Pet Sounds Live

1	Wouldn't It Be Nice
2	You Still Believe in Me
3	That's Not Me
4	Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)
5	I'm Waiting for the Day
6	Let's Go Away for Awhile
7	Sloop John B
8	God Only Knows
9	I Know There's an Answer
10	Here Today
11	I Just Wasn't Made for These Times
12	Pet Sounds
13	Caroline No

Barnes & Noble

Originally released in 1966, the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds stands as a landmark album, showcasing Brian Wilson and his band at their creative zenith, when their poignant melodies, airtight harmonies, and studio wizardry perfectly coalesced. Pet Sounds Live -- recorded in January 2002 at London's Royal Festival Hall, where Wilson began his first-ever solo tour -- gives the tribute album concept a reverse spin, with the chief Beach Boy honoring his own masterwork. Culled from his four-night stand, these new recordings find Wilson revitalizing his timeless tunes, to the glee of his jubilant audience. Backed by a ten-member band that includes former Beach-hand Jeff Foskett and the Los Angeles-based group the Wondermints, Wilson's vocals are soulful, sincere, and only slightly worn, and his compatriots warmly replicate the Boys' soaring harmonies. There could've been a layer of irony -- or worse -- in a 60-year-old, emotionally troubled Wilson traipsing through youthful anthems such as "Wouldn't It Be Nice" and "Here Today," but there's nothing forced about his delivery. In fact, he sounds positively giddy on songs such as "Sloop John B" and "I Know There's an Answer." When he sings lines like "I had to prove that I could make it alone/But that's not me" (from "That's Not Me"), his lyrics take on new meaning coming from a middle-aged artist who's both received a bevy of accolades and been through the emotional wringer. The only weak link is a note-perfect but ultimately thin rendition of the instrumental "Pet Sounds," which edges frightfully close to Sunday brunch jazz territory; better is the vibraphone-rich "Let's Go Away for Awhile." But overall, Wilson, aided by his reverence for these gorgeous tunes and his resonant artistic spirit, turns in a surprisingly fresh set that only adds to his legacy. Lydia Vanderloo

All Music Guide

In early 2002, during his first solo tour of Europe and England, Brian Wilson included complete performances of his masterpiece Pet Sounds which attempted to re-create, in a live setting, one of the greatest feats of studio wizardry in rock history. He recorded the music heard on Pet Sounds Live over four nights at London's Royal Festival Hall before a crowd packed with luminaries (simply read the liners for a lengthy who's-who list of intelligent pop musicians in attendance). Though he has trouble taking some of the leads he or brother Carl originally sang some 35 years earlier, the backing harmonies are surprisingly good (even in comparison to the nonpareil Beach Boys), and the ten-piece band is marvelous at summoning the necessary range of emotions, following the arrangements closely ("Let's Go Away for Awhile" alone must have taken days to perfect), and adding innumerable little touches for the benefit of those possessing a near-total familiarity with the original. To all this praise, however, must be added the considerable caveat: Wilson's stage presence is still problematic, if not completely bizarre. He still sounds tentative and forced when pressed to live performance, at one point interjecting "Hooray for the audience!" into a blank void; later, it's difficult to tell whether he's joking when he twice announces, "Here's an instrumental, with no voices, okay?" Those who've seen a Wilson concert before won't be surprised at the push-and-pull between clever musicianship and embarrassing showmanship, while curious Pet Sounds fans will find only scattered bits to intrigue them. John Bush