SMiLE: The 3971 Edit

This edit of SMiLE holds a special place in my heart as the first I'd ever heard, and it remains the definitive edit to me. It recreates the 2004 version using as much 60s material as possible, using 2004 material to fill in the gaps. While some might be opposed to the use of 2004 material (maybe because of that freakin' Purple Chick mix), it actually merges the two versions surprisingly well and the whole thing sounds seamless and complete.

You can listen to it all here:

(also posted is an updated version which, er, I helped do)

Here's what the editor, tygerbug, has to say:

Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys - SMiLE

The 3971 Edit

by Tygerbug

This edit attempts to combine the 1967 (ish) and 2004 recordings of Brian Wilson's SMiLE into one complete piece.

1967 + 2004 = 3971.

Do you like both the original Beach Boys SMiLE recordings and Brian's 2004 performance? Do you often find yourself, when listening to one of them, wishing you were listening to the other, just to hear a bit of music or lyric you're missing?

The Beach Boys recordings have a quality that the 2004 performance can't touch. However, the 2004 album contains lyrics and music that don't exist in any 60s form, and shapes the SMiLE album into a surprisingly coherent whole.

A professional release couldn't merge the two; that's musical sacrilege.

But for the purposes of this edit, that's exactly what I've done - switch back and forth from 60s recordings to 2004 ones within the same track, so that nearly every piece of music or lyric you might want to hear is there.

And it's nearly all in stereo!

I tried something very unusual with the "Water" section - Recorded as I Love to Say Da Da, Cool Cool Water, and In Blue Hawaii. I extended this section to quite a length, deciding to use all three songs, plus the unrelated song "Little Pad" from the Smiley Smile album. So this is essentially In Blue Hawaii from the 2004 album, with sections of Cool Cool Water and Little Pad interspersed.

If you think that's dumb, the extensions are their own track and can be removed to leave just In Blue Hawaii.

Also, the bonus track "He Gives Speeches" is now combined with Smiley Smile's "She's Goin' Bald" as one track.

Apart from that, all of the material is from the 2011 Smile sessions boxset or the 2004 Brian Wilson Smile album.

However, I used other people's fanedits for many of the tracks. Soniclovenoize's stereo version of SMiLE was used for many of the 60s tracks, notably his version of Good Vibrations with the original lyrics.

Bruiteur's versions of Barnyard and I'm in Great Shape were used, which cleans up the piano demos for a much clearer vocal - although Barnyard is the stereo take on that by another fan. I also used Bruiteur's "Wonderful," which marries the 60s vocal to the 2004 instruments.

I believe I used adam78's mono edits in places as well. Not sure though, as I tried to avoid mono.

"You're Welcome," "He Gives Speeches" and a few later Beach Boys tracks are thrown on as bonuses.

Enjoy!

Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys - SMiLE
The 3971 Edit
by Tygerbug

Download here