Sting has paid tribute to the late Beach Boys singer Brian Wilson with an emotional cover of ‘God Only Knows’ – watch the performance below.
Wilson’s death was announced by his family yesterday (June 11) via social media – he was 82. Just hours after the tragic news broke, Sting took to the stage at the IGA Park in Germany for a concert.
Towards the end of his set, the Police frontman took a moment to honour Wilson. “Today, one of my heroes died; Brian Wilson from the Beach Boys. He’s gone to heaven, so I’m gonna sing a song that I love,” he said before launching to a tender rendition of the pop band’s classic ‘God Only Knows’.
Check out the snippet of the performance below.
This isn’t the first time Sting has performed a ‘God Only Knows’ cover. Back in 2008, he joined Wilson himself onstage at the Carnegie Hall for a Rainforest Foundation Fund benefit concert, where the pair performed the duet together.
While footage of the 2008 performance isn’t available to the public, audio recordings of the duet have found their way onto the internet. You can listen to the performance below.
Sting has also performed covers of the Beach Boys hit – which Wilson wrote at just 23 years of age – at solo gigs in the past. He’s performed it twice throughout 2024, and once again whipped out the cover last night (June 11) in Germany, marking the first time he’s played it live this year.
The Police frontman wasn’t the only musician to perform the song in tribute to Wilson following the news of his death. Over in New York, Dave Matthews covered the track during a concert. He performed the song’s opening verse and chorus, and said after the cover: “Sad to see Brian go, but he gave us a whole lot of beautiful things. May he rest in peace. Sorry about that performance Brian, if you’re hearing it.”
‘God Only Knows’ is also famously one of Paul McCartney’s favourite songs. The Beatles icon had called the Wilson-penned hit “the greatest song ever written” several times, and in 2007 said: “‘God Only Knows’ is one of the few songs that reduces me to tears every time I hear it. It’s really just a love song, but it’s brilliantly done. It shows the genius of Brian.”
Following the news of Wilson’s death, both The Beach Boys and former bandmate Al Jardine have paid tribute to the musician. The band wrote: “The world mourns a genius today, and we grieve for the loss of our cousin, our friend, and our partner in a great musical adventure. Brian Wilson wasn’t just the heart of The Beach Boys—he was the soul of our sound. The melodies he dreamed up and the emotions he poured into every note changed the course of music forever. His unparalleled talent and unique spirit created the soundtrack of so many lives around the globe, including our own.”
Jardine said in a separate statement: “Brian Wilson, my friend, my classmate, my football teammate, my Beach Boy bandmate and my brother in spirit, I will always feel blessed that you were in our lives for as long as you were. I think the most comforting thought right now is that you are reunited with Carl and Dennis, singing those beautiful harmonies again.”
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