"Transcendental Meditation" "did not tax anyone's brain. It just repeated how transcendental meditation 'makes you feel grand' against a moving beat." Because of the disappointing audience numbers and the Maharishi's subsequent withdrawal to fulfill film contracts, the remaining 24 tour dates were canceled at a cost estimated at $250,000 for the band (equivalent to $ in ). Afterward, Love and Carl told journalists that the racial violence following King's assassination was to blame for the tour's demise. Carl said: "A lot of people just would not let their children out. Nobody wants to get hurt." He added that the group's goal was to appeal mainly to young people, "but not the teeny-boppers", while Love commented that the shows were "not put together for commercial purposes". In his 2016 autobiography, Love wrote: "I take responsibility for an idea that didn't work. But I don't regret it. I thought I could do some good for people who were lost, confused, or troubled, particularly those who were young and idealistic but also vulnerable, and I thought that was true for a whole bunch of us." Sleeve design Friends was packaged with a cover artwork, designed by David McMacken, that depicted the band members in a psychedelic visual style. Love remembered that the group lacked "savvy marketing and design", and that while in Rishikesh, Paul McCartney had urged him "to take more care of what you put on your album covers". Johnston opined that the Friends cover ultimately ranked second to Pet Sounds for being the worst "in the history of the music business". Matijas-Mecca said the artwork "did nothing to convince anyone that the Beach Boys were in touch with anything in particular". Release Lead single "Friends" was issued on April 8 and reached number 47 on the Billboard Hot 100, making it their lowest-charting single in six years. On June 4, the Beach Boys appeared on The Les Crane Show and discussed their support of the Maharishi. The Friends album followed on June 24. On July 2, the group embarked on a three-week U.S. tour with further dates continuing throughout August, including some stops in Canada. Their setlists included "Friends", "Little Bird", and "Wake the World". Several supporting musicians accompanied the group (keyboardist Daryl Dragon, bassist Ed Carter, percussionist Mike Kowalski, and a brass section). Johnston remembered that performing the Friends songs caused him to "wince", and that it was difficult to