Brian Wilson – Gettin’ in Over My Head Review

You would be hard-pressed to find a worse album cover than this. Microsoft Paint has worked its magic. A collage of Brian Wilson in various states of performance, be it in love, on stage, or in a solemn staredown with those bold enough to buy Gettin’ in Over My Head. Wilson’s work as a solo artist, while far from his best pieces, is still a criminally underrated discography. Efforts like Orange Crate Art are borderline masterclasses in how Wilson redeveloped himself as a performer after he was ousted from The Beach Boys and, finally, had severed ties with Dr. Eugene Landy. Wilson now had a chance to piece together projects which had eluded him for decades. Gettin’ in Over My Head feels like an apt title for this, not because Wilson was in deep waters without an idea of what to do, but because of how much of an opportunity he had on his hands with this album.  

Thirteen songs which allowed Wilson to cut loose with some pop-rock flair, while also reconnecting with those fundamental joys of The Beach Boys’ sound. This is not just Wilson fooling around in the studio, though, it’s Wilson fooling around with rock legends. Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney, and Elton John all feature on Gettin’ in Over My Head, a chance for the trio to work with a musician they much admire. McCartney, in particular, would be open about Wilson’s influence on him in the 1960s. Sticking him on a track called A Friend Like You, so long after the back-and-forth between The Beatles and The Beach Boys, is a treat. But before that comes collaborations with Clapton, John, and Carl Wilson. John-collaborating opener, How Could We Still Be Dancin’, is surprisingly political. Comments on how the world can still dance and rock after the horrors of war are noted, it’s quite a surprising turn from Wilson, and a welcome one at that. Modern culture criticism emboldened by the duet work with John.  

Soul Searchin’ is a delight to hear, too, more because it features the late Carl Wilson on a song with Brian Wilson. There’s plenty of those around, but to hear a worthy one from a solo album which acts as vindication for the solo works of Brian Wilson, is beautiful. Forget the garish album cover, Gettin’ in Over My Head is a rare gem with that flowing, light instrumental style Wilson would so often thrive with. Heavy string work on You’ve Touched Me is a bit overblown but the rest of the song features some real thrills. Wilson has a floaty style though, that’s crucial to the title track and beyond. He may be pulled in one direction or another by his collaborators, but it’s a chance to hear Wilson adapt to a slightly different instrumental styling. It makes all the difference for the better parts of Gettin’ in Over My Head.  

Erratic sounds on City Blues are great fun, though you can tell Clapton has some overwhelming influence on the track. The same goes for the McCartney appearance on A Friend Like You. They bury the imaginary hatchet and then bundle out of the studio, leaving Wilson to piece together the last moments of the album together. Light and charmed work the whole way through means the instrumentals are given more of an importance, and it suits Wilson well at this point in his career. There’s no overriding theme, which means the likes of Make a Wish and Rainbow Eyes suffer, but there’s enough material here that can stand on its own merit for Wilson to feature. Such is the case for songs pulled from this session or that archive. It works well enough, though Gettin’ in Over My Head doesn’t need track-to-track meaning to last as an endearing piece from Wilson.