Wouldn't It Have Been Nice: An Interview with Van Dyke Parks

VAN DYKE PARKS was the intellectual southerner who penned the baroque, cryptic lyrics for 'Surf's Up', 'Heroes and Villains' and other Brian Wilson masterpieces. He was also the scapegoat for the hostility of Mike Love and other Beach Boys towards Brian's new "ego music". Before the legendary Smile could be completed, he severed his ties to the group, disappearing into the desert to prepare his own Song Cycle album.