Exactly. I don't think his playing ability has diminished, its more that he has people around him who are great players who can do it instead. If you watch the Smile documentary he did, there are some scenes of him playing "Rhapsody in Blue" and other various songs. He can definitely still play pretty well.

That he even attempted to finish2000
SMiLE
was a shock to many fans, including myself. Given his history, especially with the original recording of
SMiLE
, I wasn't at all surprised that Brian didn't fully participate in the recording of
BWPS
. I adore the man and his music, but I'm realistic enough accept the fact that he's not the confident, take-charge person he was more than 40 years ago. He's more comfortable with other musicians/vocalists performing the parts he would have done back then. And I must admit, even though I absolutely love the original recordings of
SMiLE
, the people he chose did it justice.