Brian Wilson to Release "Playback," His First Ever Solo Career-Spanning Anthology

LOS ANGELES - Brian Wilson's eponymous solo debut for Sire in 1988 launched an extended period of renewal for the iconic Beach Boys songwriter. Rhino revisits Wilson's solo career with a new 18-song collection that mixes studio and live recordings with two previously unreleased tracks: "Run James Run," a new song Wilson wrote and recorded for this collection, and "Some Sweet Day," an unreleased gem he wrote with Andy Paley in the early 1990s for an unfinished recording project.
PLAYBACK: THE BRIAN WILSON ANTHOLOGY covers more than 30 years of music with selections from nine of Wilson's solo albums and will be released September 22 on CD ($13.98), double-LP ($31.98), on digital download and streaming services. Tickets are also available now to see Wilson perform live as he continues the Pet Sounds 50th Anniversary Final Performances World Tour, which was recently extended due to overwhelming demand.
The collection opens with "Love And Mercy," one of the four songs on PLAYBACK taken from Wilson's self-titled debut. The song has become one of Wilson's most beloved classics, a regular closer to his live concerts, and was adopted as the title of the acclaimed 2015 biopic that saw the Beach Boy memorably played by both Paul Dano and John Cusack.
Several tracks on PLAYBACK come from the two albums Wilson released in 2004:  Gettin' In Over My Head and the Grammy®-winning Brian Wilson Presents Smile. The most poignant of these is "Soul Searchin'," a song Wilson built around a vocal track left behind by his brother Carl, who passed away in 1998. The celebrated orchestral masterpiece, Smile is represented by "Heroes And Villains", and the timeless classic, "Surf's Up."
Those back-to-back releases ushered in a sustained burst of creativity for Wilson that includes four acclaimed albums. They're represented on the collection by "Midnight's Another Day" (That Lucky Old Sun, 2008); "The Like In I Love You" (Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin, 2010); "Colors Of The Wind" (In The Key Of Disney, 2011); and "One Kind Of Love" (No Pier Pressure, 2015.)
Tucked in with these studio classics are two live performances from Wilson's 2000 concert recording, Live At The Roxy Theatre. Included here are "The First Time" and "This Isn't Love," a charming collaboration with Wilson's Pet Sounds lyricist Tony Asher.
PLAYBACK: THE BRIAN WILSON ANTHOLOGY includes a selection of classic photos from throughout Wilson's solo career, in addition to a candid shot taken in the studio in 2017 during the recording of "Run James Run." The album also includes liner notes by David Wild, and features a previously unseen picture of Wilson on the front cover, taken by legendary rock photographer Robert Matheu.
 
 
PLAYBACK: THE BRIAN WILSON ANTHOLOGY
Track Listing
  1. "Love And Mercy"
  2. "Surf's Up"
  3.  "Heroes And Villains"
  4.  "Melt Away"
  5.  "Let It Shine"
  6.  "Some Sweet Day" *
  7.  "Rio Grande"
  8.  "Cry"
  9.  "Lay Down Burden"
  10.  "The First Time"
  11.   "This Isn't Love"
  12.  "Soul Searchin'"
  13.  "Gettin' In Over My Head"
  14.  "The Like In I Love You"
  15.  "Midnight's Another Day"
  16.  "Colors Of The Wind"
  17.   "One Kind Of Love"
  18.   "Run James Run" *
* previously unreleased
 
Brian Wilson Presents Pet Sounds: The Final Performances
Tour Dates
 
June
29           Odeon, Odense, DK        
30           Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen, DK    
 
July
3             Carre, Amsterdam, NL        
4             Kursaal Oostend, Oostende, BE        
5             Grote Zaal, Utrecht, NL        
8             BBK Live, Bilbao, SP        
9             Montreux Jazz Fest w/ Bryan Ferry, Montreux, CH        
13           Pori Jazz Festival, Pori, Finland        
15           Umbria Jazz Festival, Perugia, IT        
17           Nuits de Fourviere, Lyon, FR        
19           Jahrhunterthalle, Frankfurt, DE        
20           Konzerthaus, Vienna, AT        
23           Galway Arts Festival, Galway, IRE        
25           Bord Gais Energy, Dublin, IRE
28           Liverpool Exhibition Centre, Liverpool, UK        
29           Kendal Calling, Lowther Deer Park, UK    
30           Camp Bestival, Lulworth Castle, UK    
 
August
1             Hammersmith Apollo, London, England    
2             Sheffield City Hall, Sheffield, England    
3             Kelingrove Bandstand, Glasgow, UK
5             Glastonbury Extravana, Glastonbury, England    
6             Times Square Newcastle, Newcastle, England    
 
September
15           Molson Canadian Centre, Moncton, NB        
16           Scotiabank Centre, Halifax, NS        
18           Centre in The Square, Kitchener, ON        
19           Kodak Hall @ Eastman Theatre, Rochester, NY        
21           Foxwoods Casino, Mashantucket, CT    
22           Orpheum Theatre, Boston, MA        
23           Radio City Music Hall, New York, NY        
25           American Music Theatre, Lancaster, PA        
26           Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ        
29           Zeiterion Theatre, New Bedford, MA    
30           Golden Nugget, Atlantic City, NJ        
 
October
1             Crouse Hinds Theatre, Syracuse, NY        
3             Morris Performing Arts Center, South Bend, IN        
4             Stranahan Theatre, Toledo, OH        
6             Rosemont Theatre, Rosemont, IL        
7             Belterra Casino, Florence, IN        
8             Civic Center Theater, Peoria, IL        
12           The Big Fresno Fair, Fresno, CA        
13           The Mountain Winery, Saratoga, CA        
14           Pacific Amphitheatre, Costa Mesa, CA