Well, regardless of whether there was the intention to make it a three movement thing, there have always been three main themes to Smile:

1) Heroes and Villains -- Old West morality play, with good guys, bad guys and a big dose of how those battles drove the Westward Expansion
2) Loss of innocence -- from the loss of virginity (Wonderful) to the changing of the guard (Surf's Up)
3) Elements Suite

The thing that made Smile both interesting and hard to unravel absent a final product is that these themes pop up all over the place -- they're not isolated within their "section."  According to Andrew's book, there's a little H&V chant in the back of Wonderful, Look/SFC has Good Vibrations in it, etc.  As I said above, the transition from Wonderful's outro to Look/SFC's intro is so natural and obvious on BWPS it's kind of shocking to me I never noticed it before.

These three themes and how they interlock are what make Smile really resonate, IMO.  The upshot is just an incredibly profound yet whimsical meditation on America -- not only what had become (by '66-67 anyway), not only its failures (Bicycle Rider), but also its enduring potential.  Those themes have been explored since by others, but rarely as compellingly or lucidly as Brian and VDP did here.  Fans like us always knew that the music of Smile lived up to the legend -- but the real surprise about BWPS was that whatever Brian's final input was, and definitive or not, the final product actually managed to present that vision succinctly and coherently.

And I don't think any of us ever thought we'd live to see the day where we could say that.

I just listened to about five different versions of "Break Away" -- a cappella versions, the alternate with Brian singing, etc.  And the lead vocal on every one has virtually no high end and no bottom.  In the a cappella mixes, you really notice it b/c the rest of the voices (mixed in stereo in the versions I heard) cover the frequency spectrum and are very full.   

I should add, btw, that while the vocal arrangement, brass arrangement and melody of "Break Away" are amazing, the final mix is does that song no favors.  The instrumental mix of the track I've heard sounds leagues better and fuller -- but for some reason when it was all mixed together, the snare was almost completely dry and thin (like on the opening hits), giving it a kind of demo-y quality.  I'm not sure whether Brian just kind of left it to someone else or became disinterested or what, but the song and arrangements are brilliant and deserve a MUCH better mix than what we got.

...except for the fact that I thought as much when I first heard it on the GV box.

My ears aren't playing tricks here -- around that time, he was tracking and EQ-ing lead vocals differently...for whatever reason.  And frankly, it's a crummy sound.

Just read through some (tho not all) of this thread.

Seems worth noting that the real gem of BWPS' sequencing is the second section.  "Wonderful" flowing into "A Song For Children" (ie, "Look") is just perfect (BTW, never noticed how much "Good Vibrations" are in there with the celeste part at the end) which then of course moves into "CITFOTM."  It's one of those things that when you've been listening to the boots forever you almost don't realize. 

Who did it, I dunno (my guess is that Darian was responsible for CITFOTM's turnaround at the end into "Surf's Up") -- but this part sounds like the way it was going to be presented back in '67.

I wouldn't say there's any distortion on the lead vocals at all. They are a bit thinner sounding than the earlier pre-Pet Sounds stuff, but I think it's a combination of the basic mixing desk, less reverb, less double tracking, probably different mics, changes in BW's voice and maybe a purposeful decision to change the sound.

Yeah, there I just have to disagree with you.  They're distorted -- particularly when Brian or Al do their *loud* singing.  Plus, compare H&V to 1965-vintage BB's and...well, there's just no comparison.  And I thought it was an acetate, too -- but the a cappella versions of Break Away I've heard have kind of convinced me otherwise.  I think it was an engineering technique...and kind of a strange one, honestly.

Has anyone else noticed this, btw?  With H&V, I'd always thought it was just a "we mixed this quickly for the box" thing (sorry, Mark -- no offense intended), only to find out it was actually tracked that way.

Weirdly, I feel like it was actually "Dumb Angel," as I recognized the cover when I saw it online.  But I'll take your word for it, Andrew.  I wish I could remember more of that story, btw.   I just remember it involved some bizarrely fortuitous meeting, them staying up for hours on end getting wasted, making music, and causing trouble, and then never hanging out again.  My initial reaction was: "How awesome would it have been to have that happen to you?"

Perhaps this is better suited for one of the threads with Stephen Desper or Mark Linnett...but on tracks like "Heroes and Villains" (the "In the Cantina" version, in particular) and "Break Away" the lead's are extremely distorted and shrill, with virtually no bottom end at all.  It almost makes some "finished" versions of these songs sound like demos.  It's easiest to hear what I'm talking about in the stereo a capella mixes of "Break Away" -- the backgrounds are very lush and full, but the lead sounds completely different, thin and overdriven.  Obviously, it helps the voice "pop" in the mix -- separating it from the rest of the vocals.  But it's also very difficult to listen to in some ways.

I don't feel like Brian always recorded vocals this way -- why were these? 

Just to repeat so it doesn't get buried upthread: has anyone seen the extensive film that was supposedly shot during the KTSA sessions?  I found the Goin' Platinum bits to be totally fascinating, but wanted much, much more...

One of the books--Dom Priore's?--talked about what a "hurtful" tape it was -- maybe it was Leaf?  I can't remember exactly.  But sounds like they weren't in on the joke...

I wonder if "Cassius Wilson vs. Sonny Love..." upsets them, too...

What about the video?  I'm not sure where I saw it, but I read that the guys had the KTSA sessions videotaped b/c they had a feeling this was the last time they'd have Brian in the studio running the show.  I've seen the Goin' Platinum stuff with the "Goin' to the Beach' rehearsal (which is awesome, btw) -- but that's all.  Is there more?

Inspired by the "Mike Love's H&V rant on Lei'd in Hawaii recording" thread, which you can find here: http://smileysmile.net/board/index.php/topic,7302.0.html and which discusses how said rant may well have been scripted by Brian as a joke about the tensions in the band.

We all know the popular storyline about the BB's and why Smile disintegrated -- that Brian was a genius, the band didn't understand him and Mike was an untalented bully who didn't want to "f*&k with the formula."

But is that really the case?

Let's start by acknowledging this: Brian was a really, really messed up, immature kid that a whole lot of people depended on.  But let's follow it by acknowledging this: that none of us will ever know how utterly impossible the situation that presented probably was to deal with. 

Don't get me wrong -- I love, love, LOVE the man's music.  No pop artist touches me like he did with his voice and his melodies -- it's not even close.  And there's no question that there was plenty of appalling behavior in this band to fill out a season's worth of Behind the Musics.

But as we now understand the larger scope of the band's story, isn't it it time to acknowledge how hard it must have been for these guys--some of whom probably would have been pumping gas without this meal ticket--to deal with Brian's emotional state?  Tony Asher's quotes strike me as the most telling -- and sound pretty in keeping with what others have said.  There's never been a hint of ego with Tony that I can see -- just somebody who was looking at a kid (23 y/o, yes?) and was fairly appalled by what he saw when the matter at hand was anything but music.

And can you blame Brian?  Yes and no.  I mean, the kid was trying to tap into his insecure emotional state to create while dealing with being the center of a multi-million dollar operation from his late teens onward.  I can't remotely imagine what that would have entailed...especially given what his father clearly put him through (and what he might have that we don't know -- I've always wondered if that "lifelong hangup" Leaf writes about him confessing to Audree was sexual abuse).

But even still, putting yourself in the guys' shoes, that must have been absolutely BRUTAL to deal with.  On one hand, yes, they were getting laid 24/7 in England touring Pet Sounds to come back to columnated ruins domino.  But on the other was this guy who you all depend on moving so far, so fast.  It's easy to look at how crazy the 60's got today and say, "How couldn't the BB's have known Smile would have eclipsed Sgt. Pepper?" -- but hey, Sgt. Pepper wasn't out yet.  It wasn't as if that was so obvious in 1966.  This was only a year removed from "I'm So Young," six months from "Wouldn't It Be Nice?" -- songs about the most traditional institution ever: marriage.  Most of the band members have said on the record that they thought the new music was brilliant -- but not a little scary in that it was so unfamiliar and so advanced.  And more importantly, it was going to be very weird to their fans, most of whom thought of the Beach Boys as a very safe, responsible band your parents could trust you with.

Now, regarding Mike...

Yes, Mike was a mere entertainer. 

Yes, he was less than 1% of 1% of Brian musically -- if that.

Yes, he's clearly a GOP-loving, meditating, preening jerk of a human being. 

Yes, yes, yes.

YES!

But...Mike also had an undeniable nose for the marketplace and asserted--correctly!--that the Beach Boys would not be accepted by their fans unless they brought them along with them.  For that matter, I'm always amazed that for all the hate he gets, Mike's actual quotes kind of defy his reputed persona -- for instance, that H&V was the last "dynamic track" Brian wrote (ie, he liked it).  This guy clearly wanted the BB's to be as famous, popular and at the cultural center of pop music as anyone.  But it just so happened that the guy who was going to take him there was almost fatally unstable.

Some people will want to blame the prevailing "Mike Is Evil" narrative on David Leaf -- and that may be fair.  But I think Leaf did the world a major service by singling Brian out, putting his plight in some context.  I'm sure it's overly slanted -- but as of 1977 when he wrote the first edition of his book, most people had no idea whatsoever what Brian had accomplished or gone through.  It may not be too beyond the pale to suggest that absent Leaf (or someone like him) Brian may never have "finished" SMiLE -- which, if nothing else, has quite a bit of historical value.

I've been obsessed with this band for 15 years -- and honestly, I feel like I can see everyone's side pretty clearly here: this was a TOUGH guy to deal with.

And so I ask you, SmileySmilers...

Was Mike Love...*right*?

I've always wondered if Brian had written any of the melody back in '74 -- or if it was even called "Good Timin'" back then.  Having finally heard the backing track with the harpsichord, piano, guitar, drums and horns, part of me wonders if he hadn't -- the song has a very full feeling to it with the harpsichord melody (much of which is edited out of the final version) and I wonder if it was kind of one of Brian's "feels." 

Also, there's a lilt to the high harmony that is very "In My Room," btw.  I noticed on YouTube they used to play the songs back to back -- and it doesn't surprise me.

More than any other late-period BB's song, "Good Timin'" makes me believe they could have been the best adult contemporary act on the planet if they could've gotten their act together. 

I must say, I am usually totally and completely opposed to new recordings over old cuts -- not b/c they can't reveal new elements to the song you never realized before...but because they usually don't.

But in the case of Taylor Hawkins' "Holy Man" cut, it totally, completely works -- from the melody that is 100% Dennis (was it his?  that isn't clear on this thread), to Gregg's lyrics which sound just *right* to my ears, to Taylor's vocal, which captures Dennis' vibe without ever lurching toward parody in the slightest.  There's this floaty quality to the song that's hard to describe -- the pounding piano, the ARP string ensemble and loping drums, the whining Moog.  It's just a very...inspiring song, for lack of a better word.  Def. a masterpiece of some kind -- and a lovely parting gift from Dennis beyond the grave.

I've been listening to "Good Timin'" ad nauseum of late.  I have the finished version, the backing track with electric harpsichord (assume that's the Caribou version in '74) and a version with Carl singing the lead, but no backgrounds.  Not sure when the latter was recorded.

Is there another studio version making the rounds?  I love the backing track as is.  And why, exactly, did it take so long for them to finish the song?  Notwithstanding the slightly weak verse, it's clearly one of the best tracks they had in the can for some time.  Was it the harmony arrangement that took a while? And who did that anyway?  Carl?  Bruce?

Is this the DW book that has that incredible story about the guy who spent the wildest day in history with Denny in the late 70's?  It's been a while since I read it -- but that was one of the single most amazing accounts I've ever read.  If this is that book--and I know Jon posts here pretty frequently--it's a fabulous read.

I just found this and am kind of floored: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSFAR_f_xXQ

"Breakaway" may be the best song nobody knows by them.

Not listening to it right now, but I could def. imagine him on "All This Is That."

At any rate, I'd just say that Bruce's bit on the 1978 "California Feeling" is really quite affecting.  Someone mentioned elsewhere that a song like "Endless Harmony" sounded a little like B-grade Paul Simon.  But when deployed properly, as it was on CF, it had a very touching, elegiac quality to it. 

… a heavy ‘no’ on “California Feeling”.

Meaning...?  That they had a hard time cutting the song or something?

What? A 1974 version with Brian singing lead?  I would give a lot to hear this.

It's a pretty loose demo, just BW and a piano. He's in excellent voice though. Go figure.

Always recall reading about it in the 1976 Crawdaddy articles, thinking "WHOA !"... then actually hearing the 1978 version and thinking, "WTF... ?". BIG letdown.

Revive!  (for my first post)

I sort of felt the same way -- having read about it in Tim White's TNFAP.  When I finally heard the boot, I was kind of bummed.  Carl sounds like he's been sedated.

That said, this week, I'm kind of into it.  The Bruce part, in particular, where he repeats the title over and over again w/ the modulation.  Sometimes I just wonder how in the hell these guys put out so much garbage in the late 1970's when they had so much better material in the can.