Mike Love Feels Brian Wilson’s Presence During Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction

Beach Boys’ Mike Love said he felt the ‘presence’ of his late bandmate Brian Wilson when he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on Thursday.

Brian passed away on Wednesday aged 82 after being diagnosed with a neurocognitive disorder similar to dementia.

Attending the ceremony in New York, Mike was inducted by John Stamos and paid tribute to his cousin and ‘brother in music.’

Accepting his honour on stage, he admitted: ‘I do feel his presence.’

‘I especially must thank my cousin Brian Wilson. My first cousin by blood but brother in music, together we set the stage for some of the most successful music collaborations of all time,’ The Hollywood Reporter states.

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Beach Boys’ Mike Love said he felt the ‘presence’ of his late bandmate Brian Wilson when he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on Thursday

Brian passed away on Wednesday aged 82 after being diagnosed with a neurocognitive disorder similar to dementia

John said of Mike: ‘He made the whole world want to be us: sun-kissed, carefree, full of promise. 

‘His lyrics were cinematic. What’s a song without a hook? What’s a hook without a picture in your head or a memory in your heart? Mike Love knows how to write that song.’

Mike performed Beach Boys classic, California Girls as well as I Get Around, Kokomo and Good Vibrations. 

Brian shot to fame as the frontman of the Beach Boys, for which he served as the principal songwriter as well as the co-lead vocalist.

Last year, weeks after the death of his longtime wife Melinda, it emerged that he had been diagnosed with a neurocognitive disorder similar to dementia.

Brian’s children announced his death on his official Instagram page this Wednesday, alongside what appeared to be a recent photo.

‘We are heartbroken to announce that our beloved father Brian Wilson has passed away. We are at a loss for words right now,’ they wrote.

‘Please respect our privacy at this time as our family is grieving. We realize that we are sharing our grief with the world. Love & Mercy.’

Attending the ceremony in New York, Mike was inducted by John Stamos and paid tribute to his cousin and ‘brother in music’ 

Accepting his honour on stage, he admitted: ‘I do feel his presence’ (pictured with John)

Mike added: ‘My first cousin by blood but brother in music, together we set the stage for some of the most successful music collaborations of all time’

Brian formed the Beach Boys in 1961 with his brothers Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love and their friend Al Jardine.

The original name of the band was the Pendletones, and they exploded onto the scene with their 1961 song Surfin’, written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love.

Over the course of the 1960s the group became one of the most beloved in America, releasing albums like Surfin’ Safari, Surfin’ U.S.A. and Surfer Girl. 

Their 1966 hit God Only Knows was branded ‘the greatest song ever written’ by Beatles legend Paul McCartney. 

Along with their pioneering musical style, the band also conjured up an intoxicating image of a carefree California lifestyle of sunshine, palm trees and sea air.

However Wilson’s involvement with the Beach Boys shifted dramatically when he suffered a nervous breakdown in 1964, followed by two more in the next couple of years. 

He promptly withdrew from touring but retained his backstage control of the band as a writer and producer, masterminding their 1966 magnum opus Pet Sounds and providing lead vocals on many of the tracks.

Pet Sounds struggled commercially at first, but ultimately earned a reputation as one of the most acclaimed pop albums ever created.

Paul McCartney has cited Pet Sounds as a particularly profound influence on him, one that spurred him to write more experimentally for the Beatles, leading to their own seminal album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. 

Mike was supported by his wife Jacquelyne Piesen at the event 

He performed Beach Boys classic, California Girls as well as I Get Around, Kokomo and Good Vibrations

Brian’s children announced his death on his official Instagram page this Wednesday, alongside what appeared to be a recent photo (pictured in 2020) 

The last time Wilson was seen in public was last April, when he emerged looking frail in a wheelchair to attend a Los Angeles Lakers game 

The original Beach Boys are pictured in Los Angeles in 1962, with Brian Wilson in the center

Wilson (second from left) is pictured with the other Beach Boys in 1964

‘First of all, it was Brian’s writing,’ said McCartney in 1990. ‘I love the album so much. I’ve just bought my kids each a copy of it for their education in life – I figure no one is educated musically ’til they’ve heard that album. I was into the writing and the songs.’

Wilson plunged into heavy drug use during the 1960s, including LSD, and the combination of his mounting substance problem and psychological issues like schizoaffective disorder contributed to his increasing retreat from public life. 

One of his symptoms was paranoid delusions, and he continued hearing voices in his head during the last decades of his life. 

On the other hand, the psychedelics also served as creative fuel, with Wilson reportedly composing the music for one of the Beach Boys’ most enduring singles, the 1966 release Good Vibrations, while tripping on LSD.