Pet Projects: The Brian Wilson Productions

by N/A

Overview

Brian Wilson did quite a bit of production work outside of his main gig with the Beach Boys, especially in the early to mid-'60s. This 23-track collection -- entirely drawn from pre-1966 releases, except for a 1969 single by the Honeys and a 1973 single by American Spring -- doesn't round up all of them, as some were unavailable for contractual reasons. But it's a good anthology of this facet of Wilson's career, with many obscure songs that are difficult to find and have been seldom reissued. As is usually the case for outside production/songwriting ventures by major stars, few of Wilson's non-Beach Boys ventures were hits, and in fact none of the items on this CD were. As is also usually the case in these situations, the material (frequently though not always written or co-written by Wilson) was more lightweight than what was being devised for the figure's principal project, the Beach Boys in Wilson's case. But this disc is still pretty enjoyable, featuring as it does a few genuinely outstanding cuts in which Wilson got to tinker with some production approaches. Foremost among these is Sharon Marie's 1964 Ronettes sound-alike single "Thinkin' Bout You Baby," which has a verse that was reworked with some changes to provide the Beach Boys' 1968 hit "Darlin'." Also of special note is Glen Campbell's 1965 single "Guess I'm Dumb," which has a confessional lyric and orchestral pop/rock production on par with the Beach Boys' own best album tracks of the period. Only slightly below this level is Gary Usher's 1964 single "Sacramento," which actually sounds a little more personal than much of the Beach Boys' output of that year. Brian Wilson himself is heard on the one-off 1964 single by the Survivors, with an A-side ("Pamela Jean") with an identical melody to that used for the Beach Boys' "Car Crazy Cutie," and an instrumental B-side ("After the Game") that's a vague forerunner of the lush instrumentals on Pet Sounds. The other tracks on this compilation are more frivolous, but they do testify to the large influence Phil Spector had on Wilson in the mid-'60s (particularly in the tracks by the Honeys). Other oddities of note are the Little Eva imitation by Rachel & the Revolvers; the 1973 Columbia single by American Spring, the band featuring Marilyn Rovell and Diane Rovell of the Honeys; and the cover of "Vegetables" (from the Beach Boys' Smiley Smile album) by the Laughing Gravy, a pseudonym for Dean Torrence of Jan & Dean. The ambitious package is tied together by excellent liner notes in a 20-page booklet. ~ Richie Unterberger

Product Details

Release Date:	02/07/2003
Label:	Ace
UPC:	0029667185127
Rank:	82159

Tracks

1. Run-Around Lover  -  Sharon Marie  - Brian Wilson
2. Thinkin' 'Bout You Baby  - Mike Love  -  Sharon Marie  - Brian Wilson
3. Pamela Jean  -  Survivors  - Brian Wilson
4. After the Game  -  Survivors  - Brian Wilson
5. Sacramento  - Gary Usher  - Brian Wilson
6. That's the Way I Feel  - Gary Usher
7. The One You Can't Have  -  Honeys  - Brian Wilson
8. Surfin' Down the Swanee River  -  Honeys
9. Summertime  - George Gershwin  - Ira Gershwin  - DuBose Heyward  -  Sharon Marie
10. Hide Go Seek  -  Honeys  - Brian Wilson
11. Shyin' Away  - Diane Rovell  - David Sandler  -  Spring  - Marilyn Wilson
12. Fallin' in Love  -  Spring  - Dennis Wilson
13. Pray for Surf  -  Honeys  - Diane Rovell
14. Shoot the Curl  -  Honeys  - Diane Rovell
15. Vegetables  -  Laughing Gravy  - Van Dyke Parks  - Brian Wilson
16. The Revo-Lution  -  Revolvers  - Gary Usher  - Brian Wilson
17. Number One  -  Revolvers  - Gary Usher  - Brian Wilson
18. She Rides With Me  - Roger Christian  - Paul Peterson  - Brian Wilson
19. Guess I'm Dumb  - Glen Campbell  - Russ Titelman  - Brian Wilson
20. Story of My Life  - Mike Love  -  Sharon Marie  - Brian Wilson
21. He's a Doll  -  Honeys  - Brian Wilson
22. Tonight You Belong to Me  -  Honeys  - David Lee  - Billy Rose
23. Goodnight My Love  -  Honeys  - John Marascalco  - George Motola

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Paul Petersen   Primary Artist
Honey   Primary Artist
American Spring   Primary Artist
Glen Campbell   Primary Artist
Laughing Gravy   Primary Artist
Rachel & the Revolvers   Primary Artist
Sharon Marie   Primary Artist
The Honeys   Primary Artist
Gary Usher   Primary Artist
The Survivors   Primary Artist
Spring   Primary Artist
The Revolvers   Primary Artist
Paul Peterson   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Marilyn Wilson   Composer
Chris Popham   Package Design
Diane Rovell   Composer
Roger Christian   Composer
David Lee   Composer
David Sandler   Composer
George Motola   Composer
Van Dyke Parks   Composer
Brian Wilson   Composer,Arranger
Mike Love   Composer
Nick Robbins   Mastering
Rob Finnis   Annotation
Dennis Wilson   Composer
DuBose Heyward   Composer
Ira Gershwin   Composer
George Gershwin   Composer
John Marascalco   Composer
Gary Usher   Composer
Russ Titelman   Composer
Billy Rose   Composer