just saw this blurb on AOL RADIO on the 'SURF MUSIC' channel, while "K-39" was being spun by THE CHALLENGERS:

The Challengers were an instrumental surf rock band in the 1960s, located in Los Angeles. They started early in the game and helped make the genre popular. Their debut album Surfbeat is the biggest selling surf album of all time and almost single-handedly brought surf from California to the rest of the world. The band was formed out of the ashes of The Bel-Airs. The Bel-Airs were just high schoolers at the time (the bassist was in 8th Grade), but had a hit with "Mr. Moto." Their potential was cited by many, but parental intervention led to their breakup.

Is that true, that 'SURFBEAT' is the 'biggest selling surf album of all time'?

And if so, can anyone report how many "copies" (in all forms) were sold?

Thanks

UNSTEADY FREDDIE

http://www.facebook.com/unsteady.freddie

Last edited: May 24, 2011 14:35:36

I can find nothing to the contrary online. However, every blurb I find seems to be copied word for word.

THE KBK ... This is the last known signal. We offer Sanctuary.

www.thekbk.com
http://www.deepeddy.net/artists/thekbk/
www.reverbnation.com/thekbk
www.facebook.com/thekbkal

They were pretty big, I believe, at least in LA. [They got Hal Blaine drumming on K-39, didn't they? Sure is a good drum track anyway.]

Bandmember Randy Nauert is an F-book friend. Get on there and search him; I've been digging his pages. Lots of fun info on the Palos Verdes & Southbay scene.

Hal did not play on everything after that, just a few here and there. They didn't sell enough to hire him full time, just for certain songs like K-39. Delvy wanted to become full-time producer, and let session drummers take over but GNP Crescendo didn't want to pay for it. You can hear the difference too. Delvy was pretty laid back.

http://www.satanspilgrims.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Satans-Pilgrims/8210228553
https://satanspilgrims.bandcamp.com/
http://www.surfyindustries.com

Somewhere I have seen some sales figures for Surf Beat at the time, but I don't remember where. It was in local distribution only then, I believe, but they were impressive for the time and place. "Of all time" should be taken as applying at the end of the first wave. In the 45 or more years since then I am sure things have changed substantially.

The Challengers didn't rise from the ashes of the Bel-Airs. Delvy (Delvecchio) left them, but continued to interact with them, especially Paul Johnson, while he was a member. The story is much more complicated than this press release indicates. I've only seen some of what's out in print or on the net, of course. Naturally a lot of it is conflicting and/or misleading. It's probably more realistic to say that the Challengers rose from the ashes of the Challengers, since there were two different, but overlapping bands.

To me it looks sort of like the first Challengers blew up in the wake of Delvy's attempt to substitute them for the Surfaris on the Dot LP. I get this reading between the lines in Dalley's book, which definitely doesn't say as much, of course, since it is not speculative and sticks to reporting the narrative of the interviews along with documents supplied by the interviewees. Somebody should write a book!

Last edited: May 24, 2011 17:55:15

Just a guess on my part, but I would imagine The Ventures "Surfing" likely sold more copies over the years than Surfbeat.

Shawn Martin
http://www.drummerman.net
http://www.youtube.com/GKacedrummerman
http://www.facebook.com/drumuitar

I have just been informed by Mr. Randy Nauert himself that 200,000 copies sold the first 2 months. The internet is so cool.

c. 200K is what I think I have seen on line and/or in line notes and other published sources elsewhere. I will stop wondering where that was now!

The Challengers definitely went on past the Wipeout debacle, but there was a change in personnel around that time. The original lineup was something like Richard Delvy (originally DelVecchio) (d), Randy Nauert (b), Glenn Frundel (stage name Glenn Grey) (g), Don S[ch]moker (stage name Don Landis) (g), Jimmy Roberts (p), Nick Hefner (s) and then Jerry Brown (s) (Dalley 1996:56). After Surfing with the Challengers the lineup became Richard Delvy (d), Randy Nauert (b), Art Fisher (g), Ed Fournier (g), Raul Matute (p), Phil Pruden (s) (Dalley 1996:58). This happened over a period in the (late?) summer of 63. Per Dalley (1996:281) the "Surfaris" signatories of the contract between Princess Records (Delvy) and Dot in April 63 were Richard Delvy, Randy Nauert, Don Schmoker and Glenn Frundel (Dalley 1996:281).

For comparison of dates, the Dot Surfaris/Challengers LP was released three times in 5/63, 7/63, and then in 9/63 as the details of the debacle were resolved sucessively legally. The Challengers Surf Beat was released in 11/62, Surfin with the Challengers was released in 4/63, Surfin' Aroun the World in 7/63 and K-39 in 8/64. The famous TV show residency was from 1965. The Challengers continued through c. 1966.

The initial California peak for Wipe Out! was the summer of 63 (May-August) and somewhat later for the initial national peak (late June-August). There was a later peak (in late summer-autumn 66) when it came off the banned list in the south.

Last edited: May 25, 2011 03:47:22

The cd doesn't mention this, but the Surfbeat lp does:
"Cover Photo: Bruce Brown Productions, Dana Point, CA"

The Surfbeat LP also lists Richard Delvecchio on drums, but his last name is listed as Delvy on all other lp credits.

Songwriting credits for Mr Moto on the Surfbeat LP are R. Delvy, P. Johnson. On the Belairs Arvee 45, it's P. Johnson, R. Delvy.

Big_Ryan wrote:

what was "the Wipeout debacle" what happened?

Delvy produced the first Surfaris album. He gave them a list of songs to cover, they recorded them, and when the album came out, it only had two Surfaris performances on it - their two originals, "Wipe Out" and "Surfer Joe." Rather than using the other songs the Surfaris recorded, he put covers performed by The Challengers on the album instead.

That was excessively violent and completely unnecessary. I loved it.