David Leaf wanted me to pass this on so......


Hello,

2024 marks the 20th anniversary of the world premiere of Brian Wilson Presents Smile at London's Royal Festival Hall.

Next autumn, timed to celebrate the anniversary release of the 2004 album, Omnibus Books will be publishing a 20th anniversary BWPS history/appreciation/celebration that I’m writing. And curating.
Think of this book as an oral history. The people who made the music are going to primarily tell the story. But we need to include fans too.

Were you at the World Premiere? If so---How were you feeling before the show, during BWPS and afterwards? What does it mean looking back?
If you went to any other show at Royal Festival Hall that February, or any other show on the tour, I want to hear from you.

What do I want to hear?

What were you thinking before the show, during the show, and afterwards? Did it live up to your expectations? And now, almost twenty years on, how do you feel about it all? What does Brian Wilson Presents SMiLE mean to you?
If you saw the Brian Wilson Presents SMiLE tour, we want to hear from you.

Were you at Carnegie Hall? Disney Hall? Or at any of the North American dates, any of the UK shows or any of the dozen countries around the world where Brian and his incredible band played BWPS?
To make room for as many of these as possible, I need a short reminiscence. About 150 words.

Now, as we began posting about this yesterday, I'm very glad to have already heard from some of you who want to be part of the book, very gratified that you shared your wonderful memories.
Unfortunately, it won't be possible to include every submission in the book. Those that don’t make the book will be on the publisher’s or my website after the book is published.

If you want to be part of the book, please send your thoughts to bwps20th@yahoo.com

And, BTW, it can be a short memory too.

FYI…some of you have posted at my Facebook page. Some have sent me your memories via DM. Or email. Please don’t send it like that.

I want as many fans as possible to be part of this.

A few of you have sent in pieces longer than 150 words. Whatever the length you send, we'll edit highlights from the pieces to make room for as many space permits. Any piece that’s edited will be posted in entirety on the website.
Remember…please email your memories at this special email address:bwps20th@yahoo.com

Thank you!
David Leaf

I saw Brian in concert on June 25 of this year. He was extremely uncomfortable. It was 102 degrees at the outside venue. He sang only a few lines of several songs and either Darian, Matt or Alan would jump in with the next line. Alan's voice was also kind of shot and husky. He shout-sang Help Me Rhonda and was extremely hoarse when talking to the crowd. My wife and I felt bad for both Alan and Brian. When Brian rose to leave the stage in his walker, you could see the pain in his face as he moved.

I look at it this way. I first saw Brian and the guys in 1978. I have seen them and talked to them numerous times since. If touring has become too taxing for Brian, then its time for him to rest and leave the road. He has given us so much. I am extremely thankful for all that I have gotten to experience with Brian live and behind the scenes.

Thanks Mr. Wilson (as someone once said in a song).

Hell, I remember so many times talking with other BB crazies like me online. I would say something like HEY, I LIKE MIKE LOVE'S LYRICS TO GOOD VIBRATIONS BETTER THAN ASHER'S. Now you can agree or disagree, that is everyone's right. But some fans reacted to that statement as if I said YOU KNOW, ALL PUPPIES SHOULD BE KILLED FOR SPORT. THAT WOULD BE FUN! That is truly what I don't understand and has kept me away from so many boards of late. The 'net was a place to connect during the pandemic and it turned into FIGHT CLUB in some places. I lost friends because of some of things said.

I will say that there are some things being done with the catalog that I do not like. But you know what? That is where it ends. If others like it, more power to the guys doing the work. My opinion is mine alone. I only get angry when others say you need to change your opinion....NOW! We all do. But without opinions, no one can ever make a decision on anything.

I really do like the old adage, with the extra ending.

OPINIONS ARE LIKE ASSHOLES, EVERYBODY HAS ONE.....AND EVERYBODY THINKS THEIRS DOES NOT STINK, IT THE OTHER GUY'S THAT DOES!

Haven't been posting as of late. Been really under the weather. But I did want to say something about all of the bashing that is taking place on both boards. It's one of the reasons I did not post during most the last two years. People cooped up inside because of Covid did not help the situation. So much anger. I could not take it.

When people use to disagree, it was "Hey, that is your opinion. I don't agree with it, but, hey I like what I like." In so many arguments anymore, it has become "THAT'S your opinion? What kind of shallow end of the gene pool are you from. I hope you get hit by a plane falling out of the sky that kills your whole family. THIS OPINION HERE is the only one to have!!!! GO AWAY AND NEVER COME BACK!"

While that last statement is an exaggeration, there is a lot of "you only think that way because you're a moron" kind of speech.

This music is precious and finite. There will NEVER be a catalog of work like this ever again. And it took FIVE people to bring it to pass. No less than that. While I don't like everyone in the group, they ALL played an integral part in bring this music to life AND to keep it going for 60+ years.

So next time someone wants to throw sh*t at each other, SMILEY board here and ENDLESS HARMONY board there, remember that there is a common thread that binds us. Forget that, and we forget the reason we started on this journey in the first place.

When the 1999 Greatest Hits Of The Brother Years CD was compiled, I was told by some involved that the 45 version of HERE COMES THE NIGHT that was on all of the foreign releases had to be assembled from the LP track with the end bit lifted from vinyl as the 45 master could not be found. Don't know if it was ever found or not. Which makes these radio station reels seem more important. You all have heard me complain like the old man I am about how bad the polystyrene used for records in the 1970s-1980s was and how those records sounded like dog sh*t. Some radio stations in major markets started requesting reel to reel dubs as the 45s just sounded too bad to use on air, so the songs would need to be carted from reels instead. Welp, CBS' 45 were some of the WORST sounding of the lot, which accounts for these items, now for sale on ebay.

My whole point is we like what we like. It really bothers me when people get SO UPSET and start attacking those who are working on these projects. If you don't like something, you don't like it. And its ok to say you don't like it. But as I posted on the EH board, you don't need to say I DON'T LIKE THIS AND ANYONE THAT DOES IS A MORON as some do on every board. Its this great music. Period.

Also, as I posted before....where the hell is my pudding?

Here we go again. The stereo mix of Pet Sounds in 1996. The choice of using stereo mixes only with the 1990 CD releases. The duophonic mixes used anytime past 1969. And on and on and on.

I started listening to the Beach Boys fully in 1974 when I was 15. They weren't cool then, but ENDLESS SUMMER started their renewal, followed by SPIRIT OF AMERICA and GOOD VIBRATIONS-BEST OF THE BEACH BOYS a year later. 15 BIG ONES/BRIAN'S BACK pushed through 1976 with a bang. By 1977, all of that momentum had dissipated. MIU, LA and KTSA seemed to only stir the diehards like me. Long Beach July 5th 1981 finished any last hope for cool.

This group has always been out of the loop after about 1968. DO IT AGAIN was the last gasp for the surfer crowd. Since that time, there has been this absolute need for the group to try and be cool. Darian Sahanaja has spoken at length about being bullied for buying this group's records. I know I took a lot of sh*t for liking this group in my teens, but I will say MANY people I knew started having Beach Boy LPs in their collections after my ceaseless pushing. I snuck an advanced copy of IT'S A BEAUTIFUL DAY onto the playlist of the #2 rock station in Houston in 1979 by BS'ing a DJ doing a live remote. The people in the crowd liked the tune but I left the remote before getting caught. Don't tell me I look too young to be a CBS promo guy! I was 20!

So trying to make this group relevant is something each succeeding generation has tried, even the group itself. I will say the the Good Vibrations box was really a game changer in that battle. Other releases have also pushed their relevance back into the public's view. But one thing that some have forgotten is that the songs and performances themselves are what really matter. Yes, you want a legacy, your rightful place in history. But when you remix songs to where they no longer sound like the original releases, then the legacy you are trying to keep alive is a false reflection. Second guessing Brian, Carl or anyone else's notion of what was needed on a certain track at a certain time is not what is needed. It would be the same if you were making a movie of a well known novel but suddenly say THIS WAR NOVEL NEEDED ALIENS INSTEAD PEOPLE FIGHTING IN THE END. LET'S ADD THAT TO THE MOVIE SO IT WILL BE COOL.

My only real problem with the remixes is that THOSE remixes will be the only version of those tunes available. I saw that to a lesser extent when the stereo mix of PET SOUNDS came out in 1997. Hearing the stereo mix of WIBN with Brian's vocal in the bridge was not good. As a fan, it was marvelous. But it was not true to the original version nor to what Brian himself wanted. To hear songs only mixed in mono finally mixed to stereo is truly amazing and Mark needs so many thanks for that. They are eye openers. But to hear stereo mixes REDONE into new stereo mixes kind of misses the mark. And there seems no reason for those. My opinion.

I am in awe (no kidding) of all that Mark and Alan have done with this legacy they have been stewards of. I would NEVER second guess anyone. Way back in the late 1990s, I posted some thoughts on remasters done by Mark. He took issue with what I said, and I posted on my PetSite his remarks (which included my initial rantings) and my apologies for my suppositions. I learned to not make statements about situations without getting the full story. Mark said he had not had others do that for him. I replied they should have.

This whole "make them cool" mindset is not new for the group. As I said, my only issue is that THESE will now be THE versions of tunes available in the future. And they shouldn't be. If they can steer clear of that issue, I am fine. I can see radio (meaning satellite, podcasts etc) getting only these versions in the future. In 1987, George Martin pulled the multi-tracks for The Beatles HELP and RUBBER SOUL. He remixed both LPs for CD release. He was the original producer and the only one of the group that monitored the stereo mixes in 1965. These mixes are now the standard version and the original ones are only available in box sets. George Martin said he wished they would go back to the original mixes, but EMI keeps using the new ones, even when re-releasing the Beatles US box set. I am afraid such things will happen with the Beach Boys catalog.

What this old dude likes as his goto discs depends on where I am playing them. My base for the CAPITOL releases are the flat transferred PAST MASTER series. The WARNER tracks to me sound best now on the TEN YEARS OF HARMONY re-release out of Japan from 2019, again flat transfers, which means you are getting Carl's mastering of these tracks that he knew so well.

Just wanted to give my OLD MAN 2 cents worth on all of these things transpiring. You can read it or pass it by. Now where is my pudding? I need a nap!

I think with the TYOH issue (the original release in 1981, the CD from the EU in 1990 that was mastered from the 1981 vinyl master, and the 2018 flat transfer from the master issued in Japan), Carl Wilson mastered the release. He did the vault search and sought out the masters used. If he pulled whatever master and noticed there was bleed through, I can SO see him tracking down another master until he found one that was clean, or doing a remix if he had to.

I have wondered that when the 1999 GH Vol. 3 was done if someone decided to pull the TYOH master and used that version. I dunno, which is why I am trying to find out more info.

When the Beach Boys first arrived on CD in the early 90s, the version of Surf's Up had some crosstalk in the left channel during Brian's section of the song (it might have been in the first section as well but was hidden under the fuller track). It was on the CBS Surf's Up CD, Ten Years Of Harmony and the Good Vibrations box. Dauber talked about trying to assemble his own SMILE tape and using the Ten Years Of Harmony from the EU because the crosstalk was not in that version.

So my question is, do we know what master was used that had that crosstalk and was a different master or a remaster done for all of the versions after the 1999 one came out without that crosstalk. We know that TYOH (the original master) did not have that issue. The new flat transfer CD of TYOH out of Japan confirms that. Carl would never have let that pass.

And my reason for asking this is because I recently pulled out my 1971 AMPEX cassette of SU. Listening to 'Til I Die, I could tell there was NO bleed thru from bad head alignment from the other channels. Then when SU was playing, during Brian's section, there was the cross talk. And it sounded the same as the crosstalk on the CDs. So I was wondering if maybe the 1971 cassette master might have been pulled for the releases in the early '90s. Also the SACD version from a few years back also has the cross talk.

Any info would be appreciated. I know this was talked about endlessly back in the day, but I don't remember the final outcome.

It was suppose to be an intervention I believe at the family's place in Big Bear. A New Year's gathering only it was only going to be Carl, maybe Brian, Landy and some REALLY BIG BODYGUARDS. Dennis would stay there until he was sober, then they would move on to wherever was next. Landy said he would have Dennis sober fast. That sounds ify, except getting someone sober is really easy. KEEPING THEM SOBER is the bitch.

I had a very good friend who was an alcoholic back in the mid-80s. He went to the hospital for stomach issues and while there he had the usual blood tests run. His cholesterol was 475! So his long time family doctor, who was too much of a weenie to make my friend fess up to his drinking was there when the internal specialist (a younger guy) walked in to discuss the results. My friend and his doctor were asking how they could lower his cholesterol to stop the onset of heart disease, etc. The internal doctor, looking at his notes and not my friend had the following conversation:

Doctor: I would not worry about the 425 number.

Friend: Really? Its not that bad?

Doctor: No it isn't. They way you drink you will be dead LONG BEFORE heart disease sets in. So I wouldn't sweat the high cholesterol.

My friend's family doctor took this new guy out in the hallway and dressed him up and down and then came back into the room to apologize to my friend for the other doctor being so rough on him. My friend asked if the hospital had a rehab floor. They did, and my friend asked his own doctor to get him transferred. He then quit seeing that doctor and starting seeing the new guy. He has been sober ever since. Sometimes, you have to scare the living sh*t out of people. Some of our mutual friends thought the new doc was too rough. Not me. I loved it! Saved my friends life.

There was a plan to clean Dennis up via Landy that was to have been implemented after the New Year in 1984. It just wasn't to be. Also, Jimmy G. was also asking the family to allow him to become Dennis' conservator around the same time.

People won't stop using until they are ready. But I am a firm believer that if you can make that person stand in awkward place while they are thinking about it, you should do it. Meaning, if they want to think about it and you have to the power to cut off their money and food, throw them out on to the street, you should. To allow them all of the comforts of life is NOT a motivator. But Dennis was a rough guy who seemed to not mind being homeless etc. But he ALWAYS had people around him that gave him $100 here or there. Everyone should have said sorry, you are on your own.

I think that the group on whole sounded out of shape. The fact that they were off the road for so long, rehearsals (which Mike has said they DO NOT NEED) are needed. And at the advanced age of some of the members, a vocal coach is in order. Of course Mike and Bruce are macho dudes that don't think they need that sh*t. But I would tell them that you wouldn't ask a sprinter who has been sidelined with an injury to get right back to running the 440 at top speed. Oh you can ask for it, but it won't be pretty. And what really bothers me, is that when you perform in the shape they are in and don't seem to want to rehearse, its a BIG middle finger to the audience. Yeah, maybe most members of the crowd won't care, but YOU SHOULD!

Always found it interesting that in JAPAN, they released their own compilation of SOUNDS OF SUMMER. It was finally pulled and the US version took it's place. But check out the last track on the CD. Kind of cool.

I have always liked this tune. I still play it a lot in my car. I think it could have been better produced which could be said for the entire LP. Bruce said in an interview that he was purposefully trying to UNDER-PRODUCE this album because with new wave, simpler records are what was happening. While that is true, this LP was produced extremely laid back. There was no real energy on any of the tracks. It was also around this time that Mike was quoted as saying that the group (back in the 70s) should not have done some of the more rocking numbers (like STUDENT DEMONSTRATION TIME) because the Beach Boys weren't a ROCK group. They were a middle of road adult contemporary group. Bruce seemed to think this way as well.

Listen to KEEPIN' THE SUMMER ALIVE on the studio LP then Live At Knebworth. The way they played it live should have been the way it was cut in the studio.

Ok, this topic posted three times. Can the mod remove two of them? I will say that when I hit post, it took about 2 minutes to return and then there it was three times. SQL errors seem to be the issue as when the forum page refreshed, there were SQL errors across the top of the page.

Was reading an old post on Steve Hoffman's site that linked to a 20 year old post about the song All Summer Long and it's appearance on the DCC version of Endless Summer. Here is the back and forth.


Steve, I have a question for you regarding the song "All Summer Long" by The Beach Boys. Your great sounding version on the DCC "Endless Summer" (and the Razor & Tie Beach Boys 2 CD set) sounds slightly different and much better than any other version I've ever heard. It also fades out a bit later too.

Did you do a mono remix of this song for the DCC Gold CD?

Steve: Yep.

Why?

Steve: Well, not for kicks. Give me some credit!

The stereo master is fake duophonic, the mono master had a big flaw in it, and the safety sounded terrible.

I duplicated the "sound" of the original version, even down to the Universal Audio EQ (1k) that Chuck Britz added to the mix. I didn't have the heart to use quite as much compression as he did though, so it's only 1/2 as squashed as the original.


So what do we know about this? SH said that the ASL safety sounded bad so it could not be used. But, there are releases done before the early 1990s remasters where Mark started track restorations (thank you Mark!) when tracks were just released as is, like DO YOU WANNA DANCE on SPIRIT OF AMERICA with the BAD drop out at 1:30. ALS sounds fine on those releases. Not on the ENDLESS SUMMER CD with the duophonic mix that was used, but on the CEMA release of ALL SUMMER LONG on CD in Canada. That CD has great sound and ALS sounds good. I GET AROUND AND ALL SUMMER LONG were mono on that release, unlike the PAST MASTERS release done at the same time. I don't think any futzing went on.

So can Alan or Mark (or any one) shine some light on this? Is the original mono master of ALL SUMMER LONG gone bye bye?

From Steve Hoffman:

"Fun, Fun, Fun" was mixed three times back then.

Mix number one was the mono 45 RPM hit mix. You can recognize it by the "push" in volume during the instrumental
break and the organ highlighted. Has a nice long fade. Mixed by JOHN KRAUS at Capitol Tower from the Western
Recorders three-track.

Mix number two was the mono 33 1/3 LP mix. Easily picked out by the favoring of the GUITAR over the organ in the
instrumental section. (Note that one of the lead guitars was on the vocal channel so easy to bump up). Hard to miss.
Mixed by Chuck Britz at Western Recorders. On the great Capitol BB's CD MADE IN THE USA as well as the LP "Shut
Down, Volume 2".

Mix number three was the infamous "Chuck Britz one handed fade out" stereo mix. Done for the stereo version of the
"Shut Down, Volume 2" LP version. This is the version used on the DCC Gold CD and countless others. Great sounding
mix except for the ending where Mr. Britz (in a hurry to go to lunch) decided to fade the thing right down and catch a
smoke. He did his famous one handed fade. In other words, he faded the music channel right on down really fast leaving
the two vocals tracks hanging in the wind. Then he reached back up and faded them down quickly. Why he didn't use the
master fader and get them all down at the same time is anyone's guess. Probably the master fader was noisy or some
problem or another at that point. Many stereo BB songs from this time period were faded out like this (Wendy, Little
Deuce Coup, etc. Heck, on WENDY he faded out the middle vocal channel first leaving the two music tracks hanging in
the wind. Very silly).

Why Do Fools Fall in Love, there are two mixes of the song. First mix done at Gold Star for the album. Second mix done
at Capitol from the Gold Star three-track. They sound pretty much alike. The Capitol mix has the voices further down in
the mix. They took a dub of the Capitol mix and switched the parts around, starting with the middle a capella part at the
beginning. I used the LP mix, unedited. Better mix, the one with Brian in attendance during mixing. He would have been the one
to pick the "good" mix, eh?

There are 3 versions/mixes of Why Do Fools Fall in Love.

1. The LP mix from the twin-track done at Gold Star (ala Phil Spector) by Larry Levine with Brian Wilson that I used, as
stored on mono LP master of SHUT DOWN, VOLUME II.

2. The Capitol 45 remix from the twin-track done without Brian's OK with lowered vocal track and filtered top and bottom
to make it easier to cut. Unused, stored in the old "S" reel section, marked "reject".

3. The Capitol SPLICED version which totally screws up the song (actually the same mix as number 2 but with the A&R
guy's idea of a better intro). Duped from number 2. Stored in the "S" reel section (Singles). This is the version that was
the "B" side of the single. If you like this "arrangement", make your own digital edits to create it; it's easy.

Note From Andrew Sandoval:
FYI: The Capitol/EMI vault had a safety phono reel tape of the "Why Do Fools Fall In Love" single version when I worked
The Greatest Hits Volumes 1 & 2 CD's (on which it was almost included) in 1999.

"Sunshine tomorrow 2 - The Studio Sessions" (29 studio tracks) and "Live Sunshine" (over 100 live tracks) have been digitally released.

Anyone see a hires release? None of ones I know of have it yet.

Is there going to be a hi-res release? I see it all over right now but not on any of the hi-res sites.

You mean this image?

Having become a fan as a teen in the 1970s, I appreciated every lp as they came along. I never really got into the early surf and car tunes until later. I grew up on the 70s lps and loved them. I loved (and still do) the tune Goin' On. I played it non-stopped when it came out.

So the tunes that MIKE & BRUCE like to focus on are not my faves. Best show I ever saw with the group was a 1993 boxset concert. That was great. Even with people yelling for LITTLE DEUCE COUPE during CAROLINE NO. Only time I EVER shouted to the crowd behind me HEY, SHUT THE **** UP!!!

[petsite]

What magazine was this from, petsite?  It doesn't look like Goldmine.

I've never heard of that last one, the "Bathing Beauty" single on Kapp that's said to be "an incredible simulation!"

I'm still waiting for "Life is for the Living" to show up on a legit release ;-)

Its from a magazine called time barrier express april/may 1979 issue #24.

Here you go. Buy it while you can!



http://www.ebay.com/itm/TIME-BARRIER-EXPRESS-Magazine-24-Beach-Boys-/122024666384?hash=item1c693ca510:g:o7IAAOSwuYVWmJyW

It was down to the technology of the time. Listen to God Only Knows. As the tech progressed, it started to sound more and more like a french horn at the beginning and end.  For my money, the best sounding live version of GOK done by the Beach Boys was on the Farm Aid CD released back in the late 90's. It has a BB performance from 1996. Carl sounds strong and the instrumentation sounds great. Hunt it down if you can find it.

Also, if Carl were still alive, I really think that he would be splitting his time between touring with the Beach Boys and touring with Brian. I really think that the cancer issue (had he lived) would really have brought Carl and Brian closer. And holy crap, can you image a mid-2000's LP by the Wilson Brothers? It would be fantastic. That is based on what TWGMTR sounded like. With Carl's guidance, a solo LP would have been killer.

I told Darian after a concert in 2013 that he killed on Darlin'. He thanked me and I responded with saying how cool it would have been if Carl could have made the 2012 reunion. He just put his hand over his heart and lowered his head. Darian would have been in heaven, as would Nick and PG. They live for those guys!

There was also a tape of "landlocked" making the rounds at the end of the 70's as well. The original mix of Good Time was on there. Sure wish they had used that version on Love You and/or Made In California.