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Fifty years after the release of the landmark Beach Boys album, "Pet Sounds," the genius of the songwriting and arrangements hold up.

But even a casual follower of the Beach Boys trajectory and history, or even anyone who has seen the biopic "Love and Mercy," know the years have not necessarily been as kind to Brian Wilson, the mind behind the seminal work.

Thursday night at Abravanel Hall in Salt Lake City, Wilson and fellow Beach Boy, Al Jardine, did their best to recapture some of the "Pet Sounds" magic in front of a capacity crowd of adoring fans.

Wilson, slowed to a shuffle these days, sat at a black grand piano that he barely played, following the 11- and sometimes 12-person ensemble through the familiar catalog of hits. Jardine led the group through the evening as he and the supporting cast did an admirable job of helping to support the aging Wilson, whose voice these days is shaky and wavering.

A few songs into the night, Jardine introduced his son, Matt, who he said has been singing the Beach Boys tunes since he was 8 and was touring the world with the band, and it was Matt, who is built like a linebacker, who did the heavy vocal lifting much of the night.

Whenever a song traveled out of Wilson's limited vocal range — which was often — he tagged out to Matt, who carried until he was able to turn it back over to Wilson.

It was surprising to see, since just last year Wilson gamely put on a much more solid performance at Red Butte, engaging the audience and moving around the stage.

Despite the limitations Wilson faces these days, the opportunity to hear "Pet Sounds," played start-to-finish in the second half of the set, was a treat for the audience, who knew all the words to every song, from the opening chords of "Wouldn't It Be Nice," to the last notes of "Caroline, No."

In a way, Wilson's faltering voice added punch to "Pet Sounds," which is loaded with songs of alienation and vulnerability — songs like "You Still Believe In Me" and "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times" — powerful when they were written by a 24-year-old kid, but perhaps made even more touching when they are sung by a 74-year-old who has been through what Wilson has.

The highlight of the evening came midway through the second set, when Al Jardine announced, "Now we're at the point in the evening when you turn the record over."

"Gotta turn the vinyl over and drop the needle," but do it gently, he cautioned, because the first song on the B-side is one of the greats, and the band played the lovely, "God Only Knows."

The first half of the night, as well as the six-song encore were jammed with Beach Boys classics, like "California Girls," "I Get Around," their shout-out to the audience with "Salt Lake City," "Good Vibrations," crowd favorite "Help Me, Rhonda" and "Surfin' USA."

Wilson ended the night with a tender version of "Love and Mercy," from the biopic of the same name, a fitting capper to a retrospective night of hits and the work of a master of his craft.