The Beach Boys - Smiley Smile

The ultimate pressings of the Beach Boys discography from Analogue Productions!

Original mono mix produced by The Beach Boys

One of 10 titles featuring 33 1/3 mono and stereo remastered editions: Surfin' USA, Surfer Girl, Little Deuce Coupe, Shut Down Vol. 2, All Summer Long, Today!, Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!), Beach Boys Party!, Pet Sounds and Smiley Smile

Audio production — Mark Linett

For Brother Records — Elliott Lott

Mastered by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio, most from the original master tapes or best sources available

Lacquer plating by Gary Salstrom and 180-gram vinyl pressing by Quality Record Pressings!

"These are the best sounding and best-looking versions of the Beach Boys records that have ever been produced. We want everything about these to be better than the original." — Chad Kassem, owner and CEO, Acoustic Sounds

HiFi News "Album Choice" for February 2017!

"History will never respect this album because of the mythical status of Smile, of which this is the compromised surrogate issued in 1967. The Smile tracks were spread out over later LPs and a reconstruction of what it might have been appeared in 2004, but this is still something special: it contains, after all, 'Heroes And Villians,' 'Vegetables,' 'Good Vibrations,' 'Wind Chimes' and 'Wonderful,' — five tracks from the Smile project. This album is simply gorgeous and superior to much of the highly-praised dreck of the era. Who still listens to the inane After Bathing at Baxter's? Acoustic Sounds has also released this as two LPs: stereo (APP 068) and mono (App 068M); both mixes are on the SACD. My original mono LP ain't for sale!" Sound Quality = 92% — Ken Kessler, HiFi News, January 2017

"This is an intimately drawn album of impressive musical doodles that sailed over many heads (pun intended) in 1967 but which can be far better appreciated today and needed today because of how it can help slow you down and draw you in, into Brian Wilson's head, which then was an interesting place to be. This reissue is so much better than the original, so much closer to the closely miked creation you'll almost feel like wiping off your speakers. Originally released only in mono, it's now available in stereo as well but again, for me mono is the way to go. A real magical mystery tour — no bus needed!" — Michael Fremer, AnalogPlanet.com. Read the whole review here.

"What I can say is that Kevin Gray has been able to extract every last bit of information from whatever tape is in the box, and present it in a way that is pleasing and natural to the ear. ... in my opinion, the Analogue Productions pressings are now THE definitive issue of each Beach Boys album, and will be my reference copies until if and when something better comes along — which may be never." — Lee Dempsey, Endless Summer Quarterly, Summer 2015 Edition

To meet the standards of Analogue Productions, our Beach Boys album reissues had a mission to achieve: Present the band's music the way that Brian Wilson — famed co-founder, songwriter and arranger — intended. Mono mixes created under Wilson’s supervision were how the surf rockin’ California crew rose to fame! And we’ve got ‘em!

For the early part of the Beach Boys' career, all of their singles were mixed and mastered and released only in the mono format — they didn't release a single in stereo until 1968. In those days, hits were made on AM radio in mono. And the mono of those times worked well for Brian Wilson — famed co-founder, songwriter and arranger — who suffers from partial deafness. In fact, for their first 13 albums, Wilson originally turned in all the final mixed Beach Boy albums to Capitol Records only in mono. The mono mixes were where Wilson paid intense attention, and the dedication paid off!

We’ve taken 10 of the most classic, best-sounding Beach Boy titles ever and restored them to their mono glory!

But there’s no disputing that the close harmonies and one-of-a-kind rhythms of hits like “Surfer Girl,” “In My Room,” “Little Deuce Coupe” and more lend themselves naturally to stereo. So we’ve got your 2-channel needs covered with prime stereo mix versions as well. 

Mastered by Kevin Gray, most from the original master tapes, and plated and pressed by Quality Record Pressings, the finest LP pressing facility in the world, these are awesome recordings to experience. And the look of each album befits its sonic superiority! Presented in "old school" Stoughton tip-on jackets, these time honored favorites shine brighter than the originals!

"After the much-discussed, uncompleted Smile project — which was supposed to take the innovations of Pet Sounds to even grander heights — collapsed, the Beach Boys released Smiley Smile in its place. (To clarify much confusion: Smiley Smile is an entirely different piece of work than Smile would have been, although some material that ended up on Smiley Smile would have most likely been used on Smile. Also, much of Smiley Smile was in fact recorded after the Smile sessions had ceased.)," writes AllMusic.com

For fans expecting something along the lines of Sgt. Pepper (and there were many of them), Smiley Smile was a major disappointment, replacing psychedelic experimentation with spare, eccentric miniatures. Heard now, outside of such unrealistic expectations, it's a rather nifty, if rather slight, effort that's avant garde in the extreme. "'Wind Chimes,' 'Wonderful,' 'Vegetables,' and much of the rest is low-key psychedelic quirkiness, with abundant fine harmonies and unusual arrangements. The standouts, nonetheless, were two recent hit singles in which Brian Wilson's ambitions were still intact: The inscrutable mini-opera 'Heroes and Villains,' and the number one hit 'Good Vibrations,' one of the few occasions where the group managed to be recklessly experimental and massively commercial at the same time." — AllMusic.com

 

 

1. Heroes And Villains

2. Vegetables

3. Fall Breaks Back To Winter (W. Woodpecker Symphony)

4. She’s Goin’ Bald

5. Little Pad

6. Good Vibrations

7. With Me Tonight

8. Wind Chimes

9. Getting’ Hungry

10. Wonderful

11. Whistle In

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