Album of the Week #17: Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin

[Deleted]

This week's album is Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin:

[kds]

I'd give this album a 6.5, rounded to 7. From a production standpoint, it's one of Brian's best solo albums. But, in general, I'm not big of cover albums. And while I recognize his genius, the music of Gerswhin just isn't in my wheelhouse.

Although, I'll say The Like In I Love You is amazing.

[Kapitan]

I'm going with an 8, which a little research confirms is the same thing I gave TLOS. It is probably the only Brian Wilson solo album to sound as good as or better than TLOS: it's really very beautifully arranged, produced, played, sung, recorded, and mixed. The material is unquestionably great, seeing as how it generally comprises American standards.

It's not perfect, though, by any means. The Beach Boys-via-Disney sound is predictable, maybe inescapable, but still a bit of a bummer. Some of the new lyrics are pretty embarrassing. Worst of all because I'd have hoped for so much better, "Rhapsody in Blue" is the worst singing on the album. Wall-o-Shouty-Brian. Ick.

But this is probably the best example of latter-day Brian's vocals. "I Loves You Porgy" is heart-wrenching, extremely sensitive and surprisingly nuanced. "It Ain't Necessarily So" is another one, a more exacting melody than Brian has nailed in recently, but he does it--with a bit of extra grit in all the right spots, too. His sweet voice is in full effect, too, with "Love Is Here to Stay," "Someone to Watch Over Me," and "I've Got a Crush on You."

"The Like in I Love You," dopey lyrics aside, is also a truly creative and gorgeous song. The vocal introduction over a string of ii-Vs is glorious Wilson.

Very good album, and easily the most natural sounding one.

[lonelysummer]

I really didn't expect to like this album. Nearly every BW solo album has been a disappointment. It's actually a very good listen - from a strictly sound point of view, it's possibly the best sounding BW solo album.

[Sheriff John Stone]

I had reservations about this album from the day the project was announced. Most of these tribute or concept albums centering around the Great American Songbook were undertaken by the absolute best vocalists of the day. Singers like Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Johnny Mathis, Jack Jones, Barbra Streisand, and Tony Bennett are the most prominent examples of singers who recorded this type of album. In my opinion, it takes an exceptional singer to do the material the justice it deserves. It takes a certain phrasing, a certain interpreting of the lyrics and arrangements, and a certain voice that obviously IMPRESSES by simply holding the necessary notes. In 2010, Brian Wilson was not that vocalist.

I think the Gershwin estate was about 45 years late with their choice. Brian Wilson back in 1964-67 would've nailed this project, both with his arrangements and vocals. The Brian Wilson of 2010? Not nearly as much. I know I'm in the minority with this, but I sometimes wonder if the representatives of George (and Ira?) Gershwin's estate who were charged with planning this project were actually aware of who/what they were getting with the "later" Brian Wilson. Were they  simply listening to Pet Sounds or "In My Room" or "The Warmth Of The Sum" or "Please Let Me Wonder" and thinking "We want THAT guy". Were they truly familiar with Brian Wilson's solo career? Which albums impressed them that they would recruit the 68 year-old Brian? What were they expecting?

Yes, Brian does some excellent singing on this album, at least for the the solo Brian. And, yes, some - some - of the arrangements are nice. I guess the album title "Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin" is an accurate title because a) it sounds like The Beach Boys covering Gershwin, and b) it definitely sounds like the solo Brian Wilson singing - NOT The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson singing Gershwin. And that's my problem with the album. Brian "Beach Boy'd" it. At least he was consistent. Every BW solo album was a continuation and recycling of Brian's previous work with The Beach Boys. He rarely, if ever, went out of the box, preferring to play it safe. Maybe he just didn't have it in him anymore...to go out of the box. Honestly, I thought, er, hoped he might with the Gershwin tracks. It's not that this music is bad. On the contrary, it's quite pleasant. Brian sings it well and the tracks are nice, clean interpretations. I just hear a little too many bass harmonicas, Spector saxophones, and the old Wilson harmony tricks (and by "tricks" I mean that in an affectionate way). Hey, where was the Sparklett's water jug? I can almost hear Paul Mertens saying, "Yeah, Brian, that's nice, but maybe we could try..."

Fourteen songs and two were short snippets. Was that enough music for a tribute album honoring a vast catalogue? Brian has spoken reverently about Gershwin's "Rhapsody In Blue" through the years, yet I found this version to be the weakest track on the album, almost off-putting. Highlights include "'S Wonderful", "Love Is Here To Stay", and "Some One To Watch Over Me". Brian sings the hell out of those. "The Like In I Love You" and "Nothing But Love" are good songs and well-performed, too. I'm curious what the Gershwin estate thought about them.

By this time, 2010, my fandom for Brian's solo career was starting to fade. Too many covers and re-recordings. What was the commercial and critical reception for this album? I know that Brian performed a track or two in his concerts for a short period. I'm assuming Brian was pleased with the results...I don't remember reading any comments from the Gershwin estate post-release. A rating? Based on the strength of Gershwin's songs and Brian's good vocals, but not enough "wows" with the music or overall feel of the album, I'll go with a 6. 

[bellbottoms]

I’m going with a 7.5, rounding up to an 8 because of how great this album sounds. It’s clear how much Brian loves these songs, he sings them wonderfully and a lot of care was taken with these arrangements. I can’t really call myself a Gershwin fan, but this album teeters on the edge of making me one, albeit through the Brian Wilson filter. I really, really like I Got Plenty o’ Nothin’, I Loves You Porgy, It Ain’t Necessarily So, Summertime, The Like in I Love You, and I LOVE his version of I Got Rhythm – I’m a sucker for the surfy vibe and the backing vocals on it.

[lonelysummer]

Nov 18, 2019 13:41:13 GMT Sheriff John Stone said:

I had reservations about this album from the day the project was announced. Most of these tribute or concept albums centering around the Great American Songbook were undertaken by the absolute best vocalists of the day. Singers like Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Johnny Mathis, Jack Jones, Barbra Streisand, and Tony Bennett are the most prominent examples of singers who recorded this type of album. In my opinion, it takes an exceptional singer to do the material the justice it deserves. It takes a certain phrasing, a certain interpreting of the lyrics and arrangements, and a certain voice that obviously IMPRESSES by simply holding the necessary notes. In 2010, Brian Wilson was not that vocalist.

I think the Gershwin estate was about 45 years late with their choice. Brian Wilson back in 1964-67 would've nailed this project, both with his arrangements and vocals. The Brian Wilson of 2010? Not nearly as much. I know I'm in the minority with this, but I sometimes wonder if the representatives of George (and Ira?) Gershwin's estate who were charged with planning this project were actually aware of who/what they were getting with the "later" Brian Wilson. Were they  simply listening to Pet Sounds or "In My Room" or "The Warmth Of The Sum" or "Please Let Me Wonder" and thinking "We want THAT guy". Were they truly familiar with Brian Wilson's solo career? Which albums impressed them that they would recruit the 68 year-old Brian? What were they expecting?

Yes, Brian does some excellent singing on this album, at least for the the solo Brian. And, yes, some - some - of the arrangements are nice. I guess the album title "Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin" is an accurate title because a) it sounds like The Beach Boys covering Gershwin, and b) it definitely sounds like the solo Brian Wilson singing - NOT The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson singing Gershwin. And that's my problem with the album. Brian "Beach Boy'd" it. At least he was consistent. Every BW solo album was a continuation and recycling of Brian's previous work with The Beach Boys. He rarely, if ever, went out of the box, preferring to play it safe. Maybe he just didn't have it in him anymore...to go out of the box. Honestly, I thought, er, hoped he might with the Gershwin tracks. It's not that this music is bad. On the contrary, it's quite pleasant. Brian sings it well and the tracks are nice, clean interpretations. I just hear a little too many bass harmonicas, Spector saxophones, and the old Wilson harmony tricks (and by "tricks" I mean that in an affectionate way). Hey, where was the Sparklett's water jug? I can almost hear Paul Mertens saying, "Yeah, Brian, that's nice, but maybe we could try..."

Fourteen songs and two were short snippets. Was that enough music for a tribute album honoring a vast catalogue? Brian has spoken reverently about Gershwin's "Rhapsody In Blue" through the years, yet I found this version to be the weakest track on the album, almost off-putting. Highlights include "'S Wonderful", "Love Is Here To Stay", and "Some One To Watch Over Me". Brian sings the hell out of those. "The Like In I Love You" and "Nothing But Love" are good songs and well-performed, too. I'm curious what the Gershwin estate thought about them.

By this time, 2010, my fandom for Brian's solo career was starting to fade. Too many covers and re-recordings. What was the commercial and critical reception for this album? I know that Brian performed a track or two in his concerts for a short period. I'm assuming Brian was pleased with the results...I don't remember reading any comments from the Gershwin estate post-release. A rating? Based on the strength of Gershwin's songs and Brian's good vocals, but not enough "wows" with the music or overall feel of the album, I'll go with a 6. 

I wonder how Carl would have sounded singing these songs? 

[Kapitan]

In 2010? Probably not much different than Brian did.

To expand on that, I’m sure he would have better diction than Brian, that’s a given. But let’s not over-romanticize. Carl would also have been older, and he was a heavy smoker (and no stranger to other substances that don’t help the voice). Add in that he didn’t so far as I know have any particular emotional connection to Gershwin the way Brian apparently does, and I don’t think it would have been all THAT different.

[Sheriff John Stone]

Nov 20, 2019 12:38:03 GMT Kapitan said:

In 2010? Probably not much different than Brian did.

Ba dum tish (drum roll)

[lonelysummer]

Nov 20, 2019 12:38:03 GMT Kapitan said:

In 2010? Probably not much different than Brian did.

To expand on that, I’m sure he would have better diction than Brian, that’s a given. But let’s not over-romanticize. Carl would also have been older, and he was a heavy smoker (and no stranger to other substances that don’t help the voice). Add in that he didn’t so far as I know have any particular emotional connection to Gershwin the way Brian apparently does, and I don’t think it would have been all THAT different.

Carl's voice never seemed to suffer, though. Even in the clip from one of his last shows, his voice is still pure and beautiful. 
BTW, George Benson has an album out now of him doing Chuck Berry and Fats Domino songs. I need to track that down. I can't quite imagine him singing Chuck's songs, except maybe a few of the bluesier tunes, like Wee Wee Hours. 

[Kapitan]

I think his voice was changing, if not as dramatically as Brian’s obviously did. But no one is immune from aging, and had he not died, he (by definition) would have aged. His voice would have suffered, and his habits would’ve contributed.

Al lived more cleanly than Carl, and despite the “my golly gosh, he sounds identical to 1965” hallucinations of some of our fellow fans, Al’s voice is diminished. So, too, would have Carl’s. Probably more.

[Sheriff John Stone]

I think Carl was a long way from his voice deteriorating when he passed away. His previous/last few Beach Boys' albums - The Beach Boys 1985, Still Cruisin', and Summer In Paradise were among his best despite the subpar material. Also, Carl's vocal contributions to the Beckley-Lamm-Wilson album were top notch, too. Granted, those albums were a few years before Carl died in 1998, but really, I didn't hear much slippage.

The problem (at least I perceived it as a problem) with Orange Crate Art, BWPS, and Reimagines Gershwin was that those albums were personal to Brian - or so he said. He was helping out his old friend, Van Dyke Parks, with Orange Crate Art. With BWPS, he was finally addressing something that was "hanging over his head" for decades, or so they would like us to believe. And Brian also expressed how important Gershwin's music was to him. Brian didn't really have a choice (well, really he did); he had to sing the songs on those albums. While most in the Beach Boys' circle could've done a better job vocally (including Carl if was still alive), it would've been extremely awkward for Brian to turn over those vocal duties.

It would be interesting to speculate or predict what Brian might've done with BWPS and some of his other solo albums if Carl had lived. The impact of Carl's death in the Beach Boys' post-1998 history cannot be underestimated.

[B.E.]

Their relationship could have changed, but as it was I don't think there's any reason to believe that Carl would have worked with Brian outside of the Beach Boys (beyond a one-off here or there).

[Sheriff John Stone]

I have to think Brian and Carl's relationship would've mended somewhat, though to what extent I can't say. For many years, Carl was involved in Brian's personal life due to Brian's need for a conservator or a conservator-type person (like Dr. Landy). When Brian married Melinda, the need for a conservator was no longer in play with Melinda filling that role.

Would've Carl filled a role on Brian's solo albums occasionally like Al did on No Pier Pressure? If Carl had lived, obviously everything would've played out differently, but it would've been strange for Brian to choose/recruit Al over Carl for "guest vocalist" duties.

[Kapitan]

Who knows? It’s really hard to guess, because so much of the BB world could’ve gone differently. Maybe a healthy Carl hangs on to Al in the band in the first place and he never ends up with Brian. Maybe as Brian becomes more comfortable on the road the reunion happens in 2000ish rather than 2012. Maybe something altogether different. Impossible for us to do more than weave our own little hypotheticals.