Carl Wilson (Carl Wilson)

[Dudd]

Carl's voice saves it. He's given mostly lifeless, drab arrangements to work with and he still sings beautifully... it's almost melancholy.
Heaven is a really lovely track (though following it up with The Grammy was a rubbish idea ). Seems So Long Ago is also very nice.

[alf wiedersehen]

This album wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I would take this over KTSA easily.

This album is terribly mixed, though.

[Mr. Wilson]

I give this a 3.. You have half of a very good record.. Hold Me  Heaven  Seems so long ago  Hurry Love.. The Right lane  really sucks among others..  The cover of "Thank You "   CW played in concert rocked and should have been added as a bonus track.. Nice try but this lp comes up short.

[bluesno1fann]

This is coming from a big Carl fan: It totally sucks.

Listened to the full album last night. I really did hope it was going to be a good album. Boy, was I disappointed.

Hurry Love and Seems So Long Ago are the only half-decent tracks off this album. The rest? f*** them. Even the slightly overrated Heaven, though it could be a case of letting it grow on me. At the moment, I don't like it at all.

Going Public is a better album than this, though Looking Back With Love is still a lot worse.

1.5 out of 5.

[Lonely Summer]

Say what you will, but I really dig "The Grammy"! It's rocking & catchy, has cool lead by Carl & well-arranged. I suspect the song's bad rep came mainly from the "awful lyrics". So glad I'm stuck into music, inarguably the most important element of the song, any song.
"Hold Me" is a close tie; "Heaven" is nice (but not good). Cut it to 3 minutes & we're maybe talking.

You might like the single version - cut to 3:30.

[Bean Bag]

Carl Wilson!  Yes, this 1981 gem just arrived today in my mailbox.  I love it!!

[Lonely Summer]

Carl Wilson!  Yes, this 1981 gem just arrived today in my mailbox.  I love it!!

Nice to know at least one person here enjoys this album. The cd sound is stunning! Really puts the spotlight on the fantastic drum work of James Stroud and Alan Krigger; and the bass work of Gerald Johnson and J.W.G. "Heaven" nearly brought tears to my eyes, thinking of a loved one who is no longer with us.

[B.E.]

Carl Wilson - 7/10

This is my favorite of Carl's solo efforts. It's just a really pleasant, enjoyable album. I dig the stripped-back production and the resulting clarity. I like the drums high in the mix. The fact that this debut isn't the ambitious artistic statement that some fans may have hoped for doesn't bother me one bit. By comparison, Youngblood probably has stronger material and more impressive vocals from Carl, but the production is too busy for my taste. Too guitar-driven and dated. It's certainly more ambitious-sounding, but sometimes less is more.

I only have a few (minor) problems with Carl Wilson. 1) I think "What You Gonna Do About Me?" and "The Right Lane" both drag on too long. 2) I could have done without the nearly 2 minute saxophone solo in "Seems So Long Ago". Though, there are worse ways to end an album, sequence-wise (see Youngblood). 3) I'm not a fan of "The Grammy". Particularly, lyrically. Anyway, here's how I'd rank the tracks...

1. Heaven
2. Hurry Love

3. Hold Me
4. What You Gonna Do About Me?
5. The Right Lane
6. Seems So Long Ago
7. Bright Lights

8. The Grammy

[CarlWilsonfan101]

5/5 for me! It's a great album

[Lonely Summer]

Carl Wilson - 7/10

This is my favorite of Carl's solo efforts. It's just a really pleasant, enjoyable album. I dig the stripped-back production and the resulting clarity. I like the drums high in the mix. The fact that this debut isn't the ambitious artistic statement that some fans may have hoped for doesn't bother me one bit. By comparison, Youngblood probably has stronger material and more impressive vocals from Carl, but the production is too busy for my taste. Too guitar-driven and dated. It's certainly more ambitious-sounding, but sometimes less is more.

I only have a few (minor) problems with Carl Wilson. 1) I think "What You Gonna Do About Me?" and "The Right Lane" both drag on too long. 2) I could have done without the nearly 2 minute saxophone solo in "Seems So Long Ago". Though, there are worse ways to end an album, sequence-wise (see Youngblood). 3) I'm not a fan of "The Grammy". Particularly, lyrically. Anyway, here's how I'd rank the tracks...

1. Heaven
2. Hurry Love

3. Hold Me
4. What You Gonna Do About Me?
5. The Right Lane
6. Seems So Long Ago
7. Bright Lights

8. The Grammy

Then you'll probably hate the live versions of those long tracks. What You Gonna Do About Me clocks in at 7 minutes on the live cd from the Bottom Line.
But I agree about the sound of the drums on this album - great clarity in the instruments because it's a very sparse production.

[Julia]

Im still not QUITE at the level of completionist that I feel the need to listen to EVERY solo effort by a Beach Boy...but I have crossed the threshold of wanting to experience all that the Wilson brothers had to offer at least once. So here it goes...

Anyone ever see that episode of The Sopranos where Christopher and Adriana try to manage a would-be rock band called Visiting Day? And they're so clean cut and boring Christopher tries to force drugs on them so they'll be cool, and have a well of darkness to inspire more interesting music? Remember when they demo the songs for a record producer and he's obviously waiting for these generic, repetitive, 3-chord songs to do something different...to go somewhere...and they just never do? That's this album to a tee. Exactly. Carl, I think, just lacked that "edge" to him that made Brian and Dennis so compelling as rock stars. I'm not saying one has to do acid or even weed to be "hip" (look at Frank Zappa) but...it helps. Barring that, there's just something to be said for having a lot of pain or unresolved emotional angst to inspire art. That's what separates the fascinating "bad boys" (ala Dennis) and "tortured genius" (Brian) archetypes from the generic side-men of a band. Maybe this isn't fair, or isn't PC but I think there's something to what I'm saying. Tragedy begets beauty and vice versa.

Carl, who had a more sheltered upbringing than his bros (sparred Murry's wrath in comparison and babied by Audrey) just lacked that deep yearning for acceptance that fueled his brothers. I really think that's it. You don't have to make psychedelic SMiLE songs to stand out, but notice how even in Today Brian's essentially confessing to emotional abuse, fear and unworthiness (She Knows Me Too Well / Dont Hurt My Little Sister / Back of My Mind, etc). Hell, arguably as far back as County Fair in Surfin' Safari he was expressing inadequacy and self-deprecating failure, while In My Room is an anthem to loneliness and retreat from the weary world he perceives around him. That dark undertone is what makes his music timeless where countless knockoffs like The Sunrays have fallen to obscurity. I don't need to tell you all about the very obvious pain and emotional turmoil that hangs over POB. Carl just didn't have that.

I'm not saying Carl wasn't a great guy overall as well as a very talented musician, competent producer, very good bandleader and def on the shortlist for best vocalist of all time...but a songwriter he wasn't. Even if one likes his early 70s songs (which I'm staunchly indifferent to) they're not enough to carry an entire album on their own--and this music isn't even on that level. I don't know what the hell some of you are talking about, praising Heaven. I guess my musical sensibilities and Carl's just aren't aligned--and that's ok. I don't think WH was the best possible direction they could've gone with post-Smiley and I'll never understand how he chose Stars n Stripes over the Paley songs. Guy just doesn't do it for me when he's the one determining what material to cover, I don't know what else to say.

1/5...though maybe if I were listening to one song at a time I might be convinced to rate them a 2/5 each. All at once though, it's just a wave of forgettable mediocrity that's less than the sum of it's already bland parts.

This album wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I would take this over KTSA easily.

This album is terribly mixed, though.

I mean, you could say that about virtually every album though...