Bruce Springsteen has shared a thoughtful tribute to Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys legend who died this week at the age of 82.
Posted on Instagram Thursday (June 12) — one day after Wilson’s family announced that he had passed away following a difficult battle with dementia — The Boss’ tribute began by calling the late singer-songwriter “the most musically inventive voice in all of pop, with an otherworldly ear for harmony.”
“He was also the visionary leader of America’s greatest band, The Beach Boys,” Springsteen continued. “If there’d been no Beach Boys, there would have been no ‘Racing In The Street.’ Listen to ‘Summer’s Gone’ from The Beach Boys’ last album That’s Why God Made The Radio and weep.”
“Farewell, Maestro,” added the rocker. “Nothing but love and a lovely lasting debt from all of us over here on E Street.”
Springsteen is just one of many living legends who has shared remarks following Wilson’s death. Elton John, Bob Dylan and Carole King have also posted tributes, while several younger stars — Clairo, Gracie Abrams and Maggie Rogers, to name a few — have also paid respects.
Paul McCartney, who inducted Wilson into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2000, wrote on Instagram, “Brian had that mysterious sense of musical genius that made his songs so achingly special … I loved him, and was privileged to be around his bright shining light for a little while.”
Springsteen has long maintained his appreciation for Wilson’s work. “There’s no greater world created in rock and roll than the Beach Boys,” the guitarist said in 2021 documentary Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road, according to Far Out. “The level of musicianship, I don’t think anybody’s touched it yet.”
In 2015, Springsteen made a surprise appearance at Wilson’s concert in New Jersey, joining the icon on stage. Two year’s later, Wilson’s official Facebook account shared a photo of the two men together, with the caption: “Bruce Springsteen makes it a point to see Brian when he’s in New Jersey. Here’s Brian and Bruce before tonight’s show at the Count Basie Theatre.”
See Springsteen’s post below.