Even back in the 1960s, it became obvious that the late great Brian Wilson was more than just great, but a musical genius on a scale with a rare few - any time, any music. He was one of those musical wizards who proved that both pop and rock music have merit and need to be appreciated.
The bulk of his best work came with the Beach Boys, a band that got branded as the essence of sun, fun, sports, and teenage love, which he took to an exponential level with the sublime quality of his music.
But, then, along with his two brothers, Carl and Dennis, and the rest of the band, he started growing up, and some not-so-sunny things came to the surface, including his recurring health issues. No wonder that troubled tag often goes when describing a genius.
Everyone should own these Beach Boys albums
Yet, with all said and done, it is his contribution to modern music that remains intact, with rarely an album by the Beach Boys to which he contributed being below par, and quite a few out there that deserve to be heard by any and every music lover. Here are six that could be considered the Beach Boys' best, and two that Brian Wilson recorded as a solo artist.
Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) (1965)
With all the fun and games, whether it was surfing or cars (Brian and most of the band, except brother Dennis, were never really surfers), or girls, Brian (and the band along with him) had to start growing out of their teenage years.
While he was not there yet lyrically here, musically he reached the peak of that fun and surf period with songs like “Help Me, Rhonda,” “California Girls,” and “Let Him Run Wild” ranking among his best. Many consider “California Girls” a Wilson and The Beach Boys anthem.
Pet Sounds (1965)
Growing pains are not easy, and to express that, Brian took on lyricist and songwriter Peter Asher to express it. What came out was not only the best Beach Boys release as such, but one of the best modern music albums around. Not everybody initially agreed with that assessment at the time (including Mike Love), except for one Paul McCartney and a number of British music critics.
Yet as the time passed, things became obvious what a masterpiece Brian Wilson created with the closing two songs of that album, “God Only Knows” and “Caroline, No,” deserving the epithet of sublime.
Smiley Smile (1967)
To this day, this album remains a point of contention among both critics and fans. Part of that comes from the letdown and expectations of Brian’s and the band’s projected masterpiece, Smile, the album that was never officially released. The other part coming from the druggy, lo-fi feel of large part of the album.
Yet, an album that included song masterpieces “Good Vibrations,” “Heroes And Villains,” and “Vegetables” cannot be derided, and those ‘lo-fi’ ones like the version of Wonderful” or “Wind Chimes” can be said to define lo-fi in the best way.
Friends (1968)
The tremor that was the no release of Smile and Brian's mental health problems were still felt, but by this time both Brian and the band seemed to be in recovery and the result was this, one of the more sophisticated and subdued Beach Boys albums, with Love, Al Jardine and Dennis Wilson helping Brian come up with the goods. Again.
Sunflower (1970)
By this time, the Beach Boys were becoming more of a band effort, with Brian, mostly due to his health problems, becoming just another member of the band. Yet, the album showed that the Beach Boys can run with the times while keeping up their timeless harmonies along the way.
Surf’s Up (1971)
This is where Carl Wilson practically ran the band with some of the best songs he wrote, and only their contributions from Brian. Yet those three contributions are nothing less than sublime. “A Day in the Life Of A Tree” was Brian at his most vulnerable, “til I die,” one of the best he wrote, along with the title track itself, actually one of the takes that was recorded for that never-to-be Smile album.
The two solo Brian Wilson albums that stand out
Brian Wilson (1988)
It took Wilson almost a decade to come up with his first solo album, after one of his (few) departures from the band. So, with all the health issues, he was still able to come up with the goods here, with “Love And Mercy,’ a song he considered as one of his signature ones, “Melt Away,” and the epic “Rio Grande” standing out.
SMILE (2004)
After 37 years, Wilson decided to finally release a version of the intended original Smile album, this time with re-recorded versions of original songs with the help of a handful of devoted artist fans led by Darian Sahanaja of the Wondermints.
With Wilson finally deciding on the song order, the fans finally got his version of that masterpiece, which, before that, possibly had the most bootlegged versions available.