Beach Boys Name

[NHC]

I think the name is fine, really don't think that caused any image damage.  IMO it was the Baywatch lovin', crocodile rockin' 80's cheeze fest. 

Probably as much as anything else, especially after the mid-70's comeback.

[SMiLE-addict]

Surf's Up would have been a cool name.

Did anyone ever find out the individual(s) who changed their name, and if they considered any other alternatives?

If you mean in the beginning, wasn't it Russ Regan, the DJ, on his own? Or a similar personality?  Too lazy to run to the book shelf to look up something I've known for years.

I always thought it was someone at the record company. I could be wrong.

[Paul J B]

'The Beach Boys' is a terrible name, and it really damaged the group's reputation from 1965 onwards. ('The Pendletons' and 'Carl and the Passions' would have been even worse -- too redolent of 50's doo wop.)

I mean,  most of the names of bands formed in the early 60's came to sound a bit dated later in the decade -- Gerry and the Pacemakers, Paul Revere and the Raiders, the Four Seasons, even the Beatles. But the name, 'the Beach Boys', unlike most of those other names, seems too tied down to a particular fad : surfing.

The Beatles were allowed to go from "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" to "Tomorrow Never Knows" without people holding the naivete of those earlier songs against them, in a way that the Beach Boys weren't. 'Surfin' USA' and 'Little Deuce Coup' always loomed too large in the mind of the public, even while they were producing 'Heroes and Villains' -- and for that, I blame the band's name.

Would the Boys have better withstood the battering that their reputation and image underwent in the late 60's, if the group name were 'the Kingsmen',  or 'the Ventures', for instance?

What???

Monster hits like I get Around and Good Vibrations kind of blow your theory out of the water.

[Iron Horse-Apples]

Surf's Up would have been a cool name.

You just wouldn't have had a band name like this in the early 60's.

Of course I respect your opinion, but my opinion is as follows :- Anyone who doesn't find The Beach Boys a cool name is a nob-head

[drbeachboy]

While by today's standards there seems nothing wrong or uncool about their name, I can tell you from living through it, that the band, as well as the name "Beach Boys" were both thought as "Uncool". All I can tell you is that just about everyone I came in contact with thought this way. Yet, I can confirm that no one was basing it much on the music, because they hadn't heard it. From what I can tell, their un-hipness and uncoolness was spearheaded by what was written about them in the rock press and what people perceived as an uncool band name. Very unfair looking back, considering the body of work that was created from 1967 through 1972.

[monicker]

'The Beach Boys' is a terrible name, and it really damaged the group's reputation from 1965 onwards. ('The Pendletons' and 'Carl and the Passions' would have been even worse -- too redolent of 50's doo wop.)

I mean,  most of the names of bands formed in the early 60's came to sound a bit dated later in the decade -- Gerry and the Pacemakers, Paul Revere and the Raiders, the Four Seasons, even the Beatles. But the name, 'the Beach Boys', unlike most of those other names, seems too tied down to a particular fad : surfing.

The Beatles were allowed to go from "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" to "Tomorrow Never Knows" without people holding the naivete of those earlier songs against them, in a way that the Beach Boys weren't. 'Surfin' USA' and 'Little Deuce Coup' always loomed too large in the mind of the public, even while they were producing 'Heroes and Villains' -- and for that, I blame the band's name.

Would the Boys have better withstood the battering that their reputation and image underwent in the late 60's, if the group name were 'the Kingsmen',  or 'the Ventures', for instance?

This is a great post, if maybe just a tiny bit oversimplified, but i don't see why it's been getting such a knee-jerk reaction except to say that i think, just as it was once in vogue to reject everything having to do with The Beach Boys' original surf image (while touting the group's music), the pendulum has swung completely in the other direction (i imagine as a direct reaction to the aforementioned) and it has become in vogue to categorically embrace every aspect of that image. It seems to be a very similar phenomenon to the swinging pendulum of opinion on Mike Love. A lot of it just seems like posturing.

[hypehat]

Well, as a kid becoming musically aware in the 2000's, the name The Beach Boys never seemed too shite to me. I've never thought it's a bad name, only inappropriate for events they could not imagine happening (ie, THE SIXTIES)

[SMiLE-addict]

Surf's Up would have been a cool name.

You just wouldn't have had a band name like this in the early 60's.

Of course I respect your opinion, but my opinion is as follows :- Anyone who doesn't find The Beach Boys a cool name is a nob-head

Don't get me wrong, I don't think there's anything wrong with their name ... but I do think some names could have been better.

I suppose you're right and a name like Surf's Up wouldn't be thought of in the early 60's. Maybe The Breakers, or The Waves, or even the Wipe Outs.

The problem with Beach Boys arises when, they're no longer "boys." Maybe Beach Guys? Beach Dudes? Beach Bums?

Anyway, the existing name is good-enough.

[Mike's Beard]

The name has been both a blessing and a curse at various times throughout their career.

[Emdeeh]

The problem with Beach Boys arises when, they're no longer "boys."

There are plenty of bands with "Boys" in their name in country / bluegrass music. The term refers to the members being male, not their ages.


 

[BB Universe]

Just weighing in on this:
I've never had a problem with their name throughout the decades. That's who they were and known as at the outset and the early songs are forever linked to that "brand". Actually, the "Boys" aspect sort of captured the harmonies and sound of the group as it established itself in the '60's.
There's never been a problem with people I know or talk to about them because of the fact that the name includes "Boys" even at this stage of their career.
The effect of a different name even at the outset and how things might have otherwise played out into today is too speculative, I think. I don't think the name makes the music - the music makes the name and a name will always  be secondary to good music.

[drbeachboy]

I certainly can't speak for everyone, but most of the folks that ran within my sphere never heard anything but the hits from Smiley Smile through Holland. They thought they were uncool. How could the music be uncool if they never heard it? The Un-coolness was linked to their name, and to the time when they were in their heyday, plain & simple. Even as their prestige climbed with Surf's Up, their second heyday didn't begin until 1974 with the release of Endless Summer and the whole nostalgia craze that swept the nation in the mid-70's.

[NHC]

Surf's Up would have been a cool name.

Did anyone ever find out the individual(s) who changed their name, and if they considered any other alternatives?

If you mean in the beginning, wasn't it Russ Regan, the DJ, on his own? Or a similar personality?  Too lazy to run to the book shelf to look up something I've known for years.

I always thought it was someone at the record company. I could be wrong.

According to Tobler and White, at least, it was Regan, described by Tobler as a Candix publicist, and by White as an agent for Buckeye Record Distributors, which handled Candix's product locally.

[Magic Transistor Radio]

Well, as a kid becoming musically aware in the 2000's, the name The Beach Boys never seemed too shite to me. I've never thought it's a bad name, only inappropriate for events they could not imagine happening (ie, THE SIXTIES)

Coming from someone who grew up with band names like The Backstreet Boys, NSync and Blink 182...Or wait, maybe that was before your time.

[Sjöman]

What was it VDP said in the An American Band video? Something about "there's nothing wrong with the beach" ...

[Ron]

The Beach Boys.

The name is brilliant...conjures up images of surf, sun, and guys singing beautiful harmonies. It kinda says: We're the kings of surf music. I do sometimes wonder how different their success would've been had they stuck with the name "The Pendletons"

"The Pendletons" is a far less stereotypical name for surf music - thus maybe their more artistic ventures would have been taken more seriously in later years?

Yeah, plus audibly, "The Beach Boys" has a punch and excitement to it, if you listen to the announcers who have called that name out at live shows, apperances, whatever over the years, it's IMPOSSIBLE to screw it up.  "Ladies and Gentlemen.... THE BEEEECHHH BOOOOYYYZZZZ" no matter how you say it, it sounds awesome.  They even have the Beatles beat on that one.  Something about the staccato nature of the name just comes off the tongue really nice and i'm serious : probably greatly helped their appeal. 

[Ron]

Surf's Up would have been a cool name.

You just wouldn't have had a band name like this in the early 60's.

Of course I respect your opinion, but my opinion is as follows :- Anyone who doesn't find The Beach Boys a cool name is a nob-head

Don't get me wrong, I don't think there's anything wrong with their name ... but I do think some names could have been better.

I suppose you're right and a name like Surf's Up wouldn't be thought of in the early 60's. Maybe The Breakers, or The Waves, or even the Wipe Outs.

The problem with Beach Boys arises when, they're no longer "boys." Maybe Beach Guys? Beach Dudes? Beach Bums?

Anyway, the existing name is good-enough.

I just want to point out, and I hope you take this as non-insulting as possible, that the whole "boys" problem is something obsessive fans have, your general public, who the Beach Boys made their billions off of, don't give it enough thought to care about the issue.  They just hear "da beeche boise" and it sounds neat, even if they don't admit it or catch it, and they're interested.  It's just a phonetic sound, I never heard the name as a child and though the whole band were kids.  I just thought it was the name of the band.    Beatles is misspelled.  Lynrd Skynyrd, one of the biggest bands of all time, I can't even spell the sh*t.  Led Zeppelin, 90% of the fans have no clue what that means.  AC/DC.  Nobody gets that.  Michael Jackson.  One of the biggest selling artists of all time, his name is the most common name possible.  The biggest selling country singer ever had the first name Garth.  I don't think names can hurt much, they can probably help, but rarely hurt. 

[Ron]

While by today's standards there seems nothing wrong or uncool about their name, I can tell you from living through it, that the band, as well as the name "Beach Boys" were both thought as "Uncool". All I can tell you is that just about everyone I came in contact with thought this way. Yet, I can confirm that no one was basing it much on the music, because they hadn't heard it. From what I can tell, their un-hipness and uncoolness was spearheaded by what was written about them in the rock press and what people perceived as an uncool band name. Very unfair looking back, considering the body of work that was created from 1967 through 1972.

And even more unfair, when you look at the excellent body of work created from 1962 to 1966

[the captain]

Surf's Up would have been a cool name.

You just wouldn't have had a band name like this in the early 60's.

Of course I respect your opinion, but my opinion is as follows :- Anyone who doesn't find The Beach Boys a cool name is a nob-head

Don't get me wrong, I don't think there's anything wrong with their name ... but I do think some names could have been better.

I suppose you're right and a name like Surf's Up wouldn't be thought of in the early 60's. Maybe The Breakers, or The Waves, or even the Wipe Outs.

The problem with Beach Boys arises when, they're no longer "boys." Maybe Beach Guys? Beach Dudes? Beach Bums?

Anyway, the existing name is good-enough.

I just want to point out, and I hope you take this as non-insulting as possible, that the whole "boys" problem is something obsessive fans have, your general public, who the Beach Boys made their billions off of, don't give it enough thought to care about the issue.  They just hear "da beeche boise" and it sounds neat, even if they don't admit it or catch it, and they're interested.  It's just a phonetic sound, I never heard the name as a child and though the whole band were kids.  I just thought it was the name of the band.    Beatles is misspelled.  Lynrd Skynyrd, one of the biggest bands of all time, I can't even spell the sh*t.  Led Zeppelin, 90% of the fans have no clue what that means.  AC/DC.  Nobody gets that.  Michael Jackson.  One of the biggest selling artists of all time, his name is the most common name possible.  The biggest selling country singer ever had the first name Garth.  I don't think names can hurt much, they can probably help, but rarely hurt. 

Absolutely. What makes a band name good or bad is mostly the band's music being good or bad. Listeners learn to live with names to the point that they don't even think twice about them. Where it could be an issue, I suppose, is in the focus-group, first impression. Does it catch the casual browser's eye and make him or her listen? But with the Beach Boys, anyway, that's a moot point, because by the time the question of the name's coolness came up, they had a huge catalog of uber-hits.

[lostbeachboy]

I really don't see them as anything other than THE BEACH BOYS, But simply THE PASSIONS would might have made for a better outcome. Or how bout HAWTHORNE...?

[Stephen W. Desper]

The Beach.

COMMENT:  That is the name Brian wanted to rename the group. I watched him argue for that name change for several hours with the group. Then it was all forgotton.  ~swd

[drbeachboy]

The Beach.

COMMENT:  That is the name Brian wanted to rename the group. I watched him argue for that name change for several hours with the group. Then it was all forgotton.  ~swd

Did any of the other guys agree with him?

[Stephen W. Desper]

The Beach.

COMMENT:  That is the name Brian wanted to rename the group. I watched him argue for that name change for several hours with the group. Then it was all forgotton.  ~swd

Did any of the other guys agree with him?

COMMENT:  At first it was a joke, but Brian insisted and even wrote up a statement spelling out the name change, asking everyone to sign. He cited his problem with "Boys" being part of the name -- same reasons you have given at this thread. Brian signed the paper but no one else did. I kept it and have it somewhere. The next day it was all forgotten and never mentioned again -- at least around me.      ~swd

[Rocker]

Surf's Up would have been a cool name.

Did anyone ever find out the individual(s) who changed their name, and if they considered any other alternatives?

If you mean in the beginning, wasn't it Russ Regan, the DJ, on his own? Or a similar personality?  Too lazy to run to the book shelf to look up something I've known for years.

I always thought it was someone at the record company. I could be wrong.

According to Tobler and White, at least, it was Regan, described by Tobler as a Candix publicist, and by White as an agent for Buckeye Record Distributors, which handled Candix's product locally.

I love the name "The Beach Boys".
I wonder if it had anything to do with the then recent blockbuster "Blue Hawaii" by Elvis in which he sings "Beach Boys blues". The soundtrack was a big seller.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Surf's Up would have been a cool name.

Did anyone ever find out the individual(s) who changed their name, and if they considered any other alternatives?

If you mean in the beginning, wasn't it Russ Regan, the DJ, on his own? Or a similar personality?  Too lazy to run to the book shelf to look up something I've known for years.

I always thought it was someone at the record company. I could be wrong.

According to Tobler and White, at least, it was Regan, described by Tobler as a Candix publicist, and by White as an agent for Buckeye Record Distributors, which handled Candix's product locally.

Other names considered were The Lifeguards, the Hang-Tens, my personal favorite, The Woodies and The Surfers, which they came within a hairsbreadth of being called on the first single. There's an acetate of "Surfin'" with a label bearing the words "The Surfers". Also, the Candix matrix code indicates that's what they were known as when the single was pressed.