Playback: The Brian Wilson Anthology

by Brian Wilson

Overview

Playback: The Brian Wilson Anthology is the first-ever compilation concentrating on Brian Wilson's solo career, and given that his discography is a bit unwieldy, it's not a surprise that Playback is a bit misshapen. Over the course of 18 tracks, Playback samples from nearly every record Wilson released between his eponymous 1988 solo debut and 2015's No Pier Pressure, adding two unreleased tracks -- the brand-new surf tune "Run James Run" and the nice, effervescent Andy Paley '90s collaboration "Some Sweet Day" -- for good measure. Wilson's difficult '90s in general are glossed over -- Orange Crate Art, his 1995 collaboration with Van Dyke Parks, isn't represented here, nor are any of his Don Was-produced Beach Boys covers from I Just Wasn't Made for These Times -- represented by two cuts from Imagination ("Cry," "Lay Down Burden"), which means this is anchored by the 1988 album and the flood of albums released after his touring comeback in the early 2000s. These live shows are represented by two selections from 2000's Live at the Roxy Theatre, and they sit alongside two cuts from his 2004 completion of SMiLE ("Heroes and Villains," "Surf's Up," both originally cut with the Beach Boys and the best-known things here by some margin) and a song apiece from his tributes to Gershwin and Disney, along with cuts from Gettin' in Over My Head (2004), That Lucky Old Sun (2008), and No Pier Pressure (2015). All of these cuts are presented in a sequence that quickly slides from logical -- "Love and Mercy," his best and, thanks to the 2015 biopic of the same name, best-known solo song opens up the proceedings, followed by the SMiLE material -- into a haphazard flow resembling a shuffle play. Instead of highlighting Wilson's musical consistency, this sequencing shows how he could succumb to bad production ideas of the day while remaining singularly obsessed with the past. In that sense, it's a representative collection because it offers gems as it rambles through a series of left-hand turns and is ultimately endearing, not frustrating. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	09/22/2017
Label:	Rhino
UPC:	0081227937409
Rank:	86820

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Love and Mercy
2. Surf's Up
3. Heroes and Villains
4. Melt Away
5. Let It Shine
6. Some Sweet Day
7. Rio Grande
8. Cry

Disc 2

9. Lay Down Burden
10. The First Time
11. This Isn't Love
12. Soul Searchin'
13. Gettin' in Over My Head
14. The Like in I Love You
15. Midnight's Another Day
16. Colors of the Wind
17. One Kind of Love
18. Run James Run

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Brian Wilson   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Andy Paley   Composer,Producer
Scott Bennett   Composer
George Gershwin   Composer
Jeff Lynne   Composer,Producer
Mark London   Photography,Art Direction,Package Design
Mark Linett   Mixing,Engineer,Supervisor,Audio Production
Peter Fletcher   Compilation Producer
Alan Menken   Composer
Brian Wilson   Arranger,Composer,Producer,Vocal Arrangement
Stephen Schwartz   Composer
Van Dyke Parks   Composer
Jason Reynolds   Product Manager
Rachel Gutek   Design
Eugene E. Landy   Composer
Robert Matheu   Photography
Lisa Peardon   Photography
Russ Titleman   Producer
Scott Levitin   Mastering
Joe Thomas   Arranger,Composer,Producer
Susanne Savage   Project Assistant
Veronica Gonzalez   Project Assistant
Tony Asher   Composer
Kate Dear   Project Assistant
Darcy Hemley   Photography
Garrett Graveline   Project Assistant