The Smiley Smile Message Board

Ok, five songs that didn't make the MIC line-up but which you really wish had, and why you wish they had (unreleased tracks not included, because obviously everyone wants to see unreleased material officially released). And in the interests of keeping the thread interesting and to the point, no more than five suggestions each (no big long lists please).

Here's mine:

1. Custom Machine
2. She's Goin' Bald
3. All I Wanna Do
4. Johnny Carson
5. Where I Belong

1. Because it's one of Brian's most perfect early pop ditties, and a better representation of his song-writing advancement than Ol' Betsy, and also a better example of the song-writing quality of the original Little Deuce Coupe numbers;

2. Because Smiley Smile is woefully under-represented, as always, despite being one of their most unique, experimental and interesting albums. SGB neatly encapsulates the albums crazed brilliance;

3. Because it's probably the finest example of Mike's TM-inspired song-writing, even more so than All This Is That. Also, it's a stunning example of Steve Desper's production brilliance. And it's a firm fan favourite much deserving of a wider audience;

4. Because it perfectly sums up the bonkers-ness and the unique merits of the Love You album in one single song, certainly far more than Solar System does;

5. Because it's their best song of '80's - end of.  

1. What'd I Say - Would have shown their early live work and is a genuine rarity.

2. The Lord's Prayer - The Hawthorne comp will presumably fade from memory and this would have provided disc one with another non-album song.

3. Cuddle Up (45 mix) - Both a rare song and a good one.

4. Somewhere Near Japan (45 mix) - Ditto.

5. Still I Dream of It - I could have said one of the other obscurities from the first box set but as that is being replaced it is a shame if songs like this Games Two Can Play, 4th of July, Our Team etc. are forgotten.

1. Here Comes The Night (1979 single version)
2. Chasin' The Sky
3. East Meets West
4. Happy Endings
5. Living Doll

Bonus Absentees
6. Crocodile Rock
7. Problem Child

The reasons are the same for all of them. I think the purpose of a boxed set is to include those songs that either weren't/aren't available on CD, or ones where you have to buy an album/comp by another artist to get it (like "Crocodile Rock"). I also think this new boxed set should feature every single (with the single mix) that the group ever did. In my opinion... :police:

I would've liked to have heard the recent recording of She Believes in Love Again

1.  Carry Me Home
2.  Out in the Country
3.  Big Sur (original version)
4.  Lookin' Down the Coastline
5.  That Same Song (the version from the documentary)

Bonus Absentees:
6.  Come to the Sunshine (if it could be found)
7.  Country Pie
8.  What I'd Say
9.  Johnny Carson
10. Cuddle Up

Just to recap...

Ok, five songs that didn't make the MIC line-up but which you really wish had, and why you wish they had (unreleased tracks not included, because obviously everyone wants to see unreleased material officially released). And in the interests of keeping the thread interesting and to the point, no more than five suggestions each (no big long lists please).

The user who opened this thread does. So be polite & don't spam. :P

The Beach Boys did a cover of this!? What year was it recorded?

Sorry,  I can't think of a polite way to say 'this is a stupid idea for a thread'
 

ps, I'm trolling, not spamming.

In what way is it a stupid idea for a thread? You've no interest in what songs were or were not picked for the line-up of (presumably) your favourite group's career retrospective? Ok, fair enough, each to their own. But I do, hence the thread.

 Brian and Van Dyke recorded "Come to the Sunshine" maybe late '75; the very beginning of the 15 BIG ONES era, more or less. I don't know if anyone else in The Beach Boys participated.

I was just being a dick, sorry...but if there IS a point I was trying to make, it's that some of us (i presume I'm not the only one) just have a total blindness to the previously released stuff. Love them ALL in the context of the original albums, but I just don't see the point in the career retrospective side of this

She Knows Me Too Well - One of best tracks off the Today album, haunting and ahead of it's time.  I prefer the double tracked lead vocal mono version overall.
Steamboat - One of my favorite BB tunes ever.  A Dennis written masterpiece.
You Need A Mess Of Help To Stand Alone - Another great track from the 70's that is solid.
All I Wanna Do - So ahead of it's time music wise, Mike is amazing, the backing vocals are haunting, the synths are used like magic, and Desper makes it all come together.
And Your Dreams Come True - The BB were all about harmony first and foremost.  How can they not squeeze this short one on there?  Perhaps an alternate hidden version? ;D

1. With Me Tonight
2. She Knows Me Too Well
3. You're So Good To Me
4. A Time To Live In Dreams
5. Hushabye

...and also All I Wanna Do, It's Gettin' Late and Where I Belong.

1. All I Wanna Do (it's a crime that this gem, to my knowledge, has never made it onto a compilation)
2. Wonderful (Smile version) (I think it would have been more appropriate to give the Smiley version of Wind Chimes and the Smile version of Wonderful)
3. She Knows Me Too Well (just because it's a brilliant song, though Today is already well-represented)
4. Then I Kissed Her (if they must include hit covers like Rock and Roll Music and Barbara Ann, then they must include a better cover song that hit it big)
5. Won't You Tell Me (if I recall it's in legal limbo, but to hear vintage early 70's Carl and Brian on an official release of this would be nice)

  1. Steamboat
  2. She Knows Me too Well
  3. With Me Tonight
  4. You Need a Mess of Help to Stand Alone
  5. Noble Surfer
  6. All I Wanna Do


 In general, MIC makes the band's post 1977 output seem like less of a black hole and/or abyss than the GV box. On GV, the bottom falls out almost immediately after the LOVE YOU tracks. This time, we get a bit more. Despite the patchy quality of much of that era, this is a good thing.

 I'm just glad somebody had the sense to get "Lonely Sea" and "Feel Flows" on the new set.

 Was David Leaf involved this time? Nope? Good.

 

I went a little overboard.  Here are 20 songs I think could have been included.

1. She Knows Me Too Well
2. Airplane
3. Honkin' Down the Highway
4. Then I Kissed Her
5. Girl Don't Tell Me
6. Still I Dream of It
7. Can't Wait Too Long
8. Long Promised Road
9. Maybe I Don't Know
10. It's Gettin' Late
11. Funky Pretty
12. Keepin' the Summer Alive
13. Here Comes the Night (1967)
14. That Same Song
15. Endless Harmony
16. Love Surrounds Me
17. You Still Believe In Me
18. Pet Sounds
19. From There to Back Again
20. Summer's Gone

  They didn't put "Honkin' Down the Highway" on this one either? Seriously, that is an error. The alternate with Billy on lead would be interesting to hear.

1. We Got Love
2. Somewhere Near Japan
3. Here Comes The Night (1979 single edit)
4. Chasin' The Sky
5. Then I Kissed Her

+1  In the interest of a thread topic that makes sense...

We Got Love
Carry Me Home
Lookin' Down the Coast
Life Is For The Living
Stevie

Bonus Absentees:

Big Sur ("Landlocked")
Lines

To please Disney Boy:

Little Pad
Wind Chimes (Smiley Smile)
San Miguel

1. Big Sure 4/4.  A travesty that it isn't included.  Unbelievable.
2. I've Got A Friend.  Would have been real nice but understand that it isn't because of possible sonic quality concerns.
3. Carry Me Home. Would have been real nice but understand that it isn't because of possible sonic quality concerns and depression factor.

She Knows Me Too Well shoulda been on there too. No doubt.

Yet another surly response to me from TV Forces. I ought to put together a portfolio of them. In what way does the thread topic not make sense? Album tracks or singles that aren't on the box but that you think should have been - understand? Confusing, huh?

A lot of the songs that people have mentioned aren't on the original albums though...

Okay, without mentioning any unreleased/rare/etc. stuff.

1. Aren't You Glad
2. At My Window
3. Here She Comes - just to show the people who don't know the Beach Boys how radical their sound had changed at the time (also because I really dig this song, despite the rather odd mix. Live version would be even better!)
4. Roller Skating Child (!!!)
5. Pitter Patter (seriously, this is the best song on the album combined with My Diane)

There has already been a lot of discussion on another thread about unreleased songs which should have been released.  Maybe Disney Boy created this thread so as not to go over old ground!  :)

I can't give a definitive 5 but would have liked to have more latter day stuff like Where I Belong and Somewhere Near Japan.  And when the first box set came out I remember thinking why is there no Feel Flows etc.  This one again has a lot of those I can't believe that isn't on it moments.  Especially when you see some of the songs that are on it!

Okay, okay...

Cuddle Up
Johnny Carson
Pet Sounds
Steamboat
She Knows Me Too Well

Thanks! I hope this sees the light of day sometime....Sounds like a cool collab.

More votes for
1/ Somewhere Near Japan
and
2/ My Diane
over here.

Plus
3/ Lahaina Aloha
if they were serious about being career spanning.

Would have loved a stereo mix of
4/ Aren't You Glad
if it is possible.

I know Dennis is well represented, but
5/ Baby Blue
is one of his most gorgeous songs IMO.  Cuddle Up (45 mix) could also have filled this hole.

Isn't Baby Blue included?

1-East Meets West (one of the very best later singles...with Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons...a good sounding single that still sounds good).
2-Happy Endings (the Beach Boys sing with the King of Rock and Roll...and it's a different sort of sound.)
3-You Are So Beautiful (live with Dennis.  I got to see him sing this with the Beach Boys--minus Carl who was on a solo tour)
4-the tracks they recorded live with Chicago.

Baby Blue is already on there, as it should be. MIA From MIC are Cuddle Up and San Miguel, but we finally got Sound Of Free.

One of my favorite Dennis songs - I was so glad to see that on the set. Hoping the quality is better than the boot I have.

Then I kissed her
Girl don't tell me
You still believe in me
She knows me too well
Keepin the summer alive

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Blimey, my mistake, missed that one...

You're absolutely right, I don't know how I forgot that one....

You're so Good To Me
Then I Kissed Her
Girl Don't Tell Me
LONG PROMISED ROAD  - WTF?
Where I Belong
Somewhere Near Japan.

That's 6...sue me.

 Apologies to David Leaf.

Considering the wealth of material we are getting, it seems rather ungrateful to criticize the selections.  But from the perspective of selecting songs that really should appear on (presumably) the last comprehensive retrospective of their career, here we go:

1.  Cool Cool Water (Sunflower version) – way out front
2. You Need a Mess of Help
3. Little Pad (stereo mix)
4. Keepin’ the Summer Alive (live at Knebworth)
5. Somewhere Near Japan

6. That Same Song (Documentary version)*

1.   This is the only one of the five I would say should definitely be on here, hands down.  Obviously not complex songwriting, but it’s one of their finest vocal arrangements after Smile.  A peak for the group and Steve Desper.  I know there are already 5 excellent Sunflower songs on MiC, but a career retrospective with “Brian’s Back” but without “Cool Cool Water” is…well, just not right.

2.   Because it rocks in a loose way that was a new, exciting direction for them in the early 70s.

3.   Smiley Smile is under-represented.  Here we get some beautiful Smile-worthy melodies, yet it’s goofy enough to represent what SS is about.  I could see "She's Goin' Bald" as perhaps more representative of SS; "Little Pad" is just a personal preference musically.

4.   Shows the band could still rock even among the dreck of the 80s, in an improved version of a late-period fun-in-the-sun song.

5.   One of the better post-70s tracks among a very small pool of contenders.  

6.*   OK, technically not released on album, but has been released publicly and presumably exists on multi-track somewhere.  Again, a much more energetic version of an album track, featuring a rarely attempted gospel style that is otherwise unrepresented.

Probably the most unpopular list...

1. Drive-In
2. Here Today
3. Woncha Come Out Tonight
4. Pitter Patter
5. Summer In Paradise (Europe studio version /w McGuinn)

Unreleased: First of all What'd I Say and Big Sur 4/4.

Lots of great ideas in this thread.

I will pick just one, and stay typecast....

LIVE version of "Mess of Help".

And still want Billy to do his remix--but that's a separate topic!  :smokin

Yes, that's exactly my reasoning, thanks man. Gee, didn't realize it was going to cause such annoyance amongst the more emotionally unstable members of the board... :)

Good choices/explanations. Very good point re Cool Cool Water, though I'd hope for the album version rather than the single version (which features some shocking editing).

Either Little Pad or She's Goin' Bald would've suited me re Smiley Smile, but yes, I really do think it deserved at least another track to represent it on the box. It is, after all, ''the most under-rated album in the entire catalogue'' (copyright Bruce Johnston, 2013).

I'm surprised the excellent live rendition of That Same Song didn't make it onto the live section of MIC. It really is incredible, would've been great to have had a clear sounding audio recording of it. Still, there's always the video on YouTube to keep us going (and what a clip it is! They all look as if they're having the time of their lives, even Brian.)

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I would like to see the unique songs from the 1983 "Rarities" album re-issued. It's not exactly awesome stuff, but it would be nice to see that butt ugly album made redundant.

With a Little Help from my Friends certainly could have been included. Especially as the Rarities version had the wrong edit/mix I believe.

I'd like to come up with my five now but would rather wait until after the tracklist for the Love & Mercy biopic soundtrack CD has been announced, as I'm pretty sure that might mop up one or two exclusions from this time around, especially those that showcase Brian's personal development as a composer and producer (and maybe even lyricist!).

At work I remembered two more songs that I should have included: Santa Ana Winds and Summer's Gone. Together with one more song I had left off because of the 5 song limit, my list should be 8 songs:

1. Drive-In
2. Here Today
3. She's Got Rhythm
4. Woncha Come Out Tonight
5. Pitter Patter
6. Santa Ana Winds
7. Summer In Paradise (Europe studio version /w McGuinn)
8. Summer's Gone

Why would "Here Today" be an unpopular choice?  It's one of my favorite Pet Sounds recordings.

Yes, definitely the album version in its glorious completeness!

And after sleeping on it, I would probably opt for "From There to Back Again/Pacific Coast Highway" or "Summer's Gone" over the 80s tracks.  To show that Brian still has it after 50 years.

There are a lot of good choices posted here...when I get bored with MiC I might use the songs in this thread to compile "Also Made in California."

"All I Wanna Do" - It's the best song ever made imo

1. She Knows Me Too Well
2. Little Pad
3. Tears In The Morning
4. Here She Comes
5. Hey Little Tomboy

1. This song is great. it shows that the boys could pull off the Wall of Sound without having to use session musicians.
 
2. A nice little song from Smiley Smile (which is hardly represented at all).

3. I know it's not a favorite around here, but this was a hit in Europe (I think), and since this is a "career retrospective", it should be here. Plus, it gives Bruce something other than Disney Girls.

4. A great showcase for the writing team of Fataar/Chaplin. Something you wouldn't expect from the Beach Boys.

5. Like Smiley Smile, M.I.U isn't represented well either, and this coves it and Adult/Child. I'm not sure if the original mix would be recommended, but some version of it should be included.

1 "Cool, Cool Water": A career highlight. Great production, vocals, everything.
2 "From There To Back Again": I think this being included would turn more people on TWGMTR if they don't already have it, whereas as much as I like "That's Why God Made The Radio" and "Isn't It Time", there are a bit more "obvious" for the kinda sound The Beach Boys would have in 2012.
3 "Aren't You Glad": Wild Honey deserve more songs on the set, and I feel this one sums up the album well.
4 "Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)": One of the best examples of Brian's singing and composing talent. Shoulda been there.
5 "Fairy Tale Music": Shows how creative Brian still was by the Holland era (along with "Sail On, Sailor" and "Funky Pretty") and its definitely a hidden treasure.

It's actually my favorite BB song of all, but it's hardly ever mentioned and never included in any compilation, so I figured I'm the only one who loves it, and for the others it's just a good track out of many.

The instrumental break itself is amazing.

It's a great song but it's not one of my favorites on Pet Sounds, which just goes to show how good Pet Sounds is.

I never really liked Pet Sounds, it seemed like an overrated album by a band I wasn't familiar with. Once I became a fan and finally listened through the ENTIRE album, I got to Here Today...which made something click with me. After that I totally got Pet Sounds, with Here Today being my favorite track of all of them.
Now my #2 favorite after IJWMFTT.
Yeah, totally underrated. That descending horn part in the chorus and the instrumental interlude are incredible  :bow

The instrumental break on Here Today is one of Brian's best moments. Mike nailed this when I saw him do it in 2007, made me see him on a new level even after being a fan for 20 years at that point.

I didn't know Mike had done it live.
Are there any audio/video clips of this?

Once upon a time there was an audience clip on YouTube, I think the beginning was missing, the sound was distorted and the video even worse, but the band was great! I wish I had saved that. Maybe I would be less of a Mike defender hadn't I seen that. Too bad they didn't do it on the C50.

I disagree, I think the box set should only include good songs. ;)

I do like Chasin' the Sky though and Here Comes the Night.

But seriously, all Terry Melcher produced Beach Boys material (with maybe two or three exceptions) should be destroyed and forgotten, no offense to the late Melcher who did some great work with the Byrds.

EDIT:  Oh hey, this is my 1000th post.  I feel like I should celebrate with a woot.  :woot

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liar? how  ???

It doesn't say "edited" at the bottom of his message.

I edited it before I posted it... if that makes sense.  I really didn't need to write EDIT.  I apologize to all who were offended.

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If you're not happy with it, why not just go read another thread???????

1. WE GOT LOVE - their biggest mistake not putting that song on the Holland album. BTW, I'd love Neil Young to do that song... ;)

2. CUDDLE UP - One of Dennis's best moments - so romantic.

3. LONG PROMISED ROAD - Carl at his best.

4. COOL COOL WATER - any version...

5a. YOU NEED A MESS OF HELP TO STAND ALONE - a nice rocker, quite unusual and complex, yet simple. Listen to the harmonies at the end of the song...

5b. MATCHPOINT OF OUR LOVE - I know many people hate this, and yes, the lyrics are quite, errr, well, but it's a nice tune, with an unusual oriental feel. If you like this one, I can also recommend Incense and peppermints/Strawberry Alarm Clock, Colours of darkness/Young Idea, Reflections from the looking glass
/1910 Fruitgum Co., Dragonfly/Fleetwood Mac.

:)

I need a bit more time to think of the studio songs, but here are three songs that I would have been stoked to see as live performances on MiC:

"What'd I Say?" - 1964. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuqhvy_VcH4) Hugely energetic and easily one of the best performances the band delivered in the early era. Kicks the ass of anything on Beach Boys Concert. Carl delivers a taste of "Wild Honey" three years early, Dennis' drumming is wild and Mike gives a surprisingly decent sax performance.

"Roller Skating Child" - 1978. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1EPXBQV3yM) While the performance in this video is pretty badass, I have a strong feeling there's a rawer version out their somewhere. I demand a full scale manhunt for the grungiest, dirtiest performance of "RSC" in existence. Poorly performed? Awesome. Tempo too fast? Awesome. Brian sounding like a member of Slipknot? Awesome. I need a lethal dose of the Beach Boys' demented take on punk, please give it to me Capitol.

"Lookin' at Tomorrow (A Welfare Song)" - 1983. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upfghY2KK3s) How the fuck did this prog-rock arrangement show up in a 1983 setlist? Was this recorded in an alternate universe where Endless Summer was never released and the band kept on playing shows like it was 1973? Whatever the case, it's a neat arrangement and it really deserves release.

One song that nobody has mentioned (in less I missed it): Keep an Eye on Summer.

I received my set today, and when skimming through CD 1 I really noticed its absence.

My revised list now reads

1. Keep an Eye on Summer
2. Aren't You Glad (fantasy stereo mix)
3. My Diane
4. Somewhere Near Japan
5. Lahaina Aloha

That version of Lookin' made me think "Tom Sawyer" was going to start  :lol

- All I Wanna Do
- Long Promised Road
- A Day In The Life Of A Tree
- Funky Pretty
- Somewhere Near Japan


These are the first five that came to mind. Especially the last two.

Holy jumpin' fuckin' Jesus, where on earth did that version of "Lookin' At Tomorrow" come from? Why have I never seen anyone talk about it before? It is so over the top/hilarious/AWESOME/fascinating/amazing.

I was at that show back in April 1983 at the Meadowlands in Jersey when they played Lookin at Tomorrow. I was floored by it. I believe it was at the time when Carl had just recently returned to the band, and as a part of that return insisted that they not only practice more, but add some new tunes and arrangements to the setlist. Didn't last long, but I believe that was the reason. Will always remember this show as Dennis was there and it was the last time I saw him perform. Billy Joel also showed up for Rhonda. Strangest(and saddest) thing about this show.....Dennis did a very very raspy version of You Are So Beautiful, standard at the time. Really hoarse.....in the newspapers the next day, the Newark Star Ledger reported that Billy Joel AND JOE COCKER, showed up at the Beach Boy concert, that's how rough Dennis sounded.

Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)
All I Wanna Do
Johnny Carson
My Diane
From There To Back Again

Cool story! I'm just glad that, with all the reports of "Dennis could not sing by '83 due to injury" etc. that he indeed still was singing this one.

And also for the next "Rarities, odds and ends" box... ;)
Here comes the night 1979 instrumental...

Where I Belong
LONG PROMISED ROAD
Rock and Roll to the Rescue
Lahaina Aloha
Summer's Gone

BTW, Where's Smiley Smile?

Even just. Vocals only track of Whistle In or With Me tonight would be nice.

From these posts it looks like Somewhere Near Japan should have been included.  As has been generally agreed upon by many that this was, prior to TWGMTR, the last good Beachboys song.  The album version is readily available to anyone but I'm not sure where the 45 version can be found.  I seem to recall it being on one of the more widely circulated boots.  Anybody recall which boot that might be?

I was able to find it on "Rarities Vol. 7: 1984-1989" on Dumb Angel from 2001

Hawaii (swap with Our Car Club)
Keep An Eye On Summer (swap with Surfers Rule)
Wonderful (Smile version instead of smiley smile)
Little Pad (swap with the third version of Heroes and Villains)
All I Wanna Do (swap with, I dunno, Don't Back Down)

In The Back Of My Mind (instrumental track) - seriously could've replaced the vocal session highlights for Pom Pom Playgirl without many complaints.

Summer's Gone should've been the last song before the Live section.

And they put "In The Back Of My Mind" on the box with Dennis' shaky lead... :-\

You mean the only lead he ever recorded for the song (albeit single-tracked)? The one that's nearly perfect and really fitting for the song? What's the alternative?

Also, rab, I don't think it was ever "Should we put a session highlight of 'Pom Pom Playgirl' on this or the 'In The Back Of My Mind' track?" Regardless, it's nice that we got something we never heard before.

Never said it was anything like that, just suggested that it could've been a better choice of song.

I can't believe in this Lookin' at Tomorrow version. What the hell. 1983. 1983.