The Smiley Smile Message Board

Posted the link in the part 1 replies, but knowing this board, most people will skip it there... 

http://www.rockcellarmagazine.com/2015/10/08/mike-love-of-the-beach-boys-one-on-one-interview-part-2

Not bad.  I liked part 1 better but this one was fairly well done compared to many Mike Love interviews I've read previously.  My main quibble was with his meandering off topic when discussing the talents and merits/contributions of his band mates.  Somehow it would revert and become way more about Mike and a LOT less about the individual he was supposedly talking about.  The rest of it, by and large, was relatively decent stuff I guess.  There were a few exceptions mind you.

 One  throwaway answer which didn't strike me as accurate.  Btian wasn't 'there' because he was taking LSD.  After Friends?  Really?  So no mention of his illness?  And the Brian's Back 'thing'?  Like that was a smart thing to do?  No.  Why?  'Cause Brian wasn't "back".

He sure did a shitty job of promoting his book too.  Don't get too preachy regarding environmental issues.  BUT.  Sounds like the book is gonna be full of 'wisdom'.  :3d  I don't know. ???

 :lol Self taught? :lol

Mike said that Brian wasn't around much post-Friends because of the effects of Brian's acid intake during the Smile era.

All in all, it's just good to know that the impetus for ALL the hits was Mike.  Everything was Mike. Mike Mike Mike Mike Mike Mike Mike

Q: How many Mikes is that?

A: A lot.


(Tarantino reference...)

I guess I misread it rab2591 .  So it was because of all of the acid and stuff he took in the SMiLE era...not that consumed prior to composing California Girls and Pet Sounds then?  It was all of the SMiLE intoxicants rather than anything to do with REAL issues regarding Brian's mental health?

I was aware of some of those issues from the old Crawdaddy nagazine/Paul Williams and David Anderle expose way back when.  And Mike Love wasn't/isn't?  [But for this interview it's just the Smile era LSD that's to blame...and, as such, his becomes the accurate explanation?  I thought, at THAT time, it was hash...and lots of it?]

That sh*t is mean spirited and the response of a fool.
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The more I think about it...the less inclined I am to give part 2 a passing grade.  It has some interesting parts...but it pushes an agenda I can't get behind.  ['cause it's age-old crap]

I'm always interested whenever Mike talks about songs from the post hits era.

Wow. That was like a parody of a typical Mike interview, I mean he's really overdoing his thing here.

"I did the chorus (sings) “I’m picking up ‘Good Vibrations’’ and I wrote all the words and I came up with that musical part too on the chorus but Carl did a beautiful job on the lead."

Of course, truer words never spoken, I guess, but you know what I mean. Nothing against the man, though!

I like this interview for the most part, but if Mike mentioned Good Vibrations one more time I was ready to scream.

Poor Carl. His name was misspelled twice, and both spellings are girl names:

"But he also did a phenomenal job on I Was Made To Love Her from the Wild Honey album. He did an amazing job on that, which is a Stevie Wonder original. Carol did an incredible job on that. He could go completely rock and roll;"

"Rock Cellar Magazine: You’ve spoken through the years about your issues with the band’s manager, Murry Wilson, also Brian, Carla and Dennis’ dad, and your uncle. How important was Murry Wilson in helping to break the group?"

Phew, lucky I read both part 1 and 2 of that article!  I had it all so wrong, thinking Brian was actually the genius of the group.  :o

I thought that was Mike confirming it was Carol Kaye who played bass on IWMTLF, as a quick aside! Oh well.

Gee, I always thought Brian Wilson came up with the words "Good Vibrations", and the initial lyrics (with Tony Asher). Glad to find out it was all Mike's idea!

This is really the best we can hope for from a Mike interview in most circumstances.

I've heard that Mike truly sometimes has a difficult time talking a lot about Dennis (and to some degree I like to think that helps humanize him a bit more), but I had to laugh when a question about Dennis took multiple levels of devolving until, by the end of his answer, he was talking about the Surf Rider Foundation and  "Summer in Paradise."

It's nice to see a relatively rare instance of Mike talking about Al in some detail and saying some nice things about him. I think this is not the first time his description of Al's singing voice and range seems a little too convoluted (he seems rather fixated on Al needing to hit a very specific range that his voice sounds best singing; that all sounds fine, but isn't that true of most singers?)

We also have confirmation that he's working on the late 70s "Alone on Christmas Day" (and that Ron Altbach co-wrote it), and that it will be in the Bill Murray special. I'm a bit confused, as he describes a band called "Phoenix" having recently found the song on the internet and covering it. I'm assuming Mike brings that up because that may have been the impetus for him to remember the song and then go find out who co-wrote it with him.

This quote stuck out:

...how about Good Vibrations? I did the chorus (sings) “I’m picking up ‘Good Vibrations’’ and I wrote all the words and I came up with that musical part too on the chorus but Carl did a beautiful job on the lead.


I'm wondering what musical part in the chorus Mike came up with...the melody was written in the bass line going back to take one of the song during the Pet Sounds sessions. Mike put lyrics to that melody which was already there.

Absolutely, and significantly ties in to his bazaar appearance on stage via the robes, rings, turbans, tight fitting leotards, sequined, chest bearing tops, feathers, sandals, cowboy hats and the like. It all boiled down to a severe lack of confidence that screamed LOOK AT ME!, LOOK AT ME!, LOOK AT ME! A sad, twisted man who was/is always looking for redemption and recognition in his pathetic attempt to convince the world that he was a genius too.  ::)

Uh-huh...Mike, the guy who created "Good Vibrations."  I think we know what the tone of his book is going to be...

And Mike's biography is scheduled to come out in a US Presidential election year...like we won't have had enough of people over-emphasizing their importance and contributions while totally demeaning those they view as their opponents.  It would be a great year to spend in Antarctica...

That was my thought as well!  Every time I hear Mike talk about creating the hook to Good Vibrations, I always think, "No. You wrote the WORDS to the hook of Good Vibrations."  The bass line was always there.

could you write a review on Amazon and we can make it the highlighted one? You get the gist of the book well!

Ugh, yes. Let's see if we can get a corner in a research station for our sleeping bags.

Phoenix seem to be really big on the Beach Boys. They compiled a CD a few years back with the original version of Dennis’s “Lady” on it (http://www.amazon.com/Kitsune-Tabloid-Phoenix/dp/B001PMRKAA).

I didn't read it as confirmation of Mike's version in the movie. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.  As also mentioned by Guitarfool, Phoenix is listed in the movie credits, so it's just as easy to picture their version being used

"Sometimes I pantomime a little bit."

You don't say. 

 :lol

It's entirely possible that "Phoenix" has covered the song and their recording is in the Murray project, and all of that occurring has spurred Mike to do his own recording of the song.

His comments leave open either possibility, depending on how you read them. He apparently said: "And we might debut our single "Alone On Christmas Day", which was a song I wrote back in the 60's, and the group Phoenix just found it and it's in a Bill Murray TV movie called "Very Murray Christmas". So They got me to record my own song."

When he says "it's in a Bill Murray TV movie", is he talking about "our new single", or the Phoenix recording? When he says "they got me to record my own song", it makes me think for a moment that they recorded it and then had him add stuff to their recording. I don't think that occurred of course.

I'm guessing it's the "Phoenix" recording that's in the movie, and Mike simply "re-discovered" the song that way and decided to re-record it.

I'm curious if Mike was (re-)made aware of the song during the compilation of the "Ultimate Christmas" CD in 1998.

Sounds to me like it's some type of collaboration with the group Phoenix and Mike (or "The Beach Boys"?!?). Unusual if so.

Yeah, that one had me in tears laughing, and I didn't even acknowledge Mike's comedic talents here...suddenly he is a master of the understatement - well, in this instance, anyway.

So  Mike's seen the new Bill Murray movie, but hasn't seen Love and Mercy yet (sic) ........all so very SAD

https://youtu.be/rf_dgbBK25o (https://youtu.be/rf_dgbBK25o)

(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/692/21990485279_974dcb9de1_z.jpg)

Nice complements of Carl and especially Al. Wish he would have said more Bruce's abilities. Mike has a good memory, he impresses me with his knowledge of their material and the albums. That being said, he still has that habit/inferiority thing of bringing it back to him.  Dennis and the environment turned into DGNTW and Surf Rider,  KTSA and Carl's collaborations immediately turned into Goin To The Beach. He doesn't have to try so hard, he's got the part already for the last 50 years.

No one has yet commented on how Mike totally blew the question Jim "Becoming the Beach Boys" asked through the interviewer.  Jim wants to know if Al was at the demo session, Mike responds that Al was at the recording session of the actual single.  Two different sessions at two different locations.  There's no indication Al was at the demo and in fact it appeared the Pendletones were only the brothers and Mike, Al was added later.

I read another recent short interview with Mike concerning one of his shows, and please pardon me for not recalling which one, since you know Mike does these sort of puffs pieces whenever the band rolls into town for local media. However, in this particular case, Mike said he did not foresee a reunion with Brian. He said Brian has his own band in his own way of doing things and he did not see a reunion like the one they had in 2012 as imminent.

That is more BS from Mike as usual. All Mike wants is total control and be the center of attention without BW having a say. Such an ungrateful prick to BW and AJ.

There's really no reason to do another Beach Boys reunion.  Much like with The Police, we got a one off tour.  We even got a bonus with, just my opinion, the best Beach Boys album since Holland. 

Brian still gets to tour and record with his stellar band.  If The Beach Boys had continued, NPP might not exist.  Hopefully, Al Jardine will continue to play a part with Brian. 

The Beach Boys get to tour with the really good band that they've put together. 

I do believe, at some point before they ride into the sunset, Mike and Brian will share a stage again.  But I think it'll be a special one off show, not  a major tour. 

Right KDS, a reunion special show and not a tour. I agree. Well produced, well filmed, well recorded, well promoted--something to hold onto better than the 2 current tour videos and live album. (Japan show, a third, is the best).

Lots of reasons for that.

Let it go professor, Mike Love burned too many bridges in ending the C50.

I think that this is the likely reality.  [and he seems to have a couple of emergency packs of matches in his pocket in case another bridge inadvertently pops into view.]

Exactly.

I think the best we can hope for are decent releases of the final UK shows one day.

This one?

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/city-east/mike-love-of-the-beach-boys-opens-up-about-music-the-beatles-and-bondi-ahead-of-beachfest/story-fngr8h22-1227567485222

“Brian has his own band and way of doing things, but we had David Marks join us a few months ago for some show. I just don’t think another reunion like we had a couple of years ago is imminent.”

Was he even doing that during SMiLE? Its my understanding he tripped three times, at least two of which were long before. Its commonly said it was a flashback in a bookstore that was part of the inspiration for SMiLE--not a new trip.

Really hoping that wont be the case. I dont know who else is left to give us insight into the extremely mysterious Smiley Sessions. It'll probably be dismissed as "yeah Brian was on lots of drugs and did this really weird album. It was a total disappointment coming after GV--which I wrote the lyrics for (this after spending the last two chapters to that one song)."

I think that this little Stebbinizational bit I 'lifted' from Wikipedia says a pant-load..."biographer Jon Stebbins speculated that Love declined to continue working with the group due to the lesser control he had over the touring process, coupled with the lower financial gain, noting: "Night after night after night after night, Mike is making less money getting reminded that Brian is more popular than him. And he has to answer to people instead of calling all the shots himself".  THAT would have been a real pisser...especially after so many years of deluding oneself.

That he continues to spill gasoline onto the fires of his burning bridges...year after year, after year after year only shows that he isn't, nor does he WANT to be, a team player and the frequency with which he does so varifies what most here believe to be stone cold fact...he was exactly like this back in the 'glory days' as well.  Mike always knew what was best [NOT FOR THE BEACH BOYS long term...but] for Mike.  He should have been an Italian-style opera singer... ... ...

"Me me Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee."

In his (sorta) defense, I'm sure it wasn't this bad pre-1983. I think it's just gotten worse and worse, starting with the B-side of Today and spiraling from all the perceived slights from there. With the song credits and knowledge that everyone respected Brian far more festering for years to boot. Then when Dennis died there was no one to hold him back, which is why you see Carl and Al just kinda going along with his antics since then. Al puts up a bit of resistance and gets the boot. Kokomo ignites his ego anew and yet SIP is a cold hard slap in the face back to reality.

It's just been the perfect mixing pot to create this deeply insecure yet paradoxically egotistical loudmouth we know and...tolerate.