When I was younger, I remember a friend telling me that they had just bought a Beach Boys compilation, and I replied that they are good, but there is only so much Beach Boys you can take. That was before I listened to what fans refer to as their post Smile work and discovered how talented all of the members of the group were and the depth of their songwriting beyond tracks like California Girls.
So what is Smile and why is it such a defining moment in the history of the Beach Boys?
Smile was to be the album that was the Beach Boys' follow up to Pet Sounds and Brian Wilson's response to the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper album.
During the production of the Smile album, Brian Wilson and the other members were exploring psychedelic drugs and it was influencing their work. Meanwhile, the band was feuding internally about the future direction of their sound. Mike Love, didn't think they should go too out there and alienate their fans. He already thought that Pet Sounds was a step in the wrong direction with its songs that explored subject matter that was darker than babes, cars and beaches. The use of drugs and the high expectations that Brian placed on the Beach Boys proved to be too much and ultimately led to the Smile album being shelved and drove him into a spiral of mental illness and an extremely diminished role in the band.
Brian would return to complete Smile 30 years later with newly recorded material with the Wondermints as his backing band. But that is another story.
So, finally after 30 plus years, they have given the fans an official release of the fabled Smile sessions and assembled as closely as possible a complete version of the album.
The two disc special edition provides for the casual listener who just wants to hear the album, and the die hards that want to hear the behind the scenes stuff that don't have the disposable cash to shell out for the deluxe box. Is it good? Yes, it closely resembles what Brian managed to recreate 30 years later. That suggests to me, that sometimes you need to accept something near perfection is good enough.
The album is well and truly meant to be consumed as a single suite that weaves themes around four key tracks; Heroes and Villains, Vega-Tables, Surf's Up and of course Good Vibrations. Something that has crept up on me is how beautiful Surf's Up is. It has become one of my favourite of all Beach Boys songs.
The whole thing washes over you and I think had it managed to have been released at the time, Smile would have been a stone cold classic. It may not have changed the course of music, but every kid would have found it in their parents collection and had a great time.
Rating: Highly Recommended
Release Date: November 2011
Buy Smile at Amazon
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