Brian Wilson (album)
| Brian Wilson | ||||
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| Studio album by Brian Wilson | ||||
| Released | July 12, 1988 | |||
| Recorded | April 1987 – May 1988 | |||
| Genre | Progressive pop | |||
| Length | 37:20 | |||
| Label | Sire/Reprise/Warner Bros. Records 25669 | |||
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| Brian Wilson chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Brian Wilson | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
| Entertainment Weekly | A |
| The Guardian | (positive) |
| Robert Christgau | B− |
| Rolling Stone | |
Brian Wilson is the eponymous debut studio album by Brian Wilson released in July 1988 on Sire Records. It was voted one of the best albums of 1988 by NME, and as part of its acclaim, garnered the nickname "Pet Sounds '88" among some critics. The album has since been reissued on several formats with bonus tracks, and cited by some as a standout in Wilson's solo oeuvre.
The album, which cost $1 million to produce, was the first written and produced by Wilson since The Beach Boys Love You (1977). Working with an array of collaborators including his therapist Eugene Landy, Wilson accordingly themed Brian Wilson around love and spirituality exemplified by its lead single "Love and Mercy". Although the album's sessions were contentious, where some participants demanded a progressive artistic statement versus conventional pop songs, nearly a quarter of the LP is devoted to "Rio Grande", a piece which was intended to rekindle Wilson's experimental drive from the mid 1960s and early 1970s.
Two follow-ups were planned but ultimately discarded: Sweet Insanity (1991), co-produced with Landy, and an unfinished 1990s album, co-produced with Andy Paley. Wilson would not release a second solo album of new original material until Imagination (1998).
During the 1980s, Wilson was under high-profile around-the-clock medical care by his therapist Eugene Landy after spending several years participating in little-to-no work with the Beach Boys. According to co-founder and cousin Mike Love: "Neither his [Brian's] brothers nor his mother nor I nor most anyone else could reach him. Landy controlled all access and appeared to control Brian’s career as well. ... Landy claimed that the Beach Boys had prevented Brian from being part of the recording. Actually, we wanted Brian to be part of the group, and the funny thing is, Brian wanted that as well."
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