{"id":7826,"date":"2016-04-22T05:33:05","date_gmt":"2016-04-22T13:33:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/?p=7826"},"modified":"2016-04-22T07:52:50","modified_gmt":"2016-04-22T15:52:50","slug":"was-i-write-the-songs-written-about-brian-wilson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/2016\/04\/22\/was-i-write-the-songs-written-about-brian-wilson\/","title":{"rendered":"Was &#8220;I Write the Songs&#8221; Written About Brian Wilson?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Here is the latest in a series of examinations into urban legends about music and whether they are true or false. Click <a href=\"http:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/2009\/04\/19\/movie-legends-revealed-history\/\">here<\/a> to view an archive of the movie urban legends featured so far.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><span style=\"font-weight: bold\">MUSIC URBAN LEGEND<\/span><\/span>: &#8220;I Write the Songs&#8221; was written about Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys.<\/p>\n<p>One of the great pop music ironies is that Barry Manilow&#8217;s classic hit song, &#8220;I Write the Songs,&#8221; was not actually written BY Manilow.<\/p>\n<p><center><a href=\"http:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/I_Write_the_Songs_cover.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"http:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/I_Write_the_Songs_cover.jpg\" alt=\"I_Write_the_Songs_cover\" width=\"220\" height=\"221\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-7827\" srcset=\"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/I_Write_the_Songs_cover.jpg 220w, https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/I_Write_the_Songs_cover-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 220px) 100vw, 220px\" \/><\/a><iframe style=\"width:120px;height:240px;\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" src=\"\/\/ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com\/widgets\/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&#038;OneJS=1&#038;Operation=GetAdHtml&#038;MarketPlace=US&#038;source=ac&#038;ref=qf_sp_asin_til&#038;ad_type=product_link&#038;tracking_id=legenrevea-20&#038;marketplace=amazon&#038;region=US&#038;placement=B00137SQVO&#038;asins=B00137SQVO&#038;linkId=Y4KVOVMPMZ3O6OF7&#038;show_border=true&#038;link_opens_in_new_window=true\"><br \/>\n<\/iframe><\/center><\/p>\n<p>It was something that Manilow was worried about at the time, initially not wanting to record the song for that very reason, also stating that &#8220;It could be misinterpreted as a monumental ego trip.&#8221; But record it he did and it became a major success and perhaps his most famous song.<\/p>\n<p>The song was written by Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys (he had left the band for a time in the early 1970s, and that was when he wrote the song in 1975). So was the song really, then, written as a tribute to the genius of Brian Wilson, the famed songwriter for the Beach Boys?<br \/>\n<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>Johnston, who wrote the song originally for Captain and Tennille, was once quoted as saying &#8221; &#8220;I guess it&#8217;s pretty obvious that I wrote the song about Brian Wilson.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>That would seem to settle the issue, right?<\/p>\n<p>However, a few things.<\/p>\n<p>1. I have never seen a good source for that quote.<br \/>\n2. I HAVE seen a source on Johnston writing in to SongFacts to say the following:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p> I never wrote &#8216;I Write The Songs&#8217; about Brian Wilson. I wrote it about &#8216;where music comes from&#8217; (for me, music comes only from God). My song has nothing to do with Brian! I admire Brian Wilson&#8217;s great melodies and, as a member of the Beach Boys, I&#8217;m singing these fantastic songs in concert year after year.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>3. Really, just look at the lyrics:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>I&#8217;ve been alive forever<br \/>\nAnd I wrote the very first song<br \/>\nI put the words and the melodies together<br \/>\nI am music and I write the songs<br \/>\nI write the songs that make the whole world sing<br \/>\nI write the songs of love and special things<br \/>\nI write the songs that make the young girls cry<br \/>\nI write the songs, I write the songs<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>It sure doesn&#8217;t sound like it is written about a person now, does it? <\/p>\n<p>I tend, then, to believe that it was not written about Wilson, so I&#8217;m going with the legend as&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><u><span style=\"font-weight: bold\">STATUS<\/span><\/u>: False<\/p>\n<p>Thanks to Bruce Johnston and SongFacts.com for the information!<\/p>\n<p>Feel free (heck, I implore you!) to write in with your suggestions for future urban legends columns! My e-mail address is &#x62;&#x63;&#x72;&#x6f;&#x6e;&#x69;&#x6e;&#x40;&#x6c;&#x65;&#x67;&#101;&#110;&#100;&#115;revealed.&#x63;&#x6f;&#x6d;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here is the latest in a series of examinations into urban legends about music and whether they are true or false. Click here to view an archive of the movie urban legends featured so far. MUSIC URBAN LEGEND: &#8220;I Write the Songs&#8221; was written about Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys. One of the great [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7MjBq-22e","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7616,"url":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/2016\/02\/09\/was-the-hit-1980s-song-maniac-originally-written-about-a-serial-killer\/","url_meta":{"origin":7826,"position":0},"title":"Was the Hit 1980s Song &#8220;Maniac&#8221; Originally Written About a Serial Killer?","date":"February 9, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is the latest in a series of examinations into urban legends about music and whether they are true or false. Click here to view an archive of the movie urban legends featured so far. MUSIC URBAN LEGEND: \"Maniac\" was originally written about a serial killer. \"Maniac\" was a major\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Music Legends Revealed&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"maniac","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/maniac-375x375.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4148,"url":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/2012\/12\/04\/did-paul-mccartney-write-a-hit-song-under-a-pseudonym-to-see-if-he-could-have-a-hit-on-talent-alone\/","url_meta":{"origin":7826,"position":1},"title":"Did Paul McCartney Write a Hit Song Under a Pseudonym to See if He Could Have a Hit on Talent Alone?","date":"December 4, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is the latest in a series of examinations into urban legends about music and whether they are true or false. Click here to view an archive of the music urban legends featured so far. MUSIC URBAN LEGEND: Paul McCartney once used a pseudonym for a song to see if\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Music Legends Revealed&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4830,"url":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/2013\/06\/18\/did-joe-walsh-use-morse-code-to-sneak-hidden-messages-into-some-songs\/","url_meta":{"origin":7826,"position":2},"title":"Did Joe Walsh Use Morse Code to Sneak Hidden Messages Into Some Songs?","date":"June 18, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is the latest in a series of examinations into urban legends about music and whether they are true or false. Click here to view an archive of the music urban legends featured so far. MUSIC URBAN LEGEND: Joe Walsh sneaked hidden messages via Morse Code into a couple of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Music Legends Revealed&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5427,"url":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/2013\/11\/15\/did-giorgio-moroder-write-danger-zone-and-take-my-breath-away-with-his-former-mechanic\/","url_meta":{"origin":7826,"position":3},"title":"Did Giorgio Moroder Write &#8220;Danger Zone&#8221; and &#8220;Take My Breath Away&#8221; with his Former Mechanic?","date":"November 15, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is the latest in a series of examinations into urban legends about movies and whether they are true or false. Click here to view an archive of the movie urban legends featured so far. MUSIC URBAN LEGEND: Giorgio Moroder wrote \"Danger Zone\" and \"Take My Breath Away\" with his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Music Legends Revealed&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6639,"url":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/2015\/07\/09\/was-the-first-published-song-about-baseball-written-before-the-civil-war\/","url_meta":{"origin":7826,"position":4},"title":"Was the First Published Song About Baseball Written Before the Civil War?","date":"July 9, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is the latest in a series of examinations into urban legends about music and whether they are true or false. Click here to view an archive of the movie urban legends featured so far. MUSIC\/BASEBALL URBAN LEGEND: The first published baseball song pre-dates the Civil War! \"Take Me Out\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Music Legends Revealed&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"baseball-polka","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/baseball-polka.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7956,"url":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/2016\/05\/24\/did-bob-dylan-really-write-a-hard-rains-a-gonna-fall-about-the-cuban-missile-crisis\/","url_meta":{"origin":7826,"position":5},"title":"Did Bob Dylan Really Write &#8220;A Hard Rain&#8217;s a-Gonna Fall&#8221; About the Cuban Missile Crisis?","date":"May 24, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Here is the latest in a series of examinations into urban legends about music and whether they are true or false. Click here to view an archive of the movie urban legends featured so far. MUSIC URBAN LEGEND: Bob Dylan wrote \"A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall\" about the Cuban Missile\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Music Legends Revealed&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"bobdylanhardrain","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/bobdylanhardrain-369x550.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7826"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7826"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7826\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7832,"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7826\/revisions\/7832"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/legendsrevealed.com\/entertainment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}