On This Day in 1964, The Beach Boys Scored Their First No. 1 with a Subtly Innovative Single

On this day (July 4) in 1964, The Beach Boys landed their first No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with their single “I Get Around.” The song was an international hit for the band and was their breakthrough single in the United Kingdom. More than that, the song featured guitar effects that other rock musicians wouldn’t popularize for years to come.

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It wasn’t easy to make huge waves as an American pop-rock group in the early-to-mid 1960s, even for iconic acts like The Beach Boys. In the first few years of the decade, the market was saturated with talented heartthrobs battling for the top spot on the charts. Then, in 1964, the Beatles sparked the British Invasion, with countless soundalike bands from the UK shipping their music to the United States, making things that much harder for homegrown groups. This makes the success of “I Get Around” that much more impressive.

[RELATED: On This Day in 1983, The Beach Boys Were Banned From Playing a Fourth of July Concert Until President Ronald Reagan Stepped In]

At the time, The Beach Boys had seen decent success on the Hot 100, landing eight top 40 hits. In 1962, they earned their first international No. 1 when “Surfin’ Safari” topped the Swedish singles chart. Brian Wilson, who co-wrote “I Get Around” with Mike Love, had landed a No. 1 in the United States as a songwriter in 1963 when Jan & Dean’s “Surf City” topped the Hot 100.

The Beach Boys Had Something to Prove

The Beach Boys saw the Beatles become a dominant force in the United States with their early singles. So, when it came time to create new tunes, Brian Wilson knew he had to pull out all the stops. This led to what is in retrospect, one of the band’s most innovative singles.

“I Get Around” doesn’t break new ground lyrically. It’s all about surfing, sunshine, cars, and girls, much like the bulk of the band’s early singles. Musically, though, it was ahead of its time.

The guitar tone in “I Get Around” was groundbreaking. Today, rock music is full of fuzzy guitars with a heavy dose of reverb. Artists like Jimi Hendrix would later put the combination of effects front and center on their guitar-driven songs. However, The Beach Boys put their vocal harmonies at the top of the mix. The guitars and other instruments were just there as a backdrop. As a result, many don’t realize just how gnarly Carl Wilson’s tone was on this record.

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