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Lost Tracks of the Smile Sessions

The Beach Boys Smile Session album coverThis is a form of rock music archaeology -- the unearthing of the lost tracks for the mostly unreleased original recordings for the Smile album by Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys in 1966-67. Nearly 40 years after it was initially conceived by Brian Wilson, the released version of Smile -- produced entirely by Brian Wilson with a new band -- became available on Sept. 28, 2004.

This is the story of the unreleased material from the Smile sessions in 1966-67. The sessions by the Beach Boys and Los Angeles' finest studio musicians, directed by Brian, were recorded in an atmosphere of friendly but anxious competition to be the number one pop group. But not just a pop group -- to be a pop art group. The Beatles were about to release Sgt. Pepper, and Paul McCartney has said from time to time that he was directly influenced at that time, especially in his style of bass playing, by Brian Wilson, especially the Pet Sounds album (available as a single CD with mono and stereo versions of each song, or as the box set, The Pet Sounds Sessions -- see music specials and the Rockument Smile Shop).

But something happened on the way to the record plant. The original Smile album never appeared. The Beach Boys (with Brian Wilson's live replacement, Bruce Johnston) had just returned from a hero's welcome in the U.K. to find Brian mixing these outrageously different tracks. Mike Love of the Beach Boys was particularly upset about the incredible lyrics by Van Dyke Parks.

At that time, the Beach Boys were in the process of suing Capitol Records, and they were supposed to headline the Monterey Pop Festival. The other Boys apparently did not want to depart from the commercial formula and release Smile. Brian's pop art masterpiece was lost... until 2004.

Much has been written of the sessions that Brian Wilson conducted for the Smile album. My favorite book on the topic was Look! Listen! Vibrate! Smile! compiled by Domenic Priore, who has since compiled a new book, Smile: The Story of Brian Wilson's Lost Masterpiece -- co-authored with Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks.

Smile: Here Today

Brian Wilson finally realized his dream of putting together the definitive version of Smile. On Sept. 28, 2004, Nonesuch Records issued a newly recorded version put together by Brian and lyricist/collaborator Van Dyke Parks. Rock music collectors everywhere were startled to hear the news.

The recordings used Brian's touring band and the Stockholm Strings & Horns. Sessions started April 13, 2004, in Los Angeles after Brian returned from London, where he had performed the album live at the Royal Festival Hall in February, 2004. The series of live performances at the Hall are the blueprint for the new version, according to David Leaf (as interviewed in ICE Magazine). Brian Wilson's Smile is simply outstanding, and so is the DVD, Brian Wilson presents SMiLE by David Leaf, which tells the story through interviews of Brian, Van Dyke Parks and others, concluding with Brian's performance of Smile at the Royal Festival Hall.

The new Smile uses a track sequence that is different than any sequence dreamed up by historians and Beach Boys buffs for the original Smile. The recordings are certainly new versions, which means the original recordings are still highly valued by collectors. These new versions are absolutely faithful to the sound and the lyrics of the original versions, yet produced with contemporary production values.

Smile Wasn't Made For Those Times

Brian Wilson's Smile concept was far ahead of anyone else at that time (1966) in pop music. When Hendrix referred to the Beach Boys as a "psychedelic barber shop quartet" everyone assumed he meant "Good Vibrations" (the hit song recorded before the Smile sessions and used on the album at Capitol's insistence, that became the Beach Boys' most memorable song). While the impact of "Good Vibrations" in 1966 was profound, imagine how the Beach Boys would have been perceived had they produced an entire concept album!

The original Smile sessions were produced entirely by Brian during late 1966 and early 1967. In April of '67, Paul McCartney stopped by L.A. and played Brian a tape of "A Day in the Life" and contributed to a "Vega-Tables" session. The professional competition was very real, the stakes were very high, and the high regard for each other was mutual. There had been nothing like the concept of Smile before this, and Sgt. Pepper would set a new standard a few months later, at the start of the Summer of Love.

Brian WilsonAn essential ingredient in the mystery of the Smile sessions is the perception of Brian Wilson as a misunderstood genius. During this period and after he withdrew more and more from reality. His frightening experiences with drugs and strange behavior through the 1970s and 1980s seemed to have its roots in the final Smile sessions, when the group nearly broke up (some say it actually did, and Brian simply went along with the myth for years after). Armchair psychiatrists pronounced him crackers, while family members tried to protect him. One thing is certain: Brian never again commanded the full attention and full cooperation of the Beach Boys, and therefore ceased to be able to exert artistic control over the group's output. Since then, Brian has made startlingly good albums (see see the Rockument Smile Shop).

So I look upon Smile as the lost answer to the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper, as the mythical source of inspiration for a generation of musicians and artists who were lucky to have heard it or found a bootleg of it. American pop art at its best. You can follow the playlist below to obtain and listen to some of the original recordings for the Smile project.