The Smiley Smile Message Board

I think my top 3 would be:
1. An Anthology project modelled after the Beatles Anthology.
2. A reunion tour.
3. A Smile box set.

1. New music by the BB together & individually
2. Concert DVD late 60's/early 70's
3. Hawthorne, CA Vol. 2 CD Set

shelter sums this up well for me.

I would add a 1970s "Brian plus" compilation of Beach Boys,  American Spring and solo demos - but maybe an anthology would cover some of this...

A 'SMiLE' box set would only take away from the mystique of it all. I already got a ton of 'SMiLE' material and the only thing that could make me get anything more would be previously unheard material. So I say keep it out of stores and let it remain a cult classic.

1. Solo career box set retrospectives for each band member, released and unreleased material.
2. Neil Young-style Archives series of boxes for the band focussing on studio material (esp sessions and unreleased) and rare footage , inc. one volume devoted to SMiLE.
3. Release of live tapes from '67-'73.

All the above to be available at MacDonalds, free with every Happy Meal.

1. A comprehensive collection (Beatles anthology style--but better!) compiling all "rarities" i.e. unreleased songs that are currently scattered about the catalogue on reissues, box sets, Hawthornes, Harmonies and so on.
This would include the box-set Smile songs. Ideally it would add a few more outtakes that I always read about that have not been officially released and that I have never heard.

r

2. Another, separate collection of alternate takes/mixes/version etc.

3. A two-disc retrospective of Brian Wilson's solo stuff, compiling all the worthwhile stuff and dispensing with the not-so-stellar stuff. Perhaps another disc releasing ,er, currently unreleased stuff.

Ideally the band(or any band) at this stage in their career should aim for a stream-lined catalogue including all the albums proper plus a few discs of outtakes and alternate versions/non-LP singles and so on for the fans. The Beatles' catologue is a  good model for this, IMHO.

I would love a SMile box set, but what you make a very valid point

I second the wish for a Hawthorne volume # 2....or an EH 2...........I so enjoyed both of those.

I suppose I have enough material to make my own H2 or EH 2.

But there is something about another person compiling things in a compelling manner and sprinkling in a few unheard gems. bits of dialogue, alternate mixes and so on.

Release stuff from the vaults. The only way to ultimately stop the bootleggers is to legitimately release stuff, because if not, we're going to keep on getting music through bootlegs.
Maybe put out some clear-sounding remastered versions of already booted stuff, some never before heard music.
Maybe some live shows from '71-'74, the full 1972 Carnegie Hall show. If any video exists from '72-'74 shows, then maybe a dvd or 2 or 3.
That Lucky Old Sun needs to come out SOON.
In the pre-internet file sharing days I would've said SMiLE box set.
Stereo remix of Smiley Smile/Wild Honey.
1974 Caribou Ranch sessions-it's kind of a bridge between Holland and 15BO/Love You/POB

I didn't think I wanted a Smile box set because I have access to all the material that would be on it anyway, but just think - some of the stuff that's going around is in terrible terrible quality. The box set people would make it sound really nice and clear.

I would love a Knebworth-quality DVD of a show from the Blondie/Ricky era.

That would be cool...and without all of that nasty pitch correction. As bad as the Lovester's voice is/was, the pitch correction on Kebworth is excruciating to listen to.

'Peace in our time' between various parties and maybe a good album from the guys, BB titled or not.

An official release of all the unreleased band/solo material (especially Smile, songs with alternate leads, Dennis' early 70s work, & the cocaine sessions)
A complete dvd set of all the concert footage, tv appearances, interviews, rare footage, etc. that exists from the 60s and 70s
Definitely agree 100% with everyone who said a follow up to Hawthorne/Endless Harmony

Brian Wilson to personally deliver all the finished SMiLE tapes to me at my house and then play a concert in my living room.

In no real order other than the order they popped into my head...

1) SMiLE box set

2) That Lucky Old Sun, properly recorded with the entire BWBand and the SSnH

3) Reissue of each album... stereo and mono mixes, b-sides, alt mixes, unreleased songs, one-offs, etc to fill the disc.  In some cases a 2-disc set might be necessary for each album

4) 3 box sets, one for each Wilson brother, comprising their best songs

5) Dennis' original version of (WIBN)TLA

That's on the top of my list.  And I'd also love to hear any other DW works from that era.

Sunflower box set.  An attempt at a stereo Today!/Summer Days, with whatever we have to use.  I still think it would be OK to re-overdub guitar and piano onto Rhonda, as long as you get, say, Glen and Leon to come in and do it.  Maybe get a Wilson progeny to overdub the lead guitar on Girl Don't Tell Me, maybe double Carl's lead.  Etc.

The buyer would of course, have the option of the enhanced versions or just straight up with what's extant.

Sorry to repeat myself and beat the proverbial dead horse, but since you asked....

A NEW album by:

The Beach Boys

Brian Wilson
Mike Love
Al Jardine
Bruce Johnston
David Marks

Produced by Brian Wilson AND Rick Rubin

With a DVD of the reuniting/recording of the album and a special concert, directed by Martin Scorsese and debuted on PBS.

That's all.

I'll feel silly if it's out there already, but I'd like to hear backing tracks for "Don't Worry Baby" and "Warmth Of The Sun".  Don't think I've heard these.  Do they exist?

Also, the unreleased Dennis stuff, and my greatest wish- every time I see a falling star-  is for Sweet Insanity to remain in the vault, in its entirety.

I'd like to hear any alternate takes of "Girl Don't Tell Me", and- something I know is out there, but it's just eluded my ears: the early takes of "Go Away, Boy".

They might, but we don't have 'em.  Missing the multis.

But you know, you can hear a pretty passable isolated track with OOPSing those.

An anthology documentary series with good, new and archival interviews and an enormous unleashing of archival material and a vow not to do a reunion, ever.

Josh, you just broke an old man's heart.  I suspected as much, so I shouldn't have asked.



And here you give me too much credit.  I can tie my own shoes and make dry toast, but that's about it.

Now that would be a good idea...

Sea of Tunes-style treatment of the Warner-Brother years, including all live recordings....and given away for free. A guy can dream big, right?  :-D

I would actually pay money to keep Rubin miles away from the Beach Boys.  I just don't like his productions at all.

Top for me is a Lucky Old Sun album and DVD.

PS Who is Rick Rubin?

Cheers

Not sure if you're being serious. If so, he's a guy who made a name for himself in the 80s as one of the first people to really popularize rap among white audiences, co-founding Def Jam Records with Russell Simmons and working with groups like Run-DMC and the Beastie Boys. In more recent years he's been considered someone who can get decent work out of aging artists (Neil Diamond, Johnny Cash, etc.). As you can see, there are some people around here who think the Beach Boys or Brian could use him on a comeback/reunion album.

Rick Rubin & Brian Wilson is a recepie for disaster. Neil & Johnny wanted to work on their songs - I feel if you told Brian to go away and just keep writing for, say, a year, you'd wind up with a seven-minute "Shortenin' Bread" suite.

Anyway, pairing Brian with a hot producer with a reputation for resurrecting moribund careers has been tried before, and failed. Don Was, anyone ?

Don't think Rubin would be a good choice either, although I love his work with Cash.

I've always admired T-Bone Burnett's work, also a veteran, and a 'career resurrector'. But thankfully, no Don Was. 

I just don't understand the whole desire for bringing in some producer to resurrect Brian. His recent recordings are very good. His worst recordings are those done under the "guidance" of some outside producer or advisor.

If Freddie Mercury was in your band, would you hire an outside session singer to hit the high notes? No. And if Brian Wilson is in your band, you don't need someone else to produce. If he doesn't want to, he doesn't want to. But if he does, he's more than competent to do it. Whatever (technical, in terms of a modern studio) help he needs, his engineer and musical co-workers are more than capable of providing.

Errrr... five words:

Gettin'

In

Over

My

Head.

Also What I Really Want For Christmas. There are a lot of things you can do with Christmas music, but the production on that album is flat and uninspiring. What happened to the spiritual Brian? The best production on the album IMO is on "Joy To The World", and I think Joe Thomas had a hand in that.

I'm not a hack for Rick Rubin, but his record stands for itself. I know it's subjective, but did he ever have a failure? From The Red Hot Chili Peppers to Johnny Cash, from The Beastie Boys to Neil Diamond - that's what his reputation is all about - being able to get the most out of diverse artists.

As far as the artists wanting to work on the songs....I read some stories about how Rick Rubin worked with Johnny Cash when he was ill. Apparently, Rick was very flexible and attentive to Johnny's needs, but still was able to get the job done. As far as Brian has come, he still needs that person to work with him.....

Wow I really should have know this :-[. 

Thanks
Sam

1   POB/Bambu set   ;D
2   TLOS live and studio CDs
3   1969-74 Rarities/unreleased/alt takes etc box
4   SMiLE box
5   To see Al in concert
6   Official release of the Live at Carnegie Hall show
7   Official release of the 93 NYC show with 'unplugged' rehearsals

Rick Rubin produced an album for Donovan after Johnny Cash's first American Recordings album sold big.

It tanked. Why? Because Johnny Cash and Neil Diamond were still popular and more or less respected at the time of their albums. Donovan wasn't, and Brian isn't. He's respected (generally) as someone who wrote goods songs in the 60s, but not as someone who writes good songs.

A new rarities set.
A Dick's Picks-style live release program, with particular reference to the 70s.

That would seem like a practical idea.

But AGD, your response overlooks the key to my whole post. "If he doesn't want to, he doesn't want to." In other words, if Brian doesn't want to be part of it, then scrap the whole fodaing thing, don't bring in some alleged savior to produce the piece of crap, because crap is what it will be if Brian isn't interested anyway. And if he does want to do it, he's very capable of doing it.

I don't know, Luther. IMO the last time Brian wanted to produce an album and the results were favorable would've been Friends, and that was 40 years ago.

Then there were times when Brian MAYBE wanted to produce an album, but couldn't or wouldn't complete the job, and relied on Carl and others to finish it. Those would be the late 60's/early 70's songs, Love You, BB88, and, come to think of it, almost everything after 1976.

It is hard to admit that Brian needs a co-producer, but I hate to think what the results would be without one. If you're waiting for Brian to WANT to produce an album, and produce it by himself, and expect it to sound "finished", well, you might be asking too much.

TLOS as a studio album
Unreleased rarities boxset
A new tribute album

Well, my post also noted that he has bandmates and an engineer who are very capable of being that help, not to mention (if this tragedy of a reunion were to happen) Al and Bruce, both of whom are more than capable of taking initial bursts of inspiration and energy and fleshing them out. He doesn't have to do it himself, but only to be a driving force. And if he's not that, then it's irrelevant because it would suck beyond belief.

No, actually not beyond belief. Just about the same amount as all the other BBs related sh*t that has come out in the past 30 years.

I think you're contadicting yourself. In the first paragraph, you are saying that Al and/or Bruce "are more than capable of taking initial bursts of inspiration and energy and fleshing them out". Then in the second paragraph you are referring to the "all the other BBs related merda that has come out in the past 30 years".

Are you referring to the Al Jardine-produced MIU or the Bruce Johnston-produced L.A. and KTSA. Bruce had his shot and the results speak for themselves. And, after you hear Postcards from Big Sur's Beaks Of Eagles Down The Santa Ana Coastline, well.....

I want Rick. Give it away, give it away, give it away, give it away now!!!!

I don't think it's a contradiction in that I don't think Brian was anywhere near as interested in any of those projects as what he would have to be in this (again, horrific idea of a) reunion for me to be behind it at all. I don't want it at all, in any way, unless Brian is really interested. No half-ass MIU/KTSA sh*t. Real interest. And if he doesn't have it, forget the whole thing. No Rick Rubin/Don Was/T-Bone Burnett/Jeff Lynne/Clive Davis/Flavor of the Month to fill in the cracks. If Brian were really interested, he could do enough to guarantee its quality that Jardine and Johnston (and more importantly, Linett and Sahanaja) could do the rest. And if not, hopefully none of it happens.

In other words, hopefully none of it ever happens.

Luther, stop calling a prospective Beach Boys' reunion a "tragedy" and a "horrific idea". Or else I'll send Kevin Love over to your house to take care of you. A BB reunion and album is at the top of MY list, other than a remastered "Michael Row The Boat Ashore".

Gimme Rick.... I hurt myself today, to see if I still feel. I focus on the pain....

It's just that the inevitable, focus-grouped, slicked-up, cheeseball, half-ass nostalgiafest that would result would do nothing but tarnish the already oft-tarnished group. The one thing that I think could honestly save the idea is Brian's serious interest. And if that's in place, the outside producer is unnecessary. If not ... the project is doomed anyway, so it's irrelevant.

"cheeseball" and "half-ass nostalgiafest"? That's it. Now it's Kevin AND Stan.

Wave some fajitas or steaks in front of him-- we'll get a BW produced album....

Sorry to inject realism to the conversation, but an uninterested Brian Wilson in such a hypothetical project would be those things ... at best. Even an interested one might not guarantee anything I'm too in love with.

PS, if you do send Kevin, I'm going to try to convince him to let me be his agent. Hopefully he's as clueless about hiring management as his uncles.

That would be cool... As long as it's done by performers that people have actually heard of before (unlike on Caroline Now!) or performers that actually like the songs they're covering and don't feel like butchering them to death (unlike on that Do It Again Pet Sounds tribute).

 :lol :lol :lol :lol

I agree. What makes Caroline, Now stand apart is how the performers and the songs are GOOD! I do think its about time a new one should be done.

Carl's albums on CD in the record stores (see how old I am?  I still think there are record stores). 

Aforementioned Ricky-Blondie era concert DVD

Something that includes more of the '71 Central Park concert (the one with Okie, H &V on the first documentary video)

Any concert footage with I Can Hear Music and/or, preferably and, Add Some Music

Studio DVD footage, if such exists in editable/watchable form longer than the clips here and there that show up.  It would be cool to see the guys in action, as well as hear it.

And the clincher: A current picture of Mike without his cap on, just for curiosity sake.  (I've had a haircut like his for 30 years and usually wear a cap or hat outdoors because of the sun, not always, but good grief even so I take it off when I'm inside.)

I wish Mike would visit the "Hair Club for Men" and ditch the caps.

Beachago concerts released.

I saw a picture of Mike from around the time of the 1994 lawsuit where he wasn't wearing a hat. I can see why he prefers to wear one.

Being new here, I'll post my list:
A SMiLE set goes without saying...
A Rarities volume of released works not on [legally, anyway] CD yet...
Carl's solo LPs...
Another 'Hawthorne, CA' package of all unreleased stuff...
Still Crusin'/Summer In Paradise two-fer that replaces the retreads on SC with other movie songs & the UK versions of SIP tracks... :lol :lol

Basically, if Capitol can put out something that isn't another hits compilation, I'll get it.

"Wich Stand"

1. SMiLE box set.
2. Anthology type project
3. Reunion

Don Was and Rick Rubin two different animals. Rick Rubin is a producer

Brian Wilson is a producer. Has he no confidence or energy anymore? Maybe he lost the magic touch after years (decades) of substance abuse....

Getting back on track a little bit here,

My suggestion to EMI to get a few more dollars out of Pet Sounds is to do something similar to what Radiohead just did and others have done.  Pick a few songs from Pet Sounds, and release the discrete tracks.  For most songs, that would be about 10 total tracks, (3 instrumental, 7 vocal).  Have a remix contest (which I could care less about) but it would generate interest.

Then, as a side benefit, people like me could hear discrete tracks.  Though given a choice, Sunflower multis are first n my list.

I've always thought a project like that would be an excellent idea.  Not only for die hard fans like us, who could listen to hours upon hours of sessions, but would give the casual fan more of an insight into Brian's genius work on that album (or any other, for that matter).  An "interactive" approach would hook in more people, and would be a better alternative than yet another re-release without much difference from the others.

Yeah, but would the BBs get behind an idea like that? It's hard to convince older artists to get into more modern ideas about...well, almost everything.

Brian asked George Martin & son if they could do what they'd done with the Beatles' "Love" album with Beach Boys material... And a dance remix of "Our Prayer" was released under his name.

I would like a DVD box set (like the McCartney Years) of all of their videos and some concert footage (or a disc of a complete concert as a bonus) all cleaned up with loads of menu rare footage etc...just stuff it with tons of goodies...like I said, along the line of the triple disc McCartney Years set.   There is so much to package and put on there, the possibilities are staggering.

1) I'd like to see a multi-DVD documentary where ALL living participants have a chance to discuss the different aspects of the BB career. Son's, daughters, wives, record execs, session guys, etc. Kinda like the Dylan docs that came out spanning pre and post crash as well as born-again phase. Maybe it could be broken down like this:
Disc 1) The Wilson family history thru August of '61
Disc2) The First Wave of success '62-65
Disc3) Pet Sounds and SMiLe
Disc4) We've Been Friends...'67-'74
Disc5) Brian Love's You...'75-83
Disc6) Farewell My Friend...'83-today
Of course this massive film would need a vault opening box-set sized soundtrack that included all relevant solo songs and live tunes.

WHAT?!

You sure we are not talking about this?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeform_Five

Well it's been a long time since I posted anything but here goes.

1. ) Mike Love's Head on a silver platter... just kiddin  :lol
2. ) The live concert disc or dvd of The guys when  the opened for Elton John in    1975 .
3.) Carl's first two discs on a twofer package with linernotes and information from the people that helped Carl work on the albums.
4.) Yeah an anthology would be nice, but also maybe a touched up version of IT'S OK from 1976 would be cool
5.) A DOMESTIC release of Brian's work as a producer with other groups or singers besides The Beach Boys

Well that's all I can think of off the top of my head. Take care y'all.

Ted   

As said in another thread, a book where Brian talks about all of the BB and solo releases, how it was recorded, what was going on at the time, what it means to him. Just needs a sympathetic journalist.

I would buy that book in a heartbeat.  If you get him going, Brian probably remembers almost everything about the songs and sessions.  I would love to hear him pour over every song in specific detail, instead of the usual one or two sentence answers he typically gives.

I'd like a recording of some journalist asking Brian about a single song (or album) once a day, every day, for a month or two. Not Song A on Day One, Song B on Day Two, etc., but Song A on Day One, Song A on Day Two, Song A on Day Three, and so on. It would be funny to hear all the different, conflicting answers he'd probably give, and then every time I read anyone posting something like "Brian once said that [whatever quote]," I could just laugh.

Also, maybe a critical analysis of "Norbit," by Brian Wilson.

I think after about four or five days Brian would catch on.

The "Freeform Reform" remix of the BWPS recording of "Our Prayer" was released as a one-sided Brian Wilson 10" single in the UK.