice Cooper radio interview
> > John Lennon was damaged by LSD, but not to the extent that Brian Wilson was.
> >
> > Wilson at one point stopped taking showers, because he thought that spiders, rather than water, would emanate from the shower head.
> In better days...
> https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/music/1612380/the-beatles-john-lennon-the-beach-boys-brian-wilson

"It's all Brian Wilson" -- John was an astute listener pre-LSD.

I just listened to the song for the first time. It sounds like Brian Wilson at his best.

This was shortly before LSD took its toll on both men.

On Thursday, August 3, 2023 at 6:35:57 AM UTC-7, Pamela Brown wrote:
> On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 11:30:58 AM UTC-5, Norbert K wrote:
> > On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 9:13:41 AM UTC-7, Bruce wrote:
> > > “I was sitting backstage after the 1974 Grammys with Bernie Taupin (Elton John’s lyricist) and John Lennon. This was when Brian was really having some mental issues.
> > > During the course of the conversation, I kept seeing Brian out of the corner of my eye, just kind of staring at us from different angles. Finally, he came up to the table, bent down and whispered in my ear ‘Hey Alice, introduce me to John Lennon.’ I couldn’t BELIEVE that these two men had never met!
> > > They were virtually neck and neck in the 60’s as the greatest bands on the planet, and I’m SURE they must have crossed paths at some point. But then I thought to myself, ‘Wow, if they REALLY have never met, I’m going to be the one to introduce them and become a part of rock history!’
> > > So I merely said, ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, this is Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was very cordial and polite, saying things like ‘Hello Brian, I’ve always wanted to meet you. I’ve always admired your work, and Paul and I considered Pet Sounds one of the best albums ever made.’ Brian thanked him and walked away, at which point Lennon went right back to his conversation like nothing had happened.
> > > About ten minutes later, Brian came by our table again, leaned down and whispered something to Bernie, and all of a sudden, Bernie was saying ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was just as cordial and polite as the first time, saying essentially the same thing about always wanting to meet him.
> > > As soon as Brian walked away, John looked at both of us and casually said in his typical Liverpudlian accent, ‘I’ve met him hundreds of times. He’s not well, you know.’
> > > Alice Cooper talking about the time he 'introduced' Brian Wilson to John Lennon
> > > Source: Alice Cooper radio interview
> > John Lennon was damaged by LSD, but not to the extent that Brian Wilson was.
> >
> > Wilson at one point stopped taking showers, because he thought that spiders, rather than water, would emanate from the shower head.
> In better days...
> https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/music/1612380/the-beatles-john-lennon-the-beach-boys-brian-wilson

There's a delightful anecdote about Brian Wilson in Kent Hartman's book The Wrecking Crew.

Wilson summoned a guitar-playing member of the WC to his studio. Wilson explained that he wanted a few bars of 12-string guitar in a certain section of one of the songs. The guitarist lamented that he didn't have a 12-string. Wilson phoned the owner of a local guitar shop -- a place that was theoretically closed on that Sunday -- and a Fender 12-string guitar plus a suitable amp were promptly delivered to Wilson's studio.

The guitarist got warmed up and proceeded to nail the part on his first try.. Wilson paid him, and said, "Don't forget to take your new guitar home."

On 2023-07-31 16:13:39 +0000, Bruce said:

> "I was sitting backstage after the 1974 Grammys with Bernie Taupin
> (Elton John's lyricist) and John Lennon. This was when Brian was really
> having some mental issues.During the course of the conversation, I kept
> seeing Brian out of the corner of my eye, just kind of staring at us
> from different angles. Finally, he came up to the table, bent down and
> whispered in my ear 'Hey Alice, introduce me to John Lennon.' I
> couldn't BELIEVE that these two men had never met!They were virtually
> neck and neck in the 60's as the greatest bands on the planet, and I'm
> SURE they must have crossed paths at some point.

It seems particularly peculiar they hadn't crossed paths before 1974
since they recorded for the American and British branches of the same
company. Seems they should have met either at the companies'
headquarters in Hollywood or London, but then everybody was pretty busy
at the time.

I don't know offhand if the Beatles ever visited the Capitol Records HQ
when they were together, anybody got a line on that? If they didn't as
a group they could have more likely visited it as solo artists. I
remember Paul signed a big distribution deal with them for his solo
records at one point, then he moved to Columbia for while.

On 4/08/2023 4:13 am, Norbert K wrote:
> On Thursday, August 3, 2023 at 6:35:57 AM UTC-7, Pamela Brown wrote:
>> On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 11:30:58 AM UTC-5, Norbert K wrote:
>>> On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 9:13:41 AM UTC-7, Bruce wrote:
>>>> “I was sitting backstage after the 1974 Grammys with Bernie Taupin (Elton John’s lyricist) and John Lennon. This was when Brian was really having some mental issues.
>>>> During the course of the conversation, I kept seeing Brian out of the corner of my eye, just kind of staring at us from different angles. Finally, he came up to the table, bent down and whispered in my ear ‘Hey Alice, introduce me to John Lennon.’ I couldn’t BELIEVE that these two men had never met!
>>>> They were virtually neck and neck in the 60’s as the greatest bands on the planet, and I’m SURE they must have crossed paths at some point. But then I thought to myself, ‘Wow, if they REALLY have never met, I’m going to be the one to introduce them and become a part of rock history!’
>>>> So I merely said, ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, this is Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was very cordial and polite, saying things like ‘Hello Brian, I’ve always wanted to meet you. I’ve always admired your work, and Paul and I considered Pet Sounds one of the best albums ever made.’ Brian thanked him and walked away, at which point Lennon went right back to his conversation like nothing had happened.
>>>> About ten minutes later, Brian came by our table again, leaned down and whispered something to Bernie, and all of a sudden, Bernie was saying ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was just as cordial and polite as the first time, saying essentially the same thing about always wanting to meet him.
>>>> As soon as Brian walked away, John looked at both of us and casually said in his typical Liverpudlian accent, ‘I’ve met him hundreds of times. He’s not well, you know.’
>>>> Alice Cooper talking about the time he 'introduced' Brian Wilson to John Lennon
>>>> Source: Alice Cooper radio interview
>>> John Lennon was damaged by LSD, but not to the extent that Brian Wilson was.
>>>
>>> Wilson at one point stopped taking showers, because he thought that spiders, rather than water, would emanate from the shower head.
>> In better days...
>> https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/music/1612380/the-beatles-john-lennon-the-beach-boys-brian-wilson
>
> There's a delightful anecdote about Brian Wilson in Kent Hartman's book The Wrecking Crew.
>
> Wilson summoned a guitar-playing member of the WC to his studio. Wilson explained that he wanted a few bars of 12-string guitar in a certain section of one of the songs. The guitarist lamented that he didn't have a 12-string. Wilson phoned the owner of a local guitar shop -- a place that was theoretically closed on that Sunday -- and a Fender 12-string guitar plus a suitable amp were promptly delivered to Wilson's studio.
>
> The guitarist got warmed up and proceeded to nail the part on his first try. Wilson paid him, and said, "Don't forget to take your new guitar home."

A vaguely similar story about Jeff Beck who turned up as a visitor to
somebody's recording session and was invited to put down a guitar part.
There wasn't one handy, so a Strat was got off the wall at the local
music shop, and after just an elementary tuning he nailed a fantastic
lead-guitar track in one take. No esoteric guitar tech, workshop,
boutique parts, or setup. Just 'vanilla'.

I doubt he bothered to take the guitar home though ....

geoff

On Thursday, August 3, 2023 at 5:18:31 PM UTC-7, geoff wrote:
> On 4/08/2023 4:13 am, Norbert K wrote:
> > On Thursday, August 3, 2023 at 6:35:57 AM UTC-7, Pamela Brown wrote:
> >> On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 11:30:58 AM UTC-5, Norbert K wrote:
> >>> On Monday, July 31, 2023 at 9:13:41 AM UTC-7, Bruce wrote:
> >>>> “I was sitting backstage after the 1974 Grammys with Bernie Taupin (Elton John’s lyricist) and John Lennon. This was when Brian was really having some mental issues.
> >>>> During the course of the conversation, I kept seeing Brian out of the corner of my eye, just kind of staring at us from different angles. Finally, he came up to the table, bent down and whispered in my ear ‘Hey Alice, introduce me to John Lennon.’ I couldn’t BELIEVE that these two men had never met!
> >>>> They were virtually neck and neck in the 60’s as the greatest bands on the planet, and I’m SURE they must have crossed paths at some point. But then I thought to myself, ‘Wow, if they REALLY have never met, I’m going to be the one to introduce them and become a part of rock history!’
> >>>> So I merely said, ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, this is Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was very cordial and polite, saying things like ‘Hello Brian, I’ve always wanted to meet you. I’ve always admired your work, and Paul and I considered Pet Sounds one of the best albums ever made.’ Brian thanked him and walked away, at which point Lennon went right back to his conversation like nothing had happened.
> >>>> About ten minutes later, Brian came by our table again, leaned down and whispered something to Bernie, and all of a sudden, Bernie was saying ‘Brian Wilson, this is John Lennon. John Lennon, Brian Wilson.’ Lennon was just as cordial and polite as the first time, saying essentially the same thing about always wanting to meet him.
> >>>> As soon as Brian walked away, John looked at both of us and casually said in his typical Liverpudlian accent, ‘I’ve met him hundreds of times. He’s not well, you know.’
> >>>> Alice Cooper talking about the time he 'introduced' Brian Wilson to John Lennon
> >>>> Source: Alice Cooper radio interview
> >>> John Lennon was damaged by LSD, but not to the extent that Brian Wilson was.
> >>>
> >>> Wilson at one point stopped taking showers, because he thought that spiders, rather than water, would emanate from the shower head.
> >> In better days...
> >> https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/music/1612380/the-beatles-john-lennon-the-beach-boys-brian-wilson
> >
> > There's a delightful anecdote about Brian Wilson in Kent Hartman's book The Wrecking Crew.
> >
> > Wilson summoned a guitar-playing member of the WC to his studio. Wilson explained that he wanted a few bars of 12-string guitar in a certain section of one of the songs. The guitarist lamented that he didn't have a 12-string. Wilson phoned the owner of a local guitar shop -- a place that was theoretically closed on that Sunday -- and a Fender 12-string guitar plus a suitable amp were promptly delivered to Wilson's studio.
> >
> > The guitarist got warmed up and proceeded to nail the part on his first try. Wilson paid him, and said, "Don't forget to take your new guitar home.."
> A vaguely similar story about Jeff Beck who turned up as a visitor to
> somebody's recording session and was invited to put down a guitar part.
> There wasn't one handy, so a Strat was got off the wall at the local
> music shop, and after just an elementary tuning he nailed a fantastic
> lead-guitar track in one take. No esoteric guitar tech, workshop,
> boutique parts, or setup. Just 'vanilla'.
>
> I doubt he bothered to take the guitar home though ....
>
> geoff

Jeff Beck was on Roger Waters' Amused To Death album -- and there was a good deal of excitement over his playing. When asked about his contribution, Beck casually said something to the effect that he'd spent about 15 minutes with Waters.

I believe it.