The Beach Boys hit the airwaves in 1962 with a unique brand of surf rock that was both fun and sonically innovative, creating pop songs with a streak of genius. If at first they came across as a bunch of wiry surfers who could play drums and guitars, The Beach Boys – especially their frontman Brian Wilson – came to be recognized as one of the coolest, most musically ingenious bands of the 1960s and beyond.
In midst of their 50th anniversary tour, The Beach Boys are releasing their 29th studio album, “That’s Why God Made the Radio.” In this audio essay, host John Hockenberry discusses the history of a band he once thought uncool, and how he came to regard them as the paragon of cool.