The Beach Boys‘ Mike Love has revealed that he and Brian Wilson sang together in the weeks before his death.
- READ MORE: Brian Wilson, 1942-2025: culture-defining innovator who represented pop music’s awakening
Wilson’s passing at age 82 was confirmed by his family back in June. His children wrote at the time: “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. We realize that we are sharing our grief with the world. Love & Mercy.”
It was later revealed that his cause of death was listed as “respiratory arrest”, with sepsis and cystitis listed as contributing factors.
At the time, Love – who is the last-surviving familial co-founder of The Beach Boys – shared a statement on Wilson’s passing, writing: “Our journey together was filled with moments of brilliance, heartbreak, laughter, complexity and most of all, LOVE. 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.”
Now, in a new interview with the Daily Express, he’s revealed that he spent time with Wilson before his death. “I was able to visit Brian three weeks before he passed. What Brian wanted me to do was to sing for him,” he told the newspaper.
“Brian asked me to sing ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’, so I sang that. Then he said: ‘Sing ‘Surfin’ USA!’’, so I sang ‘Surfin’ USA’ to him. I sang ‘I Get Around’ for Brian, too. We even harmonised on a song called ‘Their Hearts Were Full Of Spring’. That was a song by The Four Freshmen, a group which was a huge influence on The Beach Boys’ harmonies.”
In 2024, Wilson’s family revealed that he was suffering from dementia, and he was placed in a conservatorship in May that year. Despite these health issues, Love said the late musician was happy in their final moments together. “Brian had trouble forming a sentence. But he had no problem asking me to sing, and he had no problem with that harmony. It was a very sweet moment.”
In February 2024, Wilson’s family revealed that the singer was suffering from dementia, and he was placed in a conservatorship in May that year.
The surviving members of The Beach Boys paid their respects to Wilson in a joint message, saying that he “was the soul of our sound”.
Other tributes have come from the likes of Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Bob Dylan, Ringo Starr, Ronnie Wood, Nancy Sinatra, Sting, Biffy Clyro and many more from the music world and beyond.
In the wake of Wilson’s death, fans have been sharing footage of his final-ever live performance from 2022.
