Editing Brian Wilson (section)

==1942–1961: Background and musical training==
===Childhood===
Brian Douglas Wilson was born on June 20, 1942, at [[Centinela Hospital Medical Center]] in [[Inglewood, California]], the first child of Audree Neva ({{nee}} Korthof) and [[Murry Wilson]], a machinist who later pursued songwriting part-time.{{sfn|Murphy|2015|p=27}}{{sfn|Gaines|1986|p=40}} Wilson's two younger brothers, [[Dennis Wilson|Dennis]] and [[Carl Wilson|Carl]], were born in 1944 and 1946.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=10}} Shortly after Dennis' birth, the family moved from Inglewood to 3701 West 119th Street in nearby [[Hawthorne, California]].{{sfn|Leaf|1978|p=14}}{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=10}} Wilson, along with his siblings, suffered psychological and sporadic physical maltreatment from their father.{{sfn|Granata|2003|p=21}} His 2016 memoir characterizes his father as "violent" and "cruel"; however, it also suggests that certain narratives about the mistreatment had been overstated or unfounded.{{sfn|Wilson|Greenman|2016|pp=136–137}}

From an early age, Wilson exhibited an aptitude for [[playing by ear|learning by ear]].{{sfn|Lambert|2007|pp=2, 8}} His father remembered how, after hearing only a few verses of "[[The Army Goes Rolling Along|When the Caissons Go Rolling Along]]", the infant Wilson was able to reproduce its melody.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=11}}{{refn|group=nb|Some sources indicate the tune was the "[[Marine Corps Hymn]]".{{sfn|Lambert|2007|p=2}}}} Murry was a driving force in cultivating his children's musical talents.{{sfn|Leaf|1978|pp=17–18}} Wilson undertook six weeks of accordion lessons, and by ages seven and eight, he performed choir solos at church.{{sfn|Leaf|1978|pp=15–17}}{{refn|group=nb|According to his mother, "The [accordion instructor] said, 'I don't think he's reading. He hears it just once and plays the whole thing perfectly.'"{{sfn|Lambert|2007|p=2}}}} His choir director declared him to have [[perfect pitch]].{{sfn|Granata|2003|p=22}}{{sfn|Lambert|2007|p=2}} Wilson owned an educational record titled ''The Instruments of the Orchestra''{{sfn|Dillon|2012|p=xv}} and was a regular listener of [[KFWB]], his favorite radio station at the time.{{sfn|Granata|2003|pp=19–20}} Carl introduced him to [[Rhythm and blues|R&B]], and their uncle Charlie taught him [[boogie-woogie]] piano. Both brothers would frequently stay up listening to [[Johnny Otis]]' [[KFRN|KFOX]] radio show, incorporating its R&B tracks into their musical lexicon.{{sfn|Lambert|2007|pp=3–4}}{{refn|group=nb|Carl remarked that by the age of 10, his brother "could play great boogie-woogie piano!"{{sfn|Granata|2003|p=22}}{{sfn|Lambert|2007|p=69}}}}

{{Quote box
|align=left
|quote=I got so into [[The Four Freshmen]]. I could identify with [[Bob Flanigan (singer)|Bob Flanigan]]'s high voice. He taught me how to sing high. I worked for a year on The Four Freshmen with my hi-fi set. I eventually learned every song they did.
|source=—Brian Wilson, 1998{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=11}}
|width = 25%
}}

One of Wilson's first forays into songwriting, penned when he was nine, was a reinterpretation of the lyrics to [[Stephen Foster]]'s "[[Oh! Susannah]]".{{sfn|White|1996|p=88}}{{refn|group=nb|In his 1991 memoir, he recalls writing his first song for a fourth-grade school project concerning [[Paul Bunyan]].{{sfn|Lambert|2007|p=4}} In a 2005 interview, he said that he began composing original music in 1955, when he was 12.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bartlett |first1=Thomas |title="I try to write songs and stuff" |url=https://www.salon.com/2005/06/22/wilson_15/ |website=Salon |date=June 22, 2005}}</ref>}} At age 12, his family acquired an upright piano, and he began teaching himself to play piano by spending hours mastering his favorite songs.{{sfn|Granata|2003|p=23}} He learned how to write [[manuscript]] music through a friend of his father.{{sfn|Wilson|Greenman|2016|p=78}}

Wilson sang with peers at school functions, as well as with family and friends at home, and guided his two brothers in learning harmony parts, which they would rehearse together. He also played piano obsessively after school, deconstructing the harmonies of [[the Four Freshmen]] by listening to short segments of their songs on a [[phonograph]], then working to recreate the blended sounds note by note on the keyboard.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=11}}

===High school and college===
In high school, Wilson played [[quarterback]] for [[Hawthorne High School (Hawthorne, California)|Hawthorne High]]'s football team,{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=15}} played baseball for American Legion Ball,<ref name=":0">{{cite web |author=Michael Thomas Meggison |url=http://www.americanancestors.org/ancestry-beach-boys/ |title=#71 Royal Descents, Notable Kin, and Printed Sources: The Immediate New England and Royal Ancestry of the Beach Boys |website=American Ancestors |publisher=New England Historic Genealogical Society |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140823011549/http://www.americanancestors.org/ancestry-beach-boys/ |archive-date=August 23, 2014}}</ref> and ran cross-country in his senior year.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=15}} At 15, he briefly worked part-time sweeping at a jewelry store, his only paid employment before his success in music.{{sfn|White|1996|p=144}}{{refn|group=nb|His 2016 memoir says his "first real job" was at a lumberyard.{{sfn|Wilson|Greenman|2016|p=139}}}} He also cleaned for his father's machining company, ABLE, on weekends.{{sfn|Wilson|Greenman|2016|p=136}} Wilson auditioned to sing for the Original Sound Record Company's inaugural record release, but was deemed too young.{{sfn|Murphy|2015|p=45}} For his 16th birthday, he received a portable two-track{{sfn|White|1996|p=98}} [[Wollensak]] tape recorder, allowing him to experiment with recording songs, group vocals, and rudimentary production techniques.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=22}}{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=14}} Wilson involved his friends around the piano and would most frequently harmonize with those from his senior class in these recordings.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=23}}

[[File:Brian Wilson 1960 yearbook.png|thumb|upright|left|Wilson's senior yearbook photo, June 1960{{sfn|Murphy|2015|p=10}}]]
For his Senior Problems course in October 1959, Wilson submitted an essay, "My Philosophy", in which he stated that his ambitions were to "make a name for myself [...] in music."{{sfn|Murphy|2015|p=15}} One of Wilson's earliest public performances was at a fall arts program at his high school. He enlisted his cousin and frequent singing partner [[Mike Love]] and, to entice Carl into the group, named the newly formed membership "Carl and the Passions". They performed songs by [[Dion and the Belmonts]] and the Four Freshmen, impressing classmate and musician, [[Al Jardine]].{{sfn|Carlin|2006|p=24}} Fred Morgan, Wilson's high school music teacher, recalled his aptitude for learning [[Bach]] and [[Beethoven]] at 17.{{sfn|White|1996|p=1}}

In September 1960, Wilson enrolled as a psychology major at [[El Camino College]] in Los Angeles, also pursuing music.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=15}} Disappointed by his teachers' disdain for pop music, he withdrew from college after about 18 months.{{sfn|Leaf|1978|p=27}} By his account, he crafted his first entirely original melody, "[[Surfer Girl (song)|Surfer Girl]]", in 1961, inspired by a Dion and the Belmonts rendition of "[[When You Wish Upon a Star]]". However, his close high school friends disputed his claim, recalling earlier original compositions.{{sfn|Murphy|2015|p=135}}

===Formation of the Beach Boys===

{{Quote box
|align=
|quote=I wasn't aware those early songs defined California so well until much later in my career. I certainly didn't set out to do it. I wasn't into surfing at all. My brother Dennis gave me all the jargon I needed to write
the songs. He was the surfer and I was the songwriter.
|source=—Brian Wilson{{sfn|Murphy|2015|p=240}}
|width = 25%
}}

The three Wilson brothers, Love, and Jardine debuted their first music group together, called "the Pendletones", in the autumn of 1961. At Dennis's suggestion, Brian and Love co-wrote the group's first song, "[[Surfin' (song)|Surfin']]".{{sfn|Murphy|2015|pp=84–86}} Murry became their manager.{{sfn|Murphy|2015|pp=84–90}}

Produced by Hite and Dorinda Morgan on [[Candix Records]], "Surfin'" became a hit in Los Angeles and reached 75 on the national [[Billboard (magazine)|''Billboard'']] sales charts.{{sfn|Carlin|2006|pp=30–31}} However, the group's name was changed by Candix Records to [[the Beach Boys]].{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=16–17}} Their major live debut was at the [[Ritchie Valens]] Memorial Dance on New Year's Eve, 1961. Just days before, Wilson had received an electric bass from his father, quickly learning to play with Jardine switching to rhythm guitar.{{sfn|Badman|2004|p=19}}

When Candix Records faced financial difficulties and sold the Beach Boys' master recordings to another label, Murry ended their contract. As "Surfin'" faded from the charts, Wilson collaborated with local musician [[Gary Usher]] to produce demo recordings for new tracks, including "[[409 (song)|409]]" and "[[Surfin' Safari (song)|Surfin' Safari]]". Capitol Records were persuaded to release the demos as a single, achieving a double-sided national hit.{{sfn|Badman|2004|pp=22–23}}