Terry Melcher, who is credited with creating the sound that was the Beach Boys, died Friday at home in Beverly Hills, California after battling melanoma. He was 62. Melcher was the son of actress Doris Day.

Melcher, who began is career as Terry Day in 1963, first worked with Bruce Johnson in a band called 'The Rip Cords.' Johnson would later go on to become a Beach Boy. Melcher was a pioneer in a technology known as harmonic layering, a sound that later typified the 60's surf sound popularized by the Beach Boys.

But his work was not confined just to Brian Wilson's band. Melcher also produced for other groups, including the Byrds. Their hit, 'Mr. Tambourine Man' became a chart topping hit in 1965. He also produced hits for Paul Revere and the Raiders including 'Kicks,' 'Hungry,' and 'Just Like Me.'

Melcher's run-in with Charles Manson may have been the impetus for the 1969 murder of Sharon Tate and others in the home that Melcher had once rented. Manson had approached Melcher to produce his music and Melcher turned him down.