David Leaf (born April 20, 1952) is an American writer, director, and producer who is best known for his associations with
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson (June 20, 1942 – June 11, 2025) was an American musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often Brian Wilson is a genius, called a genius for his novel approaches to pop compositio ...
and
the Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...
since the late 1970s.
Leaf's 1978 biography, ''
The Beach Boys and the California Myth'', examined the behind-the-scenes tensions and family history that had never been previously covered publicly. According to music critic
Richie Unterberger
Richie Unterberger (born 1962) is an American author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing.
Life and writing
Unterberger attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he wrote for the university newspaper '' The Daily P ...
, Leaf was "the first author to write extensively, and honestly, about the Beach Boys."
Leaf also wrote the first authorized biography of the
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees
were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry Gibb, Barry, Robin Gibb, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in ...
.
His latest book, ''SMiLE: The Rise, Fall & Resurrection of Brian Wilson'', was released on April 15, 2025.
His honors include a Peabody and WGAW award. Since 2010, Leaf has been a professor at the
UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.
See also
* ''
An All-Star Tribute to Brian Wilson''
* ''
Beautiful Dreamer: Brian Wilson and the Story of Smile''
* ''
Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)?''
* ''
The U.S. vs. John Lennon''
* ''The Night James Brown Saved Boston''
References
External links
*
Harvey Kubernik interviews David Leaf"The Story and the Storyteller"
1952 births
American non-fiction writers
American documentary film directors
Living people
American publicists
{{US-journalist-1950s-stub