THE PAUL McCARTNEY-BRIAN WILSON CONSPIRACY

When the Beatles visited India in 1968, Brian's cousin, Mike Love, went with. While there, Paul wrote "Back in the U.S.S.R.", a sort of Beach Boys tribute. Mike Love says he helped write the song, but here's what Brian had to say about the song itself...
Brian Wilson: "I didn't even recognize that until someone said something. I thought that was really adorable."

They're both amazing piano players.

They both play the bass superbly in their own bands.

Paul chewed vegetbales and co-produced the Beach Boys' track "Vegetables", which was due to be released on the album Smile. The album was never released but you can find that track on the Beach Boys box set, Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of the Beach Boys (1993).

Here's an excerpt from Brian Wilson's 19991 Autobiography (co-written with Todd Gold), Wouldn't It Be Nice, about meeting Paul McCartney during the "Vegetables" production. A pretty cool story, if you ask me.

In April I started work on "Vegetables" a funky song Van Dyke and I had dashed out one night during my veggie obsession. Al, singing lead, was going through his second session of the night when we got word that Paul McCartney was dropping by for a visit. The Beatle had flown into Los Angeles aboard Frank Sinatra's Lear jet to visit his girlfriend Jane Asher. Paul was my favorite Beatle. Both of us played bass, and our birthdays were two days apart. I was thrilled.

Marilyn was pinching herself when Paul walked into the studio. In a white suit and red leather shoes, he epitomized cool. He chuckled. The studio was overflowing with different kinds of vegetables strewn across countertops, tables, amps, and instruments. I'd even played a game of pool with Hal Blaine using celery stalks for cues, cherry tomatoes and radishes as balls, and Dixie cups as the goal. McCartney raised an eyebrow at the sight.

"Inspiration," I explained. "We're doing a song called 'Vegetables.' So I brought a bunch of vegetables down here to get the right feeling."

McCartney and I got along famously for two people who only knew each other from our music and what we read in the newspapers. There was no sense of competition. He told me how much he loved Pet Sounds; I complimented everything the Beatles had done. Every so often, Al reminded me that he was still waiting to record his vocals. McCartney was amused by the silly song and enjoyed watching me produce. He even mentioned how impressed he was that I was able to wear so many hats as writer, singer, and producer, while the Beatles relied on George Martin to produce.

"How do you get the objectivity?" McCartney asked.

"It was always a matter of doing the songs the way I heard them in my head," I said. "I had everything planned out. But it's getting harder to do that. The other guys give me crap all the time."

One newspaper, having got wind of the studio encounter, described our meeting as "like Van Gogh meeting Constable meeting Turner meeting Rembrandt in a time machine fueled by adrenaline and Dexedrine." I never understood what that meant, but the visit lasted a long time. It was nearly 2:00 A.M. by the time we finished "Vegetables." Then, prodded by Derek Taylor, McCartney sat down at the piano, and started singing. "Wednesday morning at five o'clock the day begins. Silently closing her bedroom door, she goes..."

"It's called 'She's Leaving Home'," McCartney said after finishing.

"What a beautiful song," said Marilyn, who had tears in her eyes.

"How 'bout your album, Brian?" Paul asked.

"I don't know," I said, staring at the ground. "I've got this song 'Heroes and Villains,' that I think might be bigger than 'Good Vibrations.' I just can't get it right, though."

"Listen to him, the tormented artist," interjected Taylor. "Paul, Brian is the king of second thoughts, third thoughts, and so on. But it doesn't affect my job any. What he doesn't release makes nearly as much news as what he does eventually put out."

McCartney laughed. On his way out, he told me to hurry up. The Beatles had a new album due out in the summer: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

Both the Beatles and the Beach Boys were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. You know, Brian read the "thank you" speech for the Beach Boys, and, according to George, Paul had the Beatles' speech. George commented that it was a shame that Paul hadn't showed up because he had the speech in his pocket.

Pictures from Brian's induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame...

I'd be scared, too, Brian.

Paul inducted Brian into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1999. (Read Paul's awesome speech here!)

I think that the above picture of the Beatles looks like the cover of the Beach Boys' album, Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!).

They're both patriotic and love our country, the United States of America!

A sort of ironic type of thing: Brian adored producer Phil Spector's work. In fact, Brian's favorite song is "Be My Baby" by the Ronnettes, produced by Phil Spector. McCartney was not pleased with the Beatles' "new phase album", Let it Be, after the project was handed over to Spector to produce. That's why we now have the "back to basics" version of this fine album, Let it Be...Naked.

Both have made new additions to their families. Brian and his wife, Melinda, adopted two baby girls, Dari and Delanie, and have recently made a new addition to their household, Dylan. Paul and Heather also had a little baby girl on October 28, 2003.

Left: Brian with his first son, Dylan. Right: Paul and Heather with baby Beatrice.

And here's my favorite one: They both wore these adorable black-rimmed glasses between 1965-1966. (Check out the pictures!)

Here's some random pictures of Brian and Paul together in recent years...

See what I mean? It's a CONSPIRACY! There you have it, folks, the Paul McCartney-Brian Wilson conspiracy. Scares me to death. (If you have anything you'd like to add to the conspiracy, such as pictures, please e-mail me!)