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SMiLE Fan Mixes - August 2004
Intro:
I'm not going to pronounce a "winner", since this was not a contest. There are individual parts of each of these mixes that I like. But, until Capitol gets off their collective lazy asses and finally DO something with the original tapes - we have these fantastic re-creations of SMiLE. To borrow an old line and change it around a bit: This is not SMiLE, but an incredible simulation!
DISCLAIMER: The following works that we review are in no way "bootlegs" made for profit or sale. Rather they are simple fan mixes meant to be a tribute to the artistry of Brian Wilson. SMiLE mix by Paul Steel The problem plaguing this mix is the fidelity: there are various volume jumps and some of the song edits are not as smooth as they could be. However, those are minor flaws to an otherwise enjoyable version of a SMiLE mix (besides, they can be fixed in future versions). I like the conservative use of live segments of SMiLE with the original tracks, therefore sticking to the creed of using as many of the original tracks as possible. For example, the original "Look" track is used with the live segment only used for a transition. "Holidays" is the original until it gets to the "whispering winds" section, which is live. "Love to Say Da Da" combines both the original and the live. There are two things that make this version interesting. First, the segue way from "OMP/You Are My Sunshine" is very smooth indeed. Second, is a version of "Good Vibrations" that follows the live version closely, using the original lyrics. Although not perfect, this mix is not bad at all!
SMiLE mix by Jason Penick Jason's mix is essentially an attempt to copy Brian and Van Dyke's 2004 live SMiLE, but using only the original Beach Boys sessions, with no live tracks used. The only additions were some editing and multi-tracking. Essentially, the Jason mix goes for historical accuracy. This works great in some areas (the edit between the original "Holidays" and "whispering winds" is cool!), but in other areas not so great (the sound on the "I'm In Great Shape" edit is 'muddy'). Also, the mix is completely in mono, which is a nice touch. The version of "Good Vibrations" is the original version (If SMiLE had been released in '67 isn't that the version that would have been used?). This is a great effort of using only authentic tracks. Purist are gonna dig this version!
E-mail Jason at jason.penick@sbcglobal.net
SMiLE mix by the Grooveblaster The Grooveblaster's SMiLE mix is probably the most "professionally" done mix out of all that I heard. Using a combination of original studio tracks and segments from the live shows, this mix's ultimate goal seemed to be "continuity", following the live version as closely as possible. Thus, the use of a large amount of live tracks to help the flow of the songs mimick the live show. However, the inclusion of the live tracks is expertly grafted to the original studio tracks, with no loss or jumps in sound quality. "Heroes & Villains" is a great version using many original sources. "Do You Like Worms" combines verses from the live show with the studio track. A nice little touch was the adding of the "hey mister" line of the live "Cabinessence" to the 20/20 track! Although, he relies a bit too much on the live tracks for my personal tastes, the Grooveblaster SMiLE mix is the strongest recreation of how SMiLE would have sounded in 1967. All in all, a great version which combines the 2004 SMiLE with those classic original tracks with superior fidelity!
The Grooveblaster also supplied me with a list of his sources:
Wonderful - Box set
Great Shape - 2/24 show combined with Hawthorne demo
Wanna learn more about SMiLE?
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