California Girls

Released in the summer of 1965, this single captured a particular strain of American optimism. Written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love, the song emerged from Wilson's reflections during the band's first European tour, where the diversity of women he encountered sparked an idea. The track appeared on the album Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) with "Let Him Run Wild" as its B-side. It reached number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and charted in the top 10 in several other countries.

Wilson composed the music during his first acid trip, drawing on the sweeping grandeur of Western film scores. The result features an orchestral prelude, layered vocal harmonies, and subtle chromatic shifts. He later described it as "a hymn to youth" and the band's "anthem," and he considered it his favorite Beach Boys record, though he was never fully satisfied with the vocal performance. This was also the first recording to feature Bruce Johnston, who had joined the touring lineup but wasn't yet an official member.

The song's influence has been wide-ranging. The Beatles parodied it with "Back in the U.S.S.R.," and it inspired titles or spirits in Big Star's "September Gurls," the Magnetic Fields' "California Girls," and Katy Perry's "California Gurls." David Lee Roth's 1984 cover also reached number 3 on the charts. In 2010, the original was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, and a year later Rolling Stone ranked it number 72 on its list of the greatest songs of all time. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame also included it among its "500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll." [edit]