Brian Wilson, the visionary leader of the Beach Boys and pioneering force in California rock, has died at the age of 82.
“We are heartbroken to announce that our beloved father Brian Wilson has passed away. We are at a loss for words right now,” his family stated in a social media announcement. “Please respect our privacy at this time as our family is grieving. We realise that we are sharing our grief with the world.”
While no specific cause of death was provided, it was revealed in February 2024 that Wilson had been battling dementia, according to Rolling Stone.
Wilson’s longtime manager Jean Sievers described him as “a sweet, gentle soul as well as fierce competitor” in a statement, adding, “There will never ever be anyone like him again. God truly broke the mold when he created Brian Wilson.”
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The Beach Boys co-founder leaves behind an extraordinary musical legacy that includes three Number One singles: “I Get Around”, “Help Me, Rhonda”, and “Good Vibrations”. During the 1960s, the Beach Boys were not only America’s most successful band but contenders with the Beatles for global dominance. Wilson’s masterpiece album Pet Sounds revolutionised rock music with its orchestral production techniques, demonstrating how the recording studio itself could function as an instrument.
Born on 20th June 1942 in Hawthorne, California, Wilson was the eldest of three brothers, with Dennis and Carl being his younger siblings. Their father Murry, while an aspiring songwriter, was also abusive. In his 1991 autobiography, Wilson wrote: “Although he saw himself as a loving father who guided his brood with a firm hand, he abused us psychologically and physically, creating wounds that never healed.”
Music became Wilson’s refuge, and he taught his brothers to harmonise with him from an early age. In 1961, Brian, Dennis, and Carl formed a band with their cousin Mike Love and friend Al Jardine, managed by Murry Wilson. Brian played bass, took many lead vocals, and wrote the songs that would define the California sound.
After signing to Capitol Records, the Beach Boys delivered a string of hits celebrating the California teenage lifestyle, including “Surfin’ U.S.A.”, “Surfer Girl”, “Be True to Your School”, and “Fun, Fun, Fun”. However, underneath the sunny exterior of these songs often lay a profound sense of melancholy, particularly evident in tracks like “In My Room”.
Wilson experienced a nervous breakdown while touring in Europe in 1964 and decided to stop performing live, instead focusing on studio work while the other Beach Boys toured. This period produced the magnificent ‘Pet Sounds’ in 1966, an album that regularly tops lists of the greatest albums ever made. Paul McCartney frequently cited ‘Pet Sounds’ as a masterpiece and called “God Only Knows” his favourite song of all time.
Following Pet Sounds, Wilson created “Good Vibrations”, the Beach Boys’ finest single, recorded over six months at a reported cost that made it the most expensive single in history at that time. His next ambitious project, Smile, described as a “teenage symphony to God,” was abandoned as Wilson’s mental health deteriorated, partly due to his consumption of drugs and the indifference of his bandmates.
Wilson spent much of the next decade secluded in his Bel Air mansion, while the Beach Boys continued as a popular touring act without him. He eventually returned to music, releasing solo albums beginning with 1988’s ‘Brian Wilson’. During this period, Wilson was under the controversial care of therapist Dr. Eugene Landy, who was eventually removed following a lawsuit filed by Wilson’s family in 1992.
In 2004, Wilson completed Smile, the legendary “lost” album, to critical acclaim. He reunited with the Beach Boys in 2012 for That’s Why God Made the Radio, which peaked at Number Three on the Billboard 200, their highest-charting album since 1965.
Wilson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the Beach Boys in 1988 and entered the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2000, where Paul McCartney called him “one of the great American geniuses.” He also received Kennedy Center Honors in 2007 for his contribution to music.
In February 2024, weeks after the death of his second wife and manager Melinda, Wilson’s family revealed his dementia diagnosis and sought a conservatorship to ensure his care.
“Being called a musical genius was a cross to bear,” Wilson once told Rolling Stone. “Genius is a big word. But if you have to live up to something, you might as well live up to that. Goddamn!”
