The Beach Boys are on the short list for greatest U.S. rock band. They were competing with the Beatles in the 1960s, and continue to be representative of the American Dream in ways both good and bad. Bruce Johnston is not often referenced, however, when discussing the band's signature lineup.
Johnston joined the Beach Boys in 1965, filling in for bandleader Brian Wilson on tour. He eventually cracked the recording lineup, however, and played a crucial role in albums released during the Beach Boys' fall from commercial grace. We're talking Sunflower and Surf's Up, albums that are now viewed as cult classics by fans. Johnston left the band in 1972, however, and the circumstances under which he left were initially unclear.
Bruce Johnston exited the band in 1972
Jack Rieley, the Beach Boys' manager at the time, claimed he fired Johnston from the band because he did not fit with their sound, and felt guitarist Blondie Chaplin would spice things up. Dennis Wilson, the band's drummer, reinforced this theory in the biography The Beach Boys: The Definitive Diary of America's Greatest Band, On Stage and In the Studio.
Wilson claimed that Bruce Johnston was a talented songwriter but simply failed to fall in line when it came to working as a team. "Musically, we didn't click [and] appreciate each other, so one day we both said, 'OK, that's it,'" he recalled. "He's a good guy but he was writing stuff for a solo album. [...] We're a band."
Johnston, however, claimed that he actually quit the band. During a 1974 interview, the singer and songwriter alleged that he was wary of the Beach Boys' transition to becoming an oldies act, and he felt like it was growing increasingly difficult to be creative within the band. "[I] didn't want to go on singing oldies for the rest of my life," he asserted. "[I was] frustrated being [considered as] a fifth of something – which was what I was with the Beach Boys."
Johnston rejoined the Beach Boys in 1978
Johnston released multiple solo albums before rejoining the band in 1978. He may have had some reservations about being in an "oldies" band, which he proved right about given the success of the Beach Boys compilation Endless Summer in 1974, but he has had no problem singing the hits ever since.
In fact, Johnston is one of only two Beach Boys members to remain a consistent touring member since the death of guitarist Carl Wilson. He has remained a constant in the band with lead singer Mike Love, and appeared on every single album since L.A. (Light Album) in 1979, including their final studio release, That's Why God Made the Radio, in 2012.
Johnston's loyalty to Love over Brian Wilson, who has since left the band, has been a topic of debate among fans, since it was Wilson who invited Johnston back into the fold at the end of the 70s. He did not, however, get to be part of the Beach Boys' Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction lineup in 1988. The honor went to founding members only.