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| "A teenage symphony to God," |
| 2004-03-01 |
| In the annals of rock ’n’ roll, there is no greater legend than Brian Wilson’s lost masterwork known as "Smile." Wilson was the fragile musical genius who wrote, produced and performed on the Beach Boys’ exuberant hits during the 1960s. "Smile" was reputed to be his ultimate achievement, a densely packed song cycle of intriguing melody and rich harmony that should have appeared about the same time as the Beatles’ classic "Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band" album. But somewhere on the road to completion in the spring and summer of 1967 Wilson lost his way, scrapping large chunks of "Smile" and descending into nearly three decades of drug-induced madness from which he began to emerge only a few years ago. And "Smile" descended with him. A few pieces of the puzzle appeared on various albums to tempt and torment Wilson’s fans. But the great work itself vanished, as if it had never existed. Until now. This past week, Wilson, now 61, has been treating British audiences to a modern version of "Smile," performed for the first time live onstage at Royal Festival Hall here. It’s been an event of extraordinary power and poignancy, sold out for five nights, fronted by a man who barely makes eye contact with the audience, whose voice often struggles to remain on key, and whose every hesitant gesture suggests a lifetime of pain and turmoil. To pull off this remarkable performance, Wilson has surrounded himself with a battalion of young, gifted and empathetic musicians, led by Darian Sahanaja and his Southern California band, the Wondermints. Tuesday’s concert began with 10 musicians and singers clustered around Wilson like a human cocoon, exchanging well-rehearsed patter. Playing acoustic guitars and bongos, they launched into a series of Beach Boys hits, including "Surfer Girl," "In My Room" and "Please Let Me Wonder," before expanding into a fully amplified rock band, supplemented by eight string and horn players. The highlight of an evening of highlights was "God Only Knows," a wistful lover’s plea from "Pet Sounds," the 1966 album that Paul McCartney once called "the classic of the century." After the break, they returned for "Smile." The work, which Wilson once described as "a teenage symphony to God," was in three movements, each anchored loosely by a theme and a song suite. "Heroes and Villains" opened the first segment, which focused on Americana; "Surf’s Up" the second, which seemed to be about childhood; and "Good Vibrations" climaxed the symphony with an ode to elemental emotion. The band played with great enthusiasm - at one point, the string and horn sections donned bright red firemen’s helmets to perform "Mrs. O’Leary’s Cow," a somber, atonal dirge. They also ostentatiously munched on carrots and broccoli for the "Vegetables" medley. No one is claiming that this concert version of "Smile" is a note-for-note reproduction of the original. In program notes, Sahanaja says he, Wilson and original lyricist Van Dyke Parks worked out a rendition that could be performed live, with certain new melodies and ideas that were faithful to the original in spirit. There are no plans yet to perform "Smile" in the United States, but such a tour seems inevitable. This week’s performances were taped and are likely to wind up on DVD, CD or both, as did a similar concert presentation of "Pet Sounds" three years ago. Wilson began churning out increasingly ambitious and difficult music that strayed further and further from the pop formula. He entered into an open competition with the Beatles: They produced "Rubber Soul" in 1965; he countered with "Pet Sounds" in 1966; they answered with "Revolver." It was a brief moment when pop music and the creative ambitions of a handful of restless, self-taught twentysomethings came together to produce a version of art. Eventually Wilson and Parks put together the pieces of passion and whimsy that became "Smile." When the band returned from an Asian tour, so the story goes, lead singer Mike Love said he found "Smile" weird and incomprehensible. I can understand why Wilson, by this time heavily into LSD, freaked. He disappeared, and so did "Smile." The version issued in 1967 as the album "Smiley Smile" was an impostor - "a bunt instead of a grand slam," according to Brian’s brother Carl. Thirty-seven years later, Carl is dead, as is Brian’s other brother Dennis. Mike Love fronts a group calling itself the Beach Boys that specializes in oldies. I’ve seen this show and Mike Love is cool Looking like someone’s slightly eccentric grandfather. He mostly sat on a stool in front of an electric piano he never played, his hands moving feverishly to the music as he delivered lyrics he clearly was reading from two monitors flanking the piano. It was both exhilarating and deeply sad. Although his young acolytes hovered nearby, he seemed alone. "Smile" lasted about 40 minutes. He sang them like a prayer. I have the Capitol Records remix of "Smiley Smile" together with "Wild Honey" and some additional material. "Smile" is in that. I can’t say it’s all there but the stuff is there. harmony, changes, melodies, thought, deep thought, madness, This is not Rock. If you havn’t listened to "Pet Sounds" or "Smiley Smile" and "Wild Honey", your missing the best of the best. "A teenage symphony to God". |
| Posted by:Lucky |
| #3 Man, I haven't listened to Pet Sounds in years. I wonder if I still have it? It was different. |
| Posted by: Anonymous2U 2004-3-1 11:42:15 PM |
| #2 I tried to make My own "Smile." Our Prayer I use the Friends/20-20 version, but some might like the boxed set version. Both are enhanced from the original. H&V part 1 On SS/WH twofer. H&V part 2 Have not found clean track Do you dig worms? Boxed set. Cabinessence Friends/20-20 twofer Old master painter/you are my sunshine I think only bootleg. Wonderful I don't know if a full good version was ever made. (The boxed set version is too sparse, and the SS/WH one is too muddy.) Mrs. O'Leary's cow I think only on bootleg. Vegetables Boxed set. Wind Chimes Boxed set. Cool Water Sunflower Surf's Up Surf's Up What the Boxed Set calls "Heroes & Villains (sections)" has several link tracks, but I haven't gotten around to trying to surgically pull them out. Brian did make one last good piece, "Rio Grande" in the late 80s. |
| Posted by: Jackal 2004-3-1 8:58:55 PM |
| #1 Thank you! Love Potion #9 is the first song I remember enjoying at around the age of 5, but the Beach Boys were the first group. My tastes veered more toward the classic side of rock in later years, but Brian's music would always make me smile when I heard it. Even if the lyrics were sad, the incredible harmonies and music behind them seemed to project an innocent awareness of the song's subject. It was nice to come across by accident a solo release "Imagination" that I really enjoyed and another "The Making of Stars and Stripes", which features country stars and most of the original group remaking some of the classics in interesting fashions. He has a website at http://www.brianwilson.com and the message board there is frequented by a lot of European posters who are sure to be posting a lot of observations on the described show. cheers, Dick |
| Posted by: hairofthedawg 2004-3-1 3:07:28 AM |