Uploaded on Dec 25, 2009
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, the Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962.
The band's early music gained popularity across the United States for its close vocal harmonies and lyrics reflecting a Southern California youth culture of surfing, cars, and romance. By the mid 1960s, Brian Wilson's growing creative ambition and songwriting ability would dominate the group's musical direction. The primarily Wilson-composed Pet Sounds album and "Good Vibrations" single (both released in 1966) featured a complex, intricate and multi-layered sound that was a far cry from the simple surf rock of the Beach Boys' early years.
Starting in 1967, Wilson gradually abdicated control to the rest of the band, assuming a reduced level of input due to mental-health and substance-abuse issues. Though the more democratic incarnation of the Beach Boys recorded a string of albums in various musical styles that garnered international critical and commercial success, the group struggled to reclaim their commercial and critical momentum in America despite once being seen as the primary competitors to the Beatles.
Since the 1980s, there has been much legal-wrangling among the group members over royalties, songwriting credits, and use of the band's name. Following Carl Wilson's death in 1998, a number of versions of the band, each fronted by a surviving member of the original quintet (Dennis having died in 1983), continued to tour into the 2000s. In 2012, the surviving Beach Boys put aside their differences, recorded a new album, and embarked on a full-scale reunion tour.
The Beach Boys have often been called "America's Band",[1] and Allmusic has stated that "the band's unerring ability... made them America's first, best rock band."[2] The group has had 36 United States Top 40 hits (the most by an American rock band) and 56 Hot 100 hits, including four number-one singles.[2] Rolling Stone magazine listed The Beach Boys at number 12 on their 2004 list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".[3]
The core quintet of the three Wilsons, Love and Jardine was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.
| The Beach Boys | |
|---|---|
 The Beach Boys Lineup in 1965 From left to right: Dennis Wilson, Mike Love, Brian Wilson, Carl Wilson, Al Jardine |
|
| Background information | |
| Origin | Hawthorne, California, United States |
| Genres | Rock, pop, surf rock, psychedelic rock |
| Years active | 1961–present |
| Labels | Capitol, Brother, Reprise, Caribou, CBS |
| Associated acts | American Spring, The Honeys, Jan & Dean |
| Website | thebeachboys.com |
| Members | |
| Brian Wilson Mike Love Al Jardine David Marks Bruce Johnston |
|
| Past members | |
| Dennis Wilson Carl Wilson Glen Campbell Ricky Fataar Blondie Chaplin | |
Early successes with surf and hot-rod themed rock (1962–64)
In 1962, the Beach Boys began wearing blue/gray-striped button-down shirts tucked into white pants as their touring "uniforms", the band's signature look through to 1966.[citation needed]
Although Murry effectively seized managerial control of the band without consultation, Brian acknowledges that he "deserves credit for getting us off the ground... he hounded us mercilessly... [but] also worked hard himself".
He was the first to stress the importance of having a follow-up hit.[citation needed] The band duly recorded four more originals on June 13 at Western Studios, Los Angeles, including "Surfer Girl", "409" and "Surfin' Safari". The session ended on a bitter note, however: Murry Wilson unsuccessfully suggested and then demanded that the Beach Boys record some of his own songs, saying "My songs are better than yours."[7]
On July 16, on the strength of the June demo session, the Beach Boys were signed to Capitol Records. By November, their first album was ready—Surfin' Safari.[8] Their song output continued along the same commercial line, focusing on California youth lifestyle.[5]
The early Beach Boys’ hits helped raise the profile of both the state of California and surfing. The group also celebrated the Golden State’s obsession with hot-rod racing ("Shut Down", "409" and "Little Deuce Coupe") and the pursuit of happiness by carefree teens ("Be True to Your School", "Fun, Fun, Fun" and "I Get Around").[9]
Apart from Murry Wilson and the close vocal harmonies of Brian's favorite groups, early inspiration came from the driving rock-and-roll sound of Chuck Berry, and Phil Spector's Wall of Sound production.[10][11]
Musically, two of their early songs were influenced by others: "Surfer Girl" shares its melody with "When You Wish Upon a Star", while "Surfin' USA" is a variation of Berry's "Sweet Little Sixteen".[12] A lawsuit eventually granted Berry writing credit as well as royalties from the record.[13]
The group's early hits made them major pop stars in the United States, the United Kingdom and several other countries as well, with sixteen hit singles between 1962–1965. However, with the British Invasion in 1964, some British groups, in particular The Beatles, eclipsed their success.
Source: Wikipedia
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