Top 10 Surf Tunes...

OK gang here we go...
Lately I've been really digging on Eddie Angel and Los Straitjackets...

And...me and a buddy of mine are thinking about putting together a surf band next spring and summer for a few gigs and parties in between our other bands...

So I thought I would ask this well informed crowd of guitar players and music enthusiasts to help me compile a top 10 list of surf tunes...(if we do this band I don't want to leave out any of the essential stuff).

I'm posting on the stratocaster page with this poll in honor of Dick Dale and Eddie Angel (both Stratocaster men).

SO let's roll...

e3 8)

p.s. I think we are gonna call the band "Dia De Los Surfers"
(If you are familiar with South Texas and "Dia De Los Muertos"...this might be funny to you!)

Oh and we already have 2 original insrumental songs...
La Llarona (spooky and surfy) :shock:
and
The Ballad of Sandra Cisneros (kinda like "sleepwalk" but nowhere as good) :wink:

1-Miserlou- Dick Dale
2-Wipe Out-The Surfaris
3-Pipeline-The Ventures
4-Walk,Don't Run
5-Apache 65

Here are 5 you can put on the list.

Diamond Head - Ventures
Pipeline - Chantays

This one has to fit in somewhere.............


http://www.meshuggabeachparty.com/meshugga/audio/hava_nagila.mp3

Here's the site:

http://www.meshuggabeachparty.com/meshugga/index.php3

Hey Tony...
Hava Nagilla...aw man that is sweet!

OK I got two Pipelines...Ventures & Chantays...which one?

Hey Brian (from the DiamondHeads) are you out there buddy?

I need a contribution from you for the top10 surf tunes.

e3 8)

The Beach Boys - Surfin' Safari, Surfin' U.S.A., Surfer Girl.
The Surfaris- Surfer Joe and Wipe Out.
The Chantays - Pipeline.
The Trashmen - Surfin' Bird.
Dick Dale - Miserlou.
The Marketts - Out of Limits.
The Pyramids - Penetration.
The Trade Winds - New York's a Lonely Town.
Okay, that's eleven...
Also, for a different twist, track down The Raybeats - surf mixed with "new wave". Very cool!

THE ATLANTICS-"BOMBORA"

Ernie.

Hey John...
Very cool selections in your top 10! 8)

Are the Raybeats the band that "Daddy-O" from Los Straitjackets played in...?

e3

The very first thing I'd do is get The Ventures "Golden
Greats"!!!! One of the Top 5 instrumental albums
of all time....ya can't get it on CD...and ya don't want it on CD....arguably the greatest cover art in the history of
recorded music!!!! something that will always be lacking
with CD's IMHO....plus an album on vinyl just sounds more "alive" when it's CRANKED.....

Jody Harris - guitar extraordinaire; Danny Amis - bass and guitar; Pat Irwin - saxophone, organ & guitar; Don Christensen - drums.
Recorded in England! Surf's Up-on-Thames!

Old school - any track off the 1963 Venture's "Surfing" LP (or better yet, the complete 1995 "Surfing" remake on CD) - IMO The Ventures (http://www.theventures.com/) were the best at well-crafted, melodic surf tunes.

New school - Most anything from The Surf Kings (http://www.thesurfkings.com/) or Slacktone! (http://slacktone.com/).

Geez, I'm gettin' stoked! I need a new Strat! :twisted:

Hey Rob...

I was checking out the Ventures website (via the link on your post)...came across the video for "Surf Rider"... :o

Needless to say "Surf Rider is going on the top10 list and songlist for "Dia de Los Surfers".

And...I was checking out your website...man! your stratocaster you call "surf-a-licious"...looks like it would be just perfect for this surf gig!


thanks,
e3 8)

Yep, Nokie's "Surf Rider" has always been a fave surfy tune of mine. The original recording was obviously done with a trem g'tar but Nokie had no problem doing whammy fakies with his custom made Tele - that feller can *pick*!

you bet it does. Ah....just add a bit of Jan & Dean

...a surf version of "The Four Seasons"? I heard it once years ago on the radio, and I'd love to hear it again!

C

Dick Dale ---- "Nitro" killer reverb-city!!!!

the group <sex with lurch> doing' monster surf .

"Bombora" Number 1 California, in 1965. :wink:
"The Atlantics" still playing and touring.
Ernie. 8)

Hey E,

Here's a Surf Music link for you.
http://www.zptduda.com/cowabunga/

Check out MoonDawg's "Spaghetti Western" Link on the page.
http://www.hangnine.ukgateway.net/Dawg.htm

For a nice compilation,
check out Rhino Records
"Cowabunga-The Surf Box"

http://www.sundazed.com/ has some classic surf CDs .

Jamie

Hey Ernie thanks for the "hedz up" on the Atlantics..."Bombora" very cool!

And Jamie very cool surf links!

I am gonna start compiling my 10 song list tonight!

So keep 'em coming....stay tuned!

e3 8)

E3,

Don't forget about the James Bond, Hawaii 5-0, Perry Mason, and other spy/lawmen themes.

Surf, SpagWestern, and Spy stuff is a blast to play.

Give that whammy and reverb tank a workout!

Have fun!

jamie

Old school - any track off the 1963 Venture's "Surfing" LP (or better yet, the complete 1995 "Surfing" remake on CD) - IMO The Ventures (http://www.theventures.com/) were the best at well-crafted, melodic surf tunes.

New school - Most anything from The Surf Kings (http://www.thesurfkings.com/) or Slacktone! (http://slacktone.com/).

Geez, I'm gettin' stoked! I need a new Strat! :twisted:

I'm with you: Ventures all the way!

And as I don't know any of the new stuff, I'll certainly look into thesurfkings and slacktone ASAP! :D

Anything by the Ventures...(Live in Japan '64 is awsome)
Anything by the Shadows (not really surf, but the vibe is there)
Anything by Dick Dale (THE king of Surf!)

For newer bands check out:
Three Balls Of Fire
http://www.3ballsoffire.com/

and The Sandblasters..

http://home.austin.rr.com/sandmusic/sbhome.htm

Hey...
I saw those guys at a club here in S.A. and I thought they were COOL!

I would like my lil' group to ride a wave somewhere in between Los Straitjackets, Deke Dickerson and 3 Balls of Fire. yeah definately !

e3 8)

1-Miserlou- Dick Dale
3-Pipeline-The Ventures

just repeat those two over and over...

Apache is pretty good too.
But what about the hooded band "Los Straightjackets"!!

They do a cool cover of the good the bad and the ugly.

I'm thinking...

1. Surf Rider - Ventures
2. Walk Don't Run
3. Pipeline
4. Miserlou - D. Dale

5. SleepWalk - Santos & Johnny

6. Kawanga - Los Straitjackets
7. Itchy Chicken
8. Pacifica

more to come...
Pyramids
Dale
Shadows (maybe)
Link Wray

etc...

e3 8)

Do any of you Californians know what
the great Kathy Marshall is up to these
days? I think it would be a pretty cool
thing if "The Queen" emerged with a
new record. We gotta a guy here that
lived in the L.A. area that raves about her
and there is a photo of her in "Fender: The
Sound Heard 'Round The World" by
Richard Smith. In the photo she's being
backed by someone who in the concensus
is a "pretty decent" geetar player in his
own right. :wink:

Larry Carlton was in Eddie and the Showman .....Here are some great bands to check out also besides The Ventures, Dick Dale and Los Straightjackets(my fave band):

1. Teisco Del Ray
2. Laika And The Cosmonauts
3. The Halibits
4. The Blue Hawaiins
5. The Challengers
6. Seks Bomber
7. Los Mel-Tones
8. The Aqua Velvets
9. The Space Cossacks'
10.The Penetrators

8. The Aqua Velvets

Way cool band. My local pbs radio station usually plays some kind of instrumental tune before the news. Every time they play the Aqua Velvets, I'm ALWAYS in a better mood!

"King of the Surf Guitar" from King of the Surf Guitar: The Best of Dick Dale & His Del-Tones? It might be a worthwhile addition to what promises to be a smokin' set.

Kojack

Hey Joey V...thanks for your list ...EXCELLENT!
Digging the AquaVelvets & the Halibuts.

And BTW I really dig your website and songlist...continued success brother-I think you got the right idea 'bout playing music (we need an emoticon for "envious").

Another "shout out" ...to Rob DiStefano...I reeeally dig your website - nice, nice guitars! and I'm gonna start doing Surf Rider in my other band (which features an accordian player)...its just a cool tune!

Thanks everybody for the suggests and I will post when we got the final set list and the band is underway.

Oh yeah, BTW ...I'm going with the stratocaster (at least for now...until DiPinto sends me a guitar) ...liking the Eddie Angel tone for surf and instrumental.


e3 8)

Also,
The Vanduras "In the Dark"
Gary Brandin from the Blue Hawaiians and his son Geoff--good surf noir.
How about Gary Hoey as well--Dick Dale loves the guy.

1-Miserlou- Dick Dale
2-Wipe Out-The Surfaris

I know The Original Guitarist fromthe Surfaris, a real nice Guy named 2 Bad Jim, we talk a lot.
He intorduced me to Dick Dale, who is now a friend,
This dude (DD) Tours alot & I repect his working so much.

Cool Cats, These Surf Dudes.

KBR

How could I have forgotten Laika...they're grrreat!!!
KBR did you get a chance to play with DD???
And finally again: An APB on Kathy Marshall...is she
active...have any of you heard her? Harold (the guy
from work who saw her) was a surfer and brought
his board East when he migrated here in 1979, anyway
he almost had a heart attack when he came upstairs
in The Barn and discovered a Surfboards Hawaii Model A
(10 footer) behind the Fender backline. We're gettin'
Harold a rosewood board Sunburst Mexican Strat (hey
that's what he wants), he says it's gonna hang over
the fireplace in his new log home -ART???
I don't think 56 is too old to learn somethin' new H.,
ya gotta play that thing man, it'll keep ya goin' when
everything else won't. Amen.

No I haven't played with Dick Dale, But He is a Cool dude, and the World's oldest Teen ager...
Gigs alot, lives in the Desert in SOCAL.
His 10 year old Son, loves my stuff and so does DD, I sent them a few cd, One where I did a DD type tune, (Liv A Mo) Played on a Tele.

Funny, when I started in 60/61 I couldn't figure out much surf stuff, but Know I can!

Happy New Year

...to school in 10' of snow, uphill both ways :wink:, I was in a band called the X-Rays (the band actually formed in '62, I started playing in '61) we did a Dick Dale and the Deltones song called "Motion". Also did a lot of Bill Dogget, Bill Black, Lonnie Mack, Ventures, and a couple of years later stuff by the Astronauts like "Devil Driver" (really cool tones from their Dual Showman amps, Fender reverb tanks, and Fender Jaguars). I've got some old photos somewhere of me in my pompadore and wrap around shades (somewhere around '62-'63). I would have been 12-13 years old. 8)