Mike Love, center, and Bruce Johnston, third from left, of The Beach Boys perform with their band during the Concerts In Your Car series at the Ventura County Fairgrounds, Friday, Oct. 23, 2020, in Ventura, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Way back in those hazy long-ago days of the 60’s, the Beach Boys, under the creative genius of Brian Wilson, crafted songs that featured harmonies that were as pristine as the blue-green California waters in which they and their surfing pals frolicked. Wilson and his musical cohorts, which included brother’s Carl and Dennis, their cousin, Mike Love, and a close friend from childhood, Al Jardine, wrote and played songs that were uniquely American in their optimistic, spritely tone and feel. They were songs that American kids could embrace and identify with. The Beach Boys immortalized the southern California lifestyle of those times through dozens of breezy harmony rich tunes that still keep those golden days alive in the minds of so many people who came of age in the 1960’s.

Along with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones back then, the Beach Boys were musical gods. They were seen by critics and fans alike as being the closest thing that America had produced that could rival the mighty Beatles and the onslaught of the fabled British Invasion. However, as the 1970’s dawned, they had slipped off the radar and become washed-up musical has-beens. The tastes of a fickle public were changing, and for all intents and purposes, America’s most bankable and popular rock band had become irrelevant. That being said, I will tell you that I’ve always been a Beach Boys fan, and to this day, for me, they are a guilty pleasure. I believe that as a songwriter and producer, Brian Wilson was America’s answer to Lennon and McCartney.

As the 60’s ushered in the 70’s, in a desperate attempt to reinvent themselves, the Beach Boys went into the studio and channeled their focus and energy on a boxed set, “Feel Flows: The Sunflower & Surfs Up Sessions, 1969-1971.” From a commercial perspective, the first two albums from the band at the start of the 70’s were stillborn. The 1970 release, “Sunflower” was a colossal flop, only getting to number 151 on the Billboard chart. It was the Beach Boys’ biggest failure. “Surf’s-Up” fared better, but it still only reached number 29. There was not one hit single to come out of either album. The ironic twist is found in the fact that critics raved about both albums, praising their creativity and groundbreaking musical innovation. Where Brian was always recognized as the genius, it was his younger brother Carl who received glowing reviews from critics for his creative guitar playing, and in taking over much of the lead role as Brian sank lower and lower into a seemingly bottomless well of depression.

With their albums tanking, the band ultimately resorted to touring, as they were still very popular in Europe after re-releasing one greatest hit’s package after another that all garnered lukewarm sales. Coupled with vicious in-fighting that led to a series of lawsuits and countersuits within the band, while Brian was caught in the throes of debilitating bouts with mental illness, this was a crushing scenario that saw one of the greatest bands in rock music history falling off the musical mountain into a deep valley of obscurity. What is incredible is that while they were caught in this maelstrom of descent, they actually produced some of the most outstanding music of their career as a band.

The remastered reissue of this giant 135 song boxed set in August is indeed a treasure trove of musical gems that features many alternate takes sitting alongside unreleased songs. The finished product showcases the brilliance and creative savvy of the band that was forgotten by fans across many decades. Since its release, with a humorous promotional tagline of “It’s now safe to listen to the Beach Boys again,” “Feel Flows: The Sunflower & Surf’s Up Sessions 1969-1971” has garnered rapturous reviews and has already become their highest-charting album since 1967. It is a powerful testament to what a productive and creative period this was for the Beach Boys in the studio. One can actually hear their music evolving and progressing across so many of the tracks.

The excavation of this lost vault of vintage songs underscores just how much gas the Beach Boys still had in their musical tank. Again, where earlier classic Beach Boys albums like “Pet Sounds” and “Smile” focused exclusively on Brian’s many talents, this reissued box set clearly shines a light on brothers Carl and Dennis as well as front man, Mike Love, and Al Jardine. Carl, who will always be remembered for his beautiful lead vocals on “God Only Knows” from the classic “Pet Sounds” album contributed two of the most powerful and enduring songs on the reissued boxed set: “Long Promised Road,” and the mystic “Feel Flows.”

All of the band members stepped up to the plate at a time when Brian was increasingly absent from sessions at the record company’s studios due to his battles with his own demons. Not being able to leave his house, they recorded all the tracks in a studio that they had built in Brian’s home.

As I’ve said, listening to the Beach Boys has always been, and still is today, a guilty pleasure. So many years have now slipped away since the Beach Boys were actually boys. Carl and Dennis both passed away decades ago, while eons have now passed since the band suffered their final break up. Mike Love now owns the legal rights to the name Beach Boys. Brian is still writing, recording and touring, and will always remain a musical legend.

When all is said and done, “Feel Flows…” offers solid proof that the Beach Boys never stopped making brilliant, cutting-edge music. This is a boxed set that offers new insight into the Beach Boys at the creative zenith of their studio career. It pulls back the veil and provides us with a peek at their creative process as it unfolded. At its core, it is a gift; a piece of music history that is a bit like taking an advanced course in music appreciation.

Paul Collins is a freelance writer from Southborough, Massachusetts.