As far as I know Pete, the only official American Spring tracks that are currently "in print" are a couple of tunes on Brian Wilson's 'Pet Projects' album. This is compilation of various tracks he wrote and produced for other artists also including The Honeys who of course became American Spring. A lot of it is bog standard early 60s chart fodder but it is worth the admission price alone for these tracks, and for 'Guess I'm Dumb', recorded by Glen Campbell, the best song Brian ever gave away. Could almost be a Pet Sounds out-take.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pet-Projects-Brian-Wilson-Productions/dp/B000083...

No news of an American Spring re-issue, last available in 1989. Given how long it took for Dennis Wilson's Solo LPs to finally come back into catalogue I wouldn't hold your breath. Knowing those cheeky Beach Boy funsters, never ones to shy away from a lawsuit, there will be no doubt be a mountain of obscure legal obstacles in the way plus an ex-wife involved for added 'soap opera' element. I'm sure if it was do-able they'd have done it by now.

You could always hunt down an "unofficial source" of the mp3s, or the original vinyl lps and CD re-issue turn up on Ebay for £20-£50.

I have the See For Miles vinyl reissue (as pictured on the clip), but I haven't listened to it in years - although it is a thing of beauty and well worth tracking down. If I hadn't packed all my records up ready to move, I'd dig it out now. If you Google it, you'll find it's available on one of those blog sites (and if it's not commercially available, it's not really wrong, is it?)

that I have found dotted round blogs and the like, it really is wonderous stuff.

Dad-rave fact: Andrew Weatherall's fabulous remix of Primal Scream's 1991 'Higher Than The Sun' - the one with the giant cosmic harpsichord - is titled "the American Spring Remix" in tribute.

I always think of this album as a sort of companion piece to the Beach Boys Sunflower album. It has the same light airy warmth to it, two of the same songs (Forever, as pete mentions, and This Whole World) and was done at roughly the same time. In fact I have a home-burned CD with the two albums coupled together and it's a natural fit.
Although it was billed as produced 'by Brian Wilson' and he was obviously really involved in it, I think equal credit in terms of the sound goes to Stephen Depser the Beach Boys engineer who made Sunflower sound so great. And it's a myth that Brian got fed up with the other Beach Boys and sloped off to do American Spring - it contains two Dennis Wilson songs and other Beach Boys pop up here and there on it - just as Marilyn and diane did on BB records - not just Brian.
As far as a re-issue goes, well it was re-issued in the late '80s by Rhino, but it's a good example of the sort of album that it's not comercially viable to give a full bells-and-whistles CD reissue to, but I would have thought could quite easily, and at minimal cost, be made available with artwork, notes etc. on a download-only basis to interested collectors. (Which of course it is, unofficialy and illegally, on fan blogsites that are a quick google search away, making it, ironically, more 'available' than it has ever been.)

Here's a taster: This Whole World

If you send me an email with your address, I will send you something you will like (trying to avoid breaking any rules here)