Remembering When The Beach Boys Added Two New Members for a Brief but Memorable Stretch in 1972

The Beach Boys were struggling to determine their identity as the 70s dawned. Brian Wilson’s contributions had become sporadic. And the refusal of many of their fans to countenance any kind of artistic departure from the old songs full of surfing and cars didn’t help their confidence.

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The band managed to pull it together for a few albums in the early part of the decade that reestablished a high-quality level, even if they weren’t huge hits. Ironically, a pair of new members of the group helped them find the old mojo.

Flames On

The Beach Boys enjoyed a bit of a resurgence in 1971 with the album Surf’s Up. Their new manager, Jack Rieley, had encouraged more contributions from others besides Brian Wilson. That request resulted in a varied set of songs that showed a newfound maturity. But Rieley still felt other changes were needed.

Part of that decision came from necessity. Bruce Johnston thought the band was headed in the wrong direction and left during early sessions for their follow-up to Surf’s Up. And Dennis Wilson broke his hand, meaning that the group needed a drummer for live performances.

A few years earlier, Al Jardine had witnessed a London performance by The Flames, a pop group that hailed from South Africa. He recommended them to Carl Wilson, who produced a record for them on The Beach Boys’ record label in 1970. When Rieley decided that The Beach Boys needed an influx of fresh talent, he turned to Blondie Chaplin and Ricky Fataar of The Flames.

Blondie and Ricky’s Contributions

The two men quickly accepted the offer and joined the sessions for the album that would be released as Carl And The Passions – “So Tough” in 1972. And they weren’t merely session players. The rest of the group insisted that they be involved in writing and singing as well. Chaplin and Fataar, who also handled the drumming, co-wrote two of the album’s eight tracks.

The Carl and the Passions album was doomed by a rushed production schedule and an odd marketing strategy. (It was released in the US along with the classic Pet Sounds as a bonus record, confusing consumers and making for an unfavorable comparison.) But it showed enough promise for the band to move full-steam ahead with their new members onto their next project.

The Beach Boys made the decision to record their next album in a barn outside Amsterdam. They’d fittingly call the album Holland. Unfortunately, when they handed it in to their record label, no one heard a hit single. Once again ensconced in their home environs of Southern California, the band turned to Blondie Chaplin to help them out of this predicament.

Setting “Sail”

Smile collaborators Brian Wilson and Van Dyke Parks had written the bare bones of “Sail On, Sailor” years earlier. Parks sent the tape in to Rieley for consideration as a single from Holland. Several other lyricists added their input to the track. When it came time to record the song, Dennis Wilson bugged off to go surfing, and Carl Wilson couldn’t quite capture it. Carl suggested Chaplin give it a try.

His passionate lead vocal helped the soulful “Sail On, Sailor” become one of The Beach Boys’ most beloved songs, even if it wasn’t the hit single everyone had hoped. Sadly, that would mark Chaplin’s last contribution to the group. He left late in 1973 following an unspecified altercation with Mike Love’s brother Steven. Ricky Fataar followed him out the door a year later.

As such, the time that these temporary Beach Boys spent in the band was brief. But it coincided with two albums that many diehard fans agree rank among the group’s finest.

Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images