The Beach Boys perform at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre March 2

The Beach Boys perform at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre March 2

The Beach Boys are one of the most iconic bands in the history of rock ‘n roll.

Touting over 60 years in the music industry, the band’s co-founder, lead singer and songwriter, Michael Edward Love (Mike Love), continues to perform surrounded by longtime mate Bruce Johnston; musical director Brian Eichenberger; Tim Bonhomme; Jon Bolton; Keith Hubacher; Randy Leago; John Wedemeyer; and Love’s son Christian.

Celebrating his 83^rd birthday on Monday, March 4, Love has led the band as front man singing harmonies since the band's first 1961 hit, "Surfin'." The multitude of songs that followed not only topped the charts (four No. 1 singles, 36 Top 40 hits and 56 Hot 100 Hits) they became American anthems.

Fan favorites reflecting the California lifestyle include “Surfin’ USA," "Surfer Girl," "Fun, Fun, Fun," "I Get Around," "California Girls," "Help Me Rhonda," "Barbara Ann," "Good Vibrations," "Wouldn’t It Be Nice," "Rock and Roll Music" and "Kokomo.”

The accolades are many. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, the Vocal Hall of Fame in 1998, and UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, The Beach Boys received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2001 Grammy Awards. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked the Beach Boys No. 12 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

Surpassing 100 million record sales globally and 33 RIAA Gold and Platinum Record awards, the band’s history is both admirable and sad. And yet, with Love’s continuous presence, the Beach Boys Band continues to successfully tour around the world.

The St. Augustine Record had the distinct pleasure of catching up with Mike Love as the Beach Boys Band prepares to rock yet another St. Augustine Amphitheater crowd on Saturday, March 2.

The St. Augustine Record: Welcome, what brings you back to St. Augustine?

Mike Love: The St. Augustine Amphitheatre is a hotspot for us. The audience response is euphoric, it’s just amazing.

The St. Augustine Record: How does it feel to perform these songs for so many years?

Mike Love: Our songs, re-creations of the original songs, lift spirits. The Beach Boys get the best reactions humanly possible in concert. Listeners love the music which makes us feel good because we’ve had a hand in creating those songs. We don’t approach these songs casually. The harmonies are so specific, we keep totally engaged. We’re professional lifetime musicians who love what we’re doing, who love being on stage and love the fact that the audience really appreciates what we do. To recreate these songs and see the audience response is special.

The St. Augustine Record: Talk to me about the joy of performing with such incredible audience engagement.

Mike Love: It feels fantastic. I get the chills from seeing multiple generations, grandparents with their kids and their children, all enjoying the songs together. That doesn't always happen. Kids have their music and parents and grandparents have theirs, but we've been at it for over 60 years, so we see entire families enjoying our music together.

People sit and enjoy beautiful ballads like “Surfer Girl," "In My Room," or "Warmth in the Sun,” and then get up and sing and dance to “Kokomo," "Help Me Rhonda," "Surfing USA" and "Good Vibrations.” That’s a huge signal for us.

In 1966, with“Good Vibrations," "Help Me Rhonda" and "Surfin’ USA” at No. 1, we were voted the No. 1 group in England with The Beatles coming in at No. 2. That’s incredible. In fact, a psychologist in Sheffield, England researched a bunch of songs with 2500 people and found that “Good Vibrations” placed No. 1 for making people feel good.

The St. Augustine Record: Talk to us about co-founding one of the most iconic bands in the history of rock'n'roll.

Mike Love: Music in the 60s was incredibly dynamic. I think some of the best ever. The 50s preceded us with The Everly Brothers, Chuck Berry and doo-wop songs that inspired us. We took that inspiration and crafted our songs about our lifestyle in Southern California: surfing, cars and California girls.

So, the concepts that we initially started caught on not only in the U.S., but around the world. Songs from the "Pet Sounds" album, “God Only Knows," "Sloop John D," "Wouldn't It Be Nice,” were even highly regarded by many musicians. Paul McCartney said “God Only Knows” was one of his favorite songs. To this day, our songs play on oldies radio, making us one of the most performed groups in the history of that era.

So, the 60s was an exciting time with a fantastic musical panorama with Motown: The Temptations; The Four Tops; The Supremes; Stevie Wonder; Marvin Gaye; Smokey Robinson. These artists released an amazing amount of hits. We were blessed to be a part of that. But there was rivalry between The Beach Boys and The Beatles.

The St. Augustine Record: Talk to me about "Kokomo," the soundtrack from the Tom Cruise movie "Cocktail," which was nominated for a Golden Globe and a Grammy Award. There is no island called Kokomo. Where did you come up with that name?

Mike Love: John Phillips of the Mamas the Papas came up with the idea. And you’re right, there’s no Kokomo in the Florida Keys. But there’s one in Indiana and one in Maui. The song describes an Island off the Florida Keys, “a place where you want to go to get away from it all,” but the actual geography was made up. I wrote the song with Scott McKenzie, Terry Melcher (Doris Day’s son) and John Phillips. “Kokomo” was No. 1 for eight weeks Australia. That's pretty amazing. Not too many songs get to be No. 1.

The St. Augustine Record: What inspires you to keep performing while most people your age are retired and relaxing at home?

Mike Love: The primary motive modality is that after six decades of performing and recording, our music is still loved and appreciated by so many people through the generations. It’s really a blessing. So, if people want to hear the songs that I was part of creating, that I sang lead on and co-created with my cousin Brian, songs that I had a hand in writing, we’ll play.

It’s rewarding to get the audience response, reception, and appreciation that we do. We wouldn't perform in a vacuum where nobody showed up; believe me, we wouldn't get invited to play or make enough money to get there.

But it’s also important to be healthy. I practice transcendental meditation every day. I was taught by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1967 and became a teacher in 1971. I even spent time in Rishikesh in Northern India. The Beatles were there. I do a song in the show called "Pisces Brothers" about George Harrison and I having our birthdays in India in 1968.

You must be careful with your lifestyle choices. I work out, I do Pilates and I meditate every day. There are so many examples of how drugs and alcoholism destroyed artists even within my own group. My cousin Dennis had problems with alcohol and drug abuse and he died in 1983. My cousin Carl, who was a fantastic singer, started smoking at the age of 12 and he in fact died from lung cancer 25 years ago. I intend to keep in shape for as long as I possibly live.

The St. Augustine Record: Does the traveling ever wear you down?

Mike Love: The crew sets everything up, so I just need the energy and clarity to perform two hours a night with a 20-minute rest in between the hours. Every night it's a different venue and it's a challenge to do these songs because they’re complicated in terms of harmonies but we're all up for it because it’s a pleasure to be able to do it.

We enjoy it, we're all musicians that enjoy singing and performing; it’s fun, rewarding and we get to see parts of the world that we probably wouldn't have seen if not for our music.

The St. Augustine Record: Do you have a favorite song?

Mike Love: My favorites are based on moods. “Fun Fun, Fun," "Surfing USA" and "I Get Around” are up tempo favorites; “Surfer Girl," "In My Room," "Warmth of the Sun” are good ballads; “Good Vibrations” is an incredible song and “Kokomo” was our biggest selling single. They’re all great.

The St. Augustine Record: Who inspired you?

We used the influence of Chuck Berry and the Everly Brothers to craft our songs and sing with a distinctive sound with lots of harmonies.

Chuck Berry, who influenced The Beatles and so many others, influenced our up-tempo beat. With his guitar base and lyrics, Chuck Berry told stories that were clever, like pictures with sound. We’re a four-part harmony who blend like the Everly Brothers and the beat of Chuck Berry.

The St. Augustine Record: Talk to me about your philanthropy. You're noted as a very kind and giving man with a variety of causes including environmentalism, juvenile diabetes and music education.

Mike Love: To use your celebrity to help people or to perform to raise money and awareness for philanthropic organizations be it health or education is really great. We've done a lot for hospitals and charities, even in my hometown, and it feels so good just to be able to do it.

The St. Augustine Record: Thanks for your time, Mike Love.

Mike Love: Hey, thank you, and I want to thank the people of St. Augustine for enjoying our show. We appreciate you.

This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: Mike Love and the Beach Boys perform at the St. Augustine Amphitheatre on Saturday, March 2