Remembering When Brian Wilson’s Comeback Album With The Beach Boys Dropped in 1976

Hype can act as a detriment to a record. That’s especially true if the hype isn’t really based in any kind of reality. This scenario played out in 1976 when The Beach Boys released the album 15 Big Ones.

The group’s record company wanted everyone to believe that this was the album where Brian Wilson returned to his position as rock’s resident genius. Instead, he presided (barely) over a half-hearted, disjointed album.

‘Summer’ Loving

One wonders what direction The Beach Boys might have taken throughout the 70s were it not for a release that was somewhat beyond their control. In 1974, Capitol Records’ greatest hits collection Endless Summer brought the early days of the band back to the limelight. Nostalgia-craving fans ate it up.

As such, The Beach Boys had all their ducks lined up in a row for a prime comeback. Their studio albums from earlier in the 70s had shown admirable ambition, as other members of the group looked to step up and fill the void left by Brian Wilson. Wilson’s contributions to those records were sporadic as he fought his mental health issues.

Once Endless Summer hit big, with so many songs guided by Brian wowing fans all over again, it behooved the band to get him back in the fold for their next record. Capitol Records ran ads promising “Brian’s Back” prior to the 1976 release of 15 Big Ones. But they didn’t specify what condition he’d be in when he made his return.

Covers Galore

Brian Wilson once again took over the sole production role for The Beach Boys on 15 Big Ones, the first time in a decade he’d done that. Unfortunately, the original songs he had at his disposal were a mixed bag at best. As such, the group leaned heavily into cover songs for the album.

That album worked at the box office at least. The opening track and lead single, a bouncy take on Chuck Berry’s classic “Rock And Roll Music”, shot to the Top 5. But critics wondered how a band who’d had three years since their last album needed to rely on well-trod oldies like “In The Still Of The Night” and “Blueberry Hill”.

On top of that, Wilson hardly sounded like himself. The angelic higher register of his vocal range remained mostly absent on 15 Big Ones. Instead, a croaky, deeper vocal timbre from Brian dominated the proceedings, at least on the occasions when Mike Love wasn’t out in front with his tinny vocals.

A ‘Big’ Letdown

The stories told after the fact about 15 Big Ones reveal a band wracked by uncertainty about how to proceed. Brian Wilson still wasn’t anywhere near enough to the top of his game to summon the old transcendence. But the other members of the band, looking more at the commercial side of the equation, largely conceded control to him anyway.

Dennis and Carl Wilson, the brothers who helped shepherd the band through their fascinating early 70s period, largely worked in the margins of 15 Big Ones, which both resented. At the very least, the album filled the band’s coffers as one of their biggest sellers since their 60s heyday.

Still, nobody seemed too pleased about it in the aftermath of its release. Maybe Brian Wilson was back in terms of his presence on 15 Big Ones. But the album set The Beach Boys’ recording momentum back as well, momentum that they struggled to recover afterward.

(Photo by Larry Hulst/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)