Since the release of Dennis Wilson’s spectacular Pacific Ocean Blue in 1977, Beach Boys fans have been treated to studio album releases from all the members except Al Jardine. That was until June 2010, when he released A Postcard From California in a digital-only format.
Guest artists include: Brian Wilson, Mike Love, the late Carl Wilson, David Marks, Bruce Johnston, Glen Campbell, David Crosby, Neil Young, Steve Miller, Gerry Beckley & Dewey Bunnell, actor Alec Baldwin, Flea (The Red Hot Chili Peppers) and Adam & Matt Jardine.
The album’s most intriguing composition is “Don’t Fight The Sea;” a song that had its inception in the late 1970's (with Carl Wilson and Bruce Johnston on the chorus). It took Al 10-plus years to get Brian Wilson on the song (in the late 80's), another 10 years to add Carl to the bridge, and another decade to add Mike Love in 2009. The song is a shifting mélange of the irrepressible essence of The Beach Boys sound that fits perfectly into the album’s ecological vernacular.
Discussing the album, Jardine said, “I could never get all the guys together. That’s why it never became a Beach Boys song… I approached Mike about recording a vocal in 2009 and he was totally agreeable to it. Thanks to Mike we’ve got all the fellows on a recording again, which is nice. It’s kind of cool. Now I can do a tribute to The Beach Boys on my own album.”
When asked if this was his equivalent to The Beach Boys groundbreaking Pet Sounds album Al said, “For sure… I’d like to take 10 years off after this. I can see why Brian just checked out after Pet Sounds. It’s very massive because you try to put all of your emotional and musical ideas into some form… It takes a lot out of you.”
While hard-core Beach Boys fans will be familiar with most of the material on this album, Jardine brings new life and vigor to the well-known chestnuts and succeeds in recapturing his environmental sensibilities, while providing the listener with an organically-produced experience that is, in turn, simple and complex.
A physical package is being planned for release in 2011 with two additional songs and the high probability of a different track sequence. For now, fans can digitally download the content via iTunes or purchase a CD-R version via Amazon.com.
Visit Aljardine.com for song samples and promotional videos.
© 2011 David M. Beard/All rights reserved
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