Latest news with #StephenFoster
Forbes
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Brian Wilson Embodied The Warmth Of The Sun
God only knows what we'd be without the music of Brian Wilson. What good is the dawn, that grows into day; the sunset at night, or living this way. For I have the warmth of the sun, within me at night. Brian Wilson, who died on June 11, overcame immense life challenges to share 'the warmth of the sun' with multiple generations of fans, throughout his near 60 year career. And despite his passing, his musical and cultural significance is guaranteed to continue, with the consistency and majesty of waves rolling across the sea. Wilson's place in American history is primarily as the leader of The Beach Boys, one of the most influential bands in rock n' roll history. As the band's principal composer, his mastery of harmonies was principally responsible for the 'sound' that led to the sale of over 100 million records globally, including over 33 RIAA Platinum and Gold Records. His 1965 masterpiece 'Pet Sounds' is generally recognized as one of the top two or three album recordings in popular music history. Wilson also achieved fame with his extraordinary achievements in musical production and arrangement. His ability to use the voices of his bandmates as musical instruments themselves, and his willingness to incorporate professional musicians (e.g., the famous 'Wrecking Crew') set the standard for record production for a generation. It's no stretch to describe Wilson as the modern day equivalent of Stephen Foster, referred to as 'the father of American music'. But Wilson's legacy extends far beyond his achievements as a composer and performer. It extends to the broader meaning of the music, his related impact on American culture and his courageous battle to overcome crippling mental illness. Wilson once attributed the success of the Beach Boys to how the music 'celebrated the joy of life in a real, simple way.' And that they did, whether it involved a surfboard, a T-Bird or 'girls on the beach'. Aspects of Wilson's music as sung by his band can be found in many aspects of our daily life; it's hard not to watch television or a movie, or listen to the radio, and not hear some reflection of Wilson and The Beach Boys' music. Beyond the music, few artists have had such a significant impact on American culture than did Wilson. The band's early focus on an 'Endless Summer', with its lifestyle of sunshine, surfing, cars and young romance contributed enormously to the explosive 1960s attraction of Southern California as a magical destination. If everybody had an ocean…across the USA, then everybody'd be surfin', like Californ-i-a…Wilson's music moved people, both figuratively and literally. And as Wilson's listeners grew older and confronted more serious emotions than life at the beach, his music evolved to address what they ‒ and he ‒ were feeling. The enduring attraction of Pet Sounds is found in the way in which Wilson, and his lyricist Tony Asher, reflected 'coming of age' sensitivities within a lush orchestral mixture. Rolling Stone described it as '…an intense, linear personal vision of the vagaries of a love affair and the painful, introverted anxieties that are the wrenching precipitates of the unstable chemistry of any love relationship.' Yet the most understated aspect of Wilson's life was his ability to write such joyous harmonies while suffering from the traumas of an abusive father and mental challenges ultimately diagnosed as schizoaffective disorder and depression. These challenges were exacerbated by the drug abuse so typical of artists of that era. And they were exploited in near-legendary manner by a controversial 'celebrity psychologist'. That Wilson was able to prevail for decades against such pressures is a testament to both his personal courage and his artistic commitment. When many would have abandoned their careers when confronted by such barriers, Wilson persevered. His ability to complete the legendary Smile album, after 40 years of suspended work, gave hope to others struggling with similar conditions. Of course Wilson was not the sole messenger of his music; full credit is due to his lifelong band mates: brothers Carl and Dennis, cousin Mike Love and friends Alan Jardine and Bruce Johnston. There could be no substitutes. Indeed, Love's autobiography tells of the remark one-time Beach Boy Glen Campbell once made to Johnny Carson, that 'The Beach Boys' music will never die'. Carson retorted that 'Everyone has to die. Even the Beach Boys have to die sometime'. And certainly they do, at least from a bodily perspective. But the spirit of their music, as crafted by Brian Wilson, will undoubtedly live on as long as American popular music is chronicled. My love's like the warmth of the sun; it won't ever die.
CTV News
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- CTV News
New filmed in N.B. TV series premieres Thursday
The latest made in New Brunswick production will be hitting the television screens Thursday night. REVIVAL stars award winning Canadian actress, Melanie Scrofano, and is based on the graphic novel series of the same name. The series consists of ten hour-long episodes, all of which were filmed in southern New Brunswick. 'This has been a number of years leading up to this moment for us to have a TV series of this scale here in New Brunswick produced by our company,' says Greg Hemmings of Hemmings House Pictures. 'So, we're pretty thrilled.' Hemmings, who is also an executive producer of the show, says the series is a 'cult classic' and is based in a sleepy little town called Wausau, Wisconsin. Tensions and fear run high in the community when the recently deceased come back to life and return to town. Dana Cypress, played by Scrafano, stars as a police officer in the centre of the plot. She is tasked with solving a murder where both the living and revived are suspects. Fellow executive producer, Stephen Foster, who is also with Hemmings House Pictures, says Saint John works as a perfect backdrop for the setting. 'You just got to not point the cameras at the Bay of Fundy, that's the only trick,' Foster jokes. Southern New Brunswick viewers will likely recognized some locations with filming being done around uptown Saint John, and in neighbouring communities like Grand Bay-Westfield, Hampton, and Sussex, N.B. Filming for the series saw over 200 New Brunswickers find full-time work for the production and over 400 part-time workers, says Foster. There were also 51 people who experienced working in the industry for the first time during production. One of those was 9-year-old, Flora McInroy, from Saint John. McInroy plays the character named Jordan Borchardt. She is one of the youngest people to come back from the dead in town. She was one of over 100 girls to audition for the role in an open casting call, one she only found out about thanks to her mom being a hairstylist for production. She says being her first time acting, she never expected to get the part. 'I just can't believe it,' McInroy admits on the thought of starring in a TV series in her hometown. 'I'm very proud of myself for being able to do this, and I'm very thankful and grateful for just being able to do this, meeting other people, being able to share this experience and share the work that everyone has worked so hard on.' She, like Foster and Hemmings, hope REVIVAL is the first of many big productions to be filmed in the province in the months and years ahead. McInroy notes she may never have gotten the chance to act had it not been for the local production. 'These aren't just beer and pizza paying jobs,' points out Foster. 'These are union scale jobs. These are jobs that you can get a mortgage on and we're continuing to urge the government to continue to participate with us on this.' The show debuts Thursday at 11 p.m. Atlantic time on the CTV Sci-Fi Channel and is streaming the next day on Crave. A free community public screening of the first two episodes will be held in Saint John on Friday June 27. REVIVAL REVIVAL, a new TV series filmed in Saint John, N.B. premiers this Thursday. (CTV Atlantic/ Avery MacRae) For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
