“I didn’t feel the compassion, let’s put it that way”: Al Jardine criticises Mike Love’s speech at Brian Wilson’s funeral

The two remaining founder members of the Beach Boys seem to have fallen out again. This time over what went on at the funeral of Brian Wilson last month.

Al Jardine and Mike Love both gave speeches honouring Wilson, their late bandmate and visionary songwriter. But Jardine has taken umbrage at what Love said in his, accusing him of “serious megalomania”.

In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Jardine said: “Mike wanted everybody to know that he wrote every single word of Good Vibrations. I didn’t feel the compassion, let’s put it that way.

"Mike’s got some serious megalomania problems.

“I was focusing on Brian, and Mike was more focused on Mike,” he added. “I think that is what it boils down to.”

At the ceremony, Jardine’s speech followed Love’s and he managed to get a little dig in, saying: “Mike, I’ve written some songs with Brian myself. We wrote one called Surfin’ Down The Swanee River. It just wasn’t as big as Good Vibrations,” he said, drawing laughter from the room.

However, in response, Love has denied that Jardine’s version of events is true and has said in a statement: “Mike’s focus has always been on uplifting audiences around the world through the music he helped create with his bandmates and cousin Brian.

"His commitment has been to preserve and share this great American songbook while providing resources to fellow Beach Boys shareholders, including Al Jardine.”

The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations (Official Music Video) - YouTube

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Jardine and Love have, of course, clashed many times before. After the death of Carl Wilson in 1998, Jardine tried to stop Love using the Beach Boys name as a touring vehicle. There was a brief rapprochement in 2012 when, to celebrate the band’s 50^th anniversary, Jardine, Love and Brian Wilson recorded what would be the group’s final album That’s Why God Made The Radio.

But the tour to promote the record had not even ended when Love announced that the ‘Beach Boys’ would revert to their pre-reunion line-up, essentially sacking Jardine and Brian Wilson.

Since then, Jardine (and Wilson) have criticised Love’s use of the Beach Boys name. In 2020 they urged fans to boycott Love’s version of the group after they performed at the annual convention of the Safari Club International, a body that supports trophy hunting. They also took umbrage at appearances by Love’s ‘Beach Boys’ at fundraisers for Donald Trump in 2020 and 2024.