50th Anniversary, The SMiLE box, the reunion, new material and things to come

[Mike's Beard]

I think Mike is/was a great frontman the odd dodgy nasal vocal aside. The role of a frontman is not just to sing but to connect with the audience and make them feel they are part of the whole show. Mike does that very well, in fact off the top of my head the only guy who could interact with the crowd better would be Freddie Mercury. Mike's bad Mick Jagger 'chicken dance', the lame jokes, the sleazing after cheerleaders young enough to be your granddaughter - Mike's knows it's corny as hell but he's doing it to get a fun reaction. He's not trying to change the world with his live shows, just give the people a good time.

[The Shift]

Jonathan Blum made some good points. It is possible that Mike's/the group's disenchantment with the SMiLE material could've had an adverse effect in the end...

I think I agree with you that it wasn't Mike's fault, but to play devil's advocate for a moment...
I don't think anyone's arguing that Brian abandoned Smile to "give in" to mike.  I think the point is that the band's criticisms made him doubt the project, which led to the long, slow, unravelling, culminating in "foda it lets just get high and cut some sht and put it out and move on with our lives."

Not pretending to have a window into the head of BW 66/67, but I get the impression that BW was on a roll with the music, working with VDP and the Crew. No-one saying "erm...", no-one saying "hang on, what's this...".  He had free reign and total focus.

If anything, the sudden return of the band from tour and the sudden questioning would interrupt the free-flow of work. I know what it's like when I get interrupted from a project I've been working on solidly for ages-  it takes ages to get back on track, back into the flow, and the mind-set.  Once I ditched a book I was writing cos the lady I was with was pulling me one way, the book the other, and in the end I couldn't focus on either, so ditched both.

I'm sure BW knew what he was doing musically was right.  But suddenly the band was back and there were speed bumps in front of his steaming train. He slowed down and lost the focus. Maybe dropping the new direction and making time for the band was easier than trying to handle both distractions at once. Stress, in other words, not a doubting of ability.

[The Heartical Don]

I'm saying the evidence tells me that Brian was not unbalanced by lack of enthusiasm or even insult [from the Boys, or VDP, or Capitol, or some guy off the street], the bit about enthusiasm, insult, and mental illness is sort of speculation it seems to me. To my mind, neither was he confused, aimless, or obsessive but confident, prepared and selective.

But...  I think the point The Don made in his great post is that you can't tell from the outside evidence what's going on on the inside.

If you saw my wife, you'd never know she has all sorts of social phobia.  See her on a discussion panel at a convention or something, and she looks like a star -- outgoing, funny, confident, bold, take-no-prisoners.  But then get her away from that setting... and she's shaking.  And it lingers...  Bits of confrontation from these things stay with her -- we're about to go off to another convention next weekend, and she's dreading seeing some people she disagreed with vehemently about a year and a half ago.  Bitchy things people have said about her on the internet have eaten away at her for years.  She may have sailed through the confrontation fine at the time, but in the long term it takes a huge toll.

I'm not keen on long-distance diagnosis, but I think I see a similar pattern in Brian.  The dichotomy inside the self-confident king in the studio who's already had a nervous breakdown about going on tour, and whose confidence in his own rightness even there gradually erodes.  My wife tells me that that kind of behavior -- learning how to keep up a confident or even pushy I-know-what-I'm-doing front while going to pieces inside -- is extremely common among people who were bullied extensively as kids; they may have learned how to stand up for themselves, but inside the blows have still landed.  I'm not sure how growing up in the Wilson family compares to that, but that blend of outgoing confidence and underlying insecurity sounds common to both Brian and Dennis.

So basically, I don't have a problem with the idea that the eroding support from the band could well have been what broke Brian, even if he didn't immediately scrap Smile the moment Mike argued about the lyrics or whatever.  That could easily have been the turning point he remembers even if it didn't sink in for a while after it happened; he could easily win the battle and lose the war.  Basically?  People are complicated, they change gradually, and going by "the evidence" is tricky when you don't and can't have anywhere near all the evidence...

Cheers,
Jon Blum

Hiya Jon -

first: thank you for your compliment, and also for your own great, and candid, message here. I know a few things about OCD, and that is why I wrote my own take on things. Someone in the above wrote about Brian's odd reaction to the movie 'Seconds', and I find that a good example of what I meant to say. But also my own comment about 'Be My Baby' in a tape loop was intended to make a point. People with OCD have difficulties in 'ending' something, and that something can be everything, really... it's called 'lack of inhibition', in thought processes and in acting. That is why they often ruminate on sad things, they get 'trapped' in cycles of thinking about adverse events, bodily decay, and even death. OCD often is linked to other disorders that feature repetitive behaviour, such as gambling, and addiction. And they have an enormous difficulty in 'letting things go', i.e. forget insults and negative behaviour of othere towards them. Being abused as a kid is one of the experiences that can be instrumental in generating OCD in a person who is genetically predisposed to OCD. One person can have a history of abuse, and yet not develop the disorder because he/she does not have that tiny mutation in one, or a few genes; the other also was abused, but is unlucky in that he/she does have that mutation.

OCD usually occurs at the average age of 11/12 (early-onset) or about 20-27 (late onset). I would not be surprised if Brian is such a late-onset person with OCD tendencies.

Mind: I don't claim to be able to diagnose from such a huge distance in time and place. But to me, the idea makes sense.

[Nicko]

But...  I think the point The Don made in his great post is that you can't tell from the outside evidence what's going on on the inside.

If you saw my wife, you'd never know she has all sorts of social phobia.  See her on a discussion panel at a convention or something, and she looks like a star -- outgoing, funny, confident, bold, take-no-prisoners.  But then get her away from that setting... and she's shaking.  And it lingers...  Bits of confrontation from these things stay with her -- we're about to go off to another convention next weekend, and she's dreading seeing some people she disagreed with vehemently about a year and a half ago.  Bitchy things people have said about her on the internet have eaten away at her for years.  She may have sailed through the confrontation fine at the time, but in the long term it takes a huge toll.

I'm not keen on long-distance diagnosis, but I think I see a similar pattern in Brian.  The dichotomy inside the self-confident king in the studio who's already had a nervous breakdown about going on tour, and whose confidence in his own rightness even there gradually erodes.  My wife tells me that that kind of behavior -- learning how to keep up a confident or even pushy I-know-what-I'm-doing front while going to pieces inside -- is extremely common among people who were bullied extensively as kids; they may have learned how to stand up for themselves, but inside the blows have still landed.  I'm not sure how growing up in the Wilson family compares to that, but that blend of outgoing confidence and underlying insecurity sounds common to both Brian and Dennis.

So basically, I don't have a problem with the idea that the eroding support from the band could well have been what broke Brian, even if he didn't immediately scrap Smile the moment Mike argued about the lyrics or whatever.  That could easily have been the turning point he remembers even if it didn't sink in for a while after it happened; he could easily win the battle and lose the war.  Basically?  People are complicated, they change gradually, and going by "the evidence" is tricky when you don't and can't have anywhere near all the evidence...

Cheers,
Jon Blum

Some good points there. But even if the negative reaction from the band did eventually cause Brian to have a rethink, that still wouldn't be the cause of it not being released. The cause would clearly still be within Brian because a 'normal' person wouldn't react in that way. To use another example, Brian has said that the reason his father hit him with a plank of wood was because Brian didn't mow the lawn on time. Now obviously the real reason (if it happened at all) was because Murry had huge emotional problems and was a terrible father.

The very, very simplistic argument put forward by some people (not necessarily on this board) is that Brian was fully in charge of what he was doing but the other BBs broke him down. But if he'd really been in a good situation then the opinions of the other band memebrs wouldn't have been able to affect him in that way. People can look for a million reasons why Brian pulled back but due to his emotional and mental problems, that was always going to happen imo.

[Dancing Bear]

Jonathan Blum made some good points. It is possible that Mike's/the group's disenchantment with the SMiLE material could've had an adverse effect in the end...

I think I agree with you that it wasn't Mike's fault, but to play devil's advocate for a moment...
I don't think anyone's arguing that Brian abandoned Smile to "give in" to mike.  I think the point is that the band's criticisms made him doubt the project, which led to the long, slow, unravelling, culminating in "foda it lets just get high and cut some sht and put it out and move on with our lives."

Not pretending to have a window into the head of BW 66/67, but I get the impression that BW was on a roll with the music, working with VDP and the Crew. No-one saying "erm...", no-one saying "hang on, what's this...".  He had free reign and total focus.

If anything, the sudden return of the band from tour and the sudden questioning would interrupt the free-flow of work. I know what it's like when I get interrupted from a project I've been working on solidly for ages-  it takes ages to get back on track, back into the flow, and the mind-set.  Once I ditched a book I was writing cos the lady I was with was pulling me one way, the book the other, and in the end I couldn't focus on either, so ditched both.

I'm sure BW knew what he was doing musically was right.  But suddenly the band was back and there were speed bumps in front of his steaming train. He slowed down and lost the focus. Maybe dropping the new direction and making time for the band was easier than trying to handle both distractions at once. Stress, in other words, not a doubting of ability.

I'd bet on Brian losing the plot by himself and then trying to find a way to get out of that mess of a project. The groups's "resistence" was basically little Brian claiming (to Marilyn, Anderle, Parks, the Posse etc) that the dog ate his homework.

[Cam Mott]

I believe I allowed that it could be both, I may be mixing up my threads, so if I didn't I do now. I don't see obsessive or compulsive in Brian's behavior in this period. Brian's work habits don't show it to me. What is called a mental breakdown seems like a panic attack on an airplane to me. His girlfriend-witch, Spector-conspiracy, dogs-pointing toward-the-meteors talk just sounds to me like normal goofy talk through a creative mind or a guy who thinks it's funny to mess with people. Still, it could have been mental illness that turned Brian off of SMiLE.  I just don't see it right now.

It is much more straight forward to me. At the time, Brian was talking and people were talking for Brian and it was just a straight forward matter of Brian having issues with the material itself, not with whether his co-writer was dissing it, or his band was dissing it. It shelved because it no longer pleased Brian's muse when it seemed too elaborate, old fashioned, etc., etc., and he wanted a different mood and direction and he did that different mood and direction the way he wanted. Could mental illness have caused Brian's muse to lose confidence? I suppose so; to me these deeper motives or causes are speculative but the "velvet steamroller" is right in your face and rolled right over to Smiley Smile without any lose of steam.

Velvet Steamroller: "Resistance is futile!"

[See what I did there? Play off THE THREAD's "resistance" angle...huh...huh...]

[The Heartical Don]

Could it be that his beloved 'humour' project got too heavy? That it became a very serious burden for Brian, instead of a pleasurable artistic achievement? Expectations were raised sky-high by all hangers-on and influential press people... did Brain rather quickly feel a terrible fear of failure? Did he get so anxious about even a mixed, moderate reception of the grand project?

For me it would explain, at least, the dodging of the realization of Smile itself, and the escape route to Smiley Smile; as some sort of wilful, ironic underachievement. By giving the implicit message: I could've done better, but here is Smile's little brother, Brian obviously made himself immune to criticism. By neutering serious criticism a priori, and paving the way for only 'what do we have here??' reviews.

[Mike's Beard]

For me it would explain, at least, the dodging of the realization of Smile itself, and the escape route to Smiley Smile; as some sort of wilful, ironic underachievement. By giving the implicit message: I could've done better, but here is Smile's little brother, Brian obviously made himself immune to criticism. By neutering serious criticism a priori, and paving the way for only 'what do we have here??' reviews.

Smiley Smile /aka 'The Career Killer'. It's been said on this board before but I feel it's worth stating again that if the BB's REALLY hated Smile so much they would hardly be jumping up and down at the prospect of releasing Smiley Smile.
             I take it everyone here has read "Smile the story of Brian Wilson's lost masterpiece"? In it the writer is firmly in the 'BBs esp Mike caused Brian to shelve Smile' camp and strongly implies that this is what caused Brian's mental decline. To me, to say a man suffered over 30 years of severe mental illness because people didn't like some of his music is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. It's cool to be able to go on this site and read/discuss these subjects with rational people.

[Sheriff John Stone]

Jonathan Blum made some good points. It is possible that Mike's/the group's disenchantment with the SMiLE material could've had an adverse effect in the end - even though the real conflict might've begun several months and several sessions prior. But, I can't get past Smiley Smile.

Smile Smile is always there. It won't go away. If Brian truly scrapped SMiLE because of Mike's/the group's/his own/anyone's doubt about the material, he would've avoided Smiley Smile like the plague, and gone directly into Wild Honey. Smiley Smile is a weird album, there is NO question about it. And, whether the credit says "produced by Brian Wilson" or "produced by The Beach Boys", that doesn't erase the fact that the material is "out there".

Again, if Brian was truly concerned about the group's concerns for the appropriateness of the material, he could've instantaneously brought smiles (no pun intended) to everyone's faces by going into "Darlin'". That would've solved THAT problem immediately. He (and the group) could've knocked out Wild Honey in a couple of weeks and the debate about the weirdness of the SMiLE material is put to bed, and life as usual goes on. But he didn't....

I think I agree with you that it wasn't Mike's fault, but to play devil's advocate for a moment...

I don't think anyone's arguing that Brian abandoned Smile to "give in" to mike.  I think the point is that the band's criticisms made him doubt the project, which led to the long, slow, unravelling, culminating in "foda it lets just get high and cut some sht and put it out and move on with our lives."

Also, in a way, Smiley Smile could be seen as giving in to the bands wishes in a very clever, somewhat manipulative way.  By making his new music purposefully underwhelming, he could move into Wild Honey without looking like he was giving up; make it look like "well, that didn't work out, guess we'll just have to go back to the formula" which is a much craftier way of making that shift than going straight from cabinessence to darlin. 

I agree that we're not arguing that Brian "gave in" to Mike/the group. And I conceded that Brian POSSIBLY carried the early criticism of SMiLE with him for months, and, as you say, "led to the long, slow, unraveling..." An unraveling of SMiLE that is.

But, I don't think Brian was being manipulative. I don't think he purposely made music that was underwhelming. I don't think he was looking for an easier transition to Wild Honey; Brian was too "in the moment". I don't think he planned that far ahead. I think that Smiley Smile was a) his quasi-attempt at a humor album, and b) something that he could get out in a hurry.

However, any way you look at Smiley Smile, HE WAS NOT ADHERING TO THE GROUP'S FEARS that the material was "not what's right for them". You don't transform "Wind Chimes" and "Wonderful" the way Brian did. You don't record "She's Goin' Bald". You don't add the giggling and laughing. Or the "good" on "With Me Tonight". And on and on. Smiley Smile outweirded SMiLE. And Brian had to know it. He was not giving in to anybody.

[Mike's Beard]

What I like about Smiley is even when Brian was going at something in a half assed fashion his brilliance still shines through.

[The Heartical Don]

Hi Sheriff -

what do you think: did Brian actually think he improved 'Wonderful' and 'Wind Chimes' by transforming them as he did? Why did he think it necessary to do that?

I mean: my little theory about SS being a wilful underachievement does not want to implicate that Brian took every step in a highly conscious way. People with severe anxiety disorders act on impulse, perhaps unconsciously. The 'filling in' of the game plan occurs afterwards, by fans such as we.

[The Heartical Don]

What I like about Smiley is even when Brian was going at something in a half assed fashion his brilliance still shines through.

Well said.

[Mike's Beard]

Thanks Don. Not to step on The Sherrif's toes but if I may say that I think SS version of "Wonderful" is vastly inferior to it's Smile counterpart, whilst SS "Windchimes" is better than the Smile version by a button. The tag is probs the most gorgeous piece of singing I have ever heard.

[Sheriff John Stone]

Hi Sheriff -

what do you think: did Brian actually think he improved 'Wonderful' and 'Wind Chimes' by transforming them as he did? Why did he think it necessary to do that?

I mean: my little theory about SS being a wilful underachievement does not want to implicate that Brian took every step in a highly conscious way. People with severe anxiety disorders act on impulse, perhaps unconsciously. The 'filling in' of the game plan occurs afterwards, by fans such as we.

Not "improved" but revamped. And why did he think it was necessary? Because he had to transform or fit those songs into the "humorous" vibe that is Smiley Smile. Now, I admit that the Smiley Smile "humor album" theory is my personal opinion; it's the only was I can rationalize it. In my above post, I forgot to mention the pouring of the vegetable juice and the "ahh" when drinking it, or the whimsical "dum dum dum" and whistling on "Whistle In". I felt, with Smiley Smile, Brian was doing another concept album. People have asked why Brian didn't include "Cabinessence" or "Surf's Up" or "Child Is Father Of The Man" on Smiley Smile. Can you imagine trying to transform them into "humorous" pieces. Unbelievably, Brian was able to do it with "Fire"! (see "Woody Woodpecker Symphony").

Oh, yeah, Smiley Smile was a conscious plan. Hey, some people consider it a true work of art, genius no less. But, how can you listen to that album or look at the specific songs, and say that Brian was concerned about appeasing the group? If Brian would've taken a vote and polled the group - do Smiley Smile or do Wild Honey? What do you think the vote would've been? You can throw the record company and the fans into that vote, too...

[The Heartical Don]

Hi Sheriff -

what do you think: did Brian actually think he improved 'Wonderful' and 'Wind Chimes' by transforming them as he did? Why did he think it necessary to do that?

I mean: my little theory about SS being a wilful underachievement does not want to implicate that Brian took every step in a highly conscious way. People with severe anxiety disorders act on impulse, perhaps unconsciously. The 'filling in' of the game plan occurs afterwards, by fans such as we.

Not "improved" but revamped. And why did he think it was necessary? Because he had to transform or fit those songs into the "humorous" vibe that is Smiley Smile. Now, I admit that the Smiley Smile "humor album" theory is my personal opinion; it's the only was I can rationalize it. In my above post, I forgot to mention the pouring of the vegetable juice and the "ahh" when drinking it, or the whimsical "dum dum dum" and whistling on "Whistle In". I felt, with Smiley Smile, Brian was doing another concept album. People have asked why Brian didn't include "Cabinessence" or "Surf's Up" or "Child Is Father Of The Man" on Smiley Smile. Can you imagine trying to transform them into "humorous" pieces. Unbelievably, Brian was able to do it with "Fire"! (see "Woody Woodpecker Symphony").

Oh, yeah, Smiley Smile was a conscious plan. Hey, some people consider it a true work of art, genius no less. But, how can you listen to that album or look at the specific songs, and say that Brian was concerned about appeasing the group? If Brian would've taken a vote and polled the group - do Smiley Smile or do Wild Honey? What do you think the vote would've been? You can throw the record company and the fans into that vote, too...

Excellent call. I readily see your argument about Cabinessence, Surf's Up, and CITFOM. And I can guess what the outcome of that vote would have been...

[The Shift]

People have asked why Brian didn't include "Cabinessence" or "Surf's Up" or "Child Is Father Of The Man" on Smiley Smile...

Surf's Up has it's moment of humour to my ear -  the second, discordant horns bit that accompanies "to a song dissolved in the dawn..." is in the same vein as George Fell.... Subtle, but it's there.

[Ganz Allein]

            I take it everyone here has read "Smile the story of Brian Wilson's lost masterpiece"? In it the writer is firmly in the 'BBs esp Mike caused Brian to shelve Smile' camp and strongly implies that this is what caused Brian's mental decline. To me, to say a man suffered over 30 years of severe mental illness because people didn't like some of his music is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. It's cool to be able to go on this site and read/discuss these subjects with rational people.

If you have friends or family - or have worked with - people who have severe OCD or other neurotic-type disorders, you would know that those people take negative comments (or even comments mistakenly perceived as negative) to heart, and that definitely affects their attitude, self-worth, self image, etc.  And the reaction may not happen right away, it may smolder over time.  IMHO the negativity from Mike, et al. toward SMiLE played some part - maybe a small part but a definite part - in Brian's ultimate decision to shelve it.

[Ganz Allein]

what do you think: did Brian actually think he improved 'Wonderful' and 'Wind Chimes' by transforming them as he did? Why did he think it necessary to do that?

I mean: my little theory about SS being a wilful underachievement does not want to implicate that Brian took every step in a highly conscious way. People with severe anxiety disorders act on impulse, perhaps unconsciously. The 'filling in' of the game plan occurs afterwards, by fans such as we.

Not "improved" but revamped. And why did he think it was necessary? Because he had to transform or fit those songs into the "humorous" vibe that is Smiley Smile. Now, I admit that the Smiley Smile "humor album" theory is my personal opinion; it's the only was I can rationalize it. In my above post, I forgot to mention the pouring of the vegetable juice and the "ahh" when drinking it, or the whimsical "dum dum dum" and whistling on "Whistle In". I felt, with Smiley Smile, Brian was doing another concept album. People have asked why Brian didn't include "Cabinessence" or "Surf's Up" or "Child Is Father Of The Man" on Smiley Smile. Can you imagine trying to transform them into "humorous" pieces. Unbelievably, Brian was able to do it with "Fire"! (see "Woody Woodpecker Symphony").

Oh, yeah, Smiley Smile was a conscious plan. Hey, some people consider it a true work of art, genius no less. But, how can you listen to that album or look at the specific songs, and say that Brian was concerned about appeasing the group? If Brian would've taken a vote and polled the group - do Smiley Smile or do Wild Honey? What do you think the vote would've been? You can throw the record company and the fans into that vote, too...

Excellent call. I readily see your argument about Cabinessence, Surf's Up, and CITFOM. And I can guess what the outcome of that vote would have been...

I agree that Smiley Smile was somewhat of a decision to go to a humor album. But I also see a bit of passive aggressiveness on Brian's part in those weird, inferior remakes of Wind Chimes and Wonderful.  It's kind of like he was saying "I no longer have the resolve to finish SMiLE and a lot of people don't like those songs, anyway, so I'm just gonna make a joke of these tunes."  And we can't forget that this is also the "deeply stoned" album.  But, as mikes beard stated above, Brian's brilliance can't help but shine through even when he's being half-assed or manipulative. "Fall Breaks..." may be a whimsical remake of "Fire," but it's beautiful.  And even something simple like "Gettin' Hungry" is a cool, catchy showcase for Brian and Mike.

[Dancing Bear]

I always thought that Smile's Wind Chimes sounds contrived. The flow between the section sucks, compared to Cabinessence. The Smiley Smile version flows better.... That said, one is beautifully baroque, the other is beautifully eerie. Smiley Smile's Wonderful is not THAT different than the Smile's version. Nowadays I'd rather listen to tge one from SS. Smile's Wonderful sounds kinda raw. And the psychedelic interlude is a gas.

[BJL]

I always thought that Smile's Wind Chimes sounds contrived. The flow between the section sucks, compared to Cabinessence. The Smiley Smile version flows better.... That said, one is beautifully baroque, the other is beautifully eerie. Smiley Smile's Wonderful is not THAT different than the Smile's version. Nowadays I'd rather listen to tge one from SS. Smile's Wonderful sounds kinda raw. And the psychedelic interlude is a gas.

I think tis worth noting here that neither of those smile songs were finished...Wonderful ends with a bizarre fade that certainly seems to have been planned to lead into something, and may also have had a bridge of some sort spliced in on the Smile version. 

Wind Chimes was never mixed into a final verse chorus verse chorus fade structure...and Brian was really good at that kind of splicing and mixing...think about how great the sections flow together in good vibes or the cantina heroes which were actually finished. 

Not to say that you shouldn't have your opinion, you can like whatever version of these songs you like.  But in the interest of perpetuating the smile myth....

[oldsurferdude]

I always thought that Smile's Wind Chimes sounds contrived. The flow between the section sucks, compared to Cabinessence. The Smiley Smile version flows better.... That said, one is beautifully baroque, the other is beautifully eerie. Smiley Smile's Wonderful is not THAT different than the Smile's version. Nowadays I'd rather listen to tge one from SS. Smile's Wonderful sounds kinda raw. And the psychedelic interlude is a gas.

"contrived", "sucks",,,hmmm, I guess I just cannot fathom exactly what the reason could be for not inviting you into the studio as a consultant just to be sure it all met with your final approval-the nerve of them!

[Roger Ryan]

Don't forget that SMILEY SMILE was largely the result of Brian recording in his home studio for the first time. Here was a chance to to just experiment and have fun without the pressure (or structure) of working in a proper studio with session players and the accompanying expense. SS just sounds like someone goofing off at home simply because they can. To me, that is the biggest reason SMILEY SMILE doesn't sound remotely like SMiLE.

[Mike's Beard]

            I take it everyone here has read "Smile the story of Brian Wilson's lost masterpiece"? In it the writer is firmly in the 'BBs esp Mike caused Brian to shelve Smile' camp and strongly implies that this is what caused Brian's mental decline. To me, to say a man suffered over 30 years of severe mental illness because people didn't like some of his music is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. It's cool to be able to go on this site and read/discuss these subjects with rational people.

If you have friends or family - or have worked with - people who have severe OCD or other neurotic-type disorders, you would know that those people take negative comments (or even comments mistakenly perceived as negative) to heart, and that definitely affects their attitude, self-worth, self image, etc.  And the reaction may not happen right away, it may smolder over time.  IMHO the negativity from Mike, et al. toward SMiLE played some part - maybe a small part but a definite part - in Brian's ultimate decision to shelve it.

Yeah in retrospect that second to last sentence on my post does sound too harsh and I hope nobody took offense from it. I was just trying to make the point that the book's author all but came out and called Carl, Mike  and Al evil for what they'd done. Only the luckiest of us can go through life without the occasional kick in the balls and some people are just wired to handle it better than others.

[SurfRiderHawaii]

I know what would be a great 50th Anniversary Project - take what's become of this thread and the countless others like it (Smile - why it didn't happening and the Brian/Mike Relationship) and print it out as a book.  It be thousands of pages.  Ugh.  Gosh, I do long for something new :-( that we can all talk about endlessly.  Like a real Smile box set.

[Dancing Bear]

I always thought that Smile's Wind Chimes sounds contrived. The flow between the section sucks, compared to Cabinessence. The Smiley Smile version flows better.... That said, one is beautifully baroque, the other is beautifully eerie. Smiley Smile's Wonderful is not THAT different than the Smile's version. Nowadays I'd rather listen to tge one from SS. Smile's Wonderful sounds kinda raw. And the psychedelic interlude is a gas.

I think tis worth noting here that neither of those smile songs were finished...Wonderful ends with a bizarre fade that certainly seems to have been planned to lead into something, and may also have had a bridge of some sort spliced in on the Smile version. 

Wind Chimes was never mixed into a final verse chorus verse chorus fade structure...and Brian was really good at that kind of splicing and mixing...think about how great the sections flow together in good vibes or the cantina heroes which were actually finished. 

Not to say that you shouldn't have your opinion, you can like whatever version of these songs you like.  But in the interest of perpetuating the smile myth....

Point well taken.