I predict he says 'No.'

When SMiLE first came out, I said somewhere that I thought it was better than Pet Sounds, Pepper, or Revolver. That was in the rush of first delight with having it in my hands, of course. I still have a very, very high view of SMiLE, but I realize that it is not just about the finished album but about the entire saga which it represents and the triumph of a troubled human being whom I have great respect for.

At this point, having had some more time to live with it, I think I would say that I consider SMiLE at least the equal of either Pepper or Pet Sounds in its present form. But I would add that it is so different from any other music of the period in which it was originally created, that it's really unfair to even make such comparisons. I would also add that the history of the project is so unique as to make such comparisons irrelevant.

I stand corrected and somewhat shocked.

So Pet Sounds is a greater/equally bitchin' finished product but SMiLE as a cultural phenomenon is a little more incredible?

Hmmmm...since you put it that way...no, I could not say that I consider Pet Sounds greater. I really do consider SMiLE to be a better finished product. I'm just very reluctant to take away any of Pet Sounds' well-deserved reputation.

If you were one of us that were around when the Good Rev. was still preaching The Word of Brian Wilson on RM....you wouldn't be surprised.

yeah based on the old thread when the new smile was first announced and then after it was out, I would've expected the answer he just gave

Yeah, those were halcyon days, to be sure...I was so jazzed just because he did it, you know. And I'm still very thankful that I lived to see and hear it.

Good Rev. as you recall unlike you, I was expecting a disaster going in. So, for me, it couldn't be a let down.


If anything, it finally got my formerly youngest daughter to start to listen to Non-MTV related music.


I swear.....I was starting to think The Dark Side was going to win with that one.


She did go overkill with it. To the point, I had to inform her siblings that their mother and myself wouldn't be too happy if they made their formerly youngest sister disappear.

Pet Sounds wins in my book by a mile. Just the Beach Boys' (especially the Wilson Bros.) harmonies and Brian Wilson's high voice alone make Pet Sounds a treat for the ears that Pepper doesn't even come close to. Pepper is a good album, I enjoy listening to it every now and again, but people give it too much credit. A Day In The Life, Lucy In The Sky, and Benefit of Mr. Kite are the only Pepper songs that even equal up to Pet Sounds in my book, though none of the songs on Pepper have the personal emotional appeal the Pet Sounds has. I could especially relate to I Know There's An Answer, That's Not Me, and Here Today when I first heard Pet Sounds. Plus Pet Sounds had God Only Knows. McCartney himself has called this the greatest pop song of all time. The bass lines on Pet Sounds inspired McCartney to play more challenging bass lines on Pepper. If Good Vibrations had been put on Pet Sounds, it could've knocked Pepper out of the park, instead Wilson made an even better album (which sadly wasn't finished until 2004) called SMiLE. If Smile would've come out on time, Pepper wouldn't be as revered as it is today, IMO.