I learned that when you do the best job that you can do, some people will idolize you, others won’t care, and some will vilify you. – Mike Love
I cannot fire Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys. I am not his employer. I do not have such authority. And even if I did, I would never fire Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys. I love Brian Wilson. We are partners. He’s my cousin by birth and my brother in music. – Mike Love
If you ask any couple who have been married 50 years or longer, they will tell you they’ve experienced it all. The same is true of the Beach Boys. – Mike Love
If you look at the history of music, you have classical composers, church music, pop music, etc. Music that’s existed for centuries. I think there are some songs that are close to immortal. They will last longer than we will in this lifetime. – Mike Love
What we look for when we need to find someone who can fit in with our music, the vocals and the harmonies and the way they blend are very important to us because if you listen to Beach Boys music, the harmonies, not only are the notes being sung, but there’s a blend to it. The voices have to blend. – Mike Love
‘The Warmth of the Sun’ was a very beautiful song that Brian and I wrote in the time period associated with President Kennedy’s assassination. We didn’t write words about that, but it was around that time we recorded that song, and there’s a lot of emotion involved there. – Mike Love
Because of the inherent challenges of life on the earth, all of humanity is vulnerable. This is all the more reason to seek the kingdom of heaven within and find the peace that leads to understanding. – Mike Love
Everybody has their own appreciation of the Beach Boys, depending on where they’re coming from with their musical tastes, so we tried to be representative of all eras and of everybody in the band and their contributions. – Mike Love
As you get older, you either become proactive about staying in shape and taking care of yourself, or, you know, time has its effect on you. – Mike Love
If Frank and The Beach Boys got together and did a Super Session album, it would be a gas. – Mike Love
We came from the ’60s era, when we started and made so many hits. The song value from the ’60s was so darn good, you’ve got The Beatles, The Beach Boys, all of Motown, and plenty of other people, too… amazing records, amazing songs. – Mike Love
People meditate themselves because they are just trying to feel better, and transcendental meditation is a natural mental technique that you can perform and that provides that relaxation and also a little bit of broader perspective. – Mike Love
Meditation was a turning point for me. It helped me deal with a lot of stress and has given me a lot of relaxation. – Mike Love
I actually have heard of acts who only do their new album, and don’t do their hits. I’ve never been in that mind set. – Mike Love
I wrote all the lyrics on ‘Good Vibrations’ and most of them in ‘Kokomo.’ ‘Kokomo’ was extremely popular and fun to sing – it’s probably one of the bigger sing-along songs in our show. But then ‘Help Me Rhonda,’ ‘Surfin’ USA’ and ‘California Girls’ and ‘I Get Around’ and ‘Fun, Fun, Fun’ are great songs as well. – Mike Love
You can’t sustain a fan base on a great catalog alone. You must take your music directly to the people. – Mike Love
People say the Beatles were John Lennon. What is Paul McCartney? Chopped liver? But everyone has their own favourite members whose creativity they gravitate to. That’s normal. – Mike Love
The music I have created, along with the other Beach Boys, has taken me all over the world. For these past 50 years, I guess you could say, ‘I get around.’ – Mike Love
In the spring of 1968, The Beatles and I were invited by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi to travel to Riskikesh, India. Riskikesh has been an important spiritual place to many millions of people over the years. It is situated where the Ganges River flows out of the Himalayas, and to be in that atmosphere was something incredibly special. – Mike Love
There’s the historical part of The Beach Boys’ music; it’s pretty incredible, pretty vast and pretty varied too. – Mike Love
I know there’s millions of problems in the world, but if you dwell on those, then you’re going to be miserable. I think my meditation helps me to transcend and get beyond the grip of all the negativity and regenerate from within a more positive attitude, which comes in very handy when you’re going to do 150 concerts a year. – Mike Love
Some people are denizens of the studio. I’m more of a denizen of the live appearance. I love the live thing. – Mike Love
We’ve had hassles, ups and downs, ins and outs, failures and triumphs. We’re human beings, and we’re not perfect. And we’re mortal. But the Beach Boys is musically a tremendous body of work that transcends individuality and time and national boundaries. – Mike Love
By 1968, both The Beatles and The Beach Boys had plenty of fame – we were looking for something deeper. The Maharishi taught us how to go beyond thinking and action in order to grow from within. – Mike Love