Sixty years after the release of Pet Sounds, the legendary album that revolutionized pop music, two former Beach Boys bandmates, Mike Love and Al Jardine, are still honoring its legacy in their own unique ways. Despite the 60th anniversary of the album, the bad blood between Love and Jardine prevented them from coming together for a tour to celebrate. However, both Love and Jardine have decided to pay homage to Pet Sounds in their own ways, with Love's officially licensed version of the Beach Boys and Jardine's Pet Sounds Band adding more songs from the album to their sets.
In March, Love recruited Chris Cron, an incredibly gifted vocalist who made his name on Instagram recreating vintage Beach Boys harmonies, to replace Bruce Johnston in his band. Cron's tribute group, Pet Sounds Live, plays note-perfect renditions of the full Pet Sounds album at their shows, making it easy for him to introduce "I'm Waiting for the Day" into the actual Beach Boys live show. Christian Love, Mike Love's son and a longtime singer and guitarist in the Beach Boys touring band, sings "God Only Knows" in the show, while Brian Eichenberger, a former member of both the Four Freshmen and Brian Wilson's touring band, takes the lead on "Wouldn't It Be Nice."
On the other hand, Jardine and the Pet Sounds Band were devoting half their set to the 1977 oddball LP The Beach Boys Love You, leaving room only for "Sloop John B." and "Wouldn't It Be Nice" and "God Only Knows." However, when Jardine and the Pet Sounds Band returned to the road in early June, shortly after the Pet Sounds anniversary, they added an extended selection of songs from the album to their show, including "I'm Waiting for the Day," "I Know There's an Answer," "Here Today," "Pet Sounds," and "Caroline, No."
What makes this particularly fascinating is that Love and Jardine have been playing different sets of Pet Sounds songs. While Love has been struggling vocally throughout the year, he's assembled an impressive team to help him out. Jardine, on the other hand, has been playing nine Pet Sounds songs a night, and Love is back down to just four. In my opinion, this is a testament to the enduring legacy of Pet Sounds and the different ways in which it continues to be celebrated and honored.
One thing that immediately stands out is the fact that Love and Jardine won't actually play these songs together at any point. This raises a deeper question: what does this say about the state of the music industry and the relationships between artists? In my view, it suggests that the music industry is still very much about competition and individualism, rather than collaboration and community. However, I also believe that this is a natural part of the creative process, and that it's important to allow artists to express themselves in their own unique ways.
In conclusion, the 60th anniversary of Pet Sounds is a testament to the enduring legacy of the album and the different ways in which it continues to be celebrated and honored. While Love and Jardine may not be coming together to play the album together, their individual approaches to honoring Pet Sounds are a reminder of the power of creativity and self-expression in the music industry. Personally, I think that this is a fascinating development, and I'm excited to see how the legacy of Pet Sounds continues to evolve and inspire new generations of musicians and fans.
