20 March 2026
Californian surf-pop icons THE BEACH BOYS released one of their
top drawer hit singles with SLOOP JOHN B today 60 years ago.
It peaked at #2 in the UK, at #3 in the US.
Topped the charts in New Zealand, South Africa
and several European countries.
The song is a cover of a Bahamian folk tune from
Nassau, published in 1916 as “The John B. Sails”.
It was also covered by other artists besides The Beach Boys.
Al Jardine (guitarist/co-vocalist and songwriter) said years ago: “Brian was at the piano.
I sat down and showed him the chord pattern for ‘Sloop John B.’ He wasn’t into folk music. But
I didn’t give up. I figured if I gave it to him in the right light, he might end up believing in it.
So I modified the chord changes so it would be a little more interesting.
I put some minor changes in there, and it stretched out the possibilities from a vocal point
of view. The very next day, I got a phone call to come down to the studio. Brian played the song
for me, and I was blown away. The time to complete the track took him less than 24 hours.”
