Favorite Surf Tune

[Rocker]

Quote
Hm, but Jan&Dean weren't really surf-music.... It was like much of the Beach Boys(though they had a little of that surfing sound) just music with lyrics about surfing.

Well then, what is your definition of surf music?  An instrumental number with a lot of reverb on the guitar?   

For example. Dick Dale is surf-music. And Jan&Dean didn't do anything in that direction except for "Wipe out". The other stuff is pop- or beatmusic

OK  but again my question is what is your definition of surf music?   
 

I don't think my engish is good enough to give you a satisfying answer to that question. But to me surf-music is stuff like Dick Dale. Jan&Dean (and lots, but not all, Beach Boys) is beat or rock-music with surfing-lyrics. Brian himself stated this.

[mikee]

I don't think my engish is good enough to give you a satisfying answer to that question. But to me surf-music is stuff like Dick Dale. Jan&Dean (and lots, but not all, Beach Boys) is beat or rock-music with surfing-lyrics. Brian himself stated this.

OK then if Dick Dale's music is "Surf Music" and most of the Beach Boys or Jan and Dean's music is not,  how does Dick Dale's "Secret Surfing Spot"  qualify as surf music where "Surfin Safari" "Ride The Wild Surf", or "Catch A Wave"   do not? 
Not you think that this or that artist was (or was not) "Surf Music"  but what musical traits characterize surf music?     

[Ebb and Flow]

I think what Rocker might be trying to say is that even though Jan & Dean/Beach Boys type songs are considered Surf music, they're in a different genre than the surf instrumental/guitar stuff that this thread's about.  When I make a compilation of Surf instrumental type music I always keep the Jan & Dean/Beach Boys off, save for the instrumental stuff the BB did on Surfin' USA.  In fact the only surf song I would consider to be in-between these two genre's is "Surfer Joe" by the Surfaris, simply because the instrumentation and vocals are so primitive and the song is by a group who mostly did instrumentals. 

There are exceptions, but for the most part J&D and BB music was really rock & roll capitalizing on a fad, while the stuff by Dick Dale et al WAS the fad.

[Aegir]

I don't know, there is definitely some overlap.. check out the Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/surf_music

This is medium to fast dance music which adds a male or female vocal line and often harmonies, and is otherwise very similar to surf instrumental music. Themes of the lyrics come from surf culture, teenage issues, and are often lighthearted or even humorous.

[Rocker]

I think what Rocker might be trying to say is that even though Jan & Dean/Beach Boys type songs are considered Surf music, they're in a different genre than the surf instrumental/guitar stuff that this thread's about.  When I make a compilation of Surf instrumental type music I always keep the Jan & Dean/Beach Boys off, save for the instrumental stuff the BB did on Surfin' USA.  In fact the only surf song I would consider to be in-between these two genre's is "Surfer Joe" by the Surfaris, simply because the instrumentation and vocals are so primitive and the song is by a group who mostly did instrumentals. 

There are exceptions, but for the most part J&D and BB music was really rock & roll capitalizing on a fad, while the stuff by Dick Dale et al WAS the fad.

Yeah, this sums it up very nice. Thanks Ebb and Flow.
@mikee: Regarding "Secret surfing spot" (which I don't know), not everything Dick Dale has done has to be surf music. It's like not everything the Beach Boys have done is rock'n'roll (or rock).

[Malc]

Outside of the Beach Boys
with vocals:
"Secret Surfing Spot" by Dick Dale
"Ride The Wild Surf" by Jan and Dean
"Gremmie Out Of Control" (cover of Gary Usher, Chuck Girard,  Dick Burns as the Silly Surfers ) by Pearl Jam  (I have never heard the original Silly Surfers version)

Mikee - this one's for you ! Check out the updated audio pages at www.pipeline.moonfruit.com

[Music Machine]

I like the instrumental surf songs best like

Pipeline
Miserlou
and the Walk Don't Run '64 version the Ventures did. A re-recoding of the original with some Surf riffs added in. Really helps beef up the song.

[mikee]

I think what Rocker might be trying to say is that even though Jan & Dean/Beach Boys type songs are considered Surf music, they're in a different genre than the surf instrumental/guitar stuff that this thread's about.

Actually this thread is about all surf music – not just one sub-category of it that you and Rocker might want to limit it to.  There has been no limitation such as the one you are describing. The generally accepted and more encompassing definition would be like the one given in wikipedia: 

  It has three main streams or subgenres:
Instrumental dance music in which electric guitars with a distinctive sustained but undistorted sound predominate.
Surf pop music, including both surf ballads and dance music that includes a vocal line.
Surf rock, which overlaps both the other streams, sometimes even to the point of being used as a synonym for surf music generally.
Many notable surf bands have been equally noted for both surf instrumental and surf pop music, so surf music is generally considered as a single genre despite the variety of these styles.
*****

Many of the surf groups that recorded put out songs in the 2nd and 3rd streams as well as the first.  That is something that Dick Dale did.  One thing about Dale, he did surf (seemingly sun up to sun down for a time) and even lived, fittingly, in a home that overlooked the Wedge at the entrance to Newport Beach harbor. 

What this thread did start out with was comments about “Let’s Go Tripping”.  That is appropriate since it is generally considered the first surf rock song  (#4 on KFWB Los Angeles locally, and later #60 on the national charts). It was originally released in Sept. 1961.  Another thing about the song is that Dale recorded it (and his entire first album) without reverb. They may also be the last surf instrumental songs ever recorded without reverb. 

 

[Rocker]

Actually this thread is about all surf music – not just one sub-category of it that you and Rocker might want to limit it to.  

I don't think we want to limit anything. It's just our opinion.

[Ebb and Flow]

I think what Rocker might be trying to say is that even though Jan & Dean/Beach Boys type songs are considered Surf music, they're in a different genre than the surf instrumental/guitar stuff that this thread's about.

Actually this thread is about all surf music – not just one sub-category of it that you and Rocker might want to limit it to.  There has been no limitation such as the one you are describing. The generally accepted and more encompassing definition would be like the one given in wikipedia: 

I didn't mean to make any limitations...just trying to point out the differences between different styles and genres.  At least you agree with me on that.

Why cite Wikipedia for such a subjective argument?   

[Aegir]

You see, I think the problem is, it's not subjective, just a misunderstanding. Some people assumed that it was only instrumental surf rock, while others did not.

[Andrew G. Doe]

There is only one surf instrumental that does anything at all for me, but Lordy is it a goodie.

"Pipeline".

'Course, the fact that originally it didn't have a surf-y title may have some bearing on this... otherwise, surf instrumentals are - to me, and I fully understand I'm in a definite minority here - at best repetetive, more often, tedious in the extreme. The blues are much the same to me, btw.

[Mark A. Moore]

And Jan&Dean didn't do anything in that direction except for "Wipe out". The other stuff is pop- or beatmusic.

Actually, that's not true . . . Jan & Dean never did "Wipe Out" originally.

But Jan Berry did write some fantastic instrumentals in the Surf genre . . . and they did appear on J&D's original albums. Jan's instrumentals . . . played by Hollywood session musicians . . . are much more sophisticated than groups like the Chantays, etc.

Check out these awesome instrumentals written or co-written by Jan Berry (all from '64):

1. B Gas Rickshaw (Quasimoto) — (Jan Berry)

2. Old Ladies Seldom Power Shift — (Berry-Torrence)

3. Skateboarding (Parts 1 & 2) — (Berry-Gibson)

4. Walk on the Wet Side — (Berry-Gibson)


Jan was really into the instrumental scene . . . He followed it . . . and his tunes help bridge the much-talked about chasm between instrumental surf music and the vocal stuff. Jan wrote in both genres.

And remember . . . I have Jan's original hand-written music scores for this stuff. And I can tell you that these songs are a fascinating mix of note-for-note reproduction and embellishments from the musicians.

Examples:

"B Gas Rickshaw" — note-for-note reproduction from Jan's original score

"Skateboarding" — smoking guitar leads from studio cats, over Jan's written chord charts


M.

[mikee]

The other stuff is pop- or beatmusic.

I hate to tell you but that is also what instrumental surf music is.  "Wipe Out" is, in reality, a cover of the Preston Epps hit "Bongo Rock".  It was retitled to exploit the surf craze and that's the "surf" of it.   The music was a continuation of instrumental rock, that had come from a diverse group of artists.  A few examples of the earlier songs are  Sandy Nelsons "Let There Be Drums",  Richie Valens "Fast Freight",  The Ventures "Walk Don't Run" Santo and Johnny's "Sleep Walk", and for that matter Ike Turner's "Prancing".                 

[Rocker]

ok



but I still have a different opinion. I have to agree though that your posts makes sense

[donald]

Bongo rock..;   That would seem a more fitting name for Wipeout.

[monkee knutz]

Chalk up- Squad Car by Eddie & The Showmen, Baja by The Astronauts- probably 2 of my top 10 surf tunes.
Damn shame Eddie & The Showmen didn't have more than an album worth of material. Eddie Bertrand was far better than Dick Dale could ever be.