Brian Wilson's reconstituted [lilred]SMiLE[/lilred] project is coming out at the next of the month, after a nearly 40-year wait. Finally! It's already at 62 in Amazon's sales rankings, which is pretty remarkable (as well as serendipitous) for a 62 year old musician:



Amazon.com
The Greatest Album That Never Was finally is. The Beach Boys' uncompleted 1967 album Smile has remained the elusive touchstone of Brian Wilson's brilliant, star-crossed career for decades. Artistic Holy Grail and troubling professional Waterloo for Wilson, a tantalizing prism of unfulfilled promise to his loyal cadre of fans, its story has become pop music's Rashomon. Finally completed via spring 2004 recordings with his stellar, longtime touring band (none of the original '60s sessions were used, though they've been recreated here with often stunning authenticity), it's arguably as alien to contemporary pop as it might have seemed in its intended '67 context--even to ears freshly primed by the glories of Pet Sounds.

Collaborator Van Dyke Parks's impressionistic, often mischievous lyrics conjure a collage of arcane 19th-century Americana that's equal parts artful ellipse and aloof nostalgia. But wed to Wilson's innovative composition and recording techniques (echoing beat author William Burroughs's fabled cut 'n' paste methodology and exemplified by the modular "Good Vibrations"), the resulting semisuite confections challenge the boundaries of both song and album form, but with an insouciant charm that's as different from Pet Sounds as that landmark was from "I Get Around." Turns out those hypothetical comparisons to Sgt. Pepper's weren't so far off the mark.

Product Description
Smile is inarguably the most long-awaited album in modern pop history. It's been more than 37 years since the title first appeared on a label release schedule, intended as the January 1967 follow-up to the groundbreaking art-rock of the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds. But Smile never made its initial release date. Today, this album is not a mere reconstruction of past performances, but something entirely new, a serious summation of a project that has been gestating for nearly four decades.

1. Our Prayer/Gee
2. Heroes and Villians
3. Roll Plymouth Rock
4. Barnyard
5. Old Master Painter/You are My Sunshine
6. Cabin Essence
7. Wonderful
8. Song For Children
9. Child is Father of the Man
10. Surf's Up
11. I'm in Great Shape/I Wanna Be Around/Workshop
12. Vega-Tables
13. On a Holiday
14. Wind Chimes
15. Mrs. O'Leary's Cow
16. In Blue Hawaii
17. Good Vibrations

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002LI11M/?tag=imwan-20

It will be interesting to hear what he thinks it should sound like, especially since so many other people have compiled versions of it and so much of it was released by a less than cogent him and his band for other Beach Boys albums.

[Yeah, I am a black man who loves the Beach Boys.]

I can't wait!

For a while in the late 1990's Brian Wilson lived up here by Chicago in St. Charles, Illinois. He spent quite a but of time one the radio with loacl personality Steve Dahl. Even though he seems to be damaged beyond repair from a very rough life, he's quite a unique individual.

I heard a recording of one the London performances of SMiLE back in February, it was incredible. If Brian and the Wondermints can fashion a studio version close to what was performed, it'll (almost) be worth the 37 years it took to put out a final version. It was goose-pimply beautiful, truly.

The electronic press kit for SMiLE is now up at Warner Bros' website:

http://www.warnerreprise.com/asx/brianw ... _450-v.asx

I got mine this week and today was finally feeling well enough to listen to it.

This is awesome. If you weren't listening to music back in the 60s, I have no idea what you'll think of it (probably think it's corny if my son is any indication), but this would have changed the public perception of Brian and the boys forever.

Even the two singles "from" this album are a revelation compared to the "Beach Boy"-ized versions that were released back in the day.

Brian has even managed to sing well on this, something that was hard on Imagination and other post Landy releases.

Van Dyke Parks' lyrics are still impenetrable, but who cares.

This is good.

Very good indeed. I wish we hadn't had to wait so long, but it's here at last!

I'm not sure what the reaction would have been, if SMiLE had come out in the 60s -- there's a What If to ponder! -- but it's nice to finally have it now.

Go, Brian!

-- Uncle Rog