After making waves with up to ten studio albums in 1966, the Beach Boys got into a fix with their next one, as the label was unsure how to promote the masterpiece. Bandmates Mike Love and Bruce Johnston turned to another famous group, The Beatles, for help; it was their best decision toward the success of Pet Sounds.
Brian Johnson met The Beatlesโ John Lennon and Paul McCartney alongside The Whoโs Keith Moon at the Scotch of St. James Club in London, and Brian asked the two of the Fab Four to join him at a hotel. He played Pet Sounds, which deeply touched Paul and eventually inspired his own single, โHere, There And Everywhere.โ
Paul McCartney and John Lennon led to the success of 1966 Beach Boys album
![The Beach Boys Album](https://doyouremember.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/PBDBEBO_EC001-e1715853857610.jpg)
While discussing their Disney + documentary, The Beach Boys with Mariella Frostrup and director Frank Marshall, Mike and Bruce recalled the making of Pet Soundsย while crediting The Beatlesโ particularly Paul and Lennon, for being the projectโs biggest promoters. โWithout them, โPet Soundsโ could have failed,โ Mike said matter-of-factly.
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Paul also gushed about the 1966 album in the past, noting that he simply โused to admire the singing, the high falsetto really and the very sort of โCaliforniaโ lyricsโ of The Beach Boysโ music and nothing more until Pet Sounds, which โblew me out of the water.โ The 81-year-old went as far as buying his kids one copy each to โeducate them.โ
โI figure no one is educated musically โtil theyโve heard that album,” he gushed. “I was into the writing and the songs.โ
The Beach Boys and The Beatles engaged in healthy competition and were greatly influenced by each otherโs music; however, the media presented an idea of creative rivalry between the two groups. It appeared that the bands tried to outshine each other, as The Beatlesโ Rubber Soul inspired Brian Wilson to make Pet Sounds, which in turn inspired one of Paulโs songs and Sgt. Pepperโs Lonely Hearts Club Band.
The Fab Fourโs release of โStrawberry Fields Foreverโ stopped Brian in his tracks from publishing Smile, claiming that The Beatles had already beat him to it. Regardless, either group was a fan of the other, defining the sound of their โ60s in their own special way. Both bands had their share of ups and downs, with internal feudsย and contractual betrayals, but they have left an indelible mark in the rock genre even after splitting.