The surviving original members of the Beach Boys have paid tribute to the “genius” of Brian Wilson after his death aged 82.
His cousin Mike Love, 84, said Wilson’s “musical gifts were unmatched” while Al Jardine described his bandmate as “my brother in spirit”.
Wilson was the eldest and last surviving of the three brothers who formed the American rock band with Love and school friend Jardine in 1961.
“The melodies he dreamed up, the emotions he poured into every note – Brian changed the course of music forever,” Love wrote in a lengthy post on Facebook, saying there was “something otherworldly” about Wilson.
“Like all families, we had our ups and downs. But through it all, we never stopped loving each other, and I never stopped being in awe of what he could do when he sat at a piano or his spontaneity in the studio.”
Describing Wilson as “fragile, intense, funny” and “one of a kind”, he said his music “allowed us to show the world what vulnerability and brilliance sound like in harmony”.
“Brian, you once asked, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if we were older?’ Now you are timeless,” he wrote.
Posting a picture of himself with Wilson on Facebook, Jardine, 82, said: “I will always feel blessed that you were in our lives as long as you were”.
“You were a humble giant who always made me laugh and we will celebrate your music forever.”
On Wednesday, Wilson’s family said in a statement on his website: “We are heartbroken to announce that our beloved father Brian Wilson has passed away. We are at a loss for words right now. Please respect our privacy at this time as our family is grieving.”
Sir Elton John posted on Instagram, saying Wilson was “always so kind to me” and “the biggest influence on my songwriting ever”.
“He changed the goalposts when it came to writing songs and changed music forever. A true giant.”
Bob Dylan was among other musical stars to pay tribute, posting on X that he was thinking “about all the years I’ve been listening to him and admiring his genius”.
Fellow singer-songwriter Carole King, 83, described Wilson as “my friend and my brother in songwriting”, while former Velvet Underground member John Cale said on X that he was “a true musical genius toiling away at melding POP into startling sophistication”.
Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood, 78, paid tribute to Wilson and US musician Sly Stone, who died earlier this week, in a social media post, saying: “Oh no Brian Wilson and Sly Stone in one week – my world is in mourning, so sad.”
His bandmate, Keith Richards, 81, posted an excerpt from his 2010 memoir, Life, on Instagram, recalling the first time he heard The Beach Boys on the radio and his reaction to their 1966 album, Pet Sounds.
The extract reads: “When we first got to America and to LA, there was a lot of Beach Boys on the radio, which was pretty funny to us – it was before Pet Sounds – it was hot rod songs and surfing songs, pretty lousily played, familiar Chuck Berry licks going on…
“It was later on, listening to Pet Sounds, well, it’s a little bit overproduced for me, but Brian Wilson had something.”
Sean Ono Lennon, the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, described Wilson as “our American Mozart” in a post on X, while The Monkees drummer Micky Dolenz said “his melodies shaped generations, & his soul resonated in every note”.
Wilson was born on June 20 1942, and began to play the piano and teach his brothers to sing harmony as a young boy.
The Beach Boys started as a neighbourhood act, rehearsing in Wilson’s bedroom and in the garage of their house in suburban Hawthorne, California with Wilson playing bass alongside his brothers Dennis as the drummer and Carl on lead guitar.
The band were managed by the trio’s father, Murry Wilson, but by mid-decade, he had been displaced, and Brian, who had been running the band’s recording sessions almost from the start, was in charge.
They released their most recognised album, Pet Sounds, in May 1966, which included the popular songs Wouldn’t It Be Nice and God Only Knows.
Wilson married singer Marilyn Rovell in 1964 and the couple welcomed daughters Carnie and Wendy, whom he became estranged from following their divorce.
He later reconciled with them and they sang together on the 1997 album The Wilsons, which was also the name of a music group formed by Carnie and Wendy following the break-up of pop vocal group Wilson Phillips.
Wilson, who had dealt with mental health and drug problems, got his life back on track in the 1990s and married talent manager Melinda Ledbetter.
When Ledbetter died last year, Wilson said their five children, Daria, Delanie, Dylan, Dash and Dakota, were “in tears”.
Wilson was also embroiled in multiple lawsuits, some of which followed from the release of his 1991 autobiography, Wouldn’t It Be Nice: My Own Story.
The Beach Boys were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 and received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award in 2001.
Wilson’s brother, Dennis, died in 1983, while Carl died in 1998.
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