The Beach Boys’ mastermind Brian Wilson may be gone in the physical sense, but the music of “America’s band” will surely live forever, especially if lifelong collaborator/ fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Al Jardine and The Pet Sounds Band have their say.

Together, the living legend and the late great’s longtime backers are setting their sights towards the Des Plaines Theatre on Saturday, August 23, followed by the Arcada Theatre on Sunday, August 24 for extensive evenings of sunny smashes and experimental rarities.

Chicago Concert Reviews caught up with the singer/guitarist behind the humongous “Help Me, Rhonda” to reflect on what it was like working alongside an undisputed genius, suggesting “Sloop John B” and “California Dreamin’” to the group, followed by recording the solo likes of “A Postcard From California” and the new “Islands In The Sun” EP in hopes of keeping the summertime vibes alive.

Many condolences to you personally over the passing of Brian Wilson, although the whole world feels like it lost him as well. How do you hope he will be remembered?

Al Jardine: A humble giant who didn’t even understand the term “genius.” I just read that, oddly enough, he said, “What does that term mean?” What’s that all about?” Or maybe he was being funny, but I would describe him as a humble giant of our time. He invented The Beach Boys and that kind of harmony, which is very, very rich with love and “Good Vibrations.”

What was he like to have as a band mate for well over half a century?

Jardine: He was always there for me. We were there for each other. It was just like a long friendship that I didn’t think would ever not be there, and even in his passing, it’s like he’s still there. I don’t even feel like he’s gone…I’m starting all over again, in a manner of speaking, even though Brian isn’t here to be with me. We’re paying tribute to him and I always wanted to reform the band, The Brian Wilson Band, so I did, but I call it The Pet Sounds Band now.

What will they bring to the Des Plaines and Arcada Theatre shows?

Jardine: They’re the traveling Wrecking Crew. They’re Brian’s hand picked musicians from back in the last century and we’re back to work after COVID, let’s put it that way, but unfortunately without Brian.

Do you have any memories of performing around the Chicago area?

Jardine: Oh yeah, McCormick Place, [the site of the “Live In Chicago 1965” album]. I remember McCormick Place before it burned down. It was a beautiful theatre on the lake and then we heard that it burned to the ground. I thought, “oh that’s terrible,” but now, of course, it’s been rebuilt. We haven’t played there since then, though, I don’t think. We’re happy to be in Des Plaines and also St. Charles…and if we have any overflow crowd, we’ll do McCormick Place [next time]. I have a little trio with [son/singer] Matthew [Jardine] that I performed with in Chicago at the [City] Winery. I love the Chicago Winery. I really enjoyed that. We had a little video [presentation], just a nice, informal [setting]. When I finish doing what I’m doing, I’d like to do that cause this big band, it’s a pretty big deal taking all these guys all over the world, but it would be nice to do a couple of those kinds of clubs again.

As you’ve met fans throughout your travels, who now span multiple generations, what are the types of comments they share with you?

Jardine: Pretty much the same. They all love the music. They start crying. They’ll get emotional because these are really important songs that live on forever in people’s hearts and minds.

Take us back to the beginning of The Beach Boys, starting with the way you presented yourselves to the world.

Jardine: When we were on the road together in the early days, it was important [to develop a look] because we were establishing our brand, our identity, and we looked pretty handsome. We were a good looking group, Brian, Dennis and Carl, as brothers of course, [and their cousin] Mike [Love] with those big striped shirts. We were the answer to The Kingston Trio, in a way, because they were Capitol’s most famous singing group up until the time we came along, and then The Beatles of course. But I got those shirts for us. This is a statement that I thought represented the label, not only Capitol, but the harmonies that we all learned from each other. We learned from The Four Freshmen, another group from Capitol, The Kingston Trio, The Four Preps and The Five Keys, but the striped shirts just seemed to say it all for me.

What did The Beach Boys do to completely revolutionize the sound being made by those kind of harmony groups?

Jardine: It was the voice of Southern California. The voicings that we used were remarkable, very preppy, kind of high school, college-level. The kind of thing you’d expect to hear, like The Four Preps’ “’26 Miles’ across the sea,” those kind of harmonies that people never forget. We invented, basically Brian for the most part, music to the surf and car culture of that time and we gave that sound a name. Of course “Beach Boys,” that name automatically brands you to a particular style, which is unfortunate cause we outgrew that pretty quickly, but well, we just have to live with the name I guess (laughs).

How would you describe the various kinds of evolution that followed?

Jardine: Brian evolved as a songwriter. We evolved as singers. We all evolved as songwriters and producers. It’s an amazing partnership we had and these shows that we’re doing in Chicago are a good example of that. We start off with the obvious, The Beach Boys’ hits, the ones that people expect to hear. They want to hear those hits because they bring back beautiful memories and then we delve into the deeper stuff that evolved beyond that. It’s a beautiful experience cause you get the best of both worlds.

Somewhere in between, “Help Me, Rhonda” became one of The Beach Boys’ most iconic songs. What types of emotions does that evoke up when you perform it live nowadays?

Jardine: You know, I’m really tired of that guitar part, to be honest with you, so we don’t do the intro. I don’t think we do anyway or I’ll tell the guy to stop playing. Otherwise it’s a great song. It just, for some reason, has that Brian Wilson energy. He said, “Come on down, I’ve got a song for you.” “Okay.” So we recorded it for our album called “The Beach Boys Today” and it was okay. It didn’t knock me out. It didn’t knock anyone out for that matter, except for Terry Melcher, who was the producer for The Byrds. He says, “I’d like to record that again. Do you mind if we record that?” So Brian said, “Thanks for asking Terry, but I’d like to try it again” or whatever, cause normally someone could cover a record and they could have a hit with it instead of the original. But Terry was a real gentleman, so we recorded it again with a different bass line, no ukuleles. The first one was like a demo and the second one was a number one hit record thanks to being able to re-record something a second time like that thanks to Terry not covering it.

You’re also responsible for bringing other timeless tracks to the band, such as “Sloop John B,” which you later turned into a children’s book. What was your vision behind it?

Jardine: That was one I wanted to record when we started the group. That was the one I thought we were gonna record. Instead we did a song about “Surfin’” and that took off. We never really had a chance to get into it until three or four years afterwards, maybe five years, I don’t know. Sometimes a good idea’s good forever. Just because you don’t execute on it immediately doesn’t mean it’s not good, and apparently, it was good enough to go top ten all over the world. It is a great song.

What are your recollections of going from that pivotal “Pet Sounds” period into the additional experiments that came after?

Jardine: I can’t remember much after “Pet Sounds.” That was a big project. That was a turning point for us. The fact is we actually scaled down after that and we came to make home-produced albums, like “Smiley Smile,” “Friends,” it goes on and on. We kind of retracted a little bit and then we expanded. We came back and came back again. We were still touring. The hits were still very popular. They still are. People love those songs. What’s been keeping us afloat all those years was great hit records.

There was another song you suggested a little later down the line in the ‘80s, which was a cover of The Mamas & The Papas’ “California Dreamin’.” How did that help usher in a new era during the days of MTV?

Jardine: That was a great one and it’s on my “A Postcard From California” album, come to think of it, with Glen Campbell and David Crosby singing with me. The MTV period, yeah you’re right, it was pretty well received. But they had us singing [while] I think we were in raincoats unfortunately. It was in black in white as well, the video for it, so that was a little strange I thought, but it is what it is.

Fast forwarding to today, tell us a bit about what you were going for throughout the “Island In The Sun” EP.

Jardine: I like the idea of bottling up the sun. It’s just a euphemism I like. “Wouldn’t it be fun if we could bottle up the sun?” It’s kind of corny in a way I guess. It sounds more like an orange juice commercial. It probably will be someday (laughs). It’s got a great vibe to it. It’s got that “Kokomo” vibe, which people love, and I found my voice. I found a baritone voice that I didn’t have before, so I was able to sing the low notes like Mike, and then the high notes like myself, and then even higher notes with my son Matt, who’s touring with the band as well. He can sing the falsetto parts that Brian used to sing, so it worked out perfectly, although except for one thing. We’re not doing it at the show (laughs) because I don’t want to bring new material too quickly into everybody that they haven’t heard. They’re coming to hear the hits and we’re already introducing a rarity during the show called “The Beach Boys Love You” album, so I didn’t want to overwhelm everybody with my stuff, but we’ll get to it next year probably.

How long have you known Neil Young and what led you two to collaborate on the track “My Plane Leaves Tomorrow?”

Jardine: I’ve known him forever. We used to hang out during the early days after he joined up with the [Buffalo Springfield] guys, Richie Furay, Stephen Stills and that gang. We’ve known Neil for quite a long time and he sang on my studio album, “A Postcard From California.” While we were getting ready to wrap up I said, “Hey Neil, would you mind putting your good vibes on this song I’m writing? I don’t have all the verses yet, but I have the answers to the versus” and he said “sure,” so he walked up to the mic and sang like a trooper. I thought he nailed it, even tried some harmony parts, which I think was kind of amusing. He’s singing for a Beach Boy now, right? (laughs) But in actual fact, it’s perfect. He’s singing the part of a G.I. that’s going off to war and saying, “don’t say goodbye, say ‘au revoir.’ We’re not gonna say goodbye cause I’m coming home,” that kind of thing. He annunciated it perfectly. I’m very pleased with that, the spirit and feeling he conveyed.

Who are some other artists you’ve enjoyed collaborating with outside of The Beach Boys?

Jardine: Well, [Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist] Flea would be another. I asked Flea to play on “Help Me, Rhonda” on my “Postcards” album. He did that, and he did the same thing Neil did. I said, “Hey, before we wrap, could you play a little trumpet on this song? I’m writing about this guy going off to war?” He said “sure” and he whips out his trumpet, cause apparently that was one of his first instruments. He played a beautiful taps on the trumpet to end the song, which again, I thought was brilliant, but that’s before the song was even written practically. He’s a real talented guy.

Is there anything left you’d like to pursue or accomplish in your career?

Jardine: I want to just keep having fun with the band cause it’s really about family now, like getting everybody together and having a good time. You kind of take it for granted when you’re doing it, but now I realize, “geez, I really miss this a lot since COVID.” We haven’t worked hardly, except my Endless Summer Band is working and that’s a wonderful little band too. We still have some dates with them at the end of the year.

Although you’re in the midst of continuing what you and Brian had going, do you ever see yourself working with Mike again?

Jardine: Probably not, but that’s okay. The Beach Boy thing did its thing and that’s fine, but I don’t want to go back to that. I’m happy doing the deep cuts. The Pet Sounds Band is amazing and it’s gonna be extraordinary, really, when I think about it. And then we get a chance to do some of my new music next year, so that’s even better. Right now we’re concentrating on the deep cuts. “The Beach Boys Love You” album is part of the new box set coming out this autumn. We don’t have a name for it yet, but we’re doing the music and some deeper cuts even on that or some similar cuts that haven’t been performed ever before.

How do you hope The Beach Boys as a whole will be remembered?

Jardine: Some great singing, great compositions. For the music, obviously, but we were great singers. For some reason, it all seemed to blend immediately and particularly with Brian’s high parts. His falsetto voice is amazing and Mike’s baritone, amazing. Carl, incredible, and Dennis, he was kind of the low rung of the ladder for a long time because he really didn’t like being in the studio that much, but he learned how to sing, write and produce. It’s just amazing. That family is just amazing, a talented group, so [I think we will be] remembered for our singing, [as a] harmony group and the compositional skills that came along with it.

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Al Jardine And The Pet Sounds Band perform at the Des Plaines Theatre on Saturday, August 23 and the Arcada Theatre on Sunday, August 24. For additional details, visit AlJardine.com, DesPlainesTheatre.com and ArcadaLive.com.

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Al Jardine And The Pet Sounds Band perform at the Des Plaines Theatre on Saturday, August 23 and the Arcada Theatre on Sunday, August 24. For additional details, visit AlJardine.com, DesPlainesTheatre.com and ArcadaLive.com.