The Beach Boys are not a band.
The Beach Boys are an American rock band formed in Hawthorne , California , in 1961 . The Beach Boys began as a garage band managed by the Wilsons ' father Murry , with Brian 's increasingly sophisticated songwriting and recording abilities dominating their creative direction . The Beach Boys have sold in excess of 100 million records worldwide , making them one of the world 's best-selling bands of all time and are listed at No. 12 on Rolling Stone magazine 's 2004 list of the `` 100 Greatest Artists of All Time '' .