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ivan@stellysee.de
| From | jchasin@nyc.rr.com |
| Subject | Re: Top, top 20 (reaction) |
| Date | Fri, 07 Jan 2005 13:31:47 -0500 |
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I tend to disagree that SMiLE is overrated, because I think that you have to view it as a culmination of a 37-year process. (PS, I do agree the live shows were outstanding.) It is easy to criticize the new versions of the classic songs, and Brian singing lead on every song, while lending some official Beach Boy cred to the thing, is also a distinct departure from the BB's Modus Operandi. And I had a hard time myself getting comfortable to, say, "Heroes and Villains" without the audible edits. It took me a while to warm up to it; my original reaction was much the same as yours. And if I just want to hear the song "Surf's Up," I can't imagine listening to this version. But the composition itself as a whole is an impressive and ambitious one that I think held up over time, and personally I think it has been properly rated. I wonder how we'd react to it if we had no familiarity at all with the original versions of the songs?
----- Original Message -----
From: "Durben, Steven" <Steven.Durben@cignabehavioral.com>
> Bill,
> That's been my reaction too. I have been surprised to see how
> highly it
> has been rated by so many people on this list. Not "surprised" in
> a sense
> that you are all wrong and I am right. Actually, more like I'm
> must be
> "missing it" somehow. But, while I like it, it just doesn't grab
> me or
> compel me to listen to it. It's like a long lost friend that I
> once knew,
> all dressed but something's not quite right, rather then being a
> new love
> (cliché overload). There's something to perfect or precise in it's
> execution/production. I don't really know how to describe it but
> while I
> like it, respect it's creation, I don't love it. I do love that
> Brian has
> made it per the "release" it has reportedly given him and the
> accolades it
> has brought him.
>
>
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