“Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin” opens with a lush, stacked-harmony rendition of “Rhapsody” and closes with a brief reprise. “It took us about two weeks: I’d play a little bit from the Leonard Bernstein recording, then I’d go to my piano, then back to Bernstein, then back to my piano, until I got the whole thing down.” “Later on, a friend of mine who was an expert on Gershwin asked me, ‘How’d you like to play the main theme on piano?’ and I said, ‘Sure!’ ” Wilson continued.

(The others are Frank Sinatra’s “Strangers in the Night” and “Be My Baby” by the Ronettes). Wilson, 68, singles out George Gershwin’s orchestral-jazz classic as one of his three favorite compositions. “When I was 2 years old, my mom would play ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ for me, and I just loved that song,” he said while relaxing at his home in Beverly Hills. Six years later, the Beach Boys mastermind is reaching even further back in time for his latest project, “Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin,” due August 17 from Walt Disney Records. Singer Brian Wilson performs during a rehearsal of 'That Lucky Old Sun' with a 10-piece band at the State Theatre during the Sydney Festival January 7, 2008.

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