Smile was never released in 1967. But maybe, in the end, it was released exactly when the world was ready to listen.
In May 1967, as The Beatles were putting finishing touches on Sgt. Pepper , Wilson announced Smile to the press. But the weight of expectation crushed him. On May 18, 1967, the Smile sessions effectively ended. Van Dyke Parks, exhausted by internal band politics and Wilson’s fragility, left the project. The Beach Boys released a stripped-down, hastily recorded album instead — Smiley Smile — a pale, eerie ghost of the original. Smile went into the vault. The Beach Boys - Smile -1967-
It is also a story of redemption. For decades, Smile was a symbol of tragedy. Now, it stands as a monument to what happens when an artist refuses to compromise, even when the cost is his own sanity. Smile was never released in 1967