It's one of the unsolved mysteries of the original SMILE. Many things have been offered as possibilities (like the last part of hollidays, or the piano coda of windchimes) but no real answer is out there.

This book is great!! I just got it yesterday and have read about half of it (up through ASL). I must admit, this book would probably be hard to follow if (1) You weren't familiar with every single BW related recording of the 60's and (2) You don't have much knowledge in music/songwriting. That said, since most of us here DO know every song, and a fair amount also play/write music, I'd imagine a great number of you will love it. The book is written in a sly, almost jocular manner, and I really get a sense of how crazy it must of been for BW to have all these ideas inside just waiting for the right collaborator to try them out with. I'd say this is a must-read (bearing in mind 1 and 2 above)!!!

I could do without APUSA, TIKH, and the lyrics for SLC, but especially the first two. Also, TGFNYC isn't all that great either...

As nice a guy as Al seems, I think this album will probably be pretty crappy. I've never been sold on a single Al song, except maybe the original SAW, and his apparent inability to have any genuinely new ideas, but I'm sure I'll still buy it...

 I agree that it seems likely the song choices hadn't been finalized and the BW did intend to include GID on Today. Wasn't there also a version of Girl don't Tell Me and That's not Me (or one of those PS songs) done around this time? Maybe I'm just making that last part up. If not, they surely could have been contenders...

I'm looking forward to 2065/6 and the 100th anniversary of the Best Of the Beach Boys!!!

Good point about the duet nature of this tune. Linett just sort of answered this question on the Little Surfer Girl thread.

So it was Funny Boy, then Rabbit's Foot, then Our Car Club? That's pretty cool. Bummer about stuff being taped over. So, were these tapes just comp. reels of stuff BW was doing, or are they the actual tapes he recorded on at home? In other words, is there still hope that somewhere in the back of Brian's closet the original 1,2,or3 track home tapes still exist?

I just asked Alan this, but maybe someone else could also help; the little snippet of Little surfer girl on the box-set is an odd mix. Before it starts you can hear BW asking for instruments that are not in the mix we hear to be turned up in his head-phones. So, why were these other insts. (piano and bass, I think) not included on the snippet we've heard. Also, why just a snippet (sorry about constantly repeating that word) ? Is there nothing more of that song? Maybe this has been covered before, but I remain ignorant. P.S. Was this intended for Sharon Marie or something (pov seems to be of a girl)? Any help would be wonderful.

Hey, I was just listening to little surfer girl on the box set and realized (not for the first time) that BW is asking for instruments that aren't on the mix we hear to be turned up in his earphones. So, is there more to this song that a different mix could reveal? Also, do we know who this was intended for (The Honeys,I presume), as the pov seems to be of a girl .Sorry if this has already been covered...

The longer ,mono fade of Farmer's Daughter is infinitely more satisfying then that crappy stereo mix. Actually, same for most of that album.

Man, everyone seems so uptight lately...Just remember, you're fine.

Al's got some pretty weird ideas for songs, which I Love, but he is a little, er, obvious I guess. He seems to lack subltety in his delivery, but over all he's pretty cool. Lady Lynda, however, really blows. When I first heard the Cal.Feeling boot as a kid, one of my favorite tunes was Santa Ana Winds.

Sorry, didn't realize it was a put-on... I'm gullible. (sp?)

Gee, what a nice little discussion. . I suppose I should butt out of it all together, but since I'm a dick, I won't. Listen up; just because you (the generic you) have decided on a  conspiracy involving mixing in 3 seconds of old material into a new track, despite the testimony of eye-witnesses mind you, gives you no right to decide on how others react to your idea. Since the purpose of this board is to discuss BB related topics, and that is what we are doing, you might not want to try dictating the direction those discussions go. Also, how are you furthering this discussion by simply re-stating your  idea over and over again? Wouldn't it be nice if you stopped calling people names and just said 'thanks for taking the time to even consider this idea'? Hey, it's just a thought
P.S. Sorry about all the horrible run-on sentences...

It's amazing how many of us are from '74!! And even though I missed those golden years, I can say that it wasn't really any fun being a BB fan in America in the mid-eighties. Every kid I went to school with thought I was a total moron for liking that stuff. Then, when it became cool to like BW in the nineties, I became the go-to guy for Smile, et al. Still, I think most hipsters are really only aware of PS and still dis the older (and newer) stuff, with LY as a possible, ironic, exception.

H.E.L.P. is a GREAT song. You guys are nuts.

What about the live version fron ten years later on the BEACHAGO tour? Even though he flubs some lines and the sound is crappy, Denny's California soul really comes through!

I'd just like to say, Mike Love Has The Greatest Beard EVER, at least on tha DGNTW video on YOUTUBE!

I used to not like this song either, but I've grown to love it over the years. The double-tracking is pretty bad, but I think that's part of what I like about it. Brian obviously decided to do a quick Double-track as they mixed it down. Great way to end an album.

What's with all the hate for Trancendental Meditation? I think that's a cool tune. Same for Leaving this town and How she boogalooed it!! In their place how 'bout  Tears in the Morning, Bluebirds over the Mountain, and Lady Lynda./

I actually thought of the title before the topic, that's how twisted my mind is...

I don't mean to say that Big is Better, just that it is actually rare for BW to have more than a few musicians working on a track at one time. Sure, add some vocals and a few overdubs and it can be a Great production, just not big.

I agree that it seems bizarre, especially when we consider all the other weird BB vocal 'mistakes' that did get released, but I'm sticking with the story as I heard it. I just can't imagine why this song was abandoned after so much work went into it, other than that it sounds unlike any other BB song from that, or any, period. Maybe they realized it would never fit on the album and just junked it?

When I think of the Beach Boys and/or Brian Wilson, the musical image in my mind is of dense, complicated productions that blow all other production attempts out of the water. The thing is, in reality there are only a few albums in the BB canon that fit this bill. Basically Today-Smile, less than 3 years. So, when we are expecting more of these genius productions from our hero, aren't we really expecting too much? BW seems to actually prefer small, uncomplicated arrangements (Surfin' Safari-All summer Long, Wild Honey, Love You). Just wondering if anyone has any thoughts on this?