Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong has shared a punk cover of ‘I Get Around’ in tribute to late The Beach Boys icon Brian Wilson.
Billie Joe Armstrong has honoured the late Brian Wilson with an emotional cover of The Beach Boys’ 1964 classic ‘I Get Around’.
Following the news that Wilson had passed away at the age of 82, the Green Day frontman took to Instagram to post his punk-flavoured rendition of one of The Beach Boys’ best-known hits. Armstrong revealed that he’d recorded the cover “a few years ago” but had never made it public until now.
“Thank you Brian Wilson,” he wrote alongside the track. “I recorded a cover of ‘I Get Around’ a few years ago, never got to share it. One of my all-time favourite songs ever.”
Armstrong’s version keeps The Beach Boys’ sunny melodic core sound intact but swaps out surf-rock polish for power chords and sharp punk energy, in a style fans of Green Day will immediately recognise.
Tributes have poured in from across the music world in the days since Wilson’s death. Sting performed ‘God Only Knows’ at a show in Germany, telling the crowd, “Today, one of my heroes died, Brian Wilson from The Beach Boys. So I want to sing a song that I love.”
Bruce Springsteen wrote, “If there’d been no Beach Boys, there would have been no ‘Racing in the Street’,” acknowledging Wilson’s massive influence. Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney also shared their respects, with McCartney writing, “I loved him, and was privileged to be around his bright shining light for a little while.”
Wilson’s family confirmed his passing in a public statement: “We are heartbroken to announce that our beloved father Brian Wilson has passed away. We are at a loss for words right now. Please respect our privacy at this time as our family is grieving. We realise that we are sharing our grief with the world.”
The official cause of Wilson’s death has not been disclosed, however Wilson’s family shared earlier this year that he had been diagnosed with dementia in February 2024.
Wilson’s impact on popular music is hard to overstate. His work continues to inspire generations of artists, as Armstrong’s tribute makes clear.
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