As with many of the Smile tracks, "Cabinessence" was recorded piecemeal, with several different section comprising the finished song -- although in this case all three known sections were recorded on the same date, October 3, 1966. Less complex than "Heroes & Villains" or "Good Vibrations," "Cabinessence" was still a lovely track with very distinct movements, an excellent example of Van Dyke Parks' impressionistic lyrics. Recording started on "Cabinessence" under the title "Home on the Range," the name for the first section of the song, which featured a simple piano motif, plucked banjo, and horns. Vocals for this segment -- the playful "doing doing" backing melody with a typically Parksian lyric -- were recorded, but many bootleg recordings feature the first "Home on the Range" verse without the vocal overdubs. Either way, this piece provides a slow, languid lead-up to the next part.

Lyrically, "Cabinessence" follows several threads related to the Old West, including the expansion of America through the railroads, the immigrant's role in the U.S., and life on the farm. Whereas "Home on the Range" was a laidback approximation of the old-time farm at dawn -- an aural painting of a relaxing horseback ride across the plains, perhaps -- in "Who Ran the Iron Horse," the rapid development of the rail system completely alters life on the plains. The lyrics to "Home on the Range" provided a few clues of the shift to come ("welcomes the time for a change"), and the frantic pace of the next section is the embodiment of all the transformations that American society has gone through as technology evolves. The title line of "Who Ran the Iron Horse" is repeated rapidly over ascending backing vox, a thick bassline, and various instruments that get hidden in the maelstrom, conjuring images of swiftly revolving steam engine wheels.

The third section of "Cabinessence," which is often left off some bootleg mixes, was called "The Grand Coulee Dam." This section is musically somewhat similar to the earlier "Home on the Range," with the lyrics "have you seen the Grand Coulee working on the railroad/ over and over the crow flies uncover the corn field/ etc." Although it's a lovely part, it apparently caused a surprising amount of controversy within the band. Mike Love in particular objected to the line "over and over the crow flies uncover the corn field," asking Van Dyke Parks what it meant. When Parks somewhat cheekily replied that he didn't know, this of course enraged Love, who firmly believed in concrete rather than abstract lyrics.

But despite Parks' response, there does seem to be a fair amount of meaning invested in the lyrics to "Cabinessence," although it accomplishes its objectives more through mood and images rather than any direct narrative. The lyrics to "Home on the Range" establish a pastoral feeling of innocence and quietude, evoking the old times before industrial progress changed everything, while the grating circular motif of "Who Ran the Iron Horse" represents the wheels of change itself. Coming on the heels of "Iron Horse" -- which implies never-ending cycles of progress in its repetition -- "Grand Coulee" is a more impressionistic account of the grand scale of progress. Perhaps it's meant to be the perspective of a bird flying over America, watching railroads being built and farm machines at work. Brian described this particular part as Chinese laborers building the rail lines and glancing up to see a crow fly overhead.

In addition to the three extant segments of "Cabinessence," Van Dyke Parks wrote lyrics for a fourth section, which was either never recorded or has since been lost. The lyrics for this part (which may have been recorded on October 11, if it was at all) go: "Reconnected telephone direct dialing/ different color cords to your extension/ don't forget to mention this is a recording/ even though the echoes through my mind/ have filtered through the pines/ I came and found my peace/ and this is not a recording/ Doobie doo/ Doobie doo/ or not doobie." Despite this exclusion, it is probable that "Cabinessence" was nearly complete very early in the Smile sessions. Brian returned to the song later in October and again in December, but the only rough mix available is the Sea of Tunes one, and it's likely that despite Brian's later attempts, the song was just about done in the state we can hear it in now. -- Ed Howard, Smile: The Definitive Lost Album

October 11, 1966

Song title: Cabin Essense, Home On The Range
Studio:	Western, Columbia
Time of session:
Engineer:
Master Number:	56716
Length Of Song:	2-6 PM at Western
Musicians/vocalists:	Jimmy Bond Jr (upright bass), Carol Kaye (bass guitar), Oliver Mitchell (trumpet), Bill Pitman (guitar), Carl Wilson (guitar)

Two sessions on the 11th. the “Cabin Essence” (Child) tracking session in the afternoon and, later, the “Home on the Range” vocal session starting in the late evening and continuing into the early morning hours. -- Been Way Too Long, The Smiley Smile Message Board

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Additional lyrics were written for the song, apparently for a section that has been lost: "Reconnected telephone direct dialing/Different color cords to your extension/Don´t forget to mention this is a recording/Even though the echoes through my mind/Have filtered through the pines/I came and found my peace/And this is not a recording/Doobie doo/Doobie doo/or not doobie!" Carl and Van Dyke were among the musicians on the Oct 3 session, and Brian and Carl played on the Oct 11 date. The tracking for all three known sections of the song was recorded at the Oct 3 session, as the Oct 11 musician list does not match up with any of the sections as released on 20/20. Take 12 of Home on the Range and take 23 of Who Ran the Iron Horse were edited with take 5 of the tag for the master. The Oct 11 date could have been for the "lost" section, a new part, or for a rerecord of one of the previous sections. -- Lou Shenk, A SMiLE Primer

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