Terry, I found picnic shoulders on sale a while back for 99cents and bought one for the freezer. A little while later, I smoked it to make pulled pork for my parents. Thanks to K Kruger, I knew to trip the skin off before smoking (which was a PITA), and it turned out really good. You're right in that it doesn't pull exactly like butt so I had to use my knife a little more than usual but the results were very good.
There is an old-time family owned BBQ restaurant in the area that cooks only shoulders.
Like you, I prefer butts because I can better predict how they are going to cook, but if I can get the shoulders cheaper than butts, I don't mind tossing them on the WSM!
I often have the same problem with any meat that has been in cyrovac and I usually give it a quick rinse and pat dry before I start prepping it. Smell goes right away.
But always remember the words of Chris Rock: "Red meat will not kill you; GREEN meat will kill you!"
Pat
Pat