This is one of my favorites for sure.

Rufus Wainwright - "Wonderful/Song for Children"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjxNh-u8Y1Y

I don't think I can honestly come up with a studio album that would be considered the third pillar. And I don't know if I would even consider SMiLE and Pet Sounds to be two separate pillars. The way I see it is that The Beach Boys can be divided into 3.5 distinct sections. The first is from Surfin' Safari to Party!. This is their most recognizable era of music to the public, and it is what they have always and will probably always be best know for. Pet Sounds and SMiLE create the second pillar. This is where The Boys, and especially Brian, were at their most creative and imaginative. Some of my favorite, and many would argue some of the  greatest, music ever recorded. The third pillar to me would be from Smiley Smile to Love You. This is where the other members really stepped up their game and helped flesh out The Beach Boys catalog and avoided the curse of using filler like the earliest albums did. The last half-pillar is the post Love You is the phase where The Beach Boys became a caricature of themselves and released some pretty poor albums, in my opinion. I am hoping a new pillar is created this year with the new album and reunion tour, and hopefully they can put something together that is exciting to listen to even years from now just like most of their catalog.

So I know this is probably not at all what you were looking for, but it's just immediately what I thought of when I saw this thread.   

To lighten the mood I thought I'd share with you all what some of my favorite albums to listen to when I am at my most depressed, self-deprecating, nihilistic, and lonely. After a break-up, or just a bad case of the blues, what are some of the albums you instinctively go to. There are usually stages to my pity parties, and they are as follows:

Initial sadness/Longing for lost one: In the Wee Small Hours - Frank Sinatra

Nihilistic and self-deprecating stage: 3rd - Big Star; John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band - John Lennon

Want to screw anything that moves stage: Pinkerton - Weezer; Exile in Guyville - Liz Phair; FutureSex/LoveSounds - Justin Timberlake

Angst: Enema of the State - blink-182; Let It Be - The Replacements

Healing/Applicable in any stage: Pet Sounds (Obviously); Blood on the Tracks - Bob Dylan; Continuum - John Mayer; Almost anything by Simon & Garfunkel. None of their albums are depressing enough for this particular thing, but I go to many of their songs.

So, have any of your own?

Hey Vigilante is your handle a reference to the Athens band? Vigilantes of Love? Great band

Haha. It's not actually a reference to the band, as I started using the screen name before I had heard of the band. They are good though.

To lighten the mood I thought I'd share with you all what some of my favorite albums to listen to when I am at my most depressed, self-deprecating, nihilistic, and lonely. After a break-up, or just a bad case of the blues, what are some of the albums you instinctively go to. There are usually stages to my pity parties, and they are as follows:

Initial sadness/Longing for lost one: In the Wee Small Hours - Frank Sinatra

Nihilistic and self-deprecating stage: 3rd - Big Star; John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band - John Lennon

Want to screw anything that moves stage: Pinkerton - Weezer; Exile in Guyville - Liz Phair; FutureSex/LoveSounds - Justin Timberlake

Angst: Enema of the State - blink-182; Let It Be - The Replacements

Healing/Applicable in any stage: Pet Sounds (Obviously); Blood on the Tracks - Bob Dylan; Continuum - John Mayer; Almost anything by Simon & Garfunkel. None of their albums are depressing enough for this particular thing, but I go to many of their songs.

So, have any of your own?

I would probably go with "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)." I wish I could be that romantic with someone.

The Heroes and Villains album mix. The song has always been on that I just sort of ignored, but this mix blows me away.

For any true, honest fan of pop or rock music in any form, The Beatles are essential, as well as The Beach Boys and many other bands. Not essential that you love them, but essential that you at least understand and appreciate their influence and place in history. That being said, I love The Beatles. Each one of their albums, except Yellow Submarine, consistently blows me away.

I think it's great that they aren't pretending that the last forty years of the evolution of SMiLE didn't exist. They aren't selling this release as "music that's never, ever been heard by anybody ever!" They are being honest about it being an assumption of what the album could have been like. I'll say it again, I've been very impressed by Capitol's class with this project. Except for that surf board... 

I really enjoyed that review. I was really interested in seeing what Pitchfork said because they have such a big influence, and possibly they can persuade some cynics to get some more Beach Boys albums. That first paragraph describes the process by which I came to love The Beach Boys exactly. "And then you find out about SMiLE." I love that line. And I love when people spell it that way with the odd capitalization!

It's Mike's favorite, and for good reason. It's a beautiful track with wonderful lyrics. The Yodeling vocals are fantastic. I've always thought that if any song off of SMiLE could have been on Pet Sounds, simply from a stylistic standpoint, it would be Wonderful. Maybe not lyrically, but the song is very melodic and beautifully sung. Would have sounded great right before God Only Knows.

Such a weird and eccentric track. Just think of how weirded out some 13 year-old, pop music loving girl buying this album in 1967 would have been when listening to Workshop and then Vegetables. It's percussion at it's finest.

This is another one that really surprised me. I love the flown in vocals, and the Our Prayer reprise at the end was a really nice touch. It doesn't seem out of place and it brings the whole album full circle before blowing you away with Good Vibrations.

This one really blew me away. The mix is great and I love the percussion. This and DYLW are very improved I think.

This is the only place in the album where I don't like the use of the flown in vocals. Because they are so sparse I think they could have just left them off. Either way, it doesn't ruin the song which is still a good one without all the vocals.

Finally. Just got off of work and am sitting down now to give my 2CD set a listen. As far as I can tell so far, this is a very classy release from Capitol. They showed a certain degree of respect and reverence for this material and it pays off. Now more than ever I am proud to call myself a die-hard Beach Boys fan.

Just got my 2CD set from UPS. Can't wait to listen to it. Ripping to my computer now. I work at 6, which is a bummer. But I have something to look forward to when I get back.

Still hasn't been delivered. Just a question: If the box set is not delivered on the first even after I ordered it with two-day shipping, can I get a refund on the shipping price?

That really wasn't a bad interview.. Kind of the same stuff we always here, but it's on national TV and played a lot of clips. Very nice.

Happy SMiLE day everyone. I am having a terrible day and week, and honestly there is not hope in sight. That being said, nothing is going to spoil today for me. SMiLE.

I love the box a whole lot. But since I paid 150 euros for it, which is quite a lot of money for me, I think I have the right to complain a little bit.

First, I don't like the big unpractical CD folders. Seperate CD-cases would've been better. I think they didn't realize that many people listen to CD's in their cars too.

Second, and I know this will sound ungrateful, I think that there shouldn't have been bonus tracks on disc 1. The "completed" 'Smile' and the sessions/odds and ends should have been two different things. It should have been like, "This is it, this disc here, this is 'Smile'.". Now that disc is 'Smile' plus a bunch of fairly randomly picked extras, which kind of cheapens it IMO.

I kind of feel the same way. I like the idea of a single disc finished album on its own. However, I assume the reason they had to put bonus tracks on disc 1 is simply because they wouldn't be able to fit all they wanted onto five discs otherwise.

I'm not saying I know or have any idea why VDP wouldn't get involved with the liner notes in the project, but I have a guess. Possibly, from his point of view, he didn't want to attract attention to himself and allow Brian to get recognition. In interviews that I've seen he is always sure to give credit to Brian for SMiLE. This is just a guess.

Wow. I didn't notice that at first but now it's pretty evident. I mean I doesn't ruin the song but it's very noticeable.

Do you mean "The Elements: Fire?" 

I think it sounds absolutely fantastic. It's the probably the best fly-in in terms of not being able to tell the vocals are flown in.

I think this is probably my favorite version of Surf's Up ever. The BWPS one is fantastic, and the '71 version is the one I grew up on. This new version has grown on me this last week and I really love the ending.

What is it that you don't like about the ending? It sounds almost the same as the '71 ending, which I love. I like they "ahhs" before "A children's song..." And the addition of Carl's vocal, however unnecessary, doesn't sound too bad. I love Surf's Up so much. Any version of it always blows my mind.