The Beach Boys Regret Never Collaborating With The Beatles
The Beach Boys and the Beatles met to discuss transcendental meditation. Paul McCartney even mentioned his favorite aspects of the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds. When it comes to a band the Beach Boys’ Al Jardine wishes he collaborated with, of course, the Beatles was his first pick.
The Beatles and the Beach Boys were 2 of the 1960s’ biggest bands
The Beatles and the Beach Boys are pretty different. Still, these bands dominated the music scene of the 1960s, even appearing at similar events. According to members of both bands, there was no bad blood between the Beatles and the Beach Boys. McCartney even mentioned his admiration for the 1966 album Pet Sounds.
“It was really just mutual inspiration, I think,” Wilson said during a 2015 interview with The Daily Beast. “I would get to hear their records before they came out, and I was totally blown away by Rubber Soul. And Sgt. Pepper’s? I was totally blown away by that. But it was inspirational, too.”
Al Jardine of the Beach Boys wishes he collaborated with the Beatles
The Beach Boys sometimes perform with other artists, including John Stamos of Full House. During one interview, founding member Jardine was asked if there was an artist or group he wished the Beach Boys collaborated with.
“I know: the Beatles,” Jardine said, according to Rolling Stone. “I thought we were going to. John [Lennon] and George [Harrison] came up to my hotel room in London back in the Sixties. We were on our way to do a show in Paris.”
“I thought they were going to discuss some music with me – I thought we were going to do something,” he continued. “In fact, they taught me transcendental meditation.”
The Beatles got the Beach Boys’ Al Jardine into transcendental meditation
There was sometimes overlap in the Beatles’ and the Beach Boys’ performances. While they were both in Europe, the Beatles took the opportunity to spread the word about transcendental meditation. While looking for celebrities to extend the practice to America, they chose the Beach Boys.
“They wanted to talk to me about something called TM, which is a short acronym for transcendental mediation,” Jardine said in one YouTube video. “They proceeded to inform me about this new meditation and this fella called Maharishi… the guru to the stars.”
The practice involves taking 20 minutes in the morning or evening (or preferably both) to come to a peaceful place. All four Beatles mentioned their appreciation for the practice, with The Beach Boys releasing “Transcendental Meditation” on Friends.
Since his time with the Beach Boys, Jardine has collaborated with other artists. That’s particularly true of his solo album, A Postcard from California. Of course, the Beatles’ drummer called upon other well-known artists for Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band.
