I don't surf much these days, but I sing about it beautifully
As one of the founding members of The Beach Boys, Mike Love has helped create some of pop’s most enduring hits. He speaks to ANDREW ARTHUR about why he never tires of singing those tunes and his relationship with Brian Wilson
IT was the subject of many of their songs, but these days Beach Boys founding member Mike Love is, perhaps unsurprisingly, a little more selective before going out on a surfing trip.
“I don’t surf so much these days!” laughs Mike down the phone from Wabash in the US state of Indiana.
The 77-year-old maintains though that if the conditions are favourable, he is occasionally happy to get back on a board.
“If I’m In Hawaii and the surf is more gentle I may attempt it – but I sing about it beautifully! Once in a while, we find ourselves in a place where it is conducive to surfing. It is really beautiful to try your luck at it again.”
That Mike and fellow Beach Boy Bruce Johnston, 75, aren’t wiped out from a gruelling touring schedule is impressive enough. Last year, they performed at more than 180 concerts.
And they only seem to be getting busier as a new album with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is set to arrive.
Simply titled The Beach Boys with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the record sees the original recordings of the band’s celebrated vocal harmonies paired with new symphonic arrangements recorded at Abbey Road studios.
The collaboration has breathed new life into some of the band’s most famous songs, as far as Mike is concerned.
He cites a re-working of a track he and fellow founding member Brian Wilson penned together in November 1963, as his favourite moment from the album.
“The Warmth Of The Sun, which my cousin Brian and I wrote together, is a beautiful ballad.
“But to hear it with the complement of the orchestra is just fantastic.
“It is pretty neat, because people will be familiar with the songs but the orchestra’s arrangements really embellish them and give them a whole new incarnation.”
The orchestra will not be joining The Beach Boys for two upcoming shows at Hampton Court Palace Festival.
But fans can expect the classic versions of songs like I Get Around and Wouldn’t it be Nice in the grounds of King Henry VIII’s former residence in London.
You might think that, after 50 years of touring, Mike may be weary of singing the same tunes night after night. However, he is clear that he never gets tired of performing the hits.
“No, I had a hand, not only in singing those songs, but also writing them as well. The majority of people will come to see us because they know and are hoping to hear certain songs from you, whether it be Good Vibrations or California Girls or something from the Pet Sounds album.
“I don’t ever want to disappoint anybody, I love those songs. We’re obsessed with recreating them live as close to the original as possible.”
While Mike and Bruce are primed to return to British shores, the remainder of the band’s surviving members will not be with them.
The history of The Beach Boys is plagued with feuds about their artistic and legal disputes. After the band’s overwhelming commercial success with surf rock songs about cars, girls and the beach, Brian retired from touring in 1964 to concentrate on songwriting and producing.
The more elaborate sound of subsequent Wilson-led projects, like the seminal Pet Sounds, resulted in infighting over the band’s creative direction.
Mike has been criticised by some sections of the band’s fan base for reportedly being resistant to Brian’s songwriting shift.
Mike wrote in his 2016 memoir: “For those who believe that Brian walks on water, I will always be the Antichrist.”
In 2012, Mike, Brian, Al Jardine, Johnston and early guitarist David Marks reunited for a 50th The Beach Boys in 1964. A move away from the sound of their early hits caused friction
anniversary tour and an album featuring new material. When the tour ended, Mike announced new Beach Boys shows that would not involve Brian.
At the time, Mike said the full reunion was always planned to be a limited run. Brian and Al now tour with a separate group.
Hopes for another tour with Brian gained traction in May, when Mike posted a get well soon note on Facebook to his cousin who had to undergo back surgery.
Mike’s voice adopts a more bristly tone when the band’s arguments are brought up.
Asked if there was any awkwardness when the band got back together, Mike says: “Not really. In 2012, I think we did over 70 concerts together.
“We all have the part we played, literally and figuratively. We all know each other very well. But as many bands do, there are feuds. People go and do their own separate things and then once in a while, when it’s right, they come together. I think it’s pretty normal.
“The things that you are alluding to happened long ago and it’s water over the dam. Brian travels with his own band so we don’t often see each other. But we know of each other’s whereabouts most of the time.”
As our conversation comes to an end, Mike reflects on how lucky he feels to still be able to perform songs that are loved all over the world. “It’s really a blessing for someone who started singing Christmas carols at parties that my mom threw at our house with all the cousins.
“All I have to do is stay in shape. It’s remarkable fun – Fun Fun Fun!”
The Beach Boys will play Hampton Court Palace Festival on June 15 and June 16. The Beach Boys with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, left, is out now.
We know each other very well. But as many bands do, there are feuds. People go and do their own separate things and then once in a while, when the time’s right, they come together...it’s pretty normal. On his relationship with Brian Wilson, below