Search - Brian Wilson :: Imagination

Just About Perfect

Michael S. Simpson | Los Angeles | 08/17/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I don't get the negative reviews. I am a long time Beatles fan, and a relatively recent Beach Boys/Brian Wilson convert, so maybe I don't have the extra baggage or expectations of the longtimers. This album hooked me from the get-go. Songwriting, musicianship, production, singing are outstanding. This is a quantum leap above some of the dippy Beach Boys stuff that the die-hard fans seem to love and adore. I'll take Imagination's polished production, crafted harmonies, and fully realized songwriting any day. Only exceeded in breadth of concept, sophistication and execution by Wilson's Smile. Paul McCartney could learn a thing or two from this guy."

(Nearly) Perfect Summer Listening

tod heller | New Jersey | 06/16/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Having been a Beach Boys/Brian Wilson fan for nearly my entire life (I'm 36), the anticipation of a new Brian Wilson cd was something that I will always look forward to. When "Imagination" came out last year, I went out and bought it the day it was released, and I was not disappointed at all. From the opening notes of "Your Imagination" to nearly the last track, I was hooked. Brian's voice is in fine form throughout with my favorite songs including "Your Imagination", "South American", "Lay Down Burden" (a tribute to Brian's late brother Carl), the two Beach Boys tracks--"Keep An Eye On Summer" and "Let Him Run Wild". However, the song that really had an impact on me is "Dream Angel". The lyrics of this song truly got deep into my emotions as I interpreted it as an anthem of the hopes and dreams that I have for my 5 year old daughter who has special needs. Overall, the traditionally wonderful Brian Wilson arrangements and layered harmonies are a joy to listen to and I highly recommend this cd to anyone of any age."

Brian Wilson's best work in 25 years

Michael S. Simpson | 06/30/1998

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Overall, Brian Wilson's "Imagination" is probably his best work since the early 1970s. It's no "Pet Sounds," as several reviewers have pointed out, but who cares? Taken on its own merits, it's a very good album, with excellent production and impeccable vocals. In fact, I think the album resembles "The Beach Boys Today!" more than anything else Wilson has done in the last 35+ years.There have been a few criticisms about Wilson's reliance on remakes--specifically, "Keep An Eye on Summer" and "Let Him Run Wild." They're not bad, but to me, they pale in comparison to the rest of the album. "Your Imagination" and "South American" are excellent--perfect songs for cruising the beach. "She Says That She Needs Me" is a beautiful production--Wilson has taken a tune he wrote in 1965 (but never released, originally entitled "Sherry, She Needs Me"), rewritten the lyrics (with other writers), and created a great song. If anything on the album CAN be compared to Pet Sounds, it's this tune--but I still see it as more of a side-two "Today!"-type song. I find two other songs worth noting--"Lay Down Burden," which evokes 1971's "'Til I Die" in its emotion (and is one of my all-time Wilson favorites), and "Cry," which I've grown to like more and more with each listen. I've been a Brian Wilson fan since I was 5 years old (since the summer of 1975). This is pretty much the album I've been hoping he'd make for more than 20 years."