Smiley Smile

**Smiley Smile** is the 12th studio album by American rock band The Beach Boys, released on 15 July 1967 and produced by Lou Adler and the Beach Boys. Originally a very similar premise under the name *Smile*, the project drastically changed in the last three months after the band replaced Brian with Adler as the main producer. The final product of the sessions resulted on over 50 hours of tape, which were later released as *The Smile Sessions* in 2017, celebrating its 50th anniversary.

After several attempts to reorganize the album's tracks, the band hired Lou Adler and scrapped several of the tracks in favor of others that seemed radio-friendly. This included four brand-new tracks comprising of the new intro *Whistle In*, *Can't Wait Too Long*, *In Blue Hawaii*, and *Little Pad*. A stripped-down version of the album was recorded, but shelved, only released in 1970 as an extended play. Despite this, most of the album was produced and almost entirely composed by Brian Wilson with guest lyricist and assistant arranger Van Dyke Parks.

From late 1966 to mid-1967, Smile was repeatedly delayed while the Beach Boys were subject to a considerable level of media hype that proclaimed Wilson as a "genius". After settling payment disputes with Capitol Records, Smiley Smile was the last album distributed by Capitol. The album's production was unusually credited to the Beach Boys and an outsider producer, marking the point where Wilson began ceding his leadership of the group.

The album reached number 3 in the United States and number 2 in the United Kingdom, both losing to The Beatles' Sgt. Peppers. The acclaim from the album came from several factors: the emergence of the Flower Power movement, the beginning of the Summer of Love, and Sgt. Peppers. The record was regarded as highly influential in later scenes, while some people consider the record as the beginning of Beach Boys' golden age (although most consider *Pet Sounds* or *The Beach Boys Today*), and often considered one of the leading albums of the Summer of Love. Wilson touted Smiley Smile as a "teenage symphony to God" to surpass *Pet Sounds*.

## Personnel

The Beach Boys
* Al Jardine – lead, harmony and backing vocals, vegetable chomping
* Bruce Johnston – harmony and backing vocals
* Mike Love – lead, harmony and backing vocals, vegetable chomping
* Brian Wilson – lead, harmony and backing vocals; grand piano, harpsichord, tack piano, Baldwin organ, electric harpsichord, Fender bass, temple blocks, tambourine, vegetable chomping
* Carl Wilson – lead, harmony and backing vocals; electric guitar, Fender bass, acoustic guitar, castanet, shaker, vegetable chomping
* Dennis Wilson – lead, harmony and backing vocals, drums, percussion, Hammond organ, xylophone, vegetable chomping

Additional musicians
* Gene Gaddy – "You're under arrest!"
* Van Dyke Parks – piano with taped strings, upright piano, tack piano, marimba
* Paul Tanner – Electro-Theremin
* The Wrecking Crew – upright bass, drums, percussion, dobro, bongos, glockenspiel, hi hat, stick, tambourine, temple blocks, vibraphone, guitar, piano, tack piano, viola, cello, Hammond organ, marimba, recorder, shaker, triangle, whistle, accordion, saxophone, conga drums, clarinet, flute, kazoo, piccolo, slide whistle, percussion, violin, French horn, bass guitar, banjo, grand piano, trumpet, bass harmonica, jew's-harp, harpsichord, harp, celeste, electric harpsichord, bouzouki
* Paul McCartney – vegetable chomping (uncredited)

Production
* The Beach Boys – producers
* Lou Adler – producer
* Brian Wilson – arranger, composer, liner notes, main personnel, photography
* Guy Webster – photography
* Chuck Britz – engineer
* Jim Lockert – engineer