Reunions, lawsuits, drugs, death and music history – it’s all part of The Beach Boys rock and roll fantasy.
The Beach Boys, who play The Sharon on Saturday and Sunday at 5 and 8 pm, truly are America’s band.
The original group included lead singer Mike Love, guitarist Al Jardine and the Wilson brothers: Brian, the dysfunctional genius; Carl, the brilliant musician and Dennis, the sex symbol drummer who lost the battle of drugs and alcohol and died young.
Put them all together – with longtime Beach Boy Bruce Johnston who still tours with Love – and you have a host of rock and roll standards: “Good Vibrations,” “I Get Around,” “California Girls,” “Fun Fun Fun,” “Kokomo,” “God Only Knows” and the landmark album “Pet Sounds.”
The Beach Boys – who at various times included Glen Campbell and original member David Marks — changed music forever and left an indelible mark on popular culture, especially for Baby Boomers.
In the 1960s, the Beach Boys captured teen spirit, singing surf music and mythologizing hot rods, California girls and life on the beach.
Mike Love is the last original still touring with the 2016 version of the Beach Boys.
“It doesn’t bother me at all because the songs are so great and I always loved singing harmony,” Love once told me in an interview. “This is the music of the Beach Boys and when I get on stage, it still feels like the Beach Boys.”
But life was more challenging when the boys became men.
Dennis Wilson died in a 1983 drowning accident after years of alcohol abuse.
Carl Wilson, a longtime smoker, died of cancer in 1998.
Brian Wilson spent decades battling personal and psychological demons. He not only survived but has prospered in recent years. He currently tours with his own band.
Al Jardine also occasionally tours, and has appeared with Brian Wilson. The Beach Boys have been in court for decades, fighting each other over various business issues.
The Band did a “50th Anniversary Reunion Tour” a few years ago, but still had differences and it didn’t last.
What does last though, is the impact of the Beach Boys music.
“Pet Sounds’ blew me out of the water,” Paul McCartney once told journalist David Leaf. “First of all, it was Brian’s writing. I love that album so much. I’ve bought my kids each a copy of it for their education in life. I figure no one is educated musically until they’ve heard that album. I was into the writing and the songs.”
McCartney has said that without “Pet Sounds” there would be no “Sgt. Pepper.”
The Beach Boys, like the Beatles, were heavily influenced by early rock and roll. One of their classic songs was a cover of the Regents’ “Barbara Ann.” Here is a video:
“We loved harmony,” Love told me, adding that Chuck Berry and the Four Freshmen were major influences. He added that the Beatles, Motown and the Beach Boys took early rock sounds and transformed them into the dominant part of 1960s’ popular music. “I think those songs are timeless because they still express the way people feel,” he said.
Love is now in his 70s and sometimes the memories – as they are for many Baby Boomers — are bittersweet.
“I wish I could change some things,” he once told me. “I wish we all knew more about drugs, alcohol and smoking when we were growing up. I wish Brian didn’t have to deal with his problems and Dennis didn’t drink and Carl didn’t smoke. But they did.”
I once asked Love to comment on some Beach Boys records:
“Surfin’ Safari” (1962, the band’s first big hit). “Nobody had ever done a song about surfing. We figured it might work.”
“409” (flipside of “Surfin’ Safari’). “Everybody we knew had a car. Every kid knew about powerful cars. Dennis had a 409, so we did a song about it.”
“I Get Around.” “I just got bugged sitting in traffic. We made it into a song.”
“Good Vibrations.” “The record company didn’t like it and objected. They wanted us to sing car songs and surf songs.”
“Fun, Fun, Fun.” “Brian and I doing a car song. Great guitar intro.”
“Barbara Ann.” “The record company kept asking for another album. We just got together in the studio and had a party. (the album was called “Beach Boys Party”).
“Sloop John B.” “The Kingston Trio did it first as a folk song, and they did it well. We added some instruments and harmony. It evolved into what we were trying to do on ‘Pet Sounds.’”