Brian Wilson’s lost 1970s country album is finally set to be released.
The collection, titled ‘Cows in the Pasture, features the vocals of former Beach Boys manager Fred Vail and, according to Rolling Stone, it will be released sometime next year.
Wilson is an executive producer and added his vocals to one of the tracks.
Speaking to the publication, Vail shared how the pair came to collaborate on the collection: “I said to him [Wilson], ‘Have you written any country songs?’
“And he said, ‘Well, no.’ I said, ‘Do you have any idea who you’d like to use as musicians?’ He said, ‘Well, no. I’ve only worked with the Wrecking Crew for the most part. You find the songs. You select the musicians. We’ll go into Wally Heider’s Studio. We’ll start working on the album.’”
The pair worked on the songs alongside Beach Boys’ 1970 LP ‘Sunflower’. They recruited guitarist James Burton, pianist Glen D. Hardin, and steel guitarist Red Rhodes.
Unfortunately, Wilson decided to ditch the project as he allegedly “lost interest”.
Vail recalled: “We never did any keeper vocals.
“They were mostly just scratch vocals that we never completed. There were no background vocals and no harmonies. It was a lot instrumentation. And when Brian lost interest, I just moved on.”
He went on to explain how Wilson was “dealing with a lot of [personal] issues” and decided to put the songs in the ‘Good Vibrations’ group’s vault.
All these years later, Vail has been able to finish the record with the help of Nashville-based producer Sam Parker and a host of “country music legends,” plus “rock and roll legends, contemporary country, and pop stars.”
He is keeping tight-lipped about who they are, however, we do know that the legendary T Bone Burnett – who was Bob Dylan’s guitarist – is one of them.
Wilson commented: “Fred always loved country music and he was a big rodeo guy.
“He’s a hell of a guy, one hell of a promoter, and I’m glad his album is coming out.”