Beach Boys send out love letter to radio

It’s the 50th anniversary of the creation of a band known as The Beach Boys, and to commemorate the occasion, the surviving members have just completed their 29th studio album – and if you’re a regular reader of this space, you almost have to like an album entitled “That’s Why God Made The Radio.”

That is also the title of the lead single on the album that is due to be released June 5 by Capitol/EMI. The band’s current lineup includes Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston, and David Marks. The single is being called “…an upbeat, beaming ode to music’s radio champions around the world.”

Brian Wilson said, “Radio was my whole education. Chuck Berry, Rosemary Clooney, The Four Freshmen, Phil Spector, Little Richard … To hear ‘That’s Why God Made The Radio’ on the radio would be a thrill beyond belief, it really would. It would be a thrill beyond belief.”

“I got a lot of my appreciation for all of the creativity in the world, in terms of music, through the radio,” added Mike Love. “For all of us who grew up in the ’50s, ’60s, ’70s and beyond, the radio has played such a huge, important part in our lives. When we were kids, we’d sneak out of the house and go and sit in Brian’s car and listen to the local radio stations on his car radio.”

Wilson already knows there will be at least some airplay – the tune has already made its debut nationally on ESPN Radio’s “Mike & Mike in the Morning” program.

RBR-TVBR observation: Radio has promoted musicians and helped them attain success for decades. It’s really nice to see a little promotion going the other way! Here’s hoping Brian Wilson gets his wish and gets a few more airplay thrills out of his new album.