Fred Vail on Break Away and Murry Wilson

Posted on Forgotten Hits 

THE BEACH BOYS / BREAK AWAY

 {My comments/questions are in blue}

Kent @ FH>>>NOBODY was more surprised than ME to hear that BRIAN and MURRY actually COLLABORATED on writing one of MY favorite late-'60's BEACH BOYS' Hits, BREAK AWAY ... based on these two men barely speaking to each other for the previous four or five years, that was a HUGELY unexpected shock ... and musical reward. BREAK AWAY remains one of my all-time favorite BEACH BOYS tracks, grossly overlooked by oldies radio today. To MY ears, it ranks right up there with the very best of their CAPITOL output.

PHIL@ PFS>>>Regarding Break Away, it is one of my "5 Questions I Hope to Ask Brian Someday" -- Did Murry deliver the lyrics to Brian? Did they sit together at a piano and hammer the entire song out? Was crediting Reggie Dunbar as a co-writer and then leaking that it was Murry Wilson actually Brian's way of giving his dad a gift or a peace offering? IMHO, Break Away is only on the surface a message from the Beach Boys to Capitol Records as their contract ended and the suing ensued. I believe it is Brian declaring his need to break away from the control his father and the Beach Boys had over his life and his creative direction. (Phil Miglioratti / PrayForSurf.net)

Fred Vail>>>"Breakaway" is one of my 'all-time' favorite 'forgotten' tracks -- from the group's almost equally 'forgotten' Capitol album, "20/20." Murry and I produced that same song on a Durant, Oklahoma group, "The Parade," around 1970. Unfortunately, the group never got a deal and split up. However, one of the members, Gail Farrell, ended up a regular on the Lawrence Welk Show for many, many years! If anyone knows what happened to the other members of the band, including two brothers, and an additional man and woman (I remember two of the four names, Larry and Steve, but drawing a blank on the final two), by all means, let me know. (Fred Vail; "Music City, USA")

This whole BREAK AWAY / MURRY discussion sparked a few more questions ... so I put PHIL in contact with FRED VAIL ... and they've agreed to share their correspondence with our readers:

PHIL @ PFS>>> Fred, You may be the only person who can give accurate historical background to the single Break Away - I had hoped to ask Brian when he was in Chicago but did not have enough time with him. Your feedback is greatly appreciated --

• Brian claims that Murry Wilson (his father) presented him with the lyrics - Do you know if that is accurate?
• Is it possible that Brian wrote the music and the lyrics but added Reggie Dunbar as a nod to his dad; maybe a conciliatory gesture in their broken relationship?
• If written by Murry: Is the the first time Murry came to Brian with lyrics? If so, were others ignored? Rejected? Written but not recorded?
• Did Brian also participate in the writing of the lyrics? Did Murry assist in writing the melody / music?
• Do you know if Brian had already begun writing the song and simply used it for these lyrics?
• Regardless of who wrote the lyrics and the music, was the sole purpose of the song to fulfill a contractual obligation to Capitol or was it similar to Little Girl I Once Knew and Can't Wait Too Long (just great songs from Brian that were not necessarily album connected)?

Some commentators point out that, since the Beach Boys were suing Capitol and not renewing their contract, that the sub-text message of the song was related to the group breaking away to a new record company - Your opinion?

I have long suspected that, while Capitol may have missed the subtlety of the song's message, so did Murray (even if he wrote the lyrics!) and the Beach Boys ... It seems to me Brian is declaring his independence as a man from the studio control of Murry (probably declared earlier at the now famous Help Me Rhonda recording session) and as a musician. 

Several years earlier, through a nervous break down, Brian had painfully declared the end of his career as a performer, which he apparently liked least of all his roles, so he could concentrate on composing, recording, and producing groups in addition to the Beach Boys (he had produced other performers and groups since the beginning and was working with or about to work with Redwood (precursor to Three Dog Night) -- SO, what's the question? Who is breaking away and from whom?

• Any idea if the Beach Boys knew how good the song was or did they consider it a final contractual obligation they were just glad to get behind them?

Fred, we'd love any other information or personal opinion on this song or the time in the Beach Boys history that it was written and released?

(Phil Miglioratti / PrayForSurf.net)

Wow. That pretty much sounds like enough for a full edition of "FH!"

Ironically, I just got off the phone with a gentleman in London, England, who was asking essentially the same questions regarding Murry, BW, and 'the boys.' I told him pretty much what I can tell you (or anyone) on the subject. The Murry "I knew" is not the Murry depicted in some of the articles and books that I've read. However, I was not there in 1962, nor was I there in Hawthorne, in the late 40's, and 50's when some of these events were said to have happened.

• I was not in the backyard at 3701 West 119th Street when Murry was said to have tied Brian to a tree and beat him. 
• I was not at the family dinner table when, supposedily, BW put a turd on a plate and put it down in front of Murry.
• Nor was I with Murry when he (and / or his attorneys) negotiated the sale of "Sea of Tunes" to "Irving / Almo Music." I was only aware of it immediately after the deal went down. And, honestly, I don't recall BW being overly concerned at the time.

As to "Breakaway," again, I was not there with Brian when he was working on it, nor how the association or songwriting credit with Murry (i.e., Reggie) came about. Maybe it was a way for Brian to offer an olive branch of sorts -- to begin to reconcile with 'the old man.'

I can tell you, however, that Murry was much like my own father, the 'breadwinner' of the family. He was also a lot like a army drill sergeant. A very stern task master. When he offered to shake your hand, you felt it. It was a firm grip. When he patted you on the back -- in an effort to compliment you for a job well done -- it was also a firm gesture.

But he was always very honest and supportive of my efforts on behalf of 'the boys.' He always paid me well. He looked to me for advice in areas of touring, promotion, PR, and developing relations with radio broadcasters, deejays, music directors (even though -- in those early days -- it was typically the 'program director' you dealt with. The term "music director" had not come on the scene, as such).

Teen-agers have always 'known more than their parents.' It's a part of growing up. All of a sudden, when we graduate from high school, we 'know ALL the answers.' Moms and dads are old 'fuddy duddies.' That's a part of life, it's a phase we all have to go through. We've all been there, and, most likely now, as parents, we're looked at in exactly the same way by our own children.

Now, add to this that all of a sudden The Beach Boys -- certainly by the spring of 1964 -- are STARS. They have moved out of the family home, they're living in apartments in Hollywood, they're being written up in teen magazines, driving new cars, watching their records zoom up the charts, and have more money than they know what to do with (and, remember, this is before drugs, wives, homes in Beverly Hills, children and divorces take their toll on their income). It's ALL spendable money. If that's not enough reason to 'breakaway' from their parents, then nothing is.

As to the more specific questions regarding "Breakaway," again, I'll be honest with you. I was not there. For approximately three years -- the summer of 1966 to June 1969 -- I was not with the boys. I was working for Teen-Age Fair, Inc., a youth marketing company, traveling around the USA setting up teen fairs (youth expos) with radio stations. I was in Denver, CO, setting up a fair and working with Ken Palmer and KIMN Radio, when the group called me to ask if I'd consider coming back on board as a manager. So, 20/20 was already in release, and they were just about ready to begin work on "Sunflower," however, the record deal with Mo Ostin and Warner / Reprise had not been struck.

I visited with Murry and Audree from time to time while working in our offices on Ivar, but not frequently, and it was during this period that I turned Murry on to "The Parade," a group I'd heard in Vail, CO. He brought the band out to LA and they recorded "Breakaway" with Murry and I sharing production chores. Sadly, however, it was never released.

Sorry I can't add a whole lot more to the rest of your questions at the present time. Perhaps, after Christmas I can brain storm a bit more.

Fred

KK @ FH>>Thanks, FRED. When I read the part about a Colorado group called THE PARADE recording a version of BREAK AWAY, I contacted a couple of our "expert" Colorado sources (WILD BILL CODY and VEEDER VAN DORN of THE MOONRAKERS) to see if THEY could shed any light on this rare recording. Here's what I got from VAN DORN:

Hi Kent.

I haven't heard about a group called "The Parade" from Vail but if Fred knows them, they must be good. If you get a copy somewhere maybe you could put it up on Forgotten Hits. The Denver group I was in, The Surfin' Classics, actually "opened" the Casino Vail in around 1963. 

At that time downtown Vail had about five buildings in it, the Casino being the biggest one. Right around that time, The Surfin' Classics changed our name to The Moonrakers, flew out to LA and got our first recordings produced by Roger Christian and Richard Russell, and they got us on Tower Records, a subsidiary of Capital. 

Roger was famous at the time as a major LA disc jockey and also because he co-wrote Little Deuce Coupe, Shut Down, Spirit of America, and other songs with Brian Wilson, and Roger also had writing hits with Jan and Dean including Dead Man's Curve. I hope this helps and thanks for all the work and the research you're always doing. Forgotten Hits is always great Kent ... hey ... when are you going to offer a ForgottenHits T-Shirt? I WANT ONE ! ! Happy Holidays, Van Dorn The Moonrakers

LOL ... sorry, no T-Shirts yet!!! Sounds like we might be looking for something that doesn't actually exist ... shortly after I sent my inquiry off to you, I received THIS email from FRED VAIL:

Kent -

I just reread the earlier email that I sent you and "The Parade" must have not been the name of the group Murry and I worked on together. They were a 'struggling' band in CO, OK, prior to my meeting them in either '68 or '69. They were not a signed group, nor did they have a 'hit' single, even a regional one. I'll need to dig into my research a bit more on that one. I must have confused "The Parade" with another group name, as the group Murry and I worked with did not have a hit -- national or regional -- in 1967. Maybe someone can track down Gail Farrell (there is a street named for her in Durant, OK) and she what she recalls.

Fred Vail

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