Uncovering the Cornfield: Revisions of History in Smile's 'Cabin Essence'

TY - JOUR

T1 - Uncovering the Cornfield

T2 - Revisions of History in Smile's 'Cabin Essence'

AU - Carter, Dale

PY - 2015

Y1 - 2015

N2 - Observers agree that a pivotal factor in the abandonment of the Beach Boys’ Smile album in 1967 was the hostility shown by group members to some of Brian Wilson co-writer Van Dyke Parks’s lyrics. The latter still tend, however, to be cited more than they are analyzed. This reading of the song occasioning most friction – ‘Cabin Essence’ – argues that it was neither disorganized nor unintelligible. An encapsulation of Smile’s concerns informed by the new left and counter-cultural contexts of its creation, it offered critical snapshots of the nation’s historical experience and identity, and a complex vision of national redemption.

AB - Observers agree that a pivotal factor in the abandonment of the Beach Boys’ Smile album in 1967 was the hostility shown by group members to some of Brian Wilson co-writer Van Dyke Parks’s lyrics. The latter still tend, however, to be cited more than they are analyzed. This reading of the song occasioning most friction – ‘Cabin Essence’ – argues that it was neither disorganized nor unintelligible. An encapsulation of Smile’s concerns informed by the new left and counter-cultural contexts of its creation, it offered critical snapshots of the nation’s historical experience and identity, and a complex vision of national redemption.

KW - Van Dyke Parks, Smile, Brian Wilson, Beach Boys, Popular Music

U2 - 10.1080/03007766.2014.970858

DO - 10.1080/03007766.2014.970858

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0300-7766

VL - 38

SP - 565

EP - 585

JO - Popular Music & Society

JF - Popular Music & Society

IS - 5

ER -