What is the general feeling you have about your first book being on Dennis Wilson?
Jon Stebbins: I feel really good about it. I think it’s something to be proud of, having written the first biography on one of rock history’s most interesting figures. I kept wondering how someone so popular and with such a sensational back story could have gone that long without an in-depth book being devoted to him. Of course there was a book called Denny Remembered that was more of a memorial tribute kind of thing. But there was no real biography until the Real Beach Boy book. I was very honored to get the opportunity to write about Dennis.
How long did this book take to write?
JS: I started in mid-1997, and had it finished in mid-1999…so about two years.
If you look online, you can find this book goes for a lot of money. How do you feel about that and are there ever any plans to reissue it?
JS: Yeah they can really go for big bucks, it’s a supply vs. demand situation. I have a revised and expanded edition on the way, and I’m hoping its out by the end of the year.
What do you think is the most significant song, musically, that was ever done by Dennis with the band and by Dennis solo?
JS: It’s very tough to pick one or two. I think "River Song" is his real masterpiece and it’s a hybrid of group/solo. I’d probably pick "Slip On Through" as his best group track and "Thoughts of You" as his best solo track, but both would follow "River Song" on my list of best Dennis songs.
How did you get connections to the band?
JS: I was a Beach Boys fan from my earliest days of listening to records. My older sister brought home the Surfin' USA LP when I was five or six, and from there I was hooked. I saw them in concert in the ‘70’s with Brian. I met Dennis Wilson in 1978, while living in LA. I had a band and was sort of on the fringes of the music scene. I also worked for a record company during that time. I met Brian Wilson in 1979, and Mike Love and Bruce Johnston too that same year. I’ve met them all and have been very lucky to talk to Brian quite a few times. I’ve interviewed Mike Love and Al Jardine and of course I’m very good friends with David Marks because we wrote his book, The Lost Beach Boy, together.
Is Dennis the coolest rock star of all time?
JS: He’s definitely high on the list. He was charismatic, but in a more visceral or natural way than most show business types. It’s as if his charisma was some kind of animal magnetism that he couldn’t control, or turn on and off. It just was integral to his being. And that translated into his drumming style, his singing style and in his creativity as a composer and arranger. You can see that he had some kind of intense magnetic spark in photos and footage. His presence in the film Two Lane Blacktop is a good example of how he didn’t have to try very hard to stand out. He just had that essence of cool, like Elvis, James Dean, Steve McQueen, but Dennis also had a kind of awkward and shy side too. That was about his nagging lack of self-esteem. The mix of swagger and shyness made him unique.
When writing a biography like you did, did you ever get overwhelmed with all the information you found and did you write the book in chronological order?
JS: I’m still overwhelmed. I could write for years and years and never run out of interesting material regarding Dennis. He experienced so much and he affected so many people. His story is a deep deep vein.
I always found the connections to artists that the Beach Boys had to be very fascinating. Are there any stories about Dennis and Fleetwood Mac you have that wasn't in the book?
JS: There are too many stories to list. His time with Christine and Fleetwood Mac was a crazy off the rails period. He and Christine did some recording together in a couple of different studios. Those tapes haven’t been heard by anyone I know but I know they exist and they really intrigue me because of the creative potential of that combination. I hope we get to hear them someday.
Oh, I wish we can hear those one day too!
Thanks for the interview Jon.
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