Cover of Surfin' USA album

[mikee]

I haven't had any luck yet trying to find this out so far but someone here will know, right? 
Who is on the cover of this famous album?  Also what is the location and date of the stunning John Severson photo.  My guess would be that it might be Greg Noll at Sunset Beach.  (It sure isn't Paradise Cove).

[c-man]

I haven't had any luck yet trying to find this out so far but someone here will know, right? 
Who is on the cover of this famous album?  Also what is the location and date of the stunning John Severson photo.  My guess would be that it might be Greg Noll at Sunset Beach.  (It sure isn't Paradise Cove).

The guys on the cover are...The Beach Boys, of course! 
Meaning Brian, Dennis, Carl, Mike, and Dave.

C-Man

[punkinhead]

i was pretty sure it's just a magazine cover

[c-man]

I haven't had any luck yet trying to find this out so far but someone here will know, right? 
Who is on the cover of this famous album?  Also what is the location and date of the stunning John Severson photo.  My guess would be that it might be Greg Noll at Sunset Beach.  (It sure isn't Paradise Cove).

The guys on the cover are...The Beach Boys, of course! 
Meaning Brian, Dennis, Carl, Mike, and Dave.

C-Man

OH, you mean the FRONT cover!!
Sorry...dunno.


C-Man

[Rocker]

I haven't had any luck yet trying to find this out so far but someone here will know, right? 
Who is on the cover of this famous album?  Also what is the location and date of the stunning John Severson photo.  My guess would be that it might be Greg Noll at Sunset Beach.  (It sure isn't Paradise Cove).

Check out this site:  http://www.pipeline.moonfruit.com/   Go to "articles" and click on the Beach Boys-albumcover-thing....

[Malc]

Thanks Rocker for pluggin' my site !!
Les Williams (the surfer) is one heck of a nice guy and replied to all of my enquiries when I spoke to him a year or so ago ... and he's still at the beach every day ! The full conversation I had with him is to be found at the site ...
... and PART TWO of the Album Covers project will be launched in a couple of weeks - including exclusive comments from Fred Vail, Ed Thrasher and loadsa new facts !

Malc
www.pipeline-operaglass.moonfruit.com

[mikee]

Thanks Rocker and Malc!  I like your site a lot.  I could not locate the interview or anything on Les in the articles section but I did see the autographed "Surfin' USA" cover.  I did some internet research on Les.  He is still surfing down at San Onofre where I actually  also surf occasionally.   (We don't dance on the beach though between sessions like in 'Beach Party')  Hopefully I can get introduced to him sometime soon. A number of the earlier well known surfers frequent San Onofre.
Maybe some non-surfers might consider the shot to be just some sort of generic stock photo but it is an absolutely classic big wave photo by probably the most famous surf photographer.  I wonder who at Capital or with the BB's had the idea and went to John to get this photo?  The Capital guys would not nessesarily have known about Surfer Magazine at this time, but Dennis certainly would have.

       

[Malc]

Mikee

Go direct to www.pipeline-operaglass.moonfruit.com using this address (it's not on the actual Pipeline site ...) and enter Part One / Click on the "Surfin' USA" album cover and read thru ... at the bottom of the page on the left is a link to my Les Williams interview and how the sleeve came about !

Malc