Article: RETURN OF THE BEACH BOYS; After years of misery fuelled by drugs and mental illness, pop genius Brian Wilson talks for the first time about his torment...

Byline: GRACE BRADBERRY

TO MEET Brian Wilson is to bear witness to a miracle of sorts. If ever a pop star seemed destined to die young, it was him. He was the driving force behind the Beach Boys, the group who turned the California coast into a symbol of youth, innocence and fun, with songs such as Surfin' U.S.A. and Fun, Fun, Fun.

He was hailed a musical genius for their now classic album, Pet Sounds, but then, in what seemed the archetypal pop tragedy, he appeared to become utterly and completely mentally unhinged, an early casualty of the rock'n'roll phenomenon.

For years he barely got out of bed and, on a diet of junk food and two-steak ...

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