When
Dennis Wilson's solo debut,
Pacific Ocean Blue, was released on
James Guercio's CBS-distributed Caribou Records in 1977, few had high expectations for it.
Dennis' brother
Brian Wilson was, after all, the acknowledged genius and mastermind of
the Beach Boys sound and his other brother
Carl Wilson had
the voice, so little was expected of
Dennis, the pretty boy drummer and near-professional party animal. But
Pacific Ocean Blue was a gorgeous masterpiece, full of a naked and affirming spirit, romantic (in the best sense of the word), lush, wise, patient, and even panoramic, almost avant-garde, and worlds past and beyond what any of the other
Beach Boys were doing at the time. It was also, perhaps not surprisingly, a resounding commercial flop, although the critical reaction to the album was strong and positive.
Wilson began work on a follow-up, tentatively entitled
Bambu, mixing in some new New Orleans and Caribbean elements, but the project was never finished and by the time of
Wilson's death in 1983,
Bambu had been sitting untouched and unfinished for nearly five years. Boots taken from LP copies of
Pacific Ocean Blue and leaked tapes of the
Bambu material have been bouncing around among collectors ever since and
Wilson's solo work has taken on the allure and status of lost treasure. This wonderful two-disc set features a carefully restored and remastered version of the
Pacific Ocean Blue LP and collects the remnants of
Bambu along with other
Wilson solo odds and ends to make a convincing case for
Dennis Wilson as the other bona fide musical genius in
the Beach Boys. It's difficult to describe
Wilson's sound on these tracks, although "California gospel soul" might fit, since
Wilson's raspy, wounded vocals carry more naked emotion and feeling than any of the other
Beach Boys vocalists, even if
Carl (and sometimes
Brian) could sing like an angel.
Dennis could sing like an angel, too, but an earthbound one who lost his wings yet never lost his love of the spiritual and romantic in the world. Highlights from this gorgeous, fascinating set include the majestic "River Song"; a chilling version of
Carli Munoz's "It's Not Too Late"; the hauntingly tentative "Thoughts of You"; the personal, intimate, and self-autobiographical "He's a Bum"; and the two versions of "Holy Man," the first a beautiful, charming instrumental and the second, which closes things out here, featuring a newly recorded lead vocal from
Foo Fighters drummer
Taylor Hawkins. Beautiful, sprawling, peaceful, wise, and as tenderly romantic as the world is round, these
Dennis Wilson gems are as revelatory as they are stunning.
Dennis Wilson was a man in love with life, a man in love with love, and as this essential package shows, he had an achingly personal vision for it all. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide