Brian Wilson (album)

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Brian Wilson
Studio album by Brian Wilson
Released	July 12, 1988
Recorded	Summer 1987 - Spring 1988
Genre	Rock
Length	37:20
Label	Sire Records/ Rhino Records
Producer(s)	Brian Wilson, Russ Titelman, Jeff Lynne, Lenny Waronker and Andy Paley
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link
Brian Wilson chronology
	Brian Wilson (1988)	I Just Wasn't Made For These Times (1995)

Brian Wilson is the eponymous first solo album by Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys.

Wilson was signed to a solo recording contract with Sire Records in early 1987. The initial single released that April, "Let's Go To Heaven In My Car" (Brian Wilson/Gary Usher) b/w "Too Much Sugar", was not commercially successful, but Wilson proceeded to record a full album of new material.

The recording sessions, supervised by veteran producers like Russ Titelman and Lenny Waronker, were said to be contentious. Wilson's collaborators reportedly clashed with his controversial therapist, Dr. Eugene Landy.

After several months, Brian Wilson was complete and ready for release. "Love And Mercy" was its lead single, but despite its commercial quality and very contemporary sound, it didn't become a hit.

Brian Wilson was released in July 1988 to favorable reviews but reached only #54 on American charts. Two singles from the album, "Love And Mercy" and "Melt Away," sold poorly. A third, "Night Time," was released for promotional use only. In hindsight, while The Beach Boys' #1 smash, "Kokomo", indeed stole some of Wilson's thunder, he was likely more hurt by his publicly controversial relationship with the parasitic Landy. Initially, Landy and his girlfriend, Alexandra Morgan, even had their names included on some of the songs on Brian Wilson, but once he was successfully removed from Wilson's life in 1991, the credits were later revised to reflect their lack of involvement in Brian's songs.

In 2000, the album was reissued on Rhino Records with an extensive selection of bonus tracks.

[edit] Track listing

1. "Love And Mercy" (Brian Wilson*) – 2:56
2. "Walkin' The Line" (Brian Wilson/Nick Laird-Clowes) * – 2:38
3. "Melt Away" (Brian Wilson) * – 3:01
4. "Baby Let Your Hair Grow Long" (Brian Wilson) – 3:18
5. "Little Children" (Brian Wilson) – 1:49
6. "One For The Boys" (Brian Wilson) – 1:50
7. "There's So Many" (Brian Wilson) * – 2:47
8. "Night Time" (Brian Wilson/Andy Paley) * – 3:39
9. "Let It Shine" (Brian Wilson/Jeff Lynne) – 3:58
10. "Meet Me In My Dreams Tonight" (Brian Wilson/Andy Paley/Andy Dean) – 3:07
11. "Rio Grande" (Brian Wilson/Andy Paley) – 8:12

• * On the original release, Landy was given a cowriter's credit on these songs, and his reported girlfriend, Alexandra Morgan, was also co-credited on three of the songs. Those credits were removed on the 2000 rerelease, and are often regarded as spurious.

[edit] Singles

• "Love And Mercy" b/w "He Couldn’t Get His Poor Old Body To Move" (Sire 27814), 1 July 1988
• "Night Time" (Edit) b/w "Night Time" (LP Version) (Sire 7-27787-DJ) 1988
• "Melt Away" b/w "Being With The One You Love" (Sire 27694), 19 January 1989

[edit] Sources

• Brian Wilson CD booklet notes, David Leaf, c.2000
• "The Nearest Faraway Place: Brian Wilson, The Beach Boys and the Southern California Experience", Timothy White, c. 1994.

Brian Wilson
Studio Albums
Brian Wilson | I Just Wasn't Made for These Times | Imagination | Gettin' in Over My Head | Smile
Live Albums
Live at the Roxy Theatre | Pet Sounds Live
Christmas Albums
What I Really Want for Christmas
With Van Dyke Parks
Orange Crate Art
Related Articles
The Beach Boys