H E A R__I T

"Wouldn't it be Nice"
The Beach Boys
(672k)

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T A B L E__T A L K

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R E C E N T L Y

G-Love and Special Sauce
Yeah, It's That Easy
Okeh/Epic
(11/11/97)

Jon Nakamatsu, Gold Medalist
Tenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Harmonia Mundi
(11/10/97)

Various Artists
Great Jewish Music: Serge Gainsbourg
Tzadik
(11/07/97)

Various Artists
Live from 6A
Mercury
Live on Letterman
Reprise
(11/06/97)

Rolling Stones
Bridges to Babylon
Virgin
Elton John
The Big Picture
Rocket Records
Genesis
Calling All Stations
Atlantic
(11/05/97)

BROWSE THE
MUSIC ARCHIVES

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V O W E L L

Sound Salvation
By Sarah Vowell
Stop the violins!
(10/31/97)

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F E A T U R E

The gospel according to Paul
By Mark Hertsgaard
His authorized biography makes a convincing case that Paul Mccartney, derided as a pretty-boy lightweight, stood equal with John Lennon in creating some of the most important and beloved music of the 20th century.
(11/12/97)

BRIAN WILSON AND MIKE LOVE

All of which the casual listener can experience on the tremendous 1991 reissue of the album, which is a far sight more affordable than Capitol's new three-disc package, "The Pet Sounds Sessions." But the frantically anticipated (and widely bootlegged) box set of alternate takes, session experiments and remixes does much more than just cannibalize the cutting room floor. The "pocket symphonies" that Wilson put together are revelatory in their own right, and clue the listener in to a genius at work. Like studying Michelangelo's sketches for the Sistine Chapel or reading James Joyce's work notes for "Ulysses," listening to "The Pet Sounds Sessions" is no substitute for experiencing the final result. But the sheer overflow of creativity that populates the set's three-and-a-half hours are revelatory and illuminating on a new and entirely different level.

Perhaps most thrilling is the gift that opens the set: a lovingly constructed stereo mix of the full album. Wilson, mostly deaf in his right ear (purportedly due to his abusive father boxing his ears repeatedly during childhood), recorded exclusively in mono; in stereo, the washes of instruments gain a new reach and power, from the trademark drum bang that opens "Wouldn't it Be Nice" to the harpsichord, saxophones and flutes that fill out the touching closer, "Caroline, No." Contrariwise, a complete a cappella version of the album is utterly heartbreaking, the group sounding like monks in a cloister, making lush hymns and chants out of "God Only Knows" and "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)." Listening to them is a bit like peering inside a grandfather clock: The construction of its mechanisms has its own particular beauty.

The set also validates Wilson as a compositional genius. Numerous biographies on the band have characterized him as a hair's breadth away from madness, somewhat reflected in his request on an outtake to bring a horse into a studio for the recordings. But more often than not, Wilson emerges simply as an extremely wise conductor, a 23-year-old making music years beyond him. An outtake of the instrumental "Let's Go Away For a While" included here tells some of the tale. Take 1 starts off sounding like the familiar version, but when the horns begin to rise up a few bars in, something sounds bloated, forced and kitschy. Wilson stops the session musicians and solves the problem with a two-word request: "No drums." The work tapes of "Good Vibrations" (recorded at the same time as "Pet Sounds," but released separately) are likewise revealing, with Wilson guiding the organ, bass, strings and theremin into their proper places, transforming what could easily have been an ugly mess into one of pop's greatest singles. Calling Wilson insane makes for a great story, but the Wilson that appears here is merely diligent.

Apart from the music itself, the set's packaging has plenty to satisfy the "Pet Sounds" obsessive. A lengthy booklet features interviews with many of the performers and producers involved in the record, while a second set of liner notes adds a few fawning essays as well as the touching series of Doonesbury strips regarding the record that ran in 1991. For the true Beach Boys fan, it's more than one could ever dream of. But that the reworked music of "Pet Sounds" is so wondrously varied, so thrilling, so listenable in and of itself -- that's the real dream come true.
SALON | Nov. 12, 1997