The Beach Boys now!

Jeffrey Foskett and Mike Love first crossed paths in late 1976 or early ‘77 — neither one can recall the exact year. Foskett was playing guitar and singing in his college cover band, the Reverie Rhythm Rockers. The group had a gig at the famed 1129 restaurant in Santa Barbara, Calif., playing British Invasion-era songs. The Beatles, the Dave Clark Five, the Who, and a few Beach Boys songs were all part of their repertoire.

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Love, the oft-maligned singer and co-founder of the Beach Boys, stopped by. When Foskett learned he was there he introduced himself, even paid for Love’s dinner without him knowing. After some small talk, Foskett disappeared into the back room to play the show, Love decided to check it out.

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Anyone who has witnessed Foskett performing live knows he delivers every high note and every vocal harmony with the same heavenly resonance that Love spent a lifetime perfecting with his bandmates Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston, and brothers Carl, Dennis, and Brian Wilson. Beach Boys songs such as “California Girls,” “God Only Knows,” and “Good Vibrations” were born of the group’s obsession with harmony, creating a sound that to this day defines the Golden State’s image.

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When Love stepped into that back room at 1129 he liked what he heard: “Jeff was such a great singer that he really stood out,” Love says. “He had a tremendous ability to sing those falsetto parts, and that’s been the main attraction with him. He still stands out.”

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The two had no way of knowing it, but their meeting marked the beginning of a long relationship that has left Foskett deeply engrained within the Beach Boys’ legacy, through multiple lawsuits, reunions, and constant change.

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A few years later, Reverie was hired to serve as the Endless Summer Beach Band supporting Love on tour with his 1981 solo album, Looking Back With Love.

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Foskett was also making walk-on appearances playing guitar during Beach Boys’ shows. On Christmas Eve in 1981 he traveled to Bophuthatswana, South Africa, to play a show. That night, aside from Jardine, he was the only guitarist on stage — he was now part of the group.

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Foskett remained a member of the Beach Boys throughout the ’80s, and can be heard strumming an acoustic guitar on the group’s highest selling single to date, 1988’s “Kokomo.”

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His time with the Beach Boys came to an end in 1990 when he was asked to leave the group. He won’t elaborate on details, but he blames himself for the misunderstanding leading to his departure. “Let’s just say that Michael and I didn’t see eye to eye on several different matters for which I take full responsibility,” Foskett says. “Fortunately, he’s a forgiving soul.”

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Over the years, legal battles between Love, troubled songwriter Brian Wilson, and Jardine over songwriting credits and use of the band’s name kicked up rumors of infighting and drama amid the group’s members.

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In the end, Love and Johnston carried on with the Beach Boys. Wilson continued working under his name. Foskett also embarked on an extensive solo career that, to date, has yielded 10 CDs and found him working alongside Paul McCartney, Roy Orbison, Neil Young, and many others. The single “Fish” from his 1996 CD Thru My Window reached No. 3 in Japan. The website for his self-run label, New Surf, boasts that he has earned more than 40 gold and platinum plaques, and he has performed on many Grammy-winning albums.

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In 1998, Foskett landed back in the group’s circle, this time working as Wilson’s right-hand man. As the story goes, they initially met around 1976. Foskett knew that Wilson lived on Bellagio Road in Bel Air. He also knew the cover art for the Beach Boys’ 1967 LP Wild Honey came from a stained glass window at Wilson’s home. On his 20th birthday, Foskett searched the street until he found it. He rang the buzzer and was greeted like an old friend. They even jammed for a bit.

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They reconnected in ‘98 at actor and occasional Beach Boy John Stamos’ wedding. “I’d heard Wilson was starting work on a new solo album, Imagination, so I said, ‘I’d love to be a part of that with you,’” Foskett says. “His exact words were: ‘I think you’re on to something! I’ll call you.’ In this business that means nothing. But he actually called me three days later.”

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For nearly 16 years Wilson and Foskett were inseparable. It was an era that saw countless live performances and some of Wilson’s most acclaimed albums, including 2004’s Brian Wilson Presents SMiLE and 2008’s That Lucky Old Sun. Foskett can even be heard singing on Wilson’s 2015 album, No Pier Pressure.

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After a 2013 co-headlining tour with Jeff Beck, Foskett parted ways. The reason for his departure? It was simply time for change, he says. And as far as his return to the Beach Boys is concerned, Love saw an opportunity to move the group forward.

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In February 2014, Love was honored with an Ella Award by the Society of Singers. “I called Michael and said I’d love to help honor you,” Foskett says. “That rekindled our relationship.”

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The change of pace has been refreshing for Foskett, now 59, but it hasn’t been easy. “Brian is my mentor in singing and writing and working in the studio,” he says. “That kind of a teacher is invaluable. We’re still great friends. I know what my relationship with Brian is, and I’m sure Brian knows what his relationship is with Michael and I both. I love him to bits, but I’m doing what I should be doing right now.”

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The assertion that all is well between Wilson and the Beach Boys is one that Love strongly upholds, and will expand upon in an autobiography he’s currently writing, titled Good Vibrations: My Life as a Beach Boy. “What has been promulgated is just not real,” Love says. “It’s annoying to me. I know my relationship with Brian — no one has been involved with Brian Wilson longer than I have. We’ve been together since childhood. So no one can tell me how my relationship is with Brian.”

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For Foskett, focusing on live performances has been the biggest change affecting his life. With Wilson, much of his time was spent in the studio. But this year, the Beach Boys will play close to 170 shows across the country. “When you work on a record, you can hear it back and say that sounds great, but until it sells or until other people hear it you don’t get any feedback,” Foskett says. “When you’re at a concert performing live, it’s pure and instant gratification from the audience.”

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Nearly four decades after that fateful meeting at 1129, Foskett has found renewed energy in the Beach Boys classic songs. In turn, his voice, which caught Love’s attention so long ago, has brought new depth to the group’s stage presence. And presence is everything when it comes to a sound steeped in so much harmony and mythology.