The Smiley Smile Message Board

OK, I’ve been a Beach Boys fan for a long, long time. Yesterday, I was going back and reading some of the 50th Anniversary concert reviews on this website; specifically the Cuthbert Ampitheatre show up in Eugene last July. One guy who was there said he heard Brian sing the following words to Good Vibrations. It’s also documented on YouTube:

"Close my eyes, she’s somehow closer now, softly smile I know she must be kind
When I look in her eyes, she goes with me to a blossom world we find."

Somebody on the thread referred to “we find” as the ”missing words to Good Vibrations”. Another guy (Justin?) said he heard the same thing at a previous concert last year.

My question is, what missing words?? In all my born days in Beach Boys fandom (with exception to hearing the vocal sessions to Good Vibrations at Columbia) I thought I heard and read about pretty much every fragment to my favorite Beach Boys song until now. I’ve never seen these words in the second verse documented anywhere and have never heard them used at anytime in studio outtakes/alternate or live versions of the song before.

Was this just something that was added in a few of last year’s 50th concerts just for the hell of it or have these words been sung previously? Were these original words intended for the song in '66 and later scratched? I don't think they were Asher's lyrics, were they? Inquiring mind wansta know. Tell me I'm not insane, Van Dyke!

Thanks!

I'm sure there one of the interviews from last year Mike confirms the 'we find' was written and recorded but Brian edited it out.

From all the footage I've seen, it's always Jeff who adds "we find", not Brian. Mike mentions the "we find" lyrics in (IIRC) "An American Band".

I thought it was in the Online Smile Sessions episodes on YouTube he mentioned it

I've had the American Band video since it came out and watched it many times and I can't remember Mike saying anything about that. That's the one where Glen Campbell says he played on at least 5 sessions that he knew of. Don't think it's in that segment.


Here's what I'm talking about. They did it at Bonearoo too. It sounds like Brian is singing it. Jeff points to Brian to continue the line after Jeff starts it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXVNsTr9QPY&feature=youtu.be&t=1m15s

Yes, it was definitely mentioned in one of last year's webisodes. It was the first I ever heard of it, and ever since then I've been singing it that way in my head. I had no idea about it being done on the tour though.

Mike said it was Brian's decision to chop it off to end in "blossom world." Pretty cool, instinctive edit by Brian there.

Yeah, Mike said that the 'we find' was in the original lyrics, but Brian chopped it so the instruments could be featured on those chord changes.

Brian wanted to emphasise the Bass.

word.

Yup, it was (is) on the Smile webisodes.

I now sing it that way every time I hear it.

I could've sworn that bit of information on the lyric was in something previous, too: Endless Harmony?

Genius!

Thanks, boys!  I musta missed this SMiLe Sessions Webisode last year.  It's right here at 2:24:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfFb8jgmLD8

First time I ever heard Mike (or anyone) talk about it anywhere.  And then I guess they sang it on a few 50th Anniversary shows last year!

Brian cut it off to make the theremin stand out, it was on An America Family.

... which is in itself interesting as that statement can only mean two things:

1 - there are at least five totally undocumented "GV" sessions out there somewhere, or...

2 - Glen was hanging out with CK too much.

Other than in the Smile webisodes, had it ever been mentioned in public, at anytime, anywhere? It's just really weird that in the literally millions of times it has been performed, nobody has ever heard of this until now. Just like Mike randomly mentioning how he wrote Getcha Back for Dennis to sing. :brow

There is no Theremin part where Brian cut those words: It's mostly the dual drum tracks and bass lines driving into the chorus. The words had they been left in would have fallen into the phrase just before the Theremin starts up.

For years I heard that vocal part as an edit, and a pretty abrupt or harsh cut, too, and wondered what was cut out!  :)

It might be subject for another thread, but on the same line of questioning...

When or how did the band add that extra instrumental phrase to "God Only Knows", the second ascending one-bar phrase just before the wordless vocal break? It's not on the original, yet nearly every live version has that added bar of music.

Have I missed something that can easily be found on 1966 outtakes, or did the band just add this for live shows?

You mean before the bridge, right?

It's on the Lei'id in Hawaii stuff - don't have any boots of them playing it before then, but I reckon it was just for ease. The staccato thing is really difficult!

That's what I'm thinking, they added that bar to make a better/easier transition, short of having to play the staccato bit live for whatever reasons they had to omit those amazing 4 bars of music.

They played the staccato break on stage throughout the 2012 tour.

Right. It doesn't have anything to do with the theremin, which has plenty of time to kick in. The vocal had to fit the bass line in the track, like Mike said. Still might have worked if they hurried the vocal just a tad, but the "we find" words don't seem to fit the line anyway.  "We find". Who found? The boy and girl? The Beach Boys? Ha Ha. Just doesn't work. That's why I love the song so much. So much went into it and there's so many alternate words/sections/instruments/vocal parts/etc.

Hum dee dum hum dee dum oh oh Hum dee dum hum dee dum oh oh............

Exactly.

a blossom world.

Props to Mike Love, that's a great lyric, with our without the "we find".

It can clearly be heard on the BBC radio 2 concert for anyone who hasn't heard it

https://soundcloud.com/frederickjamesfrench-pounce/good-vibrations-live-at-the (https://soundcloud.com/frederickjamesfrench-pounce/good-vibrations-live-at-the)

I'm sure there are plenty of things about The Beach Boys that we don't know yet.

Yeah, a couple. Researchers and Recording Engineers are still finding stuff. I'm waiting for the day 'till I die when I can hear the Good Vibrations vocal sessions. Probably never happen - they probably got thrown out during the Columbia house cleaning party in '69. Wonder what they would do with the tape(s) if they found it......new 50/60/70 Anniversary release maybe?  ;D

Yeah, coincidently, I see you had a go of it about Glen's involvement with Good Vibrations recently on one of the boards. "Brian's The Greatest" one of your favorite people, is he?  ;D

Glen (and bios as intros to interviews) has made statements many times over the years that he played on Good Vibrations. He obviously loves the song and would like to be associated with it. You'd think a major member of the Wrecking Crew would get his due (and dues) on pretty much every AFM contract. At least one sheet for one session of Good Vibrations as there were so many sessions over a 6 month period. But he did get credited for a few tracks on Pet Sounds....

Interesting that Brian cut the 'we find' at the end of the second verse 'to showcase the bass part', when he was fine with leaving Carl sing over the same bass part at the end of the first verse.  Although, I guess there is no way to cut any words in the line, 'on the wind that lifts her perfume through the air'.  
 

Was that from last year too? I wonder if it was a surprise to the many who heard it for the first time or if people thought Brian muffed the line or what. At least he and his band have sung Asher's lyrics and various vocal sections from Good Vibrations outtakes over the years in concert (familiar to us from bootlegs) but this kinda came out of nowhere. But I wonder if it was Mike's idea and/or Jeff and Brian's to implement it. It's a small thing, but there's history to it.

I had no idea it had been implemented in the tour until I heard this - it really excited me until others said it was nothing new  :(

Nothing new???  What the hell are they talking about???  It was new in the middle part of last year!!  And FWIW, it's new to me!!  Sheesh!

There's a video from early in to the c50 tour where Mike looks surprised when Jeff sings it.

Anyone know the concert?

I'm fairly certain it's Bonnaroo but I can't find a clear enough video of Mike after Jeff sings the line (yet).

 This might sound stupid, but what exactly are they refering to with "blossom world"?

A place you go to when you take acid and have sex.

And eat sandwiches.  ;D

Whatever the reason, it was great instinct.  Once you've gone to that blossom world, it's pointless to say that you've found it.  Just dig the music that's there, man.

SufferingFools nailed it. I could write a three paragraph explanation of why he's correct, but why mess with perfection? Nice job Sufferingfools. Nice (that kind of thing one can repeat).

now I want to trip balls and have sex

thanks a lot