Fading Love Song (D. Goldberg) 2:59 (1973)
Brian Wilson - piano, bass; Carl Wilson - guitars; Mike Love - vocals; Ricky Fataar - drums; Tandyn Almer - piano, string arrangement; David Sandler - backing vocals

Yorick needed the information for an album he made with another musician Anne Soldaat, called Unsung Heroes. That's an album with cover versions of songs by Tim Hardin, Emitt Rhodes, Badfinger Hank Willaims a.o. Meant For You/Be Still is the song on the album and it is lovely combination. Nice album as well. Released this week.

Last minute decision, got probably last ticket as well. There were some outstanding performances by Jett Rebel but he has a great voice and he did a great Still I Dream Of It and of course Wouldn't It Be Nice was his song. Also the girls who call themselves Clean Pete were more than great. They did a great Surfer Moon, with violins, and their You Still Believe In Me, sung in Dutch, was the highlight of the evening. They made use of the big Concertgebouw organ in the second half of the song. That made a great impression. Also, as an encore, a pitch perfect And Your Dreams Come True. Sadly, no recording was made of the concert.

Well If Brian doesn't come to Holland to do his Pet Sounds 50 concert, at least we made our own party. Thanks Yorick.

White Label Promo

Even Mike Love is positive about Smile. He critized the whole thing back then. On the other hand, when you listen to his vocal input for Smile, his background vocals are all over the place and sound great. Don't think his bg vocals sounded better after that.

One friend being called Bull...

Don't forget that SC was released in 1968 and most of you first heard this album in an entire different era. When I saw this album in the shop it was just released. Of course I knew Van Dyke Parks of Heroes And Villains and his collaboration with Brian Wilson and the aborted Smile.

I bought the album, not knowing what to expect, but I was curious. I instantly loved this album and I really believed that Smile could have been something complex like this. I don't think it's that far from what went around in those days. The music was so intense and there was a lot to listen to. Although I was just 17 years at the time, and not English born and bred, I quite loved the lyrics with its double meanings. I never heard an album that had so many sounds to offer. It's still one of my all-time favourite albums and once in a while I play the record and it sounds as exiting as it did then.

Most of you know Van Dyke Parks as a man who did some great things in music. But back then, I read reviews of SC and the critics didn't know what to think of VDP. Either he would become a great failure in music and would be forgotten in no time, or he was really a genius…….We know what history did with Parks and I'm glad he left his footprints in music. I think he's one of the great modern composers the USA has. I once met him and I think he's one of the nicest persons/musicians I ever met. 

I know everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but it hurts when someone says that Song Cycle is crap. It's far from that. It's a little masterpiece from the sixties and yes, brilliant. It has all the ingredients of American popular music and I think the Americans should be proud of this album.

So far, Steve and I hold the record: 44 years. In January 1967 was 16 at the time. That was the time we were going to sell a million units.

As I recall from those days, the promotion for the album was tremendous, but sales were quite poor. As you know, the theme for the album was that in some distant future there was a lack of food and water and all the problems that would cause it. The Western World became the third world with all its poverty.

The promotion bag for the press consisted of the album itself, and of a newspaper built around this picture of the future. There was also a promotion single where we had Jack Rieley talk in Dutch. It's been a long while and I interviewed him about this project and we talked about the album and of course The Beach Boys. Actually, that was not done, but after a long interview about Western Justice, it turned into a conversation about the Beach Boys. 

What I remember is that he didn't want it to be a Beach Boys linked album. He lived in those days in Broek In Waterland, a picturesque village, just outside Amsterdam. I had never been there before and it struck me that such a charming little village even existed. Imagine a big city, driving through a tunnel and at the other end of the tunnel there was this quiet fairytale-like village.

What I also remember is that the album was recorded in Holland, but not in the same studio where the Beach Boys recorded. I think some parts of the album were also recorded in London. It must have been quite an expensive project. MTR, I assume you have CD version of that album. Compared to the vinyl product, the CD sounds so much better, and is really an improvement on the vinyl album.

Sean Macreavy has made more albums. It's a pity that his CD Dumb Angel is no longer available. A great one. I bought it some 13 years ago. It's one of the finest Beach Boys Tribute albums. Some of the renditions on that album are just priceless. What he did with Heroes And Villains is incredible, or the intense wonderful Caroline No. He even put words to Let's Go Away For Awhile complete with background vocals. He also does a 15 minute medley of Love You songs in a great way. The Love You album has never been my favourite, but this medley turned me back to that album. If you come across Dumb Angel, don't hesitate to buy it.

I'll add to the mentioned artists:

P.J. Proby from the album I Am (1964)
The Good Vibrations from the album I Get Around (1978)   
Katie Foskett (2008)
Michael McDonald & Billy Preston from the DVD Musicares Presents A Tribute To (2005) 
James Walsh of Starsailor from the BBC-program Sold On Song (2005) 
Chris White from the CD Mouth Music and single CB 303 (1977) 
John Hunter Phillips from the CD It’s About Time (2006) 
The Ivy League from the album This Is The Ivy League (1965) 
Derrick Harris from the CD Making God Smile (2002)
The Treetops from the single b/w I Remember Parlophone 5628 (1967)
Keller & Webb from the Columbia single 10241 (1975)

I love the idea of the song, doing it as a duet. To me it sounds more Manhattan Transfer than Brian Wilson. I don't think it would have fitted the mood of the album.

I was 16 at the time. The day I heard I Get Around, in 1964,  I was hooked. For always as it turned out. I did not have a record-player back then, so I just had to listen to them on the radio. When I had enough money to buy a record-player, Pet Sounds was the first album I bought and played it all day long.

In Holland The Beach Boys were quite popular during the Pet Sounds period. Sloop John B had stayed four weeks on the # 1 spot, and eventually turned out to be # 1 of 1966. I think I bought quite a lot of Beach Boys albums that year. I remember that in those days the Dutch prominent music press were writing quite a bit about Smile. I remember a music paper called Hitweek which wrote a lot about the Beach Boys Smile. I went crazy about Good Vibrations and when Heroes And Villains was released I was quite thrilled. It's still one of my favorite songs, especially in stereo. As a matter of fact, every version of Heroes And Villains is a favorite.

I was a bit disappointed when I read in music papers that Smile wouldn't happen and instead we got Smiley Smile. Remember, it was 1967 and the SS music was not what was expected, but in line with the psychedelic times. I quite liked the album, still do, although I still like to hear the whole album in real stereo. That must be thrilling, especially Wind Chimes. Somewhere I must have read that that song was a Smile song, not knowing it was a different version, as was Wonderful. I knew Vegetables was from Smile, because in earlier articles that title was mentioned as being a Smile title and even considered being their next single.

With 20/20 I finally heard what Smile could have been in Cabinessence. Loved it instantly, still do. Even Cool, Cool Water was mentioned to be a Smile track back then, and when I heard Surf's Up I knew we had missed on something special. The first time I heard the original Vege-Tables I was surprised to hear that Mama Says was part of that song.

I can remember from those days that there was talk about Smile being released in 1971. I don't think I believed it because Brian already had stated that tapes were destroyed and never to be heard.
Through the years I have read and collected a lot about Smile and knew what was on that record, but it was not until some 15 years ago I got all the songs. Of course some people have made their own Smile and some are quite good. 

Check this out:

http://www.beachboys.com/solosI.html

The review says it all and is quite accurate. I've heard it once and it's not my cup of tea. It was actually released as an LP and I once held it in my hands and had a listen. I don't own the record and I'm not looking for it.

...and Brian is in the video...

Salt Lake City does it for me.

Not intentionally I think, but the man has a great sense of humor. I've heard a few Vine Streets and they all begin with a different intro. I bought the album the same month it was released and I've always regarded it as Van Dyke Parks' own Smile. Or at least, maybe Smile would have sounded like that album. Still love the album after all these years.

What's wrong with Chip Taylor & Evie Sands' version on Caroline Now! ? Love it.