7 Replies to “Who Knew?”

  1. Good song, thanks for posting. Dennis Wilson surfed, but he was the only one. The story (myth?) is that he took it up then asked Brian “why not write a song about surfing?” So Brian wrote “Surfin’ USA” by writing surf lyrics to Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Little Sixteen.” I think it was the first surf song to feature vocals–that is, sung vocals as opposed to someone shouting “wipe out.” Anyway, “Surfin’ USA” became their first hit.

  2. Memo from the pedant’s corner:

    Correction: the song Brian wrote at Dennis’ suggestion was “Surfin,” not “Surfin’ USA,” which came a bit later. “Surfin” became a regional hit, but only reached #75 nationally. Still, it was enough to launch their career. Later, “Surfin’ USA” was their first top ten, hitting #2.

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