Rating: 
Summary: Forever Young
Review: Dennis Wilson: The Real Beach Boy is an honest view of a man who, for most of his life, was unappreciated and extremely underrated both in his personal and professional lives. It is not just a chronology of his life or a list of his exploits. Other books and magazines did that years ago. This book is an insight into the man himself and the music within him. Jon Stebbins's style of writing drew me into the story, sent me back to my youth and reminded me why Dennis Wilson and his music meant so much to me. Dennis has been gone for over 16 years. It's about time everyone knew who he really was. Dennis Wilson: The Real Beach Boy has the blessings of those who knew Denny best and loved him most, his friends, his family and his fans. It is a "must read" if you think you knew the Beach Boys. Especially if you think Dennis was just the drummer.
Rating: 
Summary: The Real Beach Boy
Review: Dennis Wilson: The Real Beach Boy is an honest view of a man who, for most of his life, was unappreciated and extremely underrated both in his personal and professional lives. It is not just a chronology of his life or a list of his exploits. Other books and magazines did that years ago. This book is an insight into the man himself and the music within him. Jon Stebbins's style of writing drew me into the story, sent me back to my youth and reminded me why Dennis Wilson and his music meant so much to me. Dennis has been gone for over 16 years. It's about time everyone knew who he really was. Dennis Wilson: The Real Beach Boy has the blessings of those who knew Denny best and loved him most, his friends, his family and his fans. It is a "must read" if you think you knew the Beach Boys. Especially if you think Dennis was just the drummer.
Rating:
Summary: Surfer Girl From London
Review: Great writing, wonderful photos - it is so good to see Denny get credit for his incredible contribution to this wonderful music.
Rating:
Summary: Warts-and-all tale of the Beach Boys' "fossil fuel"
Review: Having just read this book for, what, the third time, I was struck by the author's effort to portray every aspect of the Beach Boys' only genuine surfer. Dennis Wilson lived large, and was rarely accorded the respect he deserved as his musical gifts as a solo artist emerged and matured. I did not find a copy of his 1977 album "Pacific Ocean Blue," or the posthumous release of "Bamboo" until after reading Stebbins' book. These albums should be re-released so that they may reach a wider audience of Dennis' fans, old and new. The tragedy of Dennis Wilson's death at thirty-nine was not unexpected, given his long and tortuous history of substance abuse. However, Stebbins neither over- or underdramatizes Denny's demons, including his passing friendship with the Charles Manson family (who systematically drained Wilson of more than $100,000). Had Wilson lived longer, who knows what artistic heights he might have scaled? However, we should be grateful that he blazed across the American music scene like a comet, and that its glow is still with us. Stebbins deserves a lot of credit for assembling such vivid interviews with those close to Dennis, most of which were not drawn from other Beach Boys biographies/hagiographies.
Rating:
Summary: Warts-and-all tale of the Beach Boys' "fossil fuel"
Review: Having just read this book for, what, the third time, I was struck by the author's effort to portray every aspect of the Beach Boys' only genuine surfer. Dennis Wilson lived large, and was rarely accorded the respect he deserved as his musical gifts as a solo artist emerged and matured. I did not find a copy of his 1977 album "Pacific Ocean Blue," or the posthumous release of "Bamboo" until after reading Stebbins' book. These albums should be re-released so that they may reach a wider audience of Dennis' fans, old and new. The tragedy of Dennis Wilson's death at thirty-nine was not unexpected, given his long and tortuous history of substance abuse. However, Stebbins neither over- or underdramatizes Denny's demons, including his passing friendship with the Charles Manson family (who systematically drained Wilson of more than $100,000). Had Wilson lived longer, who knows what artistic heights he might have scaled? However, we should be grateful that he blazed across the American music scene like a comet, and that its glow is still with us. Stebbins deserves a lot of credit for assembling such vivid interviews with those close to Dennis, most of which were not drawn from other Beach Boys biographies/hagiographies.
Rating:
Summary: Dennis Wilson Forever
Review: I have waited so long for this book. Finally somebody has given Dennis Wilson the kind of in depth treatment he deserves. The photos are glorious and the writing is fascinating. I think any fan of rock music will adore this book. Its one of the best I've read. Great job Mr. Stebbins!
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting......but too much Jon Stebbins.....
Review: i liked this book, it was a good read and it certainly helped me to appreciate and understand Dennis Wilson more than I did before i read it...but while I understand that Mr. Stebbins met Dennis in 1978 and that he made quite an impression, i felt like there were too many instances of personal opinion floating around in the text...i mean its obvious that he liked Dennis, hated Mike Love, had respect for Brian until the Landy years, etc....when i read a biography i don't mind a little bias and opinion but not so much that it is overwhelmingly noticeable...worth the read, but not what i was expecting.....
Rating:
Summary: Interesting subject but not fully explored
Review: I really looked forward to this book as I liked the Beach Boys and particularly, Dennis. I learned quite a bit in this book such as Dennis was broke and kicked out of the band a fair amount of the time, his relationship with Christy McVie, his feuds with Mike Love. But I struggled with some of the organization and the lack of depth on some of the material. For example, most of the first part of the book explores the music of the Beach Boys somewhat chronologically. There is some personal development also in these early chapters but not full developed. Then it has a chapter on Charlie Manson afterwhich it goes mainly into his demise and problems with the Beach Boys later in his career. My main complaint was the lack of information about his personal life. His first wife is mentioned as well as the kids but no real development of the relationship other than implying infidelities of a rock star. The same also applies for his last wife. There was more information about his middle wife, Karen Lamm. She is so beautiful, I wish there were more pictures of her as well as other personal pictures. Most of the pictures were just of the Beach Boys. I did learn a lot about his music development and obviously the author has a strong background in music. And I also learned enough about Dennis personally that I would recommend the book. However, it could have been so much better with more in-depth journalism into his other personal relationships. He is clearly a fascinating subject.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting subject but not fully explored
Review: I really looked forward to this book as I liked the Beach Boys and particularly, Dennis. I learned quite a bit in this book such as Dennis was broke and kicked out of the band a fair amount of the time, his relationship with Christy McVie, his feuds with Mike Love. But I struggled with some of the organization and the lack of depth on some of the material. For example, most of the first part of the book explores the music of the Beach Boys somewhat chronologically. There is some personal development also in these early chapters but not full developed. Then it has a chapter on Charlie Manson afterwhich it goes mainly into his demise and problems with the Beach Boys later in his career. My main complaint was the lack of information about his personal life. His first wife is mentioned as well as the kids but no real development of the relationship other than implying infidelities of a rock star. The same also applies for his last wife. There was more information about his middle wife, Karen Lamm. She is so beautiful, I wish there were more pictures of her as well as other personal pictures. Most of the pictures were just of the Beach Boys. I did learn a lot about his music development and obviously the author has a strong background in music. And I also learned enough about Dennis personally that I would recommend the book. However, it could have been so much better with more in-depth journalism into his other personal relationships. He is clearly a fascinating subject.
Rating:
Summary: Best Book about Denny so far!
Review: I was only a casual fan of the Beach Boys...more of a Beatle, Byrd, CSN, Eagles-type musically, but as of late have become very appreciative of the middle era of the Beach Boys. I picked up this book because I like the "Real Beach Boy" title and because a friend of mine had meet Dennis one year while skiing up in Utah and said what a nice guy he was. Of all the Beach Boys, Dennis was the most colorful and the one who would make for the most interesting story. The author did a fabulous job making this such an enjoyable and well-researched read. I wish there was a way to hear some of the music that Dennis recorded, but I don't think they are on CD. Anyways, if you are a fan of surfing, music, or the California sound, then this is a book worth reading. The Beatle and the Stones got so much more adultation, when here underneath our noses in Southern California was a band (especially creatively) that was a near equal.
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