Mike Love

Who is Mike Love?

Michael Edward "Mike" Love is an American musician, singer and songwriter who garnered worldwide fame as a member of the Beach Boys. He is an original member of the band and continues to write, record and perform with the band to the present day.

For most of the Beach Boys' career Love has been one of the band's primary lyricists, contributing to each of the band's studio albums and number one Billboard singles. In the early 1960s, Love collaborated with Brian Wilson and was chief lyricist on singles including "Fun, Fun, Fun", "California Girls" and "Good Vibrations". During this period, his lyrics primarily reflected the youth culture of surfing, cars, and romance, which has been described by writers as having helped fashion pop culture's perception of the "Californian Dream". Love's work during this period also assumed elements of melancholy with noted examples being "The Warmth of the Sun"—written the day of John F. Kennedy's assassination—and "I'm Waiting for the Day" from Pet Sounds.

In early 1968, Love under Maharishi Mahesh Yogi became a teacher of Transcendental Meditation.