"I loved him, and was privileged to be around his bright shining light for a little while," McCartney wrote Thursday, a day after Wilson died at age 82.

Paul McCartney paid tribute to the Beach Boys founder Brian Wilson on Instagram, who died on June 11 at 82 years old. "Brian had that mysterious sense of musical genius that made his songs so achingly special,

Singer Elton John posted a photo of him and Wilson, writing, “Brian Wilson was always so kind to me from the day I met him. He sang ‘Someone Saved My Life Tonight’ at a tribute concert in 2003, and it was an extraordinary moment for me.”