Brian Wilson

As he shuffles across the
stage to sit slumped in front of
his keyboard, it’s clear from
the outset that Wilson is not in
good health. Kicking off with a
set culled from his recent
Gershwin-as-Beach-Boys
album, he remained a
background figure as his band
dominated the show with some
astonishingly complex vocal
harmonies and crack
musicianship. For the most
part, the covers worked well,
with standards such as
Summertime complementing
his sun-drenched stylings, but
Wilson himself never seemed
entirely at ease with the
material. Launching into
California Girls at the start of
the second set, there was an
almost audible sense of relief,
which grew over the next hour
and a half into a wave of
euphoria as the greatest hits
followed. Wilson, so much in
the background in the first set,
came to the fore with that
unmistakable voice bringing an
extra, vital dimension
previously lacking. Introducing
God Only Knows as “the best
song I’ve ever written”, he
delivered an ethereal version
that mesmerised his adoring
audience. Finishing with a
riotous Fun Fun Fun, a
standing ovation gave voice
to the collective euphoria of an
evening spent in the company
of a frail but incomparable
genius.