I vote All My Loving too.

Why? It's one of those very rare songs which give me the idea they have always existed somewhere, and they were just drawn out rather than composed. It's a song made of air and light. Another song giving me that idea is "Time to Get Alone".

Didn't vote for it but it's beautiful thing you said there. I didn't think like it.

Thanks RRA1!

With his book, ML destroyed forever any surviving respect I had for him*. I am also proud of not having ever specifically increased his undeserved wealth by a single penny. Of course I could not help his percentage of what I gave to the Beach Boys (the REAL ones, never the MLBJ travesty).

And... revenge for WHAT? For WHAT, ML? He should kiss the soil where Brian has passed. For a man so motivated by money, he is pretty oblivious of the source of his wealth.

* Whereas Brian's confirmed all the good I was thinking of him, though I find it much more amazing, in good ways.

OSD, I love when you write constructive posts. And agree 100%.

Sigh again. Let's all agree that Trump won because of Pet Sounds and let's take a vacation.

I vote All My Loving too.

Why? It's one of those very rare songs which give me the idea they have always existed somewhere, and they were just drawn out rather than composed. It's a song made of air and light. Another song giving me that idea is "Time to Get Alone".

Very, very sad news.
Though I think that in a song music is usually more important then lyrics, I do care for poetry and consider Leonard, like Bob Dylan, a very good, sometimes great poet.  As a musician, I like Leonard better, and consider his voice, with that preposterous bass, one of the most distinctive in pop music.

 

Through the generosity of friends, I was able to attend the numerous performances of Brian Wilson Presents Smile on the occasion of its debut in London. I got to hear at least 8 performances then and again in Portland with Bob Hanes in 2005. The experience of hearing it at the debut is an experience I will never forget.

I was also able to work on the 2011 Smile Box, and wrote an essay for the book issued with the set. Domenic Priore also did a great article for the 2cd box and the deluxe box. The Smile music as cut in 67 and modified in 2003 is for me a peak in Brian's creativity. Most professional musicians in bands that I know see Smile as a unique and diverse burst of creativity that is unmatched in pop music annals.

Sorry if I am repeating myself, but sometimes I think Smile is the best music ever.

It's just more of the usual attempts to throw dirt on one of the best things fans of Brian and of Smile going back decades got to witness. It was the impossible actually happening in front of us.

I'll say it upfront - I'm biased as hell about Smile. And I wear it proudly on my sleeve. I was glued to the computer screen as others who couldn't make the trip to the UK were the night of the RFH debut reading as Matt B and others started sending back reports from the show. I sat in stunned silence when I finally got a chance to hear a tape of that show. I had tears running down my face as the preview tracks from the BWPS album started appearing in low mp3 quality and the pure power of something like In Blue Hawaii came across the speakers. And I had an incredible experience getting to see the show live in Boston when the tour hit the east coast of the US.

Again, the history rewrites will fail as long as people who were there can speak about how things really were.

Word up GF, good times. For some reason I keep feeling  compelled to post this link and invite Smiles to walk down memory lane:
http://earcandy_mag.tripod.com/smileliveRFH2-21-04.htm

Self-indulgent but it makes me smile. ..

Fantastic review! I missed it at the time, ty so much for reposting!

(First of all, before someone calls me "reactionary" again, remember when I made an appeal here to actually vote, and vote Clinton instead of third-party candidates?)  

Sigh, I see the "left" still don't get it. They don't get why Trump won, exactly like they don't get why Brexit won. Racism and sexism may play a role, but not important enough to grant any victory. No, they won because in so many places there is no more a real middle class. It's been destroyed. As Marx would have put it, there is a just a big proletariat now.
People, in their lifetime, have seen all their hopes destroyed. And candidates such as Clinton, or the darn European Union, offer only to keep on with the destroying. What they say basically, is: "Just lie down and die quietly".
Brexit, and Trump, offer change. May well kill us sooner. But there is hope ony in change, now.
Personally, I consider Brexit as legitimate hope because I'm sure that the UK, if really does it, after some initial problems will be much better in a matter of some years. (I'd be sure of that for ANY country who mustered the courage to leave the bureaucratic hell that "Europe" has become.)
Sadly, I don't consider Trump a legitimate hope instead, unless miracles happen. But hope, the desperate hope of the forgotten, is the reason for his victory. Probably it's an ignorant hope, in this case, but is it right to expect much learning from a working class impoverished to the brink of misery? I guess not.

Ah, and of course in my opinion the right (or left?) embodiment of hope would have been Sanders. The Democrats took care of that.

I think the far left like myself get it for the most part. The moderate left to  centrists don't with some exceptions.  

I agree.

(First of all, before someone calls me "reactionary" again, remember when I made an appeal here to actually vote, and vote Clinton instead of third-party candidates?)  

Sigh, I see the "left" still don't get it. They don't get why Trump won, exactly like they don't get why Brexit won. Racism and sexism may play a role, but not important enough to grant any victory. No, they won because in so many places there is no more a real middle class. It's been destroyed. As Marx would have put it, there is a just a big proletariat now.
People, in their lifetime, have seen all their hopes destroyed. And candidates such as Clinton, or the darn European Union, offer only to keep on with the destroying. What they say basically, is: "Just lie down and die quietly".
Brexit, and Trump, offer change. May well kill us sooner. But there is hope ony in change, now.
Personally, I consider Brexit as legitimate hope because I'm sure that the UK, if really does it, after some initial problems will be much better in a matter of some years. (I'd be sure of that for ANY country who mustered the courage to leave the bureaucratic hell that "Europe" has become.)
Sadly, I don't consider Trump a legitimate hope instead, unless miracles happen. But hope, the desperate hope of the forgotten, is the reason for his victory. Probably it's an ignorant hope, in this case, but is it right to expect much learning from a working class impoverished to the brink of misery? I guess not.

Ah, and of course in my opinion the right (or left?) embodiment of hope would have been Sanders. The Democrats took care of that.

Maybe if "intellectuals" had focused some more on problems at hand and less on nonsense like the inherent racism of Pet Sounds, things could have gone better. Maybe. But sure, that's a lesson that will never be learned. Never.

Beyond the obvious use of "intellectual" as a pejorative, "intellectual" isn't the same as "educated" or "informed."

But this country has a very odd set of standards for president, for sure. When you want a brain surgeon, everybody want the smartest, most well informed person possible.

But for president, people evidently want the guy who they'd like to have a beer with, or the guy who "tells it like it is" even if that involves assaulting people, making fun of disabled people, insulting everyone and everything, and so on.

I put "intellectuals" in quotes not as a pejorative, but to signify that I'm talking about a specific kind of them (basically, the self-styled ones imho guilty of many disasters), not generic people of intellect and learning.

Maybe if "intellectuals" had focused some more on problems at hand and less on nonsense like the inherent racism of Pet Sounds, things could have gone better. Maybe. But sure, that's a lesson that will never be learned. Never.

Nah, Don. Fantastic post, actually an extremely well-written mini-essay, and VERY on-topic!

Welcome Vale! The Smile tracks are fantastic, aren't they? Sometimes I consider them the best music ever recorded.

Fav non-original soundtrack: Fantasia 2000
Fav semi-original soundtrack: O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Fav original soundtrack: Jesus Christ Superstar and The Sound of Music

As much as I love other artists and other kinds of music, it would have to be the Beach Boys (group and solo) for me. Nothing else gives me that sense of freedom and open spaces. And nothing else ranges from 'Til I Die to Fun, Fun, Fun.

It's a variation on Comma 22. It the machine works as designed, you are screwed by design. If it doesn't, it's "malfunctioning" and you are screwed anyway.

The only adequate punishment would be everybody stopping putting money into the damn things.

Just after the release of BWRG, by complete luck I happened upon a radio broadcast featuring a lenghty interview with Brian, who was enthusiastic about the new album and firing on all cylinders (imagine a chapter from his book). The interviewer, who was very good, among many questions asked why Brian had not changed the lyrics to "I Loves You Porgy". Brian gave a very lively and heartfelt answer, and I don't remember his exact words, but it was something like: "So, I sang a love song to a man. I know there is still someone who thinks it's unappropriate, but I am not among them."

Well, it's not awful but far from a good review. I'll let go that the author obviously does not like the BBs. That's his privilege.
No, the problem is that the review is 90% intro and 10% review. And that's my own privilege to point out.
4/10

I hope that will put in perspective all that "autopen" rubbish. And this time I am talking to myself too.

Oh, the LEAST* favourite? Money**, easily.

* Thankfully I noticed the LEAST bit in time. I was about to vote for "All My Loving", my fav Fab4 song.

** My least fav Pink Floyd song has the same name. Must be something about the subject matter...

My previous post on this matter was too non-committal, and I realise it coud be accused of excessive "brianism".
But I was really uncertain about the technicalities of this situation. After doing a bit of research, I'm feeling free to say that what happened sucks, and a full explanation and/or apology (accompanied by adequate actions) by the "BW team" would be in order.
However, makes me even more satisfied with sticking strictly to the music and caring nothing whatsoever for all the "merchandising" part of the music business. And by that I mean signed books, too.

I have no idea where the responsabilities start and end here, but sure it's a real pity when these things happen.

Mr. Hirsch does not strike me as exactly the kind of person I'd like to move into my house. But to everybody their own.