That was the beginning. Brian’s first thought was to call his cousin Mike Love. A year older than Brian, Mike was a tall, sharp-tongued jock whose indifference to school had left him, after graduating in 1959, with no real prospects for college or a career. He’d been thrown out of his parents’ home after they learned that he’d gotten a girl pregnant. Convinced that the fastest, easiest road to economic security led through the entertainment mills of Hollywood, he was only too glad to merge his own pop ambitions with those of his talented cousin. Working together one summer afternoon, the boys composed a shuffling R & B–style song they called, simply, “Surfin’.” It pivoted on a chanted chorus that echoed the thoughts of every teenage surfer in Southern California: “Surfin’ is the only life, the only way for me / Now surf! Surf with me!”
Eager to put together a band to perform the song, Brian called in Al Jardine, a music-loving Hawthorne High classmate who had long pursued Brian about forming a folksinging group. Fourteen-year-old Carl came next, adding his sweet, smooth voice and the growing catalogue of Chuck Berry licks he was learning to play on his guitar. Dennis was the last addition, mostly at the insistence of Audree, who didn’t think it would be fair to leave him out, especially since he’d thought of the whole surfing-tune idea in the first place. The boys rented microphones, drums, amplifiers, and a standup bass and recorded a livingroom demo over the Labor Day weekend. The tape impressed Murry enough for him to proclaim himself their manager. Soon the group was in a storefront studio on Melrose Avenue, recording their song for professional release.
Put out in early December, “Surfin’” became a hit in Los Angeles, and equipped with that small triumph, Murry took the band to Capitol Records, which in May 1962 released “Surfin’ Safari,” a more melodic, vividly worded version of “Surfin’.” A pop guitarist named Dick Dale had earlier pioneered instrumental surf music, capturing the energy of the waves in lightning-fast guitar arpeggios and wails, but the Beach Boys were the first band to spin beach life into song.
My own (lengthy and rather outrageously pretentious) take on the Beach Boys legacy is here in conjuntion with a review of the Sounds of Summer collection from '03:
- I own about ten different Beach Boys collections, but I am always willing to look at a new one. Sounds of Summer: The Very Best of the Beach Boys is an outstanding single-CD compilation with 30 songs covering the Boys' entire career, the best single-CD set yet from the greatest American group of the '60s.
Article comments
1 - Emily
Great post, Eric! FYI, California has recently granted permission to mark the childhood home of the Wilsons in Hawthorne, CA an official state landmark, even though the home was dozed over a decade ago to make way for the 105 freeway.
2 - Eric Olsen
thanks Emily, I really appreciate the kind words and that's great news about the Hawthorne home and its famous garage, which no longer exist
3 - Eric Olsen
Update - a mini-film about the making of Smile is now available above, check it out.
4 - riley moriarty
There was talk that a recording of the smiLE concert from carnegie hall 10/12 or 13 may be available through NonSuch Records. Do you have any information on that?
5 - Eric Olsen
Riley, I don't see anything about it yet on Brian's site