Album Rating: 4.5

4.5'd harddd

Album Rating: 5.0

How does this compare to Brian Wilson Presents Smile?

Album Rating: 5.0

I have both, but I rarely listen to the Brian Wilson. It's good but Brian's voice is clearly not what it was. They are noticeably different in their arrangements though which is fun to pick up on.

Album Rating: 3.5

Just listened to this after hearing Smiley Smile and honestly I prefer Smiley Smile.



The Smile Sessions sounds so overproduced that I can't help but feel it's almost further from the original Smile sound when it comes to production. Sure the track listing is far closer to what the original Smile was supposed to be, but the production makes it far less charming.



Especially since I prefer Smiley Smile's versions of "Vegatables" and "Good Vibrations" ... and I feel similarly about "Heroes and Villains" on both versions.



Pet Sounds and Smiley Smile I have 4.5'd :P

Album Rating: 5.0

How about the Smile Sessions, Ars? Definitely the best and most true to the original vision.

Album Rating: 3.5

Honestly I prefer Smiley Smile for a number of reasons:



-It's production is so simple that it's charming (The Smile Sessions seems kind of bloated in comparison)

-The voices are far warmer on Smiley Smile than The Smile Sessions invoking a sense of intimacy

-The production yet again is ominous, while The Smile Sessions seems more typically bright and happy, I prefer ominous in this case

-Smiley Smile seems to oddly represent the depth Brian Wilson's mental illness drug addiction, where The Smile Sessions seems more like what he would have made if he sobered up, therefore making this seem more like his dream, whereas Smiley Smile was his reality

-Honestly, the Smile Sessions could have used some massive trimming, which is worse than Smiley Smile being too short in my opinion

-If the original Smile was intended to have big production, cheery voices, and songs that less represented Wilson's mental illness/drug addiction than I'm glad Smiley Smile happened instead.



Wow that was a lot of reasons that immediately came to mind lol

Album Rating: 5.0

lol interesting, can't say I agree. I mean YES the druggy vibe is way higher on the non-druggy album which is irony at its finest, but the voices on smiley smile are "warmer?" When I hear Smiley Smile it sounds purposefully creepy and in no way inviting. Also the exclusion of some of the best songs such as "Surf's Up" and "Cabin Essence" is a real deal breaker. Not to mention I think EVERY song on Smile Sessions is better than the Smiley versions though Good Vibrations and Heroes and Villains only marginally so.

Album Rating: 3.5

I can't agree especially since The Smile Sessions completely omits my 2 favorites from Smiley Smile ("She's Goin' Bald" and "With Me Tonight") completely.



"Surf's Up" and "Cabin Essence" are on later Beach Boys releases anyway... so it's not like they were lost until 2011.



And yeah Smiley Smile is like warm and simultaneously creepy. Inviting, like a tender hug from a loved one when you're feeling down (probably while on a bad trip/ having a mental breakdown?)





I actually have strong feelings about Smiley Smile and i'm gonna go 5 it now, 4.5 isn't enough.

Album Rating: 5.0

Cool well the compositions are unbeatable either way. Well screw it, I'm 5'ing this!

The Smile Sessions "Surf's Up" is better than the album version though because some slight arrangement changes and especially Brian's more heartfelt lead vocals instead of Carl. The Cabin Essence from 20/20 is identical though so I'll give you that one.

I guess this means I should check Smiley Smile as well now.

So what's the difference between this and Brian Wilson's SMiLE? And honestly, it seems like most of these songs were put on later albums so it's not like this album was never made.

Album Rating: 5.0

It is a bit confusing, but the point is this is closer to what it was supposed to sound like. A good 95% of the recordings are from the actual Smile Sessions from 1966-1967, though a couple of songs he wrote back then like Cabin Essence and Surf's Up were not given full recordings until 1969 and 1971 respectively. Smile by Brian Wilson is completely recorded in the 2000s and is Brian's attempt to piece together the songs to make something close to the complete album he originally envisioned. But, since he didn't actually use original recordings, it sounds quite different.



So was some of the material released earlier? Yes, most of the standout tracks were released starting with Good Vibrations to Surf's Up. MOST however are heavily altered or trimmed down, and there are many short songs that add a lot to the entire album. Cabin Essence is the only identical track to the originally released version. Wonderful and Wind Chimes are almost unrecognizable to their Smiley Smile versions, etc.

Ahh. Gotcha. I like this version of Surf's Up better but I can't tell much difference in anything else mostly. It definitely seems like a collector's item but with me not a huge beach boys fan I'll pass mostly and just cherry pick. I just added this to my phone as a whole and had like a trillion different versions of the same song and wondered what was up.

Album Rating: 4.0

better than pet sounds, might bump

Album Rating: 4.5

do it

Album Rating: 5.0

it's not but do it anyway

Album Rating: 3.5

"better than pet sounds"



Can't agree with that.



This still just sounds like touched up demos honestly...

Album Rating: 4.0

nah it flows really well tbh

Album Rating: 4.5

get outta here ars

Album Rating: 3.5

I'm just being honest. Both Pet Sounds and Smiley Smile easily destroy this for me, but I've heard this plenty of times anyway.



Like I don't even get how this is treated like a studio album when it's only a compilation of touched up demos that are mostly less interesting than their Smiley Smile counterparts. It doesn't even have versions of my two favorites on Smiley Smile anyway. Obviously it's well made for what it is, but like way overhyped to a point where people somehow think this beats Pet Sounds.