Wilson, Carl Dean

▪ 1999

      American guitarist, singer, and songwriter (b. Dec. 21, 1946, Hawthorne, Calif.—d. Feb. 6, 1998, Los Angeles, Calif.), was one of the founders of the Beach Boys rock band, which epitomized the California "surfin' sound." He performed with the group for over 30 years, was its lead guitarist, and was lead vocalist on many of its hits. Wilson and his older brothers, Brian and Dennis, began singing together when they were children. In 1961, with their cousin Mike Love and their friend Al Jardine, the brothers formed a group—with such names as Carl and the Passions, the Pendletones, and Kenny and the Cadets before they settled on the Beach Boys—fashioning their style on the close harmonies of groups like the Four Freshmen. Their first record, "Surfin'," a song by Brian, was released later that year and became only a minor success. After that, though, they launched a string of hits that included "Surfin' Safari," "Surfin' U.S.A.," and such examples of another favourite theme—cars, girls, and fun in the sun—as "Little Deuce Coupe," "I Get Around," "Help Me, Rhonda," "Barbara Ann," and "California Girls." By the end of 1965, they had released 10 albums. Brian then stopped touring because of health problems, and Carl assumed the leadership of the band. The album considered the group's best, Pet Sounds, was released in 1966, and a single from it, "God Only Knows," with Carl as lead vocalist, became one of the band's biggest hits. Later that year he sang lead vocals on another top hit, "Good Vibrations." The Beach Boys continued touring even after they had come to be seen as mainly a nostalgia act—though frustration with that emphasis led Carl to attempt a solo career in 1981—and even after Dennis's death in 1983. The 1988 film Cocktail introduced their last hit, "Kokomo," and the Beach Boys were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame that same year.

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