The Smiley Smile Message Board

Just been listening to Soniclovenoize Smile remix, Loving it.
Really enjoyed all the rest of the remixes that's been created since the release of "The Smile Sessions".
Esp the "Smile AD" mixes & Jacob Borshard mixes with added vocals too.
My question is has any "Insiders" or "big names" within the BB world heard any of these mixes both pre and post "The Smile Sessions" Box set?.
I would love to know their thoughts, As I feel that all these people who have, are, or, may well in the future keep on shaping Smile,
like an endless playful puzzle for which there is an almost unlimited multi layed solution too.

Yes, of course they have, and considerably pre-TSS.

I knew their did pre TSS cause without which etc etc, But which ones are favs?.
It's great that such fans are making all these lovely remixes keeps the Smile flame burning brightly.

Have to disagree there - I find the vast majority of the Smile fan mashups distracting in the extreme, because very very few of them are in any way selective or discriminatory. The basic premise seems to be "let's include every last second of archive material I have, oh and let's throw in some non-Smile tunes for no better reason than I think they belong". And these folk have the audacity to criticize what Mark & Alan did on the official release. Even I'm not that arrogant.

Well, OK, probably I am, but you get my point.  ;D

I feel that there are just a very few fan mixes that are worthy of Smile.
Such as the ones i've stated, as these shows creativity & are selective IMHO.
Alot of the early fan mixes did use everything I agree AGD but just lately the mixes have been really good.

Annie Wallace's Surf's Up is still the definitive mix in my view. If only they'd simply replicated her meticulous vocal synch on the TSS version instead of plumping for that awkward attempt at syncopating the crucial 'columnated ruins domino' line. Did anyone have a stab at simply re-creating her mix with the better source material now available?

Also, there are at least half a dozen better IIGS mixes out there that mop the floor with TSS version, and they don't even suffer in terms of sound quality. Holidays? Puh-lease.

Apart from the SU and Holidays blunders, which really are egregious, these are basically minor quibbles: the Veggies TSS mix is unstoppably brilliant, and the rest are good-to-fabulous. But let's not forget - George Dusault's Veggies mix is a direct ancestor of the one on TSS in its pioneering incorporation of the 'rocking' verse. Would the TSS version have happened without it? Just like some of the tunes on BWPS, there's no proof either way, but one does wonder.

Sure, the majority of fan mixes aren't pro quality, and can be people just faffing about. Even still, the continuing presence of outstanding, pro quality mixes proves that, as always, the fan mixers have a mighty valuable contribution to make to the enjoyment of this unfinished album. And this board continues to be a great filtration mechanism - you get to hear about the really important mixes eventually. Ideal, really, and I can only see reasons to praise people willing to invest the time in it, especially if they're willing to keep at it and respond to constructive feedback (as opposed to griping).

PS - Darian Sahanaja, Alan Boyd, and Mark Linett were definitely aware of early fan mixes. Whether that has continued with the recent batch I don't know. To be honest, I can't imagine that the insiders would be too bothered these days.

See, I wasn't too wild about the Anne Wallace Surf's Up when I first heard it. I mean, it worked, but that's about all I can say for it. Preferred the Purple Chick one, and now the TSS - they aren't using excessive digital trickery to match the vocal up to the track, so it's not bang on the dot and seems more loose and emotive. And, less artefacts. So I wouldn't call it an 'attempt to sync up' that line, that's just how Brian's vocal and the track fall together. Are you sure you're not viewing it with rose tinted glasses because it was one of the first?

Also, 'there are a bunch of IIGS mixes that wipe the floor with the boxset'...... after the box was released. You can't have your cake and eat it. Or maybe you can. Just swap the tracks out on your itunes if you prefer hearing a swimmy vocal and a lot of artefacts over a bit of piano in the mix. I like the fan mixes of IIGS, but they aren't good enough to justify saying 'Yes, you should have done that instead'.

I'll give you Holidays, that's the only one that I would think could be done better.

Good points all...but considering when Anne Wallace did her SU mix actually enhances its cred, as it was so much more difficult back then. Don't get me wrong, the TSS version sounds better, it's just not executed better, because to these ears, it tried to get all jazzy in the one area of the song that needed to stay straight on the beat, which for me, undoes so much good work. It's a case of being 95% there, but that missing 5% occurs at one of, if not, the, most dramatic point in the song, causing a disproportionately negative effect on the overall experience. So yes...as a mix, and by virtue of its discipline and fidelity to the source, the Wallace wins. Certainly not on sound, though - how could it? - and for that reason, it hasn't made the smart phone listening experience (hence asking if someone's tried to replicate it - the cheek!).

But yeah, what you've suggested is exactly what I've been doing, replace a few of the TSS mixes I'm not as happy with using tip-top fan mixes or (in the case of Our Prayer & Cab) the 20/20 versions), and eventually, subbing in as many stereo versions as I can in a sequence I like (actually, I think you suggested a line-up a while back that I've nicked for my standard play list).   

Re: IGGS - I take your point, but we're taking mixing technique here, not the availability of sources. Flubbing up the vocal entry was a pretty dodgy decision in my view, and several fan mixes have out-done that mix by a long shot, sounding more fluid, more natural, and managing the transition to the demo vocal more gracefully.  If pressed, I'd say the TSS version is listen-able, but with such a glaring error in a prominent spot (and with quite a few sync issues that are as distracting as any fan-mix artefact), it undoes much of the work.

Because this can't help but sound a little ungrateful, I'll reiterate that most of TSS disc 1 is an unquestionably an unqualified triumph and I love it to bits. But there's still work for fan mixers to do, and to their immense credit, AB & ML have anticipated that.

seltab has an excellent surf's up mix that fixes a lot of sync issues and restores Brian's vocal.