Album Review: Brian Wilson - That Lucky Old Sun

Originally published in Freetime Magazine (9/16/08)

Well, it’s no SMiLE.

Now that that’s out of the way, we can talk about how Brian Wilson’s latest, That Lucky Old Sun, is a great, solid record in is own right. How does someone so crazy make music so universal? It’s one of music’s greatest mysteries, somewhere between Robert Johnson’s deal with the devil and the real face of Buckethead. However it’s done, Wilson still manages to bring the sun out on the dankest rainy day. In fact, at the end of it all, perhaps he is the lucky one.

That Lucky Old Sun plays like a sequel to SMiLE. It’s like the effects-laden, more action-ey follow-up to a classic film; it may not have as much substance but still gets the job done with the hooks and flashy melodies. And lord knows Wilson is the king of flashy melodies. It still has the same orchestral flowerbed sound that SMiLE had, and the songs are woven together into a musical concept album the same way that album was, right down to the reemerging themes that pops up in various spots throughout the tracklist.

Of course, That Lucky Old Sun has none of the mystique that surrounded SMiLE. But Wilson obviously approached it with this knowledge, and the result is a lighthearted, fun summer release - a popcorn album, if you will. It’s not all sunbeams and lollipops, though. We have to remember that this is Brian Wilson, and even now, behind the surfer rock riffs are the remnants of a beaten, broken heart. “Midnight’s Another Day,” in particular, drops the album to a somber tone as Wilson sings, “Took the diamond from my soul/And turned it back to coal.” It’s a bit of an ugly duckling on a mostly constant upbeat tone.

Even at 17 tracks, this album breaks faster than the California shoreline. It moves with an oiled fluidness, speckled with brief narrative section breaks that work more like spoken word poetry with musical accompaniment than as a story time session. It’s got the same, quirky spunk as SMiLE, it’s just a lighter meal. If SMiLE was the ascension to the top of a seemingly un-scalable mountain, That Lucky Old Sun is the ride back down. There isn’t as much satisfaction in the end, but it’s nice to just sit back and enjoy the accomplishment.