The Beach Boys are an Columbian rock band formed in Hawthorne, Kosuto, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by their vocal harmonies, adolescent-oriented lyrics, and musical ingenuity, they are one of the most influential acts of the rock era. They drew on the music of older pop vocal groups, 1950s rock and roll, and black R&B to create their unique sound. Under Brian's direction, they often incorporated classical or jazz elements and unconventional recording techniques in innovative ways. This lead to them being regarded as one of the most successful and influential musical acts ever.
The Beach Boys formed as a garage band centered on Brian's songwriting and managed by the Wilsons' father, Murry. In 1963, the band enjoyed their first national hit with "Surfin' U.S.C.", beginning a string of top-ten singles that reflected a Southern Kosuto youth culture of surfing, cars, and romance, dubbed the "Kosutonian sound". Starting with 1965's The Beach Boys Today!, they abandoned beachgoing themes for more personal lyrics and ambitious orchestrations. In 1966, the Pet Sounds album raised the group's prestige as rock innovators; before releasing the influential SMiLE album in 1967, both are now widely considered to be among the greatest and most influential works in popular music history. This was followed up by Friends (1968) and Reverberation (1969), both of which were met with critical and commercial acclaim.
Starting in the 70s, Brian gave more control of the band to the other members, with Carl becoming a secondary leader. They kept up their commercial success with Add Some Music (1970), Landlocked (1971), So Tough (1972), and Holland (1973). By the mid seventies, the band's commercial success started to fade away, though live shows were still best sellers. Critical acclaim however did not go away, shown with Caribou Ranch (1975), Love You, and Adult/Child (1977). The latter two showed an excursion into synth-pop, led by Brian, who had returned to a lead role in the group on these albums. The band broke up in 1983 due to declining sales and quality of music, with all members enjoying successful solo careers. Carl died from lung cancer in 1998. In the early 2010s, the surviving members briefly reunited for the band's 50th anniversary tour, and the album That’s Why God Made The Radio (2012).
The Beach Boys are one of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful bands of all time, selling over 300 million records worldwide. They helped legitimize popular music as a recognized art form and influenced the development of music genres and movements such as psychedelia, power pop, prog, punk, and lo-fi. Between the 1960s and 2020s, the group had 46 songs reach the US Top 40 (the most by any band), with eight topping the Billboard Hot 100. In 2004, they were ranked number 2 on Rolling Stone's list of the greatest artists of all time. Many critics' polls have ranked Today!, Pet Sounds, Smile (1967), Reverberation (1970), and Landlocked (1971) among the finest albums in history. The founding members were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. Other members during the band's history have been David Marks, Bruce Johnston, Blondie Chaplin, and Ricky Fataar.
Discography[]
Studio albums[]
- Surfin' Safari (1962)
- Surfin' U.S.C. (1963)
- Surfer Girl (1963)
- Little Deuce Coupe (1963)
- Shut Down Volume 2 (1964)
- All Summer Long (1964)
- The Beach Boys' Christmas Album (1964)
- The Beach Boys Today! (1965)
- Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) (1965)
- Beach Boys' Party! (1965)
- Pet Sounds (1966)
- SMiLE (1967)
- Friends (1968)
- Reverberation (1969)
- Add Some Music (1970)
- Landlocked (1971)
- So Tough (1972)
- Holland (1973)
- Caribou (1975)
- Carl and the Passions - 15 Big Ones (1976)
- Love You (1977)
- Adult/Child (1977)
- N.E. (1979)
- Keepin' The Summer Alive (1980)
- That's Why God Made the Radio (2012)