Skip to content
Entertainment
Link copied to clipboard

Wilson warms the Keswick with California sunniness

A strong ray of West Coast warmth brightened Glenside's Keswick Theatre on Saturday when Beach Boys founder Brian Wilson played his new album, That Lucky Old Sun - a deeply personal valentine to all things California - and offered a jukeboxlike collection of greatest hits.

Beach Boy Brian Wilson was at the Keswick on Saturday in support of his new album, "That Lucky Old Sun."
Beach Boy Brian Wilson was at the Keswick on Saturday in support of his new album, "That Lucky Old Sun."Read more

A strong ray of West Coast warmth brightened Glenside's Keswick Theatre on Saturday when Beach Boys founder Brian Wilson played his new album,

That Lucky Old

Sun - a deeply personal valentine to all things California - and offered a jukeboxlike collection of greatest hits.

Planted behind a keyboard positioned front and center, Wilson was joined by a backing band of at least 10 members at all times, whether playing string arrangements for Pet Sounds material or coaxing a synthesizer version of the hook to "Good Vibrations."

Wilson, 66, split the night into two with a 20-minute intermission. First he performed the barrage of familiar tunes from yesteryear, from opener "California Girls" and "Surfer Girl" to "I Get Around" and the hushed, soulful "In My Room."

Taking on more of a bandleader role, Wilson let the players do much of the work during the first set, and guitarist Jeffrey Foskett sang lead beautifully on the delicate "Don't Worry Baby." Many members of the crowd later stood and answered the question of "Do You Wanna Dance?"

Due to longtime health problems, Wilson's voice isn't what it once was, and he read lyrics from an electronic screen near his keyboard. But his finely tuned band - including several Pennsylvania natives - was well-versed in the Beach Boys' signature sound.

If Wilson's role felt somewhat diminished early on, he became more engaged and active while rolling out That Lucky Old Sun, a lush concept album including nostalgic spoken-word portions and dreamy orchestral flourishes.

Unlike the breezy three-minute tunes of the Beach Boys' heyday, Wilson's newer work is deeper and more varied, following the cue of the classic Pet Sounds and his decades-in-the-making project Smile. With vivid animation projected behind him, Wilson happily bopped and cooed his way through the mariachi-flavored "Mexican Girl" and the standout "Oxygen to the Brain."

As on the album, he continually revisited the title track - an adaptation of an old chestnut sung by Louis Armstrong - and each song segued swiftly into the next. For the encore, Wilson and the band again offered oldies, including the house-shaking "Fun, Fun, Fun," but it was clear Wilson was more interested in trying out his newer material than resting on his laurels.