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The Beach Boys song that Brian Wilson wrote and calls his favorite
Formed in Hawthorne, California back in 1962 by the brothers Carl, Dennis and Brian Wilson, alongside their cousin Mike Love and their friend Al Jardine, the Beach Boys became one of the most influential bands of all time. They sold an estimated amount of more than 100 million records worldwide and changed the course of music after the release of their groundbreaking album “Pet Sounds” in 1966.
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The mastermind behind those classic records was Brian Wilson and between all the incredible songs he wrote, the musician once revealed which one is his favorite.
The Beach Boys song that Brian Wilson wrote and calls his favorite
In a video posted on his social media, the musician revealed that “California Girls,” released as a single in 1965 and featured on their album “Summer Days”, is his favorite song that he has written.
Talking with Scott Simon in 2016 he explained: “Yeah, ‘California Girls.’ It’s my favorite because of the bass. The bass line and the lyrics. I thought the lyrics were pretty good,” Brian Wilson said. The song which had Mike Love as the lead vocalist became a hit really quick. It peaked at number 3 on the United States Billboard Hot 100, number 2 in Canada and number 1 in South Africa.
Johann Sebastian Bach influenced the song according to Wilson
Brian Wilson already knew that the legendary German classical composer Johann Sebastian Bach was an influence to the song’s rhythm. In his biography “I Am Brian Wilson: A Memoir”, the musician explained that the song started as an old cowboy movie.
“The idea of ‘California Girls’ is that there’s this guy who thinks about girls all the time, so much that he starts to imagine all kinds. But there’s only one kind he really wants, and that’s the kind that’s right there at home.”
“The music started off like those old cowboy movies, when the hero’s riding slowly into the town, bum-ba-dee-dah. I was playing that at the piano after an acid trip. I played it until I almost couldn’t hear what I was playing, and then I saw the melody hovering over the piano part,” Brian Wilson said.
He said that the intro to “California Girls” is the greatest piece of music he ever wrote
Brian Wilson is considered one of the best songwriters of the history of music and wrote many incredible songs. Not only the lyrics, but especially the melody. In a 1993 interview with Capitol Records, Wilson said the intro of “California Girls” is the best piece of music he ever wrote. “Everybody was up (In the studio). The whole gang was there. It became my favorite session. The intro to this song is the greatest piece of music that I’ve ever written. I was looking for an introduction that would be totally different from the rest of the song but would lead into it. The song was a big record for us, but I really never liked anything but the intro.”
“It was special, I knew that would become the theme song of the Beach Boys,” Wilson told the Los Angeles Times. “It’s an anthem. That song went to №3 in the country. I think if anything, that song speaks louder than ever. Everyone knows about California girls, and that song is the reason,” Brian Wilson said.
“California Girls” continues as one of The Beach Boys’ signature songs and even became a hit again in the 80s with the praised David Lee Roth version.