Song:Farewell My Friend
Album:Pacific Ocean Blue: Legacy Edition
Most fans know Dennis Wilson as the drummer for The Beach Boys. But you may not know that he was the first Beach Boy to release a solo album in 1978. Pacific Ocean Blue wasn't successful at the time but is now considered to be a classic. Dennis was born Dec. 4, 1944 in Marina Del Rey, CA. When The Beach Boys were formed in the early 60s, Dennis became the drummer by default. His brother Brian Wilson wrote most of the songs and cousin Mike Love was lead singer most of the time. By the late 60s, Dennis started writing songs and some of them appeared on albums like Sunflower and Holland. He started working on Pacific Ocean Blue in 1970 but it was interrupted when he appeared in the 1971 film Two-Lane Blacktop. It was also delayed by The Beach Boys touring schedule. He returned to it in 1976 and the album was released in Aug. 1977. It was critically acclaimed but did not sell. Carl Wilson played guitar and Daryl Dragon of Captain & Tennille wrote the arrangements. Farewell My Friend was written as a tribute to Carl Wilson's father in law Otto Hinsche. He was the father of Billy Hinsche of Dino, Desi & Billy. A planned tour never happened. In 1978, Dennis started working on his second album Bambu. Two songs from those sessions appeared on the 1979 Beach Boys album L.A. (Light Album). Dennis' alcohol addiction was getting worse. On Dec. 29, 1983, Dennis had been drinking on his yacht. He drowned at age 39 after diving into the ocean off Marina Del Rey. In 2008, Sony released a 2CD edition of Pacific Ocean Blue with the previously unreleased Bambu recordings on the second CD. This is recommended to Beach Boys fans. Director Randall Miller plans the Dennis Wilson biopic The Drummer starring Aaron Eckhart. It looks like Miller will shoot this after his current film CBGB is done. Here's a video for Farewell My Friend by Dennis Wilson.
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