Surf music
Surf music | |
---|---|
Other names |
|
Stylistic origins | |
Cultural origins | Late 1950s to early 1960s, United States |
Derivative forms | |
Local scenes | |
| |
Other topics | |
Surf music (also known as surf rock, surf pop, or surf guitar) is a
Dick Dale developed the surf sound from
The genre reached national exposure when it was represented by
At the height of its popularity, surf music rivaled
Instrumental surf
Form
Surf music emerged in the late 1950s as
Guitarists also made use of the
History
By the early 1960s, instrumental rock and roll had been pioneered successfully by performers such as
While Dick Dale was crafting his new sound in Orange County, the Bel-Airs were crafting their own in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County. The band was composed of five teen-aged boys. In 1959 they were still learning to play their instruments: Dick Dodd on drums, Chas Stuart on saxophone, Jim Roberts on piano, and Eddie Bertrand and Paul Johnson on guitars. Said Johnson of his relationship with Bertrand, "Learning the guitar became a duo experience versus a solo thing. We learned to play by playing together, one guy would play the chords, the other would play the lead. This sound would become the basis for the Bel-Airs."[25] They recorded their first single, "Mr. Moto", in June 1961 (with Richard Delvy on drums instead of Dodd) and the song received radio airplay that summer.[26][27] Dale was older, played louder, commanded a larger audience, and usually gets credit for creating surf music, but the Bel-Airs lay claim to having the first surf music single.
Like Dale and his
The Chantays scored a top-ten national hit with "Pipeline", reaching number four in May 1963. Probably the single-most famous surf tune hit was "Wipe Out" by the Surfaris, with its intro of a wicked laugh; the Surfaris were also known for their cutting-edge lead guitar and drum solos, and "Wipe Out" reached number two on the Hot 100 in August 1963 and number 16 in October 1966. The group also had two other global hits, "Surfer Joe" and "Point Panic".[29]
The growing popularity of the genre led groups from other areas to try their hand. These included
European bands around this time generally focused more on the style played by British instrumental rock group the Shadows. A notable example of European surf instrumental is Spanish band Los Relámpagos' rendition of "Misirlou". The Dakotas, who were the British backing band for Merseybeat singer Billy J. Kramer, gained some attention as surf musicians with "Cruel Sea", in 1963, which was later covered by the Ventures, and eventually other instrumental surf bands, including the Challengers and the Revelairs.[32]
Vocal surf
Distinctions
In Matt Warshaw's The Encyclopedia of Surfing, he notes: "Surf music is divided into two categories: the pulsating, reverb-heavy, 'wet'- sounding instrumental form exemplified by guitarist Dick Dale, and the smooth-voiced, multitracked harmonized vocal style invented by the Beach Boys. Purists argue that surf music is by definition instrumental."[33]
This second category of surf music was led by the Beach Boys,[8] a group whose main distinction between previous surf musicians was that they projected a world view.[34] In 1964, the group's leader and principal songwriter, Brian Wilson, explained: "It wasn't a conscious thing to build our music around surfing. We just want to be identified with the interests of young kids."[35] A year later, he would express: "I hate so-called "surfin'" music. It's a name that people slap on any sound from California. Our music is rightfully 'the Beach Boy sound'—if one has to label it."[36]
Vocal surf can be interpreted as a regional variant of doo-wop music, with tight harmonies on a song's chorus contrasted with scat singing.[37] According to musicologist Timothy Cooley, "Like instrumental surf rock with its fondness for the twelve-bar blues form, the vocal version of Surf Music drew many key elements from African-American genres ... what made the Beach Boys unique was its ability to capture the nation's and indeed the world's imagination about the emerging New Surfing lifestyle now centered in Southern California, as well as the subtle songwriting style and production techniques that identify the Beach Boys' sound."[38] In 1963, Murry Wilson, Brian's father, who also acted as the Beach Boys' manager, offered his definition of surf music: "The basis of surfing music is a rock and roll bass beat figuration, coupled with raunch-type weird-sounding lead guitar, an electric guitar, plus wailing saxes. Surfing music has to sound untrained with a certain rough flavor in order to appeal to teenagers. ... when the music gets too good, and too polished, it isn't considered the real thing."[39]
Hot rod rock
"Hot rod music" or "hot rod rock" evolved from surf music.[40] Dick Dale recalled how surf music was re-imagined as hot rod music by a record company-inspired move to capture a larger market.[41] According to The Ultimate Hot Rod Dictionary, by Jeff Breitenstein: "While cars and, to a lesser degree, hot rods have been a relatively common and enduring theme in American popular music, the term hot rod music is most often associated with the unique 'California sound' music of the early to mid-1960s ... and was defined by its rich vocal harmonies, amplified (generally Fender brand) electric guitars, and youth-oriented lyrics (most often celebrating hot rods and, more broadly, surfing and 'girls')."[42]
Author David Ferrandino wrote that "the Beach Boys' musical treatments of both cars and surfboards are identical",[43] whereas author Geoffrey Himes elaborated on "subtle" differences: "Translating the surf-music format into hot-rod tunes wasn't difficult... If surf music was a lot of Dick Dale and some Chuck Berry, hot-rod music was a little more Berry and a little less Dale — i.e. less percussive staccato and more chiming riffs. Instead of slang about waxes and boards, you used slang about carburetors and pistons; instead of name-dropping the top surfing beaches, you cited the nicknames for the top drag-racing strips; instead of warning about the dangers of a 'wipe out', you warned of 'Dead Man's Curve'."[12]
Popularity
In late 1961 the Beach Boys had their first chart hit, "
Wilson then co-wrote "Surf City" in 1963 for Jan and Dean, and it spent two weeks at the top of the Billboard top 100 chart in July 1963.[48] In the wake of the Beach Boys' success, many singles by new surfing and hot rod groups were produced by Los Angeles groups. Himes notes: "Most of these weren't real groups; they were just a singer or two backed by the same floating pool of session musicians: often including Glen Campbell, Hal Blaine and Bruce Johnston. If a single happened to click, a group would be hastily assembled and sent out on tour. It was an odd blend of amateurism and professionalism."[12][nb 2] One-hit wonders included Bruce & Terry with "Summer Means Fun", the Rivieras with "California Sun", Ronny & the Daytonas with "G.T.O.", and the Rip Chords with "Hey Little Cobra". The latter two hits both reached the top ten, but the only other act to achieve sustained success with the formula was Jan & Dean.[15] Hot rod group the Fantastic Baggys wrote many songs for Jan and Dean and also performed a few vocals for the duo.[50]
Decline
Like all other rock subgenres of this period, the surf music craze, along with the careers of nearly all surf acts, was effectively ended by the British Invasion beginning in early 1964.[15] Hot rod music also ceased to be prominent that year.[43] The emerging garage rock, folk rock, blues rock and later psychedelic rock genres also contributed to the decline of surf rock.[51] The Beach Boys survived the invasion by diversifying their approach to music.[52] Brian explained to Teen Beat: "We needed to grow. Up to this point we had milked every idea dry ... We had done every possible angle about surfing and then we did the car routine. But we needed to grow artistically."[12] After the decline of surf music, the Beach Boys continued producing a number of hit singles and albums, including the sharply divergent Pet Sounds in 1966. Subsequently, they became the only American rock or pop group that could rival the Beatles.[44] The band only sparingly returned to the hot rod and surfing-themed music, beginning with 1968's "Do It Again".[53]
Influence and revival
Instrumental surf rock style guitar was used in the
Surf punk
Surf punk is a revival of the original surfing sound combining surf rock with
Production
Los Angeles session musicians, The Wrecking Crew played on many surf music recordings.[71][72]
Notes
- ^ "Little Deuce Coupe". from 1963, has been cited by John Milward as one of the earliest forms of hard rock with its series of buzzing beats.[46]
- ^ From 1961 to 1965, around fifteen-hundred car songs were recorded.[49] As in the 1950s, many groups adopted the names of car brands, but with a greater emphasis on hot rods, such as the Duece Coupes, the Duals, the GTOs, the Dragsters, the Roadsters, the T-Bones, and the Roadrunners.[49]
References
- ^ Sabin 1999, p. 159.
- ISBN 0-8020-8620-9, p. 83.
- ^ Besssman (1993), p. 16; Marcus (1979), p. 114; Simpson (2003), p. 72; McNeil (1997), p. 206.
- S2CID 143841415.
- ^ Sabin 1999, p. 99.
- ^ a b Perna 2012, p. 117.
- ^ Blair 2015, pp. 7, 49, 119.
- ^ a b c "Surf". AllMusic.
- ^ P. Romanowski, The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll: Completely Revised and Updated (Simon & Schuster, New York, 2nd edn. rev., 1995), p. 973.
- ^ Blair 2015, pp. 7, 49.
- ^ a b Blair 2015, p. 49.
- ^ a b c d Himes, Geoffrey. "Surf Music" (PDF). teachrock.org. Rock and Roll: An American History. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-11-25.
- ^ Browne & Browne 1986, p. 194.
- ^ "Hot rod rock". Allmusic. Retrieved 23 April 2011..
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Bogdanov, Woodstra & Erlewine 2002, pp. 1313–1314.
- ^ "Secrets of the Surf Guitar Sound". reverb.com. 18 January 2018. Retrieved 2021-08-23.
- ^ "How to get the surf guitar drip sound". menga.net. Retrieved 2021-08-23.
- ^ A. J. Millard, The Electric Guitar (JHU Press, 2004), p. 129.
- ^ T. Wheeler, The Stratocaster chronicles: Fender : celebrating 50 years of the Fender Strat (Hal Leonard, 2004), p. 117.
- ^ R. Unterberger, S. Hicks and J. Dempsey, Music USA: the rough guide (Rough Guides, 1999), p. 382.
- ^ a b Sabin 1999, p. 158.
- ISBN 1-5011-4176-7, p. 164
- ^ Holgate, Steve (14 September 2006). "Guitarist Dick Dale Brought Arabic Folk Song to Surf Music". The Washington File. Bureau of International Information Programs, United States Department of State. Archived from the original on 2011-10-20. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
- ^ a b c "Rendezvous Ballroom". Huntington Beach International Surfing Museum. Archived from the original on 2011-07-19. Retrieved 13 February 2011.
- ^ "Benefit Show Lends A Hand To Surf Rock Legend Paul "Mr. Moto" Johnson". OCWeekly. 6 December 2018. Retrieved 6 December 2018.
- ^ "The South Bay Bands that Created the 60's Surf Music Sound". Southbay. 20 July 2017. Archived from the original on 28 November 2022. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
- ^ "They called it surf: 40 years after its peak, genre still rides wave of popularity". The San Diego Union-Tribune. 26 September 2004. Retrieved 26 September 2004.
- ^ Blair 1985, p. 2.
- ^ Blair 1985, p. 75.
- ^ "The Denvermen, Sydney, 1961–65", MILESAGO: Australasian Music and Popular Culture 1964–1975, retrieved 18 May 2010.
- ^ Warshaw 2005, pp. 776–777.
- ^ Blair 1985, p. 126.
- ^ Warshaw 2005, p. 584.
- ^ Miller 1992, p. 193.
- ^ Nathan & Lindsay 2001, p. 89.
- ^ Beach Boys, The (September 1965). "The Things We LOVE and the Things We HATE". 16 Magazine. 7 (4).
- ^ Edmondson 2013, p. 1117.
- ^ Cooley 2014, p. 56.
- ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ Cozzen 2015, p. 8.
- ^ "SURF COUNTY, USA : No Words Can Describe Real Surf Music". Los Angeles Times. July 27, 1990.
- ^ a b Breitenstein, p. 107.
- ^ a b Ferrandino 2015, p. 149.
- ^ a b Bogdanov, Woodstra & Erlewine 2002, pp. 71–72.
- ^ J. Bush. "The Beach Boys". Allmusic. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- ISBN 0-385-19650-4, p. 48.
- ^ Shuker 2012, p. 279.
- ^ Marcus 2013, p. 95.
- ^ a b DeWitt 2001, p. 44.
- ^ "The Fantastic Baggys". Allmusic. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- ^ Blair 1985, p. 9.
- ^ Welch, C. (November 14, 1964). "Beach Boys Brought Their Own Vegetables – So Audiences Beware!". Melody Maker: 10.
- ISBN 9780879308186.
- ^ K. Spencer, Film and television scores, 1950-1979: a critical survey by genre (McFarland, 2008), pp. 61-70.
- ^ M. Vorhees and J. Spelman, Lonely Planet Boston (Lonely Planet, 3rd edn., 2007). pp. 6 and 34.
- ^ a b Henderson & Stacey 2014, p. 619.
- ^ "Living in Darkness - Agent Orange | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic.
- ISBN 978-0-87586-207-1.
- ^ K-TEL - The Story...., Jan Berry and Dean Torrence
- ISBN 978-0-19-531373-4.
- ^ Blair 1985, p. 102.
- ISBN 978-0-8230-7639-0.
- ^ CD Review Volume 12, 1995 - Page 70
- ^ Greg Shaw (1975). Bomp 14 (Fall 1975).
- ^ Archives, L. A. Times (1990-06-02). "Gary Usher; Co-Writer of Beach Boys Hits". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-06-25.
- ^ Amazon - Barefoot Adventure: The 4 Star Sessions 1962-66
- ^ Amazon - Barefoot Adventure: The 4 Star Sessions 1962-66, Editorial Reviews
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2023-06-25.
- ^ "Surf music producer Terry Melcher dies". ABC News. 2004-11-22. Retrieved 2023-06-25.
- ISBN 978-1-4411-0748-0.
- ^ Inc, CMJ Network (October 1997). CMJ New Music Monthly. CMJ Network, Inc.
- ISBN 978-1-4773-1872-0.
Bibliography
- Blair, John (1985). The Illustrated Discography of Surf Music, 1961–1965 (2nd ed.). Pierian Press.
- Blair, John (2015). Southern California Surf Music, 1960-1966. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4671-3320-3.
- ISBN 978-0-87930-653-3.
- Breitenstein, Jeff. Ultimate Hot Rod Dictionary: A-Bombs to Zoomies. MotorBooks International. ISBN 978-1-61059-235-2.
- Browne, Ray Broadus; Browne, Glenn J. (1986). Laws of Our Fathers: Popular Culture and the U.S. Constitution. Popular Press. ISBN 978-0-87972-338-5.
- Cooley, Timothy J. (2014). Surfing About Music. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-95721-3.
- Cozzen, R. Duane (2015). Surf & Hot Rod Music of the 60's: Collectors Quick Reference. Lulu.com. ]
- DeWitt, John (2001). Cool Cars, High Art: The Rise of Kustum Kulture. Jackson: ISBN 9781604737752.
- Edmondson, Jacqueline, ed. (2013). Music in American Life: An Encyclopedia of the Songs, Styles, Stars, and Stories that Shaped our Culture. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-313-39348-8.
- Ferrandino, David (2015). Turner, Katherine L. (ed.). This is the Sound of Irony: Music, Politics and Popular Culture. Farnham: ISBN 9781472442611.
- Marcus, Ben (2013). Surfing: An Illustrated History of the Coolest Sport of All Time. MBI Publishing Company. ISBN 978-1-61058-761-7.
- Henderson, Lol; Stacey, Lee (2014). Encyclopedia of Music in the 20th Century. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-92946-6.
- ISBN 9780679737285.
- Nathan, David; Lindsay, Susan Gedutis, eds. (2001). Inside the Hits. Berklee Press. ISBN 978-0-634-01430-7.
- Perna, Alan di (2012). Guitar Masters: Intimate Portraits. Hal Leonard. ISBN 978-1-4803-2970-6.
- Roberts, Jim (2001). How the Fender Bass Changed the World: By Jim Roberts. Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-630-4.
- ISBN 0-415-17029-X.
- Shuker, Roy (2012). Horn, David; Shepherd, John (eds.). Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World. Vol. 8. New York; London: ISBN 9781441148742.
- Warshaw, Matt (2005). The Encyclopedia of Surfing. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 0-15-603251-1.
Further reading
- Bovey, Seth (2019). Five Years Ahead of My Time: Garage Rock from the 1950s to the Present. London: Reaktion Books. pp. 40–55. ISBN 9781789140651.
- Chidester, Brian; ISBN 978-1-59580-035-0.
- Crowley, Kent (2011). Surf Beat: Rock 'n' Roll's Forgotten Revolution. New York: Backbeat Books. ISBN 9781617130076.
- Dalley, Robert J. (1996). Surfin' Guitars: Instrumental Surf Bands of the Sixties (2nd ed.). Ann Arbor, Michigan: Popular Culture, Ink. ISBN 1560750421.
- Miller, Chuck (2011). Warman's American Records. Krause Publications. ]
- Valdez, Stephen K. (2006). A History of Rock Music. Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0-7575-3379-2.