The Smiley Smile Message Board

If you don't like "She's Goin' Bald" then you're simply uncultured. Oh, I can already hear you crying foul. But read the rest of this first.

When I imagine someone disliking songs off of Smiley Smile, I see a country bumpkin with a pitchfork in his hand trashing a great piece of modern abstract art at the Louvre.

"People pay money for this Jackson Pollock guy's paintings?" he wonders aloud. "My 1-year-old son has dirty diapers that look like this, and my 4-year-old daughter actually painted something like this in preschool the other day."

Yet, somehow, his daughter never becomes a rich and famous artist. Go figure.

People hate art like that because it reveals their own intellectual deficiencies. They either don't have the innate intelligence or patience and curiosity to think abstractly enough to understand it. But everyone lies to think they're smart, so the project their own shortcomings on the art. Then it's not their fault. It's the artist's fault for making "trash."

In reality, the artist responsible for the work is usually a master in his craft and spends countless hours expanding his own mental horizons. For the artistic genius, their is no more important task than exploring the human condition. Through dutiful examinations of the self they gleam great insights on our existence. Fortunately, they'll occasionally share those insights with the world through their art.

The harshest critics of great art are usually the basest people. They go through their lives unthinkingly, idling away their potential by immersing themselves the crudest forms of entertainment imaginable. And when they're not doing that, you'll find them absurdly preoccupied with their menial jobs.

Wake up. That's no way to live. Put on Smiley Smile. Get some culture in your life.

Smiley Smile is a series of sound paintings. Brian, who was in incredible mental state at the time, spent a month aurally documenting his perceptions, both conscious and subconscious, for our betterment. To do this, he reimagined his songs as moods. The carefully crafted ambiance on songs like "Wonderful" and "Wind Chimes" creates a world for the songs to inhabit. It's a desolate world. Where the fertile imagination of Brian once planted grand gardens, we now see weeds. The sun, once radiant, seems permanently obscured by clouds.

Yet, now and then, we catch a glimpse of a ray of light. We see an iridescent flower sprout from a crack in the floor of ancient temple. The ruined temple itself has its own kind of peculiar beauty, a beauty only decay can bring. One has the sense that this was once a magnificent place where humans performed immortal feats, feats of which the wind still whispers. It's a feeling I had only once before listening to Smiley Smile, when I walked through the Forum Romanum in Rome, Italy.

Enough of waxing poetic.

Just listen to "She's Goin' Bald". The psychedelic atmosphere of this song is incredible. Listen closely. Is that an organ playing the bassline during the first verse, or is that someone's voice? Or is the organ alive? Then, suddenly, the voices of the Beach Boys start to rise. What's going on? Did Brian just huff some nitrous oxide with us? Before you can figure that out, you're transported to the bedroom Brian had as a kid. He's listening to a creepy radio drama. You see pull the covers tightly around his neck. What THE...? And now, just as unexpectedly, we're in Brian's living room and the group is doing an rhythm and blues song.

To top it all of, it's still a catchy song. How can you tell me that this isn't genius?

There's a reason Mike Love hated the original Smile tapes. It made it evident how unsophisticated he was. It bruised his ego. I know, most people think Mike hated Smile because it wasn't about cars, girls, and surfing. To those people, I say, look at Mike Love in England, 1966. He's wearing a tweed jacket, slim fitted pants, a stylish hat, and holding a smoking pipe. Are you telling me that this guy wasn't eating up the praises of the rock press as they called the group genius?

When Mike heard Smile, he knew it was beyond his intellect to understand it The incredible leaps Brian had taken were going to make it look like Mike had been holding back Brian's true potential. Not only that, but how was Mike supposed to explain the material when an adoring press asked him questions about it.

"Mike, what does 'over and over, the crow cries uncover the cornfield' mean?"

"Uh... Um... it.... well.... Let me think. I don't know."

Smile was going to make Mike out to be some kind of "suburban hick". At the same time, Brian was going to be hailed as a genius. Mike was jealous. Again, I see the a country bumpkin with a pitchfork in his hand trashing a great piece of modern abstract art at the Louvre.

Do yourself a favor.  Listen to "She's Goin' Bald" right now. Listen to it over and over, until you learn to appreciate it. Trust me, it's good for you. You might hate it at first, but you'll just look like a child refusing to try new foods. Taste the smiley smile.

If you already appreciate "She's Goin' Bald", I hope we can be friends.

And here... we... go!

I once listened to Smiley Smile on acid

She's Goin Bald was a stand out track

Oh boy...a THREAD!!!!!!11111oneoneone11111!!!!!!!! I'm nipping this in the bud before this turns into the last THREAD we had which resulted in a few bans and exiled members.

Brian. Killed. Smile. Period. Deal with it.

And by Mr. Dada's reasoning, that must mean that much of the fanbase is unsophisticated because they don't understand just how much The Beach Boys Love You is a work of genius. In that case, I wholeheartedly agree with that assessment. :)

Who moderates the moderator?

Oh no, don't kill this topic! Think of the children! The first amendment! Dove chocolate! Anything!!!

Agreed.

We Global Moderators moderate ourselves. We're moderately sure that all of our moderating is moderately performed to the satisfaction of the moderate-brained Brianistas who moderately frequent our board (which we Global Moderators are in the process of moderating).


I won't.


Children are not our future.


A pipe dream.


Yummy.


Anything?

Smiley Smile and Love You are in my top five Brian Wilson albums. I love his production, but for me, the magic of Brian Wilson is his musical structure. I won't use the word chord progressions, as his best stuff is more contrapunctal. I love the perfection in his writing, which shines out in these two albums without being hidden by window dressing.
I also love Friends for the song structure. There are some masterpieces on that album

Smiley Smile is pure Brian Wilson. I think of Smile and Smiley Smile as two completely independent, almost unrelated albums.

!

Dada -I  very much like your characterization of "sound paintings" for the music...And I think Smile or whatever version you are listening to was lost on a lot of people...I wore out the grooves of my LP...and I found it difficult when I was studying 19th century French lit, to try to apply a 20th century lens to it.  It isn't fair.  Women were not generally well educated.  It was not fair, but it was the standard of life back then. Do you go back and "dig up the dead people and yell at them for the injustice?" - You can't.  And although there are a lot of newer fans who did not "live the history" of the Beach Boys voyage through the last 50 years, it is important to have the "context" of  what was historically going on in this country at the time.  It is all "contemporaneous" - you mention Warhol...

"She's Goin' Bald" reminds me of a woman going through chemo and losing her hair...and always has...and that is a "literal" lens.

You are correct about a lot of what is on that album as extremely creative.  The vocals are exquisite, and that includes Mike's.  Mike is not unintelligent.  Far from it.  And he was the one who learned the business which is a large component of this industry.  Sometimes or mostly, the creators don't get involved with the nitty,  gritty, boring details.  I think that Mike took that role on and frankly I think he does a pretty respectable job.  He "built" the Touring Band who are fabulous and put on the most exciting show imaginable and leave the audience "spent."  And, I think Brian's is wonderful as well and I have seen both, plenty and recently.  

And, we have to remember they were working on a new label, with Smile, because the Pet Sounds LP - also a work of art, was essentially "set up" to compete within the same record label, with The Beatles.  That is my observational "rear view mirror" personal assessment of what happened as between the two albums.  

Brian is a genius composer, but in order to make songs like Good Vibrations - "available" for people to sing along with, you need a good lyricist.  That is Mike.  And, if legend is correct, Mike wrote those now very famous lyrics, while he was on tour with the Beach Boys, so it is not balanced to minimize his contribution.  When  you sing "I'm Picking up Good Vibrations, she's giving me excitations..." you are singing Mike's words...and he makes the melody, "available" to us with his lyrics...they are catchy and can bring an "image" to the music.  Mike has taken the "abstract" of the notes on the sheet music and made them "concrete" and "available" for us to sing them.  

Mike was wearing the style of the day...and always looked very nice...

We  need to  remember, Mike had to take "what Brian wrote" and "sell it" on the road, to the audiences, during a time when the US was at war, when the US was in political disarray, and we were having our leaders assassinated.  Mike could look at that audience, night after night, and know what would be listened to, and what would be ignored.  

If Mike had concerns, or opinions, it is not as if they were "un-informed" - they were grounded in nearly 8 years of touring the globe, and having to respond to questions like "Where's Brian?" from reporters and fans like me, (although I never personally asked it) who never saw him in concert, from 1967 until 1987, in a "cameo" appearance at a local Beach Boys concert, when he sang a couple of songs. It was around 2000 when I saw him do Pet Sounds Live.  That is nearly 35 years of being a fan, up to that point.  And Brian is a delight to see, like the Comeback Kid.  But Mike did the grunt work, during those years when Brian was not "Back."  

They are still cousins and when is all is said and done, they still share a common ancestry.  And Brian and Mike had an undeniable "synergy" in composing and lyric writing.  Blood is still thicker than water.    

JMHO

  

I definitely agree with those statements. The 1967-77 period is just as much of an argument for the "Brian Wilson is a genius" myth as 1961-66 is. Smiley Smile and Wild Honey (also the Heider sessions, The Letter, Honey Get Home, and Can't Wait Too Long) may be credited to the band as far as production is concerned but the session tapes reveal Brian clearly in charge of the proceedings. Friends and 20/20 (also Sail Plane Song, My Little Red Book, Walkin', We're Together Again, Old Folks At Home/Ol' Man River, and Walk On By) are less so, but there's still that unmistakable Brian feel to his songs and the songs he was known to have produced. Then you get to Sunflower and he's basically working as one member of the band and not as the leader. The Brian feel permeates the 1967-70 stuff a lot. Then from 1971-75 there's a pullback. He's technically ON Surf's Up, Carl and the Passions, and Holland, but you can easily miss his contributions. On Surf's Up he's clearly on Take A Load Off Your Feet and 'Til I Die vocally (and Surf's Up of course), and he plays the pump organ on A Day In The Life Of A Tree. On Carl and the Passions and Holland he's pretty much doing just backing vocals except for his one shining moment singing the first lines of California. But then when he does 15 Big Ones, Love You, and Adult/Child, he's going off into his own direction, heavily influenced by his lifestyle of the time, similarly to how the 1967-70 recordings were. For some reason, people seem to love the 1967-70 recordings but hate the 1976-77 recordings. They're both snapshots of the life of one Mr. Brian Douglas Wilson at specific times. And both are fascinating in their mystery and their modest yet powerful musical invention.


Yup.

I'd like to add too, Stephen, that I definitely agree with your statement of taking Smile and Smiley Smile as two separate entities. In this environment of post-20/20/Surf's Up/Good Vibrations box set/BWPS, you HAVE to take them as two separate entities in order to fully appreciate them both as two fruits from the imagination of probably the most creative musician in rock music.

i honestly thought this thread was gonna be:

"If you don't like She's Goin' Bald,

then you wouldn't like He Gives Speeches."

As in "Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears,

I came to bury Caesar, not to praise him..."


Sorry, I could not resist... :lol :lol :lol


Kidding aside, it is hard to listen "inside the box" - and ignore what was historically going on at the time...age is an advantage here...

It is very hard for younger fans to understand...the whole story is important...it was "shelved."

Thank you Mr. Moderator for moderating...   

But I do love his/her passion for the music...

There are advantages and disadvantages to being both an older fan who was there at the beginning and to being a newer fan who came to the band in the 1970s or later. The former group has the benefit of wealth of music and a perspective of those times, the latter group has the benefit of a wealth of music without the perspective of those times. The older fans in many cases can't seem to get into anything after Holland; some can't get into anything past Pet Sounds, and even some can't seem to get into anything after Party because "it's not the band I grew up with" or some other reasoning. The younger fans have the benefit of a wealth of music they can listen to without recalling the burdens of history combined with their own experiences during the 1960s as, obviously, they might not have been around in the 1960s or were not old enough to recall the times. Great music, of any genre, is timeless. Let go of your ego and listen to the music without the burden of history. I think all of you Love You haters will enjoy what you hear. :)

That is an interesting way to think of it...the advantage of growing up alongside the music, and the early part of the sixties are before my time, (Thank God) is that you could listen to one album "well" and "digest it" alongside whatever was going on, whether it was Carl's arrest, or Woodstock, before the next album was released, which you might also listen to thoroughly and well, etc. 

Music was not really "portable" back then you you had to be physically "near" the music.  Now, people just scroll around the iphone or Zune, and pick and choose, and may not get the flavor of the "body of work" in the same way you listened to one side of an LP and then had to physically "turn the LP over" to hear the other side.  I am not sure that the history is a "burden," so much as it is a gift or a "reference point" into which one can have a "context."   

Love ALL of SmileySmile except for that song....the lyrics creep me the hell out. If others get spiritual or entertainment value out of it I can't argue with them, nor will I try to change their opinion on the matter. Everyone has their own groove...

(edit: Great post btw!....I went back and listened to the song...the way you wrote about it I really did want to like it!...but alas, I still can't get into it)

Well, the history issue can be both a blessing and a burden, and that's across the board for both the older fans and the newer fans. Everyone attaches memories of their "first times", whether it's something as trivial as where you were and what was going on the first time you kissed someone who wasn't a family member, the first time you heard rock 'n roll on the radio, the first time you saw Star Wars, or what you did when you heard about the 9/11 attacks. I know these are somewhat overly American, but they're just for discussion.

Personally, I recall the first time I heard Os Mutantes' 1973 album O A e o Z (The A and the Z). It was right around when my first girlfriend and I had split up and I was down with a very high fever and influenza. For years I couldn't enjoy the album mainly because it reminded me of an unpleasant split with a woman and the lovely feeling of puking every hour on the hour. Only recently have I been able to really enjoy the record on its own terms without the burdens of past experiences. It IS possible to detach yourself from the past as far as listening to music is concerned. It's a matter of just letting things go.

A little diversion off the topic:

I've noticed a bit of animosity towards the song 'Gettin' Hungry' in a few posts spread across SmileySmile.net. I never understood the dislike for this song....is it because the song doesn't relate directly to the original SMiLE? Or What?

We have all had years when an album would be an association with something devastating or unpleasant;  to listen to it when you are in that devastating experience I think is unhealthy.  You just put it away until you are ready to listen to it again.  We have all been there I think, just part of the human experience.

Putting it away I think is "balanced" and healthy. Why be more miserable than necessary? it gets in the way of living everyday...you were smart.

Lots of famous country music has emerged from that Heartbreak Hotel... 

As you say you recently are able to put that music on and enjoy it on its own terms...It is a great place to get to!

I never thought of that issue you raise about "first times" in that way, that it was an American thing...   

And yet sometimes, the art is just simply lousy.

I'm not by any means talking about Smiley Smile or She's Goin' Bald, I just don't like your characterization of people who don't like strange art as mindless cretins.

Why? Who said the BBs had to play for teenagers nonstop? The Beatles had already stopped touring by August of 1966. It was shortsighted on the part of money-grubbing Mike to worry so much about maintaining a core audience of teenagers. Brian's melodies, song ideas, and production had already made Mike a very rich man. Brian had led them well so far and there seemed to be no reason to doubt him. After all, the press was calling Brian a genius, and the broader public's approval of Brian's musical direction became apparent when they bought hundreds of thousands of copies of "Good Vibrations" in a little over a week. So, couldn't Mike have been more supportive of Brian?

You can try to be a revisionist about Mike's dislike of Smile, but there are well-documented confrontations between Mike, Brian, and Van Dyke Parks, and Parks made it clear in interviews during the '70s that Mike was vocal in his distaste of the Smile project. For example, here's passive aggressive Mike complaining about having to play "Good Vibrations" live in 1966: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOAhTRbVEzc&playnext=1&list=PL79211E12A76C250E&index=40

I'm sure he was happy to have that song over so he could sing "Long Tall Texan".

Yes, Smile would've meant the end of the BBs as a teenage act. So what? They'd spend most of the early 70s trying to capture the group of listeners that Smile would've guaranteed them in 66/67. 1966/67 was a revolutionary time, as you said. People wanted to create a new world. They wanted "Good Vibrations" and "Strawberry Fields Forever".  

And yes, if the BBs touring group had tried to play a song like "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" on stage, it probably wouldn't have gone over well. The fact is, the BBs live at the time were what we would now call "garage rock", although their harmonies were a little better than most garage bands. I mean, listen to their attempt to play "Good Vibrations". Some parts are good, but on other parts the song nearly dies. Should Brian have to hold back his musical development so that a bunch of average professional musicians could recreate it live a couple of times a week?

The BBs at this point should have been touring less and with a bigger entourage of professional musicians. But Mike & Co. wanted to keep riding the money train of their earlier formula. Only Brian saw that if they didn't change they would be obsolete in about 2 years.

:thumbsup-Well said!!!

You, my friend, have smoked too much ganja in your life.  And I like it.

I approve of this message.

Revisionist?  Probably not.  Brian was not touring and I am not privy to whatever when down with Van Dyke, though I believe he is pretty creative. You were just told that Brian "shelved" the project by one of the moderators.  The Beach Boys did play "Rock and Roll Woman" by the Buffalo Springfield, and recently played Back in the USSR, by the Beatles, only a few months ago but years back travelled with other musicians like Darryl Dragon of Captain and Tennille, Charles Lloyd, a brass section and what I would call an enhanced percussion section.  

You can get a flavor for the setlists on Eric Anniversario's setlist webpage.  They played non-BB stuff occasionally, but there were two or three acts which came on before they played.  So, the number of songs was limited to about a dozen.  They had several dozen back-to-back hits that the crowd was paying good money to hear.

Mike traveled with Carl and Dennis Wilson, Al, Bruce and whatever other musicians were working for them at the time.

Have you seen the Beach Boys live?  They have played for a "stratified audience" since I have seen them.  The early 60's might have had a very limited age audience but not from 1967 on.  I don't understand what you mean by touring with a larger group of musicians.  There were so many, at a point, including a brass section, and extra percussionists, they barely fit on the stage.  If you go back to some YouTubes you will see that.  

Have you seen "1974 - On the Road with the Beach Boys" taped by band member Billy Hinsche in 1974?  You will see Van Dyke in some clips and described as "one of the good guys."  SMiLE was 1967.  I am not sure in what capacity he was with the band but it was later than the ill-fated project.  

The feeling I am getting is "adversarial" and while a great discussion on this great music is fabulous, in a community type atmosphere, the Mike bashing is inappropriate.  You clearly are devoted to Brian and that is great, but bashing one member is not my cup of tea.  

During those years you mention they were "age-ing out' of the teen market because of The Monkees, and more bubblegum pop groups catering to the preteens.  That early audience was going to college.

The demographic was older, to the college campuses who were much more receptive to the whole experimental music they were working on.  And they played Carl and the Passions stuff.  This predated Holland and Carl was the de facto musical director. And Woodstock changed everything and made music more serious.  Have you listened to Surf's Up and Student Demonstration Time?  And Don't Go Near the Water, another Mike song: highlighting environmental awareness and so ahead of its time...

Mike did a lot of work on these themes, and it was truly timely, given the climate at the colleges and universities.  It is a great album.

It is not so simplistic as a falling out over the SMiLE project.  

I was referring specifically to the band's live act and the audience it drew in '66/early '67. I agree that they improved their live show substantially for periods after that. Also, I'm not saying that the band was terrible live in '66. They were average for a live rock act. Problem was, Brian's musical ambition was way beyond that.

Dada nails it.

I am in a Holmes (Sherlock, not Frank) mood today:

I give you:

'Love Is A Woman'

'She's Going Bald'

...from the two albums discussed in this thread.

Conclusion: Mike underwent a sex change operation before 1967; and Brian chose to reveal that in his own inimitable manner to the public.

For further reference: see 'Glen Or Glenda' by Ed Wood Jr. (Mike's Many Marriages are just window dressing, in other words).

"Oh..." nothing - you just lost me right there with a sweeping and frankly arrogant statement. That's a perfect example of the fabled 'Bloo mentality' - "if you don't like every last thign Brian Wilson ever did, is doing or possibly will do in the future, then you're an idiot".

I'm no renaissance man, but I read English Literature at college. I like Shakespeare, Donne, Chaucer, Langland, Coleridge, Hemingway, Whitman. My musical tastes span Gregorian chant, The Beach Boys and Butterworth.

I'm cultured. I can spell (most of the time), I know what the capital of Belize is and I don't ready USA Today.

Not wanting to interfere, but:

I took Dada's post to imply: it is a mistake to read 'Smiley Smile' (and thus SGB) as inferior product, dismissable as a brain fart to please Capitol because Smile did not see the light of day. SS is whimsical, odd, perhaps even slim or slight, but certainly not inferior. It is a small masterpiece all of its own, and not comparable to anything released in 1967 by anyone else. It is modern art. In that light, SGB is very much to be appreciated. This person certainly does.

There are Brian things that I don't particularly care for, and I don't feel obliged to go against my feelings and love them because they're by Brian. Indeed, that is the Bloo mentality.

I took Dada's literal remark quoted above to be elitist on purpose, and therefore ironic and self-deprecating.

Just my two cents. Your words, AGD, surely apply in general, but for me in this case not so, because of the way I read Dada's words.

And Mike Love and Al Jardine loved Robinson Jeffers' poem Beaks of Eagles.

BTW, Mr. Heartical, I have similar feelings about "Love Is a Woman".

No, wait... let me guess... "If you like anything composed or adapted by Mike or Alan then you're simply uncultured", right ?  ;D

Smiley Smile is, to me, the greatest "WTF ???" moment in the whole history of The Beach Boys: that it was thrown together at warp speed to keep Capitol form going into complete meltdown is a very strong argument (and it's also a stronger argument that at that time in his life, even when he wasn't really trying, Brian could still work his magic), but the big question is, what possessed Capitol to distribute it at all ? My best guess is that there was some clause in the 'breakages' lawsuit settlement that stated not only would Capitol agree to distribute Brother releases, but that also they had to, irrespective of what was handed to them. Or maybe it was a tax write-off.

Andrew - I just pulled out the two Smiley Smile CD's that I have...

One is the American 2-fer with Wild Honey - it has 11 tracks

Then, the French version has the 11 plus what is billed as 6 Bonus tracks

12. You're Welcome (B.Wilson)

13. Heroes and Villains (version alternative) (B. Wislon - V.D. Parks)

14. Good Vibrations (B. Wilson - M. Love) (1ère version)

15. Do You Like Worms (inédit) (B. Wilson - V.D. Parks)

16. Our Prayer - inédit - (B. Wilson)

17. I Love to say Da Da - (B. Wilson) - inédit

I don't have the NEW SMiLE in front of me - but when I heard the '04 version I felt if I heard almost everything already.  And I have forgotten the Bonus tracks on the EMI French Version, which has a release date of 1998 MAM Productions.

Did something like this surface in England? 

the site is www.magic-records.com -  distribution EMI Music FRance

I hope I have filled in some blanks...I may have heard most of the track without even realizing it...DUH!  :lol

Yep, that's how I understood it as well. Looks like someone served up a turd on AGD's dinner plate .

I would put Smiley in the bottom 3 of the Beach Boys 60's lps. It's good but just not that good. However I do agree with Dada's statement that the group spent the latter half of the 60's and early 70's chasing what Smile would have undoubtedly given them - acceptance and relevance from the counter culture.

I find your viewpoint of people who don't enjoy great art (whatever that is) pretty condescending. So what if Jo Bloggs doesn't dig John Cage or whatever qualifies as musical art these days. Celine Dion may be his bag and more power to him.

Ironically when I listen to She's Goin Bald, I hear BW dumbing everything down, un-shouldering himself of the burden of genius and sticking two fingers up to any expectations of him producing great art anymore! They're just having fun here aren't they?!

And for what it's worth, I can take or leave SGB. I always thought it was one of the more mediocre tracks on the album what with the chipmunk vocals and everything.

Honestly, I'd take that rather "schooled" assessment of Mr. Dada's as indicative of typical Brianista mentality and shrug it off. You win some, you lose some. Half of those fucktards on the blueboard don't even know anything other than Pet Sounds, BWPS, TLOS, and BWRG. :)

When I imagine someone liking some of the songs on Smiley Smile, I see a country bumpkin with a pitchfork in his hand admiring a piece of "modern art" fashioned from cow dung while the "artist" laughs at him behind his back. 

You're right, it's not important. It just means that he's most likely uncultured. When I say that someone is uncultured, I'm saying it as a simple statement of fact, not as an insult.

Yeah, but... so? I still consider Smiley Smile arty. It's not about how long it took to make, or if Brian was trying to fulfill the expectations of the rock press. Art is art. That Smiley Smile was art is an unavoidable byproduct of Brian's creative processes at the time. You're taking a very narrow view of art.

This is such a terrible and presumptuous thread.

No, what you're saying is that in your opinion (which, with your being a Beach Boys fan, is necessarily biased) he's 'uncultured'. I may be arrogant, i may be argumentative, I may be stubborn and wilful, but I don't go around telling people that because they don't don't agree with my opinion they're 'uncultured'. If they start arguing the toss with me over documented fact, why then yes, I'll get the bazooka out, but I'll respect their opinion when expressed as such, however misguided I think that may be (and remember, I like Looking Back With Love).

What you're saying, and how it's being phrased - whether for effect or not - is arrogant and condescending. What you're saying is, anyone who disagrees with your opinion is uncultured. Add snobbish to that list.  What you're saying is "you're much too stupid to appreciate fine art, but listen to me and I will enlighten you".

You came out and said what I was thinking the whole time...'tis the life of a Gandhi-like figure of goodwill, a statesman, if you will, on our board.

As far as I'm concerned, Mr. Dada's assessment of people who don't like She's Goin' Bald is one of many "pot meet kettle" moments in the history of Brianistas.

We're now straying from the topic of the Beach Boys, but I feel compelled to respond to this.

Life is unfair and unbalanced, Mr. Doe. You have the rich and you have the poor. You have the cultured and you have the uncultured. Would you deny this simple fact?

What I do is look at the world with equanimity. I call a spade a spade. I accept the facts. I don't attempt to paint over the scenes of life with the false colors of equality to make it as I wish it would be.

I meditate. I am a practitioner of mindful awareness. One doesn't need to enjoy Smiley Smile to be cultured. However, a cultured person would understand and deeply appreciate the unique qualities it offers to the world. If you dismiss "She's Goin' Bald" because of the weird production and close your mind off to it, then yes, I would say that you don't have a refined mind. Your reasoning would be shallow. There is even something to learn from Celine Dion, although I would say far less than what there is to learn from Smiley Smile.

We were lucky to get this album.

And quoted by a genuine Mykinista in every sense of the word.

You really believe the pompous twaddle you just spouted, don't you ? 

Word of advice - if you really do go around calling a spade a spade 24/7, may I suggest you either practise your ducking or invest in a hockey mask.

In North Philly, if you call a spade a spade, you're dead man walking. ;)

"Objective" does not equal Mykinista. I thought if you Brianistas were so smart and perceptive you'd get that. You're all uncultured ruffians!

Are you threatening to hit me with a hockey puck, Mr. Doe?

Anyone ever tried to do a comp/blend of Smiley Smile and all of the boot and legit -released SMiLE material?  If you include the GV pieces and say ,two versions of Wonderful, , woody woodpecker leading to the BWPS version of FIRE, along with the various elements pieces out there, it might be a very trippy and interesting whole.  Start with OP, then Cantina H&V, and so on, put in a little Bicycle Rider theme along the way, and end the whole thing with GV.

My next BB comp.

I like "She's Goin' Bald" but there's nothing 'arty' about it at all. It's just a bunch of talented guys goofing off on a novelty song whilst blazing on some of Jamacia's finest. Maybe you should meditate on that Dada?  :smokin

Dennis Wilson once stated that he thought She's Goin Bald was about oral sex.

Which, of course, the 'helium' vocals would seem to bear out.  ;D

For someone who, is by his own admission, so cultured, you can be remarkably obtuse. Simply saying, if you go around all day telling folk exactly what you think of them - "jeez, you're fat"... "ugly wife"... "you shower this morning ?"... "I'm guessing no mirrors in your house" - be prepared to have the odd punch coming in your direction. It was a mild joke, but patently being as cultured as you have become requires the removal of any SOH (which I'd gathered anyway by your pompous and lapidary prose masquerading as erudition).

Wut dat meen?

This seems as good as any current place to lay this out:

What makes me laugh about the term "Brianista" is the negative connotation and the way it's tossed around by a select number of members on this board, including certain moderators. While I honor the fact that you try to keep the peace, I don't honor a passive-aggressive way of touting opinions. If you feel like saying something, then quit being a moderator and bring it. Take the (g)love(s) off.

The two aged men who are the sole "credibility" (in terms of original involvement) to The Beach Boys' present band would essentially be this without Brian's place in their lives:
 

-a gas pump man
-a tribute styled band member

And if that isn't enough, those two are responsible for some of the most reprehensible music (see the BB left to their own devices sans Brian), and bum lasting legacy (cue the misappropriated quote: "oh Mike and Bruce and a cover band are touring?! wow! they sure keep things fresh in people's minds"...ha! Perhaps the notion of BB= Surfin' USA) of The Beach Boys. I don't care about opinions. Everyone has them. Great. I'm sure people have their sick and twisted reasons for liking Mike Love. Fine. But understand who is the reason for the Beach Boys to be mentioned in the same breath as The Beatles in certain circumstances...Brian Douglas Wilson. Again- it's all opinions,  but it's a stretch to make people feel bad or guilt for a blind love of a man that was (note: was) clearly the most genius out of that bunch.

Over and out.

Feel like arguing? Do it. I don't care to have an online argument with people that I don't know. I have more important and pressing conversations that are unpleasant with people in real life. So what's the point, message board hotshot? You rogue ace that knows more than me and the co. on here (and we know more than 95% of all people in the world about Brian and the BB- that's why we come here.)? You that thinks my words are stupid or misinformed? Save your time. You won't get a response from me in an argumentative push. Your opinion is as valid as mine. You might even have some facts on your side. You DON'T have anything that will ever indicate that Brian Wilson wasn't the single most amazing person in The Beach Boys. Point. So let people who want to laud the man do it. We have reason.

Also, since message boards tend to have folks comb over each sentence for an incongruity...by saying "bring it" I don't mean, "Let's argue!" I won't do it for reasons listed above. I mean to imply: don't call anything/anyone moderate (or a moderator) if you are putting out forward and negative viewpoints of a group of fans. Just because you are "in" with the right people or pay dues to a website, you are not above anyone. If your goal is to moderate- than be moderate.

Onward to positive vibes and thanks-

What I do enjoy about this board/ the people on it/ the issues:

the ability to come together with other fans who recognize the genius of Brian and the good involvement/execution of the other BBs, INCLUDING MIKE LOVE AND BRUCE JOHNSTON. Isn't that what a community of FANS is about? Saying that Brian is the genius of the BB and their sound is like saying that Yoda is the genius of the jedi council- it's fact. Celebrate the good of Mike Love, Bruce, and anyone else you care to, but cut the condescending talk to fans of the real genius.  Thank you very much for what is (with human folly in consideration) a very nice place in the online realm of communication. Peace and thanks. If my words mean that I shall be banned or exiled, then I don't want any part of this board. But, I shant sit in silence while people say things that are just silly.

Can we bring a horse in here?

Only if it's not breathing.

Funnier still when one recalls that to be called a Brianista back in the late seventies was a mark of no little respect, to be anointed a true believer.

Now that we're all schooled on Brianistaism and culture, let's move on.

Imo, the group liked funny and novelty and therefore SGB.

... and then we'll have world peace ...  (, right?)

As far as the content of the arguments here, the barbs we throw here are NOTHING compared to what happened in the Male Ego days. Two, no one is going to be banned for stating their opinion. Three, if you feel like exiling yourself for speaking your mind here, that's on you.

However, I do find the irony of the events of the last year or so on this board amusing; in January after a HUGE board blow up I was told I had no right to get down and dirty with my opinions and be "aloof" because "you're the moderator, not a member" (keeping with the skewed logic of so many of our friends here). And here we are ten months later and now people want the gloves to come off.

As far as anyone who has problems with people sharing their views on this board (and I'm of the opinion that my opinions are of NO consequence whatsoever to Beach Boys history; the BEACH BOYS are the ones with the success to show for it), if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen. And I'll kindly find a world's smallest violin for you.

Yep. That's what I meant.

BTW: I am not a Brianista. I am a patient.

God bless. As this stuff recedes into history we're becoming more and more like the cult of Wagner-ites.  Who go around making sure opera attendees pronounce Knappertsbusch "Ka-nap-erts-bush", and insist only Hans Hotter could sing the role of Fafner properly.

Cam nails it:  SGB is a bunch of guys doing something silly and funny.  That's what I thought on first hearing.  No baggage required.

I dig unusual artistic left turns as much as anyone but not everything works.  Recently an art collector's estate had an auction  to sell off the collection, it was like a free MOMA show.   Some amazing things by Warhol, Miro, Rauschenberg, Lichtenstein.  But then there were things like a line drawing of Snow White giving Prince Charming oral.  Yeek. Don't know who bought it but I know I don't want that sort of thing  on my wall.  Or the drawing, either.

A moderator should not feel that s/he cannot venture an opinion, any more than a poster...nor, do you need to be aloof...
if that means "taking the high road" - that is fine.  If it means "letting a poster know clearly that they are being insulting or offensive" to a fellow poster or band member, then that is your proper role.  As long as you qualify it by saying, "This is my personal opinion."

You can do a great job showing both sides of an issue and not sell-out your personal opinion.  I think that is your right, and might defeat the reason that you are doing this "labor of love" anyway...love of the music.  


My opinion...

It is unfortunate that there are some who refuse to see both sides.  I have found it far more fun to look at the music and take the the Beach Boys voyage "as a whole" rather than to segment it and create "factions" as it were.  And I have come to really appreciate what Mike has done for this music.  He has someone younger than he, assist with the musical direction, for music he helped write.  

And, I say that from firsthand observation, from before many of you were born (my old man used to day that - yikes!) - that does not mean that my opinion is more valuable than anyone else's or my taste is any better.  I do rejoice that younger people have latched on to this music, under any form with any of the bands who are out there.  It means that the music is enduring and at the end of the day, isn't that what matters...

It might be hard to see the "other side" and I respect everyone's right to an opinion, but, for those who really don't like the touring band, I suggest going to one of their many FREE shows, and allow your opinion be an "informed one" and not subject to what might be construed as "cool or cultured" or whatever.  

If you keep an open mind and heart, you might be surprised to see that there is room for more than what you limit yourself to.

Meditating and espousing peace while slamming someone else's views, is inconsistent with being harmonious (pun intended) while debating diverging viewpoints.

JMHO        

Hey, I have never let my status as a moderator discourage me from sharing my views. The "history of Mike's reputation" thread back in January should be proof positive of that. And when those who didn't like that view had no other means to counter it, it became "he's a moderator, he can't express his opinions" and then it became "I'm leaving until he's no longer a moderator". The failing arguments of BRIANISTAS who don't like having their views challenged...PERIOD.

For the record, I don't mind if someone challenges my arguments. It's just a pity that they're always wrong.

Are you related to Bill O'Reilly, or, in fact, Bill O'Reilly himself?

Interesting observation, seeing as your arguments tend to be, shall we say, inconsistent ?  

Well, I have no desire to bicker with you or leave the site, so no violin required. I do thank you for putting your time into a very nice site with a great community to meet other fans. Being that I mainly lurk on here and do not post with all that much frequency, I was unaware of what the limits were.

Nah, that remark wasn't pointed at you personally...it's pointed at anyone who sees fit to bitch and moan about peoples' opinions and "I'm gonna leave if you don't apologize" or some lame sh*t like that. You're 2 cool 4 school, broseidon. :)

AGD - that poster may need a lawyer, not a mere "metaphorical" hockey mask... (Brian) "got his 'square' bandmates stoned out of their minds."

Was s/he there? (44 or so years ago!) Was s/he an eyewitness?

Libel = defamation with written words...a legal claim of false statement that is printed, spoken or otherwise communicated...

Slander is spoken;  Libel is written; both are "defamatory." (Media Law Resource Center)

A word to the wise (or cultured) is sufficient.

Calling the album a joke!  Heroes and Villains and Good Vibrations?  Wind Chimes, Gettin' Hungry (gritty but cool) Wonderful?

Whenever I jam Smiley Smile on iTunes and not on my 180 gram LP, I take H & V and GV off the album. Stole the idea from this board- it makes it feel more cohesive.

Opinions are much like assholes - everyone has one and many are full of sh*t.  ;D

exactly. even mine can be considered poop. there I said it, "poop." If that word doesn't diffuse some tension and make you smile, I don't know what will!  :-D

But what would you do without yours?   :lol :lol :lol

(your "opinion" of course)

poop myself from a poop implosion! hahahahaha or in this case, listen to Kanye West and believe him to be poetic genius.

Good!!!

Some humore from DSamore!

We need it! 

Grazie!

We're all just poopers spreading our poop all around this poopy world of ours. The world is full of poop and poopers.

You're right, AGD, I've changed my mind somewhat. People evolve. I still think Smiley Smile was a prank on Brian's part to an extent. Though I think he was very into the recording of the songs, I'm sure he knew that the record company would hate it.

i love she's going bald.  It's a good tune and funny.  I love singing/playing along with it

Smiley Smile was Brian's first big "f*** you", aimed at Capitol, the Beach Boys, and everyone else who doubted him during Smile. Basically it was "yeah, you don't like my masterpiece? Well, I'm gonna make another one that's even weirder just to spite all of you and you'll put it out in order to keep the band afloat!"

May I - again - suggest to make use those lovely smileys that can be added? It makes it so much easier to understand each other's replies (if they're serious, funny intended, sarcastic, sad, whatever), especially when the topic seems to become a bit tense, and replies (or the tone of them) are sometimes mis-understood.


Or did I just spoil the fun in a spicy discussion?  ::)


- I'm glad btw that there's no smiley to emphasize the poop side-discussion -

See we can disagreeably.

I just can not see this happening. Maybe if it had not been under the Beach Boys name and not under the Brothers banner with Capitol only the distributor. All Capitol would lose was an opportunity cost, the group would lose real competitive standing and real money and lots of it. This would go against Brian's and the Boys' very nature imo and would not have the supposed desired effect anyways. They for sure were up for inside jokes and pranks and tweaking the suits but nothing with these sorts of consequences. Imo, again.

Or maybe you were being ironic or satirical, in that case never mind.

Listen to the session tapes. Brian's clearly in charge on Smiley Smile. He knew exactly what he was doing. He was under the impression that people thought his direction with Smile was "weird". And when he junked that it became a means of throwing their accusations back in their faces.

See, I never saw it as a joke album. I mean yeah, there are parts that are supposed to be 'funny', although I don't see it as 'A Big F U to Capitol and my bandmates' kind of joke, which I suppose would make it a personal joke to Brian. I always took it as, Brian was getting burnt out on all of those intricate musical pieces-the constant shuffling and re-shuffling of the sections was taking a toll on him mentally (along with alot of other things we've talked about a million times before). I thought it was him just 'cooling out' and doing an album like SMiLE with stripped down pieces of music that were easier for him to put together.
In any event, I would prefer somebody sit down with the Beach Boys and/or Brian and ask them pointed questions about SS. Sort of like the way they used to about SMiLE. I think that SS is more of a mystery at this point than SMiLE is.

That is one thing that bugs me about every Beach Boys book I've read: not enough information about 'Friends' or 'Smiley Smile'...Carlin's book didn't cover it as much as I would have liked. White's book didn't really cover it. I'll have to re-read Priore's take on it. But anyways, it is such an interesting album, not only for the music but for the history behind it.

I'd love to read about the sessions and Brian's rethinking the tracks...whether or not he half-assed it or did put effort into reworking them or whether SMiLE was meant to be a middle-finger to capitol or if it was just Brian trying to get an album out.

I agree that Brian is solidly in charge and doing exactly what he wanted but I don't hear him under the impression that he thought people thought his SMiLE direction was weird. He has made it clear back then and since [until 2003] that HE thought it was too weird. I hear he was in charge and he knew exactly what he wanted to do and did it with Smiley [and SMiLE]. What I hear is, there is no reason to think other than what is on the tapes, that Brian was fully committed to Smiley as their new direction and mood.

The consequences were squarely on him and themselves. Some think its brilliant, some think it is crap, let Brian and the Boys own it as part of the legacy of their taste/feelings/decisions.

It may have been a short time from beginning to completion [largely because there weren't long pauses between booked studios with the home studio] but it seems to me really Brian worked much longer [man hours] and harder [participation] on recording that album than any previous album and I think that probably is true of the whole group too.

All only my opinion, except maybe the work invloved in making the album compared to other albums. I could just be flat wrong there.

Oh, I think Brian was very much into Smiley Smile artistically. However, I think he also had to know that it was very self-indulgent and that not a lot of people would get it.  Releasing it as the next Beach Boys was very much going against the establishment. Those were the times. f*** the man, man.

That I agree with that, as in being the next new thing, being out front of their competition, but not as a f' you to anyone. Especially one  that would hurt only them and give the competitive advantage to their competition.

If you don't like Kanye West then you are uncultured.  ;D

And in the process, foder the fan.

I became a fan in 1988 after seeing AAB on VH1 I was 12. I like some of the 1976-77 music but I am a much bigger fan of Brian from 1961-74. I just can't get over his voice on the later stuff, nor the lyrics, nor the synth productions. It's just not my kind of sound. Oh there are maybe 8-10 songs I really like from the early 76- mid 77 period but from Shut Down Vol 2. to Holland there are only maybe 6-8 songs I don't like period.

I can get into Smiley pretty easily. I don't LOVE it but it's fun including Bald. Bald scared the hell out of me really when I first heard it  as a kid but I grew to like it quite a bit. Still I just don't "get" Love You or why people dig it. I'll Bet He's Nice is stong as is The Night Was So Young. Ding Dang is a fun little trifle and Good Time is great but of course these two are much earlier. I'll grant you that Brian sang with a lot more emotion from 75-82 then he has since, but some of his vocals just hurt to hear. Go back to 1961-74 you get the emotion and the beauty.

Just to clarify here are the Brian recordings  I like from 75-82
Back Home (old song remade well), It's O.K. (it's older too but a lot of work was done in 1976), That Same Song (at least the TV special version),  Lazy Lizzie , I'll Bet He's Nice, The Night Was So Young, My Diane, Still I Dream Of It, It's Over Now, Everybody Wants To Live, It's Like Heaven, Do Ya, Matchpoint, Mike Come Back, She's Got Rythm, Wontcha Come Out, Our Team, Winter Symphony, Go and Get That Girl, Santa Ana Winds,  California Feelin' (ok Brian may not be on it and it's not a great version but I hear the potential), Good Timin (another old one that Brian may not be on but I can't not include it), Goin' On, Stevie, Oh Lord, City Blues.  I exluded covers and songs writen by other members but I must give props to the covers of Michael Row The Boat Ashore and Drip Drop!

Smiley Smile as a whole will always be one of my personal favorite albums, as it was the first BB album I ever bought/heard (shortly after buying BW on tape for 99 cents at a Blockbuster Music store). Having knowing almost nothing about the band's music besides the stuff on the oldies station that I didn't care for and reading the ghostwritten autobiography, I went in blind. And dammit, I love the album just as much now as I did then. So there.

:lol

Completely agree.

First this: if it is true that SS is a true cannabis album, then we may throw the idea of a 'f*ck you Capitol' or 'it's my sabbatical joke!' out of the window. These two considerations imply that it was made by a sober, albeit frustrated and tired person. Which, if my premise is true, is not the case. If Brian was stoned all of the time, he truly may have thought that it was art, real inventio as the old Romans would have it.

Compare it to the cocaine sessions of 1980. The merest  hint of a melody made Bri scream out things like: oh my god Dennis listen to what I just came up with isn't that gorgeous???... and no doubt the coked up Brian meant what he said, the music was not ironic or aggessively directed at anyone in particular at all.

I find SS a one of a kind wonderful thing. Without reservations or second thoughts. No manual necessary.

Ok here is my eight and a half cents worth..for what it's worth!! Music as it progresses can move and change the senses. Music or even art that is more complex can require more to understand or break down to understand. It is not doubted that some forms of art/music can at time require a greater understanding of ones senses and sensiblity. My thoughts are this Brian wrote some music that was way above the masses that had been so easy to appease. His peers understood this and progressed accordingly. Easily accessible music or art is also for the most easy to dismiss and forgettable (Brittany etc). I am not putting anyone down but to the lazy casual listner some of Brians/BB's music is not easy to digest. Same can be said about the Beatles, The Who and many more..
My first listen of Smile Smile was a WTF moment.The beauty had to be scratched away.. i heard it in 07 after BWPS and many other twofers that were realesed in Oz at the time. I listen to the Album all the time to hear more of Brian, more creativity in a scaled down cool drug induced wacked out space!! The album is a time capsule, it is precious! The songs altough not easily accesible are moments of crazy, fun, drug addled madness before Brian's sh*t was spinning on the fan!!

While you're messing around with the tracklisting of Smiley, add the rehearsal of GV from Hawthorne CA and see how cohesive it is then.

Oh, Smiley Smile is art.

Also, remember, cocaine is a much more powerful drug than marijuana. I doubt Brian - the same Brian that had been recording with the Wrecking Crew the last couple of years - failed to realize that the material was going to confuse most of the public. Even his Smile friends say that Brian wasn't stoned all the time as some believed, so I think it's safe to say that he still had some of his wits about him.

In the end, Smiley Smile was a way for Brian to release something artistic under the Beach Boys name while at the same time lowering people's expectations from him from a production standpoint.  It was a win-win for Brian at the point in his life. He was becoming reclusive, and he wanted to avoid his old scene, part of which included the big L.A. studios. That's why he had a home studio built.

I do think Brian thought Smiley Smile would be appeal to the counterculture/artsy crowd, though. Sadly, he was wrong at the time (even if Hunter Thompson dug "Wind Chimes"), and I think that's why he retreated to R'n'B material. Also, I still maintain that Smiley Smile was an indirect f*** you by Brian to the label because it completely ignored what they wanted from him in terms of an album. Sometimes, to do what you want for yourself, you have to tell people to f*** off. That's basically what Brian did there.

Small point, which is mostly forgotten: Smiley Smile wasn't released by Capitol - all they did was distribute it. That said, of course they were screaming for some kind of product from the band to justify the outrageous expense of the Smile sessions, although the chart success of the first GH compilation would have taken the edge off that somewhat (as would GH2 a little later).

Fact is, Smiley Smile was recorded in 42 almost consecutive days, with no touring interruptions: is that the sign of an artist plying his trade, or of a man who knows he's got to get something out pronto and has developed a complete aversion to the recordings he's been slaving over for the preceding year or more ?  Occam's Razor.

First off, let me say that Smiley Smile is the album that got me hooked on the Beach Boys.  Although I was 11 years old when it originally came out, I didn't hear it until 1989.  So, while I was familiar with all of the '60s hits, I wasn't really a fan until I heard what Brian and the boys did in the summer of 1967.  That album, in turn, got me into Smile, and Pet Sounds, and...well...everything else they ever did up to (but not including) Summer In Paradise. 

My opinions about what may or may not have caused Brian to scrap Smile, and put out Smiley instead, have changed over the years.  These days I think that Brian had just had too much.  He was getting some flack for some of the lyrics, but that was just one thing out of many, and you have to admit, the boys still sang those lyrics beautifully.  The LSD, while helping him to think outside the box musically, did push him to the edge, mentally.  I think the speed probably did even more damage, though, causing his paranoia, and his inability to decide how to put all of those sections together.  Smile was not fun any more for Brian, and he decided to cool out again with his old band mates.  Screw the studio time hassles, screw the wrecking crew, screw the big productions, screw the Vosse Posse, screw the arguing, and have some fun.  Turn what had become a bummer, a frowny Smile for Brian, into a smiley Smile.  And that's what he did. 

I'm not a big fan of He Gives Speeches.  I have never included it in any Smile mixes that I've done.  I just think it sounds out of place along side such majestic recordings as the Smile version of Wonderful, or Cabinessence, or Surf's Up.  She's Going Bald, however, is lots of fun, and fits in perfectly with Brian's smiley Smile.  Smiley Smile.  I like it. 
             

I love Smiley Smile...but this whold Brianistas vs Mike-lovers thing :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse :deadhorse

How much would Brian have cared about Capitol's clamoring for product? Would he have cared that he used all the studio time at Capitol's expense? 
Seems to me it wouldn't have been front and center for him.
Maybe he just had some fresh ideas that were burning holes in his britches. Tunes that just HAD to get out, and he couldn't stop til he got them done.
He's wanting to record new visions he has of the music which he couldn't realize previously. 

I think he got stoned for over a month straight and just followed his muse. He wanted to put product out, probably for a myriad of reasons. If you listen to Smiley Smile, though, it's obvious that pleasing the record company was not his primary objective.

That's what I'm thinking.

IF he was making SS as a foda off to the record company, he was fodaing off himself because the record company was his. If he was making it just to please the record company, he was doing it just to please himself because the record company was his.

Andrew may be right, GH may have already paid off the costs of SMiLE. The BBs had just won a settlement in the 100s of thousands of dollars, maybe that paid it off or maybe it was forgiven in the settlement. It would be interesting to know. As a Brothers Record product, it is hard to see how Capitol cared much about SS one way of another, how much would they really profit or lose from being just the distributor.

Nope, by the power vested in me [by me] I'm callin' it: The urban myth of SS as an F*off to the record company is dead, short live the next SS related urban myth.

In an interview with J. Marks in 1968 Brian raved about Smiley and how much he enjoyed making it. Quite different from Smile. He was just going by his instincts which really wouldn't fail him until 1976.