Brian Wilson, musical genius and founder of the Beach Boys, died today (Wednesday, June 11, 2025), so in honor of him, here is an article of the 40 greatest Beach Boys songs that I wrote for Broadway World two years ago.

Iconic musician Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys has died at 82, with the band having sold their intellectual property for $64 million in 2021 despite early financial missteps.

"Caroline, No" was released as the first solo Brian Wilson song in 1966, and then appeared as the closing track on the legendary Beach Boys album Pet Sounds. The melancholy lyrics and creative instrumentation—including harpsichord, vibraphone, a tambourine hit with a wood block and a water jug hit with a mallet—is classic Wilson.

Brian Wilson died this week at age 82. He will mostly be remembered for the work he did with his iconic band, the Beach Boys. But he was so much more. In the early 1960s, Wilson had written as many as 42 songs for other artists.

The family of Brian Wilson, the co-founder of the Beach Boys, announced on June 11 that he passed away at the age of 82. Wilson shaped the Beach Boys ’ timeless sound as the band’s songwriter and co-lead vocalist, from the easygoing surf songs of their early days to the more experimental and still influential 1966 album Pet Sounds.

Brian Wilson once claimed that Eugene Landy and his associates saved his life during a harrowing experience on the beach in 1985.

Brian Wilson, the driving force behind the Beach Boys whose sprawling compositional prowess influenced rock musicians from the Beatles to Radiohead and points between, has died, his family announced Wednesday.

The Beach Boys’ co-founder Brian Wilson has died at the age of 82, leaving behind a storied legacy as one of pop music’s greatest songwriters and producers. Here are NPR’s best