matter. Style and production Iowa sessions To satisfy the terms of their contracts with Warner and CBS, the Beach Boys intended to record two albums – one for Warner and the other for CBS – at Maharishi International University in Fairfield, Iowa. Mike chose this venue to keep members of the band away from their drug suppliers in Los Angeles. At MIU, the group and their family members took residence in the university's circular dorm rooms, and attended meditation classes and meetings. The recording sessions lasted from November 7 to December 4, 1977. AFM documentation indicates that Carl visited on two days, while Dennis, who was busy promoting his solo album Pacific Ocean Blue, played drums on an early session for "She's Got Rhythm". The album was produced by Al Jardine and, from the group's touring band, keyboardist Ron Altbach. Gaines writes that the atmosphere was similar to when the group recorded their 1973 album Holland, "only worse." According to Love, Carl and Dennis "took the whole experience [...] as a personal affront, and they came and went with little interest in the music. Brian was with us but miserable throughout." Brian's bodyguard Stan Love described the overall proceedings as "torture. Agony. Like being put right in the middle of nowhere, frozen and cold and small, with only one decent restaurant in town. Brian was putting in his time, but he wasn't too happy. He was depressed and on medication. We passed the time playing Ping-Pong." Stan added that Wilson did not want to produce his bandmates because he resented them personally. In particular, "Brian didn't want to write with [Mike] anymore, but of course Mike tried to hang on, doing his arrogant pressure trip on him." In a 1995 interview, Brian stated that he could not remember making the album, claiming that he had gone through a "mental blank-out" during this period. He was credited as the album's "executive producer", but according to biographer Peter Ames Carlin, the credit was likely for contractual reasons. Carlin characterizes the record as having "a generic easy-listening sound, heavy on the tinkly keyboards and sweeping strings, with nary a trace of Brian's ear for quirky texture." It included the Love You outtake "My Diane", sung by Dennis, and written by Brian as an expression of anguish following the end of his affair with his sister-in-law, Diane Rovell. The song "Kona Coast" has references