this is the most nervous i have ever been for an upload aaaaaa season 2 is DONE! thank you all for a great year. what do you want to see on season 3? comment below!
20 minutes in and I'm loving it. Nothing to be nervous about, you're killin' it. You must have been working overtime on this one as 70 minutes is ambitious, but every minute is worthwhile (as this is a tough album to tackle - can't wait to hear the next 50 mins.). One idea for season three is Billy Joel's '52nd Street' but I'm sure I'll think of more...
Absolutely love the channel! All the best for season 3. My suggestions: Nick Drake's "Five Leaves Left" (1969) Laura Marling's "Song For Our Daughter" (2020).
Smile is honestly a endless source of ideas and inspiration to me. The lore, the different versions, the interviews, the countless artists inspired by it, the billion bootlegs of people doing their own Smiles. It’s like a big musical sandbox where you can do anything.
20+ years ago there was a sizable community on a message board called The SMiLE Shop where we talked endlessly about SMiLE and made our own mixes to share and it was a magical time. Still in touch with a number of them after all these years. They guy who started it just recently started making new mixes again.
I feel like Van Dyke's contribution to Smile is greatly underappreciated. In my eyes, Smile really is an equal collaboration between Brian and Van Dyke. I can't imagine Smile without the lyrical part of it, and I'm glad you mentioned the lyrics a lot in the video.
the project lost all steam when van dykes left it, that kinda speaks volumes as far as how big his influence and importance was, even if it was primarily just to re-enforce Brian in front of the band.
Its a double edged sword. Its incredibly clever but honestly I don’t think it would have been a big hit, its so far over pop musics head in 1967. Its funny because I think people think this is an LSD album. That was actually‘California Girls’. Look up ‘surfs up’ the song on Wikipedia. They were taking a bunch of desbutal. Pharmaceutical speed. Brian had that infamous fire freak out. I think a lot of it was speed fueled. Just as an aside.
I saw Brian Wilson with Paul Simon in 2002 or 03. It was so awesome. After he played the Pet Sounds mini set he said “now we’re going to play you some songs to make you smile”. My buddy and I looked at each other about to die. It was so cool. I was huge into The Beach Boys in the early 2000s.
Ugh I found an absolutely pristine copy of Smile Sessions pre-owned for $20.97 at my local record store a few months ago, listened to it once and then sold it because I needed some cash and the thing goes for like $300 these days. I fully regret that and really wish I’d kept it. Hopefully they do a repress soon. It’s been out of print since release in 2011, so it’s quite overdue and more people deserve to hear it!
Those people can just do what the rest of us do. buy it on CD or just on the interwebs as Spotify or whatever they use these days I can buy it with a few clicks in 10 seconds
I love this album. Surf's Up is one of my all-time favourite songs, but the rest of what Brian and Van Dyke were writing at the time is amazing as well. Smiley Smile has its moments too. Cool video.
1 little note: The lyrics in Good Vibrations weren't by Van Dyke Parks. The original lyrics (the ones on Brian Wilson Presents SMiLE) were by Tony Asher, the lyricist for Pet Sounds. The single's lyrics were written by Mike Love, and a couple of these (the first line and the chorus) are used in both versions nowadays.
The beach boys put out some brilliant albums around this time starting with wild honey, friends, 20/20, sunflower, surf's up and Holland and all of these albums have now become classics
I love Vega-Tables and i don't feel any guilt for that. Absolute favourite... if there wasn't 'Surf's Up' aaah. D: So much, so good on here. I hope Brian Wilson is happy at the end of this story.
There was a documentary made about the band that achingly convinced Brian to do the show at Albert Hall. His fear of going back onstage is palpable. To the player's credit (who knew all of his recorded work) they were so supportive, so loving that I had to cry. Brian was hesitant at first but then he became Brian effin' Wilson. You can sing as high as Brian with a bit of training. Your pitch is perfect so no challenge there.
Hi Abigail! This is my first time catching your show. Great job! Your insight and taste in music is wonderful. I can only imagine how gorgeous that album would've been in its actual time slot...that friendly competition between The Beatles and The Beach Boys up through 1966 brought us some of the most fantastic work in music. Songs like 'Surf's up', 'Wonderful', 'Heroes and Villains', 'Cabinessence', and 'Wind Chimes' were just so ahead of any band at that time...and still.are. The Beatles too, of course. When I think of what they did in just seven short years, it blows my mind....The stars have to align just right to catch lightening in a bottle like that. I love The Beatles and Beach Boys. Number 1 and 2, respectively. Awesome work Abby!
This is the first video of yours that I have watched and I'm pretty sure it's not the last, Abigail. As a Beach Boys fan, it was so refreshing to see an analysis of the history of this album's making without going into cliche territory (Brian lost his mind, it was Mike's fault - both false) and also it was great to see you appreciating BWPS and Smiley Smile too instead of just focusing on the sessions. All of that mixed with your charm and humour. That might very well be the best video on SMiLE on the internet. Congrats, great job!
The Stockholm Strings & Horns had the great honor of working with Arthur Lee & Love on his 2003 European tour & Brian Wilson on his 2004 tour. They appreciated working with the two eccentrics & their discipline helped keep both in line !
After Smile Brian actually produced Smiley and Wild Honey with the group in 1967. After that Brian produced Friends and kind of took a back seat on 20/20 onward. His special magic he added to the music was still there but, not as much as before 1968. So in a sense Friends was last true album that Brian fully was invested in. Well it kind of changed when Brian got ambious with Love You in 1977.
Wow - I've been following the BBs since the Sixties. Have read and seen everything. But THIS is the best, most concise essay I've seen on Brian and the guys. A perfect combination of info, insight, and personality. It sums up the zeitgeist perfectly, and the evident hard work paid off in spades. The Final Thoughts alone are worth a stand-alone video. Brian would love it ( I know Brian's people and I'll pass it on to him.) Just like SMiLE, we've waited decades for this. If it ever gets taken down I predict there will be bootleg versions, hopefully with outtakes. ( The "Her Majesty" of "SMiLE" cracked me up big time). Brian was the Mozart of Pop, and Abigail is the Faulkner of UA-cam Pop, only she has a much better delivery than WF. Thanks, Abigail, for all the hard work and the cool style.
In 2011, The Beach Boys release SMiLE in a boxed set format. I took the many many tracks and edited them into seven volumes, the first one being HEROES AND VILLAINS in a new 20 minutes version, and ending with the 7th volume, GOOD VIBRATIONS. Here is the link to the first video, if you're interested: ua-cam.com/video/v18uObyJCXs/v-deo.html
The Brian wilson version sounds more complete but you can’t beat The Beach Boys harmonies. Also, I prefer brains vocals from the 60s as opposed to how he sounds now.
I love the way you said ‘Mike Love’. It said everything 😂 I was lucky enough to speak to Brian Wilson on the phone once. Greatest experience of my life!
His concert in 2004 with Darrien from the Wondermints conducting is my all time favorite, live or recorded. He looked like a happy little kid and barely spoke throughout. Our Chopin.
Good Vibrations was played around the clock on L.A. radio in 1966, usually the complete long version. No DJ worth their salt would play a 3-minute version. Good Vibrations literally changed the vibe of L.A. while it soared in the local charts.
man i wish radio nowadays wasn't such a slave to the conventional 3-minute song structure. we've missed out on a lot of would-be pop hits that way (though it's worth mentioning taylor swift went number 1 with a 10-minute song a couple years back, that was very cool to see! first time that's happened since american pie!)
@@abigaildevoe - Absolutely. We called certain fm stations "AOR" - album oriented rock and YES radio stations used to play entire albums. I am not making this up. Good on Taylor. I have never seen American Pie, I know the subject matter, is there a ten-minute song in there?
Smile Sessions will always beat BWPS in my mind just because you can’t beat how great the Beach Boys’ harmonies were. I’ll take a few songs missing lyrics or feeling incomplete just to have the original vocals. Brian was the key to the BB genius but the other guys singing together made the tracks timeless.
I was never a beach boys fan before I watched your channel. Now I am. Thanks for giving me the push I needed to give them a chance I was too cynical to before.
I was there, Abby! Both at Brian's presentation of Smile at the Royal Festival Hall in 2004, and for Pet Sounds a couple of years earlier. (Same venue: RFH is the one by the river, along from the London Eye. Google Maps has lots of photos and reviews. RFH and that area is always a nice place to go.) Of course we were delighted to see the great man. In person, gentle and soft-spoken. "You sit back - we'll do all the work". During the Pet Sounds performance, Brian regaled us with some daft knock-knock-who's-there jokes. He was centre stage, singing and sort of supervising his musicians. There was a girl in the line-up. Both times, Brian wore a bright Hawaiian-style shirt. You remember these things. Both times, for Pet Sounds and for Smile, the format was the same and we weren't complaining. The first half, they performed the album. The second half "after the intermission" was a Beach Boys singalong of our old favourites that we'd loved for decades. One very happy audience, we were. Thank you so much Brian Wilson.
Second video I've watched from your channel and I'm flabbergasted at your knowledge of Smile's history. I've read tons of articles and books about Smile, Pet Sounds and Brian himself. Then you go and mention Robert Christgau - dean of American rock critics, whom I respect. I used to devour the yearly Pazz and Jop editions of the Village Voice. Plus you insert that loopy organ interlude from The Holy Grail! We appear to be long lost soulmates. Ha ha. (Smile) ☀
I bought Smile in the Summer of 1984. It includes a bogus song - Holidays ( by Gershwin) 2 songs are listed but not on vinyl and 5 songs are previously released studio songs- Wonderful, surfs up , Cabinessesnce..... someone put on as a joke. I like the Lp and taped it so i could hear it in my car on cassette. I had to wait years until Brian redid it then a couple years later a legitimate BBs release. RIP Melinda Wilson- a few days ago....
Great work Abby! A fitting finale to season 2---you picked a whopper of an album to cover and your appreciative comments on Brian as a person and creator are wonderfully heartwarming. My thoughts on the different iterations of Smile? When BWPS first came out, I sat, listened, and was spellbound through the entire album. No other album has ever hit me that hard. Sounded like a perfect marriage between Sgt. Pepper and Abbey Road. This album lived up to the legend and the hype. When the Smile Sessions came out, it became my favorite version. The finished and unfinished parts show the Beach Boys going _way_ outside their comfort zone, a dark horse progressing as fast as Beatles were. (A mere two albums since Summer Days.) Brian and the boys may not have won that race, but they're the underdog I relate to. And in that sense, Smile's imperfections make Smile perfect to me, plus the mystique of never knowing what the finished product would have been.
I'm from Portland, and a branch of the Love family lives nearby (or at least they did in the past) and from everything I've heard, they are NOT well liked. Allegedly. Did I make that clear? ALLEGEDLY. Thanks
Sure, I'll jump in with some thoughts on albums to cover in the future: * Elton John - Tumbleweed Connection (I dare you to cover this one. Or you could go more accessible with Madman Across the Water. Or cop out entirely and do Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.) * ELO - A New World Record (Jeff Lynne's dreamscape masterpiece. It's not Out Of The Blue, it's this one. Eldorado would also be a respectable choice.) * Moody Blues - To Our Children's Children's Children (Any of the 7 classic lineup albums would be fun, but this one has a special ethereal vibe. Okay, start with Days Of Future Passed if this is too far of a leap.) * Quicksilver Messenger Service - 1st Album (Prestige and mystique are not necessary for an album to be great. Just saying.) * Robin Trower - Bridge Of Sighs (Thank you, James Dewar.) * Santana III (Sure, it's Santana, but it's an undeniably mind altering record.) * Bookends (SoS album was an odd place to start with S&G.) * Joni Mitchell - Blue (This one is coming, right?)
your subscriber base is going to explode, I've been listening to In the Airplane Over the Sea all weekend... can't believe I was unaware of this album until I watched your review.
51:58 the band I was in when I was a teenager into my early 20s did a... we'll call it a "punk" version of this song. It was godawful but a lot of fun to make. Every so often this song pops into my head and I can't resist growling out "I'm gonna chow down, my vegetables" to myself
Just a brief correction: For those wondering why Brian Wilson changed the words on his 2004 version of Good Vibrations? Those were actually the original lyrics before they were eventually changed (by Mike Love). And, on a personal note: The 1971 version of Surfs up was perfect for that album. It worked better than any potential Smile version. Although I prefer the magic of the 1967 version, both were meant for their perspective time periods.
So very well done. I’m one of those people who has been living with the “Smile” mythology seemingly my entire life. I was never a huge early BB fan but loved pretty much everything from “Pet Sounds” through “Surfs Up” (“Smiley” perhaps being the exception). Over the years, as various boxed sets were released, there were always tidbits from the “Smile” session, but I never thought I’d see a completed version. When I first heard “BW presents Smile”, I must admit to being a little thrown. I guess I was really surprised how everything was put together. Maybe after so many years I didn’t know what to expect. On my second listening though, it truly floored me. I loved it. Everything about it. It definitely lived up to almost 40 years of hype. I bought the big Smile box when it came out, and there’s a lot of great (albeit disjointed) music there. Very cool that you did the comparison of versions, but I’ll always love the “BW presents…” version. As sacrilege as it is to say, the fact that it’s in stereo is what tips it for me (in fact I was disappointed that the Smile box didn’t have a stereo version as well as the mono). Anyway, great stuff Abby.
Wow Abbey. So glad you prefer the Smiley Smile versions of Wonderful and Wind Chimes. I still like the others but the darkness of those alternate versions really drags me in ❤
I’m a fan of the decades long Smile cult, with passionate fans collecting and exchanging released and bootlegged fragments to piece together a myriad of individual mix tape and CD approximations. But it was wonderful seeing Brian at the Warner Theatre during his Smile tour. A joyous session.
I agree with you, I doubt Smile would have been so well received by the public at large in 1967. It is as you say very dense and would have required a lot of patience, as it does even now. I love it personally though😃🎶
Nicely done. I spent years as a Smile obsessive so I know you can only scratch the surface in an hour, but you did a great job as usual with your presentation.
Great albums released in 67: The Doors' "The Doors" and "Strande Days"; The Velvet Undreground's "The Velvet Underground and Nico" and "White Light White Heat"; The Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and "Magical Mistery Tour"; The Jimi Hendrix Experience's "The Jimi Hendrix Experience" and "Axis: Bol As Love"; Big Brother And The Holding Company's "Cheap Thrills"; Jefferson Airplaine's "Surrealistic Pillow"; The Rolling Stones' "Their Satanic Majesties Request"; The Who's "The Who's Selling Our"; am I forgeting anhyone? Oh, it could have been "Smile", if it had been released... (all my passwords end with "67")
Congratulations on two years Abbey! Thank you for brightening so many music lover’s lives! I watch a lot of music/vinyl review channels, and your’s stands out from the pack! Keep on doing what you’re doing!
I have been obsessed with this album since I learned the Beach Boys were way more than Surf/Girls/Cars/School in my twenties. I loved the BW Presents version and really thought there was no need to try and improve on it. That is until I heard SMiLE sessions. There is no substitute for the original Beach Boy’s harmonies. I am 50 now, but still way too young to be a fan of this music to the level I am ( at least according to some boomers i knew in my 20’s) It’s great to see that there are young people like you Abigail who get it and have a passion for music paired with an open mind about all genres. Keep up the stellar work and thank you so much.
though interested that you kind of dismiss the melodic elements of the SMiLE sessions versions of Wind Chimes (and Wonderful kind of also). Those two are straight bangers - and feel like complete songs in all their iterations. Wind Chimes chorus on the Smile Sessions versions hits hard especially with its minor key riff that's got some proto metal elements emerging. Anyhow, it's wonderful that the album exists in its many forms and can exist to provoke discussion and inspire. Looking forward to more long essay type videos when you get the chance!
Hi Abby! Great video and great finish to the season finale! I thought you may have done "Smiley Smile" separately but glad you included it here. "Smiley Smile" is on my list of underrated albums. Great job! Watched it in its entirety. Keep up the great work!
You are so awesome Abigail. For someone so young you have so much knowledge and may I say, insight. Being a huge Brian fan for decades, I was so happy to find your site and listen to your analyzes. Consider me a new and huge fan. Peace
Whew! What a trip you took us on, Abby! You keep upping your game week by week. Congrats on two years of outstanding work. Your extensive research and thoughtful insights are impressive. Looking forward to year three.
Stumbled on this video and thought I’d give it a listen. Congratulations on a brilliant piece of criticism and an engaging and comprehensive presentation. Never a dull moment. Intellectually presented and entertaining. Seems a work of love!
Cabinessence is Smile in miniature. Brian's wildly creative musical sessions "no one could believe that a waltz could rock that hard", VDP and Brian's at once storybook-like and skewering lyrics about America, Carl's angelic voice and guitar playing, Dennis the Truck Drivin Man adding just the right bit of Wilson brother magic in a perfect location, and Mike Love whining about not understand the lyrics, threatening to and eventually succeeding in unravelling the entire, beautiful enterprise.. Wonderful video! (I do think you place too much emphasis on the drugs and not enough on the mental and physical abuse by his father as the trigger for his mental illness)
In the late '70s, I read a long music magazine story about Smile which was part rock history and part detective story about what happened to the album. It raised my interest in what I'd assumed was a corny old pop band from the '60s. But the music was impossible to track down then and there so I let it drift. Around that time I heard Good Vibrations and was wowed by it but the BBs were still associated with Saturday morning oldies radio by me. In the '90s, with an income that allowed it I bought Pet Sounds on CD as a kind of classics completism and found it samey and uninspiring apart from a few standouts. Then, in the midst of a Brian Wilson resurrection in the local indy scene, I bought the BW presents Smile on CD and loved parts of it. Even now, this music is something I admire rather than enjoy. However, nothing beats a fresh take by an enthusiast for rethinking a record. This epic episode has made me vow to turn the lights off and listen again, which is the best I can offer by way of thanks. This channel has been so much fun and enlightening. Enjoy your break and we'll be clicking in when you're back. Now put your feet up :)
Admittedly, I am still baffled by Smiley Smile. This was such a great review! I loved the head-to-head comparison between the Smiles, and I should probably give Brian Wilson Presents Smile another listen too.
Having been around in the 60’s, it was amazing to hear the classic hits from so many artists roll out one after the other. Past 1965 the music changed quite a bit and the reliable string of Beach Boys hits evolved as Brian became overcome by his mental issues. The Smile collection of music reflects both the utter genius of Brian Wilson and the frenetic confusion of that genius. While I love some of tracks I think it’s best the album never came out.
Ok, I seriously think this might be your greatest Vinyl Monday episode yet. Everything about it oozes love and passion for Smile and it’s awesome! Also, I’m just super impressed you managed to even review an album that technically does not exist (at least in its fully intended form). Take this break! It’s very much well deserved.
The Good Vibrations lyrics on Brian Wilson Presents Smile are the original lyrics of Tony Asher. Also, Smile originally was supposed to be released in Dec 1966. Inspiring A Day in a Life? I had heard a few decades ago that Lou Adler, famous producer and friend of Brian's, and someone Brian shared a lot with, was sending acetates of the sessions to Lennon and McCartney. It's one of the reasons McCartney wanted so badly to visit Brian. Unfortunately, in the 20+ years since I last heard that, I cannot find any citable source. I've heard both Brian and Dennis were also very free with sharing acetates. Dennis adored his brother and supported the music. Putting this all into the context of the times, Dec '66 - June 1967 (potential release period) before it was shelved, with all of the expectations, plus the Leonard Bernstein CBS special that featured Brian singing Surf's Up at his grand piano, it would have blown people away. Sure, there would have been some who still wanted "surf/car/dance/dating your girl at the sock hop" tunes. But, the band wouldn't have plummeted to the bottom of the sea like they were tied to a cinder block. As I always say, look at Good Vibrations, such a departure, representing Brian's new sound. Had Heroes and Villains followed it within two months instead of nine, it would have been front and center in peoples minds. They would have been hip still (okay, but that name from 1961 that they didn't even choose still had to go). Playing Monterrey, instead of pulling out, utilizing the Wrecking Crew members that were already there onstage to support various groups and singeres, could have augmented what 5 instrumentalists (Brian, Carl, Dennis, Al, and Bruce, okay with Mike sliding his finger on pre-marked notes on a Tannerin), the counter-culture wouldn't have so readily dismissed them as "yesterday's news". As Carl said, Smiley Smiley was "a bunt instead of a grand slam". The music buying public had been fed in countless articles of the coming grand slam. What they received was not even in the same league. I was listening to Atom Heart Mother the other day, and I realized I was listening to a track that was inspired by and would have fit on Smile. Of course, Pink Floyd is another band influenced by Brian Wilson, even wanting their background vocals on the Wall. Once again, Mike Love, on the day of, pulls them out of a definite "win", and only Bruce is on the album (and Toni Tenille, a 70s background vocal contributor until she and her husband established their own hit making career).
Great review as always, Abigail! I remember being 8 years old, and my godparents made me a mixtape of Beach Boys' music as a little stocking stuffer. They let me pick out all the songs and I chose more than a few from this album; I distinctly remember 8-year-old me being impressed/freaked out by "Fire" and those opening harmonies to "Our Prayer" still sound as amazing as when I first heard them all those years ago.
another smash out of the park Abby! Always very articulate about your opinions that even sometimes helps me understand why i love an album so much. I've actually never listened to smile before but had heard lots of little things about it. watching this video was a great compilation of info that illuminated the picture a bit better for me. i think it's time for me to listen to smile.
Nice overview, Abigail. Re: Do You Like Worms, I don't know how far down the rabbit hole you really want to go, but in the SMiLE box (sorry to hear that it's out of print now and so expensive; it's really an amazing package), Brian briefly sings another verse melody for Worms that many fans (myself included) believe was the apparently forgotten, original verse melody, since it utilizes the same vintage Van Dyke Parks lyrics (provided to Frank Holmes, the album cover artist, who incorporated the "Sandwich Isles" lyric in the inner booklet drawing for Worms) that had never been heard in any of the original SMiLE fragments up to that point. There is no consensus though, with many still believing that the Brian Wilson Presents Smile verse melody is the true melody (I for one think they're just singing the backing vocal melody, which is very similar). You can hear the melody fragment in this excerpt from the sessions box: ua-cam.com/video/NK1Y5NSeEj0/v-deo.html
Thank you for a brilliant season 2! I came onboard after watching the Aeroplane Over The Sea episode and this series has quickly became my favourite yt channel. The level of research and production in all of your videos is amazing. I went through a heavy 60s/70s phase in my early 20s and these videos serve as a constant reminder of just how wonderful that period in music truly is.
Cant believe its been 2 seasons wow watched every one luv it and your fashion sense and yes you must use the firehat again somehow i gain so much insight on the albums from you and i thought i knew a decent amount congrats again cant wait for season 3
Wow, existential and philosophical Abby critiquing something that never existed and comparing the 60's ( old enough to participate in ) to today's world wide angst was brilliant. The BB's were able to promote a lifestyle / culture that was more fiction then reality, a vision for those kids somewhere not near an ocean, weening away from ' Leave it ti Beaver ' and wishing for ' Gidget ' or The Beach Party films. That was ( is ) what makes Brian Wilson a genius. With that being said my all time favorite BB's tune are ' Don't Worry Baby ' from the LP ' Shut Down ' Vol 2 issued in 1964 and ' Kiss Me Baby ' from the LP ' Today ' issued in 1965. Dig your style, long boards rule....Aloha
I happen to greatly prefer Brian Wilson Presents Smile to The Smile Sessions which seem more like demos to me. Also the Brian Wilson version came out while I was spending 4 months in the hospital before a liver transplant and I listened to it everyday and it helped me through. So it has personal significance to me. Also on the subject of the Good Vibration lyrics, I remember at the time it was said that these are not rewritten lyrics but in fact the original original lyrics that were re written for the single in 1966.
I was going to say that too, they were the original Tony Asher lyrics for Good Vibrations, Tony said they were really draft lyrics, but for me they fit better with Smile as an album track, they're more weird and while ML's lyrics are more polished I don't think they get across Brian's original idea of "Good Vibrations" (We all give off vibrations). However it's great to have all the different versions.
If you can find it, I highly recommend the “MQR Presents Smile: An Ear To Ear Expansion” mix of the album. (Heroes & Villains is absolutely breathtaking on this one!) It’s the closest thing I have heard to total completion. The only thing missing are the completed bits from BWPS… I also recommend Dae Lims’ “Smile AI”, “Tragiclifeform” Smile, “Grouchy Jelly” Smile, “Monotone Tim” Smile Exitatation Mix and “Book Off Smile”. One of these days, I want to make a hybrid version using MQR as the template and adding all the missing bits from the other mixes. I’ve yet to hear everything all in one place, but I hear it in my head.
Lovely Lady, as ever a great show. We really appreciate the work you put in over the years. Enjoy your "Week Off" and come back refreshed and re-invigorated. We wait with bated breath...
If I'm not mistaken, the alternate Good Vibrations lyrics were written by Tony Asher (Pet Sounds lyricist) before Mike Love rewrote them. I wouldn't be surprised if Brian included them on the 2004 version as a side-eye to Mike Love.
Brian originally didn’t like Tony Asher’s lyrics for Good Vibrations which is why he brought on Van Dyke Parks in the first place, but VDP said he couldn’t improve on it. So, Mike rewrote the lyrics instead, and the song went #1. Then, Capitol Records gave the go-ahead for SMiLE (Dumb Angel at the time), and Brian and VDP wrote some awesome songs for an album that unfortunately went unfinished for decades.
Abby, I’m sure you remember the box set that came out about 10 years ago. I, like many others, had mixed feelings about the demos shared on the Good Vibrations box set back in the 1990’s. When Brian did the Smile album around the 2000’s, I finally “got” what Brian Wilson was trying to convey. Would it have been better if The Beach Boys had supported Brian more? I think so. Mike Love, though he contributed with lyrics and unique vocals, didn’t have the patience to understand. Carl and Dennis, his brothers, would make greater contributions in the future. And Murray, their father and former manager, was stewing over being fired from his son. So forget his understanding. Now I appreciate Smile for what was attempted. If you can do that, you can appreciate Friends, Wild Honey, Sunflower, Surf’s Up, Carl And The Passions and Holland. 🌻🏄🍯🐝🌷🇳🇱 All of them are great albums which really should’ve been more successful. I’m sure you’ve heard most of them, Abby. Definitely worth checking out and then you can decide for yourself if any of them are worthy of a pod show. Pet Sounds is, in my opinion. But very cool you got a bootleg of Smile. Hold onto that and save a few copies on tape or CD for children, nephews and nieces. We’re very lucky we can hear all these great albums not even our older siblings or parents got to hear!
Love this Abby. I have been Obsessed with Smile for years now. Someone said its like a musical sandbox. Right On! Everyone has their own version in their head. What other album does that??!! Now, with technology you can make your own version. Not a popular opinion but I really think this album didnt need Good Vibrations at all. It should have stayed the Phenomenal single it was.
I grew up surfing in SoCal in the '70's and thought the Beach Boys were a joke. However, I liked "Good Vibrations" and "Surf's Up". I always knew something about "SMiLE!", and for years believed that Brian had destroyed the tapes. In 1990, out of curiosity, I bought a new Deluxe TwoFer of "Smiley Smile/Wild Honey". The unfinished "Can't Way Too Long" caught my attention and I became obsessed with "SMiLE!". I bought all the albums looking for traces like "Cabinessence" on ""20/20". The Box Set "Good Vibrations" came with even more. I lived in NYC, and eventually found a handful of bootlegs, which I've played and assembled 100 different ways about a million times. An endless Rabbit Hole. I believe "Surf's Up" from the album uses the "SMiLE" elements with some polish and finishing. We're mostly on the same page here. You did a great job, and I salute you.
Great analysis really enjoyed your take. I think my favourite is Brian Wilson presents with Beach Boys Smile a very close second! I listen to Pet Sounds and the former to obsessively too. Its inspiring and uplifting music, still blows my mind he was trying to make all this in 1967...the moment when they got all the tracks on the computer was the moment I think it became truly real for Brian, no longer in his head! Edit, a fan project might be to combine the two.
Your Layla review was great, but this review is your best yet. You really did your homework here! You compared several albums, compared the songs, gave excellent background history, the album's relevance and Brian then/today. Keep it up!
This is my first time watching your content and I really loved it, please continue posting this videos I really like the way you review the records. also although I'm not part of the 60s generation and only discovered Smile a couple of years ago, I really can appreciate the truly piece of masterpiece it could have been if made by the whole Beach Boys and for that it have become one of my favorite pieces of music I have ever heard.
![Smile: The JSP Mix [FAN ALBUM]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/PZzRHI8D5Is/mqdefault.jpg)
this is the most nervous i have ever been for an upload aaaaaa season 2 is DONE! thank you all for a great year. what do you want to see on season 3? comment below!
20 minutes in and I'm loving it. Nothing to be nervous about, you're killin' it. You must have been working overtime on this one as 70 minutes is ambitious, but every minute is worthwhile (as this is a tough album to tackle - can't wait to hear the next 50 mins.).
One idea for season three is Billy Joel's '52nd Street' but I'm sure I'll think of more...
Who’s Next The Who, the lifehouse project is being released
I think it would be a-okay to branch out of the 60s/70s a little more. It would be awesome if you could do some more 80s/90s/00s.
Nick Drake's pink moon 🙏
Absolutely love the channel! All the best for season 3. My suggestions: Nick Drake's "Five Leaves Left" (1969) Laura Marling's "Song For Our Daughter" (2020).
Smile is honestly a endless source of ideas and inspiration to me. The lore, the different versions, the interviews, the countless artists inspired by it, the billion bootlegs of people doing their own Smiles. It’s like a big musical sandbox where you can do anything.
it's the big musical steinway sandbox!
Omg, I thought I was the only weirdo obsessed with this album. Truly the only wholistic fusion between classical music & pop/rock
you’re far from the only one! i wish i’d talked more about that pop/classical fusion, great insight there
@@abigaildevoe Witness the depths of my obsession, lmao ua-cam.com/video/8mJj0EEv_s4/v-deo.htmlsi=7-iNdpHdzMrGpGx_
20+ years ago there was a sizable community on a message board called The SMiLE Shop where we talked endlessly about SMiLE and made our own mixes to share and it was a magical time. Still in touch with a number of them after all these years. They guy who started it just recently started making new mixes again.
I have converted some to Smile. You just need find open minded people. "So, Go forth my Brothers and Sisters and spread The Word - Wonderful Thing!"
Haha, not the only one. Smile is spiritual music.
I feel like Van Dyke's contribution to Smile is greatly underappreciated. In my eyes, Smile really is an equal collaboration between Brian and Van Dyke. I can't imagine Smile without the lyrical part of it, and I'm glad you mentioned the lyrics a lot in the video.
i'll be thinking of a smile song and a pun that's been there the whole time will hit me in the face. gotta love van dyke haha
the project lost all steam when van dykes left it, that kinda speaks volumes as far as how big his influence and importance was, even if it was primarily just to re-enforce Brian in front of the band.
Its a double edged sword. Its incredibly clever but honestly I don’t think it would have been a big hit, its so far over pop musics head in 1967.
Its funny because I think people think this is an LSD album. That was actually‘California Girls’. Look up ‘surfs up’ the song on Wikipedia. They were taking a bunch of desbutal. Pharmaceutical speed. Brian had that infamous fire freak out. I think a lot of it was speed fueled. Just as an aside.
I saw Brian Wilson with Paul Simon in 2002 or 03. It was so awesome. After he played the Pet Sounds mini set he said “now we’re going to play you some songs to make you smile”. My buddy and I looked at each other about to die. It was so cool. I was huge into The Beach Boys in the early 2000s.
2001. I saw this tour as well in Toronto at Molson Ampitheatre and remember it well. And I remember the SMiLE comment.
I love the colorful clothes you wear.
Ugh I found an absolutely pristine copy of Smile Sessions pre-owned for $20.97 at my local record store a few months ago, listened to it once and then sold it because I needed some cash and the thing goes for like $300 these days. I fully regret that and really wish I’d kept it. Hopefully they do a repress soon. It’s been out of print since release in 2011, so it’s quite overdue and more people deserve to hear it!
Those people can just do what the rest of us do. buy it on CD or just on the interwebs as Spotify or whatever they use these days
I can buy it with a few clicks in 10 seconds
I love this album. Surf's Up is one of my all-time favourite songs, but the rest of what Brian and Van Dyke were writing at the time is amazing as well. Smiley Smile has its moments too. Cool video.
I love your facial expression when you say 'Mike Love' :) 3:18
"It's an assurance that broken things are beautiful..." Wow, Abby. You really encapsulated SMiLE with that phrase.
1 little note: The lyrics in Good Vibrations weren't by Van Dyke Parks. The original lyrics (the ones on Brian Wilson Presents SMiLE) were by Tony Asher, the lyricist for Pet Sounds. The single's lyrics were written by Mike Love, and a couple of these (the first line and the chorus) are used in both versions nowadays.
The beach boys put out some brilliant albums around this time starting with wild honey, friends, 20/20, sunflower, surf's up and Holland and all of these albums have now become classics
I like the versions of smile songs that were finished on these albums. And they had other great tracks.
I love Vega-Tables and i don't feel any guilt for that. Absolute favourite... if there wasn't 'Surf's Up' aaah. D: So much, so good on here. I hope Brian Wilson is happy at the end of this story.
There was a documentary made about the band that achingly convinced Brian to do the show at Albert Hall. His fear of going back onstage is palpable. To the player's credit (who knew all of his recorded work) they were so supportive, so loving that I had to cry. Brian was hesitant at first but then he became Brian effin' Wilson. You can sing as high as Brian with a bit of training. Your pitch is perfect so no challenge there.
Hi Abigail! This is my first time catching your show. Great job! Your insight and taste in music is wonderful. I can only imagine how gorgeous that album would've been in its actual time slot...that friendly competition between The Beatles and The Beach Boys up through 1966 brought us some of the most fantastic work in music. Songs like 'Surf's up', 'Wonderful', 'Heroes and Villains', 'Cabinessence', and 'Wind Chimes' were just so ahead of any band at that time...and still.are. The Beatles too, of course. When I think of what they did in just seven short years, it blows my mind....The stars have to align just right to catch lightening in a bottle like that. I love The Beatles and Beach Boys. Number 1 and 2, respectively. Awesome work Abby!
This is the first video of yours that I have watched and I'm pretty sure it's not the last, Abigail. As a Beach Boys fan, it was so refreshing to see an analysis of the history of this album's making without going into cliche territory (Brian lost his mind, it was Mike's fault - both false) and also it was great to see you appreciating BWPS and Smiley Smile too instead of just focusing on the sessions. All of that mixed with your charm and humour. That might very well be the best video on SMiLE on the internet. Congrats, great job!
The Stockholm Strings & Horns had the great honor of working with Arthur Lee & Love on his 2003 European tour & Brian Wilson on his 2004 tour. They appreciated working with the two eccentrics & their discipline helped keep both in line !
Sadly, Stockholm Strings & Horns cellist Markus Sandlund died in 2004, a victim of the tsunami that struck south Asia.
After Smile Brian actually produced Smiley and Wild Honey with the group in 1967. After that Brian produced Friends and kind of took a back seat on 20/20 onward. His special magic he added to the music was still there but, not as much as before 1968. So in a sense Friends was last true album that Brian fully was invested in. Well it kind of changed when Brian got ambious with Love You in 1977.
The smile album is phenomenal! I’m glad Brian Wilson finished it and released it years later. Definitely one of my favorites from The Beach Boys.
Wow - I've been following the BBs since the Sixties. Have read and seen everything. But THIS is the best, most concise essay I've seen on Brian and the guys. A perfect combination of info, insight, and personality. It sums up the zeitgeist perfectly, and the evident hard work paid off in spades. The Final Thoughts alone are worth a stand-alone video. Brian would love it ( I know Brian's people and I'll pass it on to him.) Just like SMiLE, we've waited decades for this. If it ever gets taken down I predict there will be bootleg versions, hopefully with outtakes. ( The "Her Majesty" of "SMiLE" cracked me up big time). Brian was the Mozart of Pop, and Abigail is the Faulkner of UA-cam Pop, only she has a much better delivery than WF. Thanks, Abigail, for all the hard work and the cool style.
In 2011, The Beach Boys release SMiLE in a boxed set format. I took the many many tracks and edited them into seven volumes, the first one being HEROES AND VILLAINS in a new 20 minutes version, and ending with the 7th volume, GOOD VIBRATIONS. Here is the link to the first video, if you're interested: ua-cam.com/video/v18uObyJCXs/v-deo.html
The Brian wilson version sounds more complete but you can’t beat The Beach Boys harmonies. Also, I prefer brains vocals from the 60s as opposed to how he sounds now.
I love the way you said ‘Mike Love’. It said everything 😂
I was lucky enough to speak to Brian Wilson on the phone once. Greatest experience of my life!
His concert in 2004 with Darrien from the Wondermints conducting is my all time favorite, live or recorded.
He looked like a happy little kid and barely spoke throughout.
Our Chopin.
i can't take it, she is just too adorable and smart--and she has a lot of records
i know right, leave some for the others!
Ok, I’m crying now. Fuck, that was beautiful.
I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done for us all! 😊
thank YOU!
Good Vibrations was played around the clock on L.A. radio in 1966, usually the complete long version. No DJ worth their salt would play a 3-minute version. Good Vibrations literally changed the vibe of L.A. while it soared in the local charts.
man i wish radio nowadays wasn't such a slave to the conventional 3-minute song structure. we've missed out on a lot of would-be pop hits that way (though it's worth mentioning taylor swift went number 1 with a 10-minute song a couple years back, that was very cool to see! first time that's happened since american pie!)
@@abigaildevoe - Absolutely. We called certain fm stations "AOR" - album oriented rock and YES radio stations used to play entire albums. I am not making this up. Good on Taylor. I have never seen American Pie, I know the subject matter, is there a ten-minute song in there?
Brian did release it in 2004 and presented it live. I was at the premiere in London.
Smile Sessions will always beat BWPS in my mind just because you can’t beat how great the Beach Boys’ harmonies were. I’ll take a few songs missing lyrics or feeling incomplete just to have the original vocals. Brian was the key to the BB genius but the other guys singing together made the tracks timeless.
The brother factor!
I was never a beach boys fan before I watched your channel. Now I am. Thanks for giving me the push I needed to give them a chance I was too cynical to before.
Sometimes it's good to revel a bit in the sunlight my friend, especially when that sunlight is obscured enought to become subtle
Such a brilliant summing up, beautifully written.
I was there, Abby! Both at Brian's presentation of Smile at the Royal Festival Hall in 2004, and for Pet Sounds a couple of years earlier. (Same venue: RFH is the one by the river, along from the London Eye. Google Maps has lots of photos and reviews. RFH and that area is always a nice place to go.) Of course we were delighted to see the great man. In person, gentle and soft-spoken. "You sit back - we'll do all the work". During the Pet Sounds performance, Brian regaled us with some daft knock-knock-who's-there jokes. He was centre stage, singing and sort of supervising his musicians. There was a girl in the line-up. Both times, Brian wore a bright Hawaiian-style shirt. You remember these things.
Both times, for Pet Sounds and for Smile, the format was the same and we weren't complaining. The first half, they performed the album. The second half "after the intermission" was a Beach Boys singalong of our old favourites that we'd loved for decades. One very happy audience, we were. Thank you so much Brian Wilson.
Second video I've watched from your channel and I'm flabbergasted at your knowledge of Smile's history. I've read tons of articles and books about Smile, Pet Sounds and Brian himself. Then you go and mention Robert Christgau - dean of American rock critics, whom I respect. I used to devour the yearly Pazz and Jop editions of the Village Voice. Plus you insert that loopy organ interlude from The Holy Grail! We appear to be long lost soulmates. Ha ha. (Smile) ☀
I bought Smile in the Summer of 1984. It includes a bogus song - Holidays ( by Gershwin) 2 songs are listed but not on vinyl and 5 songs are previously released studio songs- Wonderful, surfs up , Cabinessesnce..... someone put on as a joke. I like the Lp and taped it so i could hear it in my car on cassette. I had to wait years until Brian redid it then a couple years later a legitimate BBs release. RIP Melinda Wilson- a few days ago....
Great work Abby! A fitting finale to season 2---you picked a whopper of an album to cover and your appreciative comments on Brian as a person and creator are wonderfully heartwarming. My thoughts on the different iterations of Smile?
When BWPS first came out, I sat, listened, and was spellbound through the entire album. No other album has ever hit me that hard. Sounded like a perfect marriage between Sgt. Pepper and Abbey Road. This album lived up to the legend and the hype.
When the Smile Sessions came out, it became my favorite version. The finished and unfinished parts show the Beach Boys going _way_ outside their comfort zone, a dark horse progressing as fast as Beatles were. (A mere two albums since Summer Days.) Brian and the boys may not have won that race, but they're the underdog I relate to. And in that sense, Smile's imperfections make Smile perfect to me, plus the mystique of never knowing what the finished product would have been.
"Their cousin... MIKE LOVE 👁👁"
Killed me dead 😂
I'm from Portland, and a branch of the Love family lives nearby (or at least they did in the past) and from everything
I've heard, they are NOT well liked. Allegedly. Did I make that clear? ALLEGEDLY. Thanks
@@rickdrais9737 Please tell us a few things you heard, if you can.
Sure, I'll jump in with some thoughts on albums to cover in the future:
* Elton John - Tumbleweed Connection (I dare you to cover this one. Or you could go more accessible with Madman Across the Water. Or cop out entirely and do Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.)
* ELO - A New World Record (Jeff Lynne's dreamscape masterpiece. It's not Out Of The Blue, it's this one. Eldorado would also be a respectable choice.)
* Moody Blues - To Our Children's Children's Children (Any of the 7 classic lineup albums would be fun, but this one has a special ethereal vibe. Okay, start with Days Of Future Passed if this is too far of a leap.)
* Quicksilver Messenger Service - 1st Album (Prestige and mystique are not necessary for an album to be great. Just saying.)
* Robin Trower - Bridge Of Sighs (Thank you, James Dewar.)
* Santana III (Sure, it's Santana, but it's an undeniably mind altering record.)
* Bookends (SoS album was an odd place to start with S&G.)
* Joni Mitchell - Blue (This one is coming, right?)
your subscriber base is going to explode, I've been listening to In the Airplane Over the Sea all weekend... can't believe I was unaware of this album until I watched your review.
Thank you,this was brilliant.
51:58 the band I was in when I was a teenager into my early 20s did a... we'll call it a "punk" version of this song. It was godawful but a lot of fun to make.
Every so often this song pops into my head and I can't resist growling out "I'm gonna chow down, my vegetables" to myself
Just a brief correction: For those wondering why Brian Wilson changed the words on his 2004 version of Good Vibrations? Those were actually the original lyrics before they were eventually changed (by Mike Love). And, on a personal note: The 1971 version of Surfs up was perfect for that album. It worked better than any potential Smile version. Although I prefer the magic of the 1967 version, both were meant for their perspective time periods.
So very well done. I’m one of those people who has been living with the “Smile” mythology seemingly my entire life. I was never a huge early BB fan but loved pretty much everything from “Pet Sounds” through “Surfs Up” (“Smiley” perhaps being the exception). Over the years, as various boxed sets were released, there were always tidbits from the “Smile” session, but I never thought I’d see a completed version. When I first heard “BW presents Smile”, I must admit to being a little thrown. I guess I was really surprised how everything was put together. Maybe after so many years I didn’t know what to expect. On my second listening though, it truly floored me. I loved it. Everything about it. It definitely lived up to almost 40 years of hype. I bought the big Smile box when it came out, and there’s a lot of great (albeit disjointed) music there. Very cool that you did the comparison of versions, but I’ll always love the “BW presents…” version. As sacrilege as it is to say, the fact that it’s in stereo is what tips it for me (in fact I was disappointed that the Smile box didn’t have a stereo version as well as the mono). Anyway, great stuff Abby.
“Smile” looks great on your turntable. Its artwork harmonizes nicely with your Groovy Flowers!
Wow Abbey. So glad you prefer the Smiley Smile versions of Wonderful and Wind Chimes. I still like the others but the darkness of those alternate versions really drags me in ❤
"He stole my catchphrase!" Love it. Funny. Shawn R., Mo-Mutt Music/Sacred & Secular
I’m a fan of the decades long Smile cult, with passionate fans collecting and exchanging released and bootlegged fragments to piece together a myriad of individual mix tape and CD approximations.
But it was wonderful seeing Brian at the Warner Theatre during his Smile tour. A joyous session.
I agree with you, I doubt Smile would have been so well received by the public at large in 1967. It is as you say very dense and would have required a lot of patience, as it does even now. I love it personally though😃🎶
Nicely done. I spent years as a Smile obsessive so I know you can only scratch the surface in an hour, but you did a great job as usual with your presentation.
You're music videos are legendary, been loving your work for years
@abelsanchez2070 Thank you! ❤
🏆 Essay of the year. With honors for discipline: no Majesties tangent at 17:05 (Pepper's vs. Pet Sounds). What a treat this year has been - thank you!
it has been One Video since i condoned their satanic majesties request
Great albums released in 67: The Doors' "The Doors" and "Strande Days"; The Velvet Undreground's "The Velvet Underground and Nico" and "White Light White Heat"; The Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and "Magical Mistery Tour"; The Jimi Hendrix Experience's "The Jimi Hendrix Experience" and "Axis: Bol As Love"; Big Brother And The Holding Company's "Cheap Thrills"; Jefferson Airplaine's "Surrealistic Pillow"; The Rolling Stones' "Their Satanic Majesties Request"; The Who's "The Who's Selling Our"; am I forgeting anhyone? Oh, it could have been "Smile", if it had been released... (all my passwords end with "67")
Abbey, the fun you have and we all have with you on Vinyl Monday is cognizant with Brian Wilson's sense of fun in the late 1960s.
thank you! i'd hope so!
Congratulations on two years Abbey! Thank you for brightening so many music lover’s lives! I watch a lot of music/vinyl review channels, and your’s stands out from the pack! Keep on doing what you’re doing!
I have been obsessed with this album since I learned the Beach Boys were way more than Surf/Girls/Cars/School in my twenties. I loved the BW Presents version and really thought there was no need to try and improve on it. That is until I heard SMiLE sessions. There is no substitute for the original Beach Boy’s harmonies. I am 50 now, but still way too young to be a fan of this music to the level I am ( at least according to some boomers i knew in my 20’s) It’s great to see that there are young people like you Abigail who get it and have a passion for music paired with an open mind about all genres. Keep up the stellar work and thank you so much.
this is way better than most of the other videos on SMiLE on youtube. nailed it
though interested that you kind of dismiss the melodic elements of the SMiLE sessions versions of Wind Chimes (and Wonderful kind of also). Those two are straight bangers - and feel like complete songs in all their iterations. Wind Chimes chorus on the Smile Sessions versions hits hard especially with its minor key riff that's got some proto metal elements emerging. Anyhow, it's wonderful that the album exists in its many forms and can exist to provoke discussion and inspire. Looking forward to more long essay type videos when you get the chance!
Hi Abby! Great video and great finish to the season finale! I thought you may have done "Smiley Smile" separately but glad you included it here. "Smiley Smile" is on my list of underrated albums. Great job! Watched it in its entirety. Keep up the great work!
You are so awesome Abigail. For someone so young you have so much knowledge and may I say, insight. Being a huge Brian fan for decades, I was so happy to find your site and listen to your analyzes. Consider me a new and huge fan. Peace
Whew! What a trip you took us on, Abby! You keep upping your game week by week. Congrats on two years of outstanding work. Your extensive research and thoughtful insights are impressive. Looking forward to year three.
thank you so much! i'm excited for year 3. it'll be a big one, i can feel it
Stumbled on this video and thought I’d give it a listen. Congratulations on a brilliant piece of criticism and an engaging and comprehensive presentation. Never a dull moment. Intellectually presented and entertaining. Seems a work of love!
Cabinessence is Smile in miniature. Brian's wildly creative musical sessions "no one could believe that a waltz could rock that hard", VDP and Brian's at once storybook-like and skewering lyrics about America, Carl's angelic voice and guitar playing, Dennis the Truck Drivin Man adding just the right bit of Wilson brother magic in a perfect location, and Mike Love whining about not understand the lyrics, threatening to and eventually succeeding in unravelling the entire, beautiful enterprise..
Wonderful video!
(I do think you place too much emphasis on the drugs and not enough on the mental and physical abuse by his father as the trigger for his mental illness)
This is one helluva deep dive. Congratulations on such a detailed insight on what has now become the stuff of legend.
In the late '70s, I read a long music magazine story about Smile which was part rock history and part detective story about what happened to the album. It raised my interest in what I'd assumed was a corny old pop band from the '60s. But the music was impossible to track down then and there so I let it drift. Around that time I heard Good Vibrations and was wowed by it but the BBs were still associated with Saturday morning oldies radio by me. In the '90s, with an income that allowed it I bought Pet Sounds on CD as a kind of classics completism and found it samey and uninspiring apart from a few standouts. Then, in the midst of a Brian Wilson resurrection in the local indy scene, I bought the BW presents Smile on CD and loved parts of it. Even now, this music is something I admire rather than enjoy. However, nothing beats a fresh take by an enthusiast for rethinking a record. This epic episode has made me vow to turn the lights off and listen again, which is the best I can offer by way of thanks. This channel has been so much fun and enlightening. Enjoy your break and we'll be clicking in when you're back. Now put your feet up :)
Thanks for this! Been on a Beach Boys binge and I needed someone to set me straight on the different versions of the songs.
Admittedly, I am still baffled by Smiley Smile. This was such a great review! I loved the head-to-head comparison between the Smiles, and I should probably give Brian Wilson Presents Smile another listen too.
Having been around in the 60’s, it was amazing to hear the classic hits from so many artists roll out one after the other. Past 1965 the music changed quite a bit and the reliable string of Beach Boys hits evolved as Brian became overcome by his mental issues. The Smile collection of music reflects both the utter genius of Brian Wilson and the frenetic confusion of that genius. While I love some of tracks I think it’s best the album never came out.
Ok, I seriously think this might be your greatest Vinyl Monday episode yet. Everything about it oozes love and passion for Smile and it’s awesome! Also, I’m just super impressed you managed to even review an album that technically does not exist (at least in its fully intended form). Take this break! It’s very much well deserved.
(Except "Barnyard" rules).
The Good Vibrations lyrics on Brian Wilson Presents Smile are the original lyrics of Tony Asher.
Also, Smile originally was supposed to be released in Dec 1966. Inspiring A Day in a Life? I had heard a few decades ago that Lou Adler, famous producer and friend of Brian's, and someone Brian shared a lot with, was sending acetates of the sessions to Lennon and McCartney. It's one of the reasons McCartney wanted so badly to visit Brian. Unfortunately, in the 20+ years since I last heard that, I cannot find any citable source. I've heard both Brian and Dennis were also very free with sharing acetates. Dennis adored his brother and supported the music.
Putting this all into the context of the times, Dec '66 - June 1967 (potential release period) before it was shelved, with all of the expectations, plus the Leonard Bernstein CBS special that featured Brian singing Surf's Up at his grand piano, it would have blown people away. Sure, there would have been some who still wanted "surf/car/dance/dating your girl at the sock hop" tunes. But, the band wouldn't have plummeted to the bottom of the sea like they were tied to a cinder block. As I always say, look at Good Vibrations, such a departure, representing Brian's new sound. Had Heroes and Villains followed it within two months instead of nine, it would have been front and center in peoples minds. They would have been hip still (okay, but that name from 1961 that they didn't even choose still had to go). Playing Monterrey, instead of pulling out, utilizing the Wrecking Crew members that were already there onstage to support various groups and singeres, could have augmented what 5 instrumentalists (Brian, Carl, Dennis, Al, and Bruce, okay with Mike sliding his finger on pre-marked notes on a Tannerin), the counter-culture wouldn't have so readily dismissed them as "yesterday's news". As Carl said, Smiley Smiley was "a bunt instead of a grand slam". The music buying public had been fed in countless articles of the coming grand slam. What they received was not even in the same league.
I was listening to Atom Heart Mother the other day, and I realized I was listening to a track that was inspired by and would have fit on Smile. Of course, Pink Floyd is another band influenced by Brian Wilson, even wanting their background vocals on the Wall. Once again, Mike Love, on the day of, pulls them out of a definite "win", and only Bruce is on the album (and Toni Tenille, a 70s background vocal contributor until she and her husband established their own hit making career).
Hello Abigail. Great video and lots of info. Looking forward to next season!
Great review as always, Abigail! I remember being 8 years old, and my godparents made me a mixtape of Beach Boys' music as a little stocking stuffer. They let me pick out all the songs and I chose more than a few from this album; I distinctly remember 8-year-old me being impressed/freaked out by "Fire" and those opening harmonies to "Our Prayer" still sound as amazing as when I first heard them all those years ago.
Thank you so much for your closing thoughts on hope and optimism. I've always loved Smile, and your review deepened my love it. Great job!
another smash out of the park Abby! Always very articulate about your opinions that even sometimes helps me understand why i love an album so much. I've actually never listened to smile before but had heard lots of little things about it. watching this video was a great compilation of info that illuminated the picture a bit better for me. i think it's time for me to listen to smile.
Thanks for the heads up on that version of wonderful! It is indeed!
Nice overview, Abigail. Re: Do You Like Worms, I don't know how far down the rabbit hole you really want to go, but in the SMiLE box (sorry to hear that it's out of print now and so expensive; it's really an amazing package), Brian briefly sings another verse melody for Worms that many fans (myself included) believe was the apparently forgotten, original verse melody, since it utilizes the same vintage Van Dyke Parks lyrics (provided to Frank Holmes, the album cover artist, who incorporated the "Sandwich Isles" lyric in the inner booklet drawing for Worms) that had never been heard in any of the original SMiLE fragments up to that point. There is no consensus though, with many still believing that the Brian Wilson Presents Smile verse melody is the true melody (I for one think they're just singing the backing vocal melody, which is very similar). You can hear the melody fragment in this excerpt from the sessions box: ua-cam.com/video/NK1Y5NSeEj0/v-deo.html
The 2004 edition of Smile is absolutely awesome. I bought the vinyl back then and I never ever get tired of it.
Thank you for a brilliant season 2! I came onboard after watching the Aeroplane Over The Sea episode and this series has quickly became my favourite yt channel.
The level of research and production in all of your videos is amazing. I went through a heavy 60s/70s phase in my early 20s and these videos serve as a constant reminder of just how wonderful that period in music truly is.
Cant believe its been 2 seasons wow watched every one luv it and your fashion sense and yes you must use the firehat again somehow i gain so much insight on the albums from you and i thought i knew a decent amount congrats again cant wait for season 3
I’m four minutes in and I’m already enchanted by the transitions.
Congrats on your second season! Great re-cap of the Smile saga.
You're such an underrated music history Host. Good job Abigail really impressive
Wow, existential and philosophical Abby critiquing something that never existed and comparing the 60's ( old enough to participate in ) to today's world wide angst was brilliant. The BB's were able to promote a lifestyle / culture that was more fiction then reality, a vision for those kids somewhere not near an ocean, weening away from ' Leave it ti Beaver ' and wishing for ' Gidget ' or The Beach Party films. That was ( is ) what makes Brian Wilson a genius. With that being said my all time favorite BB's tune are ' Don't Worry Baby ' from the LP ' Shut Down ' Vol 2 issued in 1964 and ' Kiss Me Baby ' from the LP ' Today ' issued in 1965. Dig your style, long boards rule....Aloha
I happen to greatly prefer Brian Wilson Presents Smile to The Smile Sessions which seem more like demos to me. Also the Brian Wilson version came out while I was spending 4 months in the hospital before a liver transplant and I listened to it everyday and it helped me through. So it has personal significance to me. Also on the subject of the Good Vibration lyrics, I remember at the time it was said that these are not rewritten lyrics but in fact the original original lyrics that were re written for the single in 1966.
I was going to say that too, they were the original Tony Asher lyrics for Good Vibrations, Tony said they were really draft lyrics, but for me they fit better with Smile as an album track, they're more weird and while ML's lyrics are more polished I don't think they get across Brian's original idea of "Good Vibrations" (We all give off vibrations). However it's great to have all the different versions.
If you can find it, I highly recommend the “MQR Presents Smile: An Ear To Ear Expansion” mix of the album. (Heroes & Villains is absolutely breathtaking on this one!) It’s the closest thing I have heard to total completion. The only thing missing are the completed bits from BWPS… I also recommend Dae Lims’ “Smile AI”, “Tragiclifeform” Smile, “Grouchy Jelly” Smile, “Monotone Tim” Smile Exitatation Mix and “Book Off Smile”.
One of these days, I want to make a hybrid version using MQR as the template and adding all the missing bits from the other mixes.
I’ve yet to hear everything all in one place, but I hear it in my head.
If you wanna do more nonexistent albums, you gotta do _Lifehouse_ by The Who.
I spent 30 years or so listening to Surfs Up and not hearing By gones, by gones. I heard My God, my God. Fabulous video!
Loved the Smile vs Smile part. Really fun to hear your thoughts
This video does Smile justice. A lot! Well done, Abby!
Lovely Lady, as ever a great show. We really appreciate the work you put in over the years. Enjoy your "Week Off" and come back refreshed and re-invigorated. We wait with bated breath...
good call putting "week off" in quotes, i still have to edit that bonus episode! had to enjoy at least one day's break lol
If I'm not mistaken, the alternate Good Vibrations lyrics were written by Tony Asher (Pet Sounds lyricist) before Mike Love rewrote them. I wouldn't be surprised if Brian included them on the 2004 version as a side-eye to Mike Love.
Brian originally didn’t like Tony Asher’s lyrics for Good Vibrations which is why he brought on Van Dyke Parks in the first place, but VDP said he couldn’t improve on it. So, Mike rewrote the lyrics instead, and the song went #1. Then, Capitol Records gave the go-ahead for SMiLE (Dumb Angel at the time), and Brian and VDP wrote some awesome songs for an album that unfortunately went unfinished for decades.
Abby, I’m sure you remember the box set that came out about 10 years ago. I, like many others, had mixed feelings about the demos shared on the Good Vibrations box set back in the 1990’s. When Brian did the Smile album around the 2000’s, I finally “got” what Brian Wilson was trying to convey.
Would it have been better if The Beach Boys had supported Brian more? I think so. Mike Love, though he contributed with lyrics and unique vocals, didn’t have the patience to understand. Carl and Dennis, his brothers, would make greater contributions in the future. And Murray, their father and former manager, was stewing over being fired from his son. So forget his understanding.
Now I appreciate Smile for what was attempted. If you can do that, you can appreciate Friends, Wild Honey, Sunflower, Surf’s Up, Carl And The Passions and Holland. 🌻🏄🍯🐝🌷🇳🇱 All of them are great albums which really should’ve been more successful. I’m sure you’ve heard most of them, Abby. Definitely worth checking out and then you can decide for yourself if any of them are worthy of a pod show. Pet Sounds is, in my opinion.
But very cool you got a bootleg of Smile. Hold onto that and save a few copies on tape or CD for children, nephews and nieces. We’re very lucky we can hear all these great albums not even our older siblings or parents got to hear!
Thank you for all your hard work, Abi. 🍻🍻
Love this Abby. I have been Obsessed with Smile for years now. Someone said its like a musical sandbox. Right On! Everyone has their own version in their head. What other album does that??!!
Now, with technology you can make your own version. Not a popular opinion but I really think this album didnt need Good Vibrations at all. It should have stayed the Phenomenal single it was.
I grew up surfing in SoCal in the '70's and thought the Beach Boys were a joke. However, I liked "Good Vibrations" and "Surf's Up". I always knew something about "SMiLE!", and for years believed that Brian had destroyed the tapes. In 1990, out of curiosity, I bought a new Deluxe TwoFer of "Smiley Smile/Wild Honey". The unfinished "Can't Way Too Long" caught my attention and I became obsessed with "SMiLE!". I bought all the albums looking for traces like "Cabinessence" on ""20/20". The Box Set "Good Vibrations" came with even more. I lived in NYC, and eventually found a handful of bootlegs, which I've played and assembled 100 different ways about a million times. An endless Rabbit Hole. I believe "Surf's Up" from the album uses the "SMiLE" elements with some polish and finishing. We're mostly on the same page here. You did a great job, and I salute you.
Yes!!! I’ve listened to this album on repeat over the last couple months. My favorite album. Thanks
which one? haha
Great analysis really enjoyed your take. I think my favourite is Brian Wilson presents with Beach Boys Smile a very close second!
I listen to Pet Sounds and the former to obsessively too. Its inspiring and uplifting music, still blows my mind he was trying to make all this in 1967...the moment when they got all the tracks on the computer was the moment I think it became truly real for Brian, no longer in his head! Edit, a fan project might be to combine the two.
Your Layla review was great, but this review is your best yet. You really did your homework here! You compared several albums, compared the songs, gave excellent background history, the album's relevance and Brian then/today. Keep it up!
Thank you for doing reviews from the Box's I sent you.....Have a Great Labor Day. Can't wait to see more.
I'm warming up to the Smile(s). As an old car guy, I can't help but like Surfing, Cars, and Girls. But my appreciation of post-Pet Sounds is growing.
This is my first time watching your content and I really loved it, please continue posting this videos I really like the way you review the records. also although I'm not part of the 60s generation and only discovered Smile a couple of years ago, I really can appreciate the truly piece of masterpiece it could have been if made by the whole Beach Boys and for that it have become one of my favorite pieces of music I have ever heard.
6:56 I was like "where did i listened the names Rodgers y Hammerstein?" And then Completely Unoriginal by the Bee Gees started to play in my head
This was a masterpiece. Thank you for making this.