The Beach Boys

youngreverb

Joined: Jun 07, 2017
Posts: 48
University Place, WA
United States

Posted on May 26 2018 11:09 AM

Do y'all think the Beach Boys fit into the surf genre? They aren't instrumental at all but do sing about a great sport.

—

Gabe

Our beaches here get 3 foot tall waves, but it doesn't matter. You don't need to surf to play surf.

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ArabSpringReverb

Joined: Jul 13, 2012
Posts: 490
San Diego CA
United States

Posted on May 26 2018 12:02 PM

They did a very popular version of Miserlou concurrent with Dick Dale's version and would throw a few instros into theor live set back then ....so yeah , 100% surf group to go with the 'beach and car ' songs .

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thomasd

Joined: Aug 17, 2012
Posts: 94
Eugene, Oregon
United States

Posted on May 26 2018 12:24 PM

No, the Beach Boys are not a surf band - never were. We know this because we play and or know what real surf instrumentals are. That said the general public thinks they are a surf band. When I tell people I've just met that I play in a surf band the most general reaction I get is, "Oh, yeah like the Beach Boys"!
FWIW, we play lots of Beach Boys music along with classic surf instrumentals. Our audience does appreciate classic stuff and will respond accordingly. But what they really like is "Fun, Fun , Fun" and "409". So, nothing wrong with playing surf instrumental music. But to work and earn in our market, BB music is what we need to do.

—

Rock
A Man from S.U.R.F.
http://menfromsurf.com

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Matti

Joined: Apr 15, 2018
Posts: 11

Posted on May 26 2018 02:31 PM

Yeah, I regard them as a surf band, The early stuff.

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skandhi

Joined: Apr 15, 2018
Posts: 23
OBX, NC

Posted on May 26 2018 03:33 PM

Their first couple of albums did have some surf instrumental covers, but Brian Wilson's songwriting was what made the Beach Boys what they were. I wouldn't consider them a "surf band," however they are one of my favorite bands of all time. I was fortunate enough to see Brian perform on the 50th anniversary of Pet Sounds tour.

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LosVenturas

Joined: Feb 10, 2011
Posts: 443
Antwerp, Belgium
Belgium

Posted on May 26 2018 05:17 PM

I guess this has been discussed a hundreds of times...
But yeah, at some point they were a surf band for sure.
They did a bunch of instros, both originals and covers.
Let's not forget that, for instance, Dick Dale's live set was 70% vocal..
Now we remember the Beach Boys as a band that sung about the life on the beach..
And still, they did some great stuff.

Fwiw,
Andy

—

www.LosVenturas.be

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tired

Joined: Sep 03, 2006
Posts: 334
Herten - Germany
Germany

Posted on May 27 2018 12:35 AM

They even played "Mr. Moto" live in 1963.
There is a tape of it circulating among collectors for decades.
They had often included instrumentals in their live gigs,
even in the late 80s when they played "Wipe Out" which had been a huge
vocal hit with the Fats Boys/Beach Boys. The BBs Band really rocked it instrumentally while the singers stepped back from the front of the stage.
Brian himself said already in 1964 " we are not a surf band,
we play music for teenagers! "

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websurfer

Joined: May 14, 2007
Posts: 1753
United States

Posted on May 27 2018 12:45 AM

Hard to argue with Paul Johnson who I believe categorizes them and similar vocal surf as "the California sound", and not strictly surf per se as we think of it here (i.e. instro). I don't know where or when it was decided that pure surf music had to be instrumental only. However, to me the early Beach Boys were a surf group.

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Matti

Joined: Apr 15, 2018
Posts: 11

Posted on May 27 2018 03:12 AM

We play Stoked once in a while. Cool song, and great for practising tightness and improvised solos,

https://youtu.be/MuqKZnuAdoQ

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Joelman

Joined: Sep 07, 2006
Posts: 1506
Redlands, CA
United States

Posted on May 27 2018 10:53 PM

Well I like Paul Johnson's idea. The SOCAL sound.
But you gotta admit the the early beach boys sounds were as surfy as any of their time. Why? Because they were at the start of the surf music craze. And they sang about surfing. Duh..
Their first few albums had a surf board in the picture on the cover, one even had a woody. Surfing and woodies kinda go together.
So they aren't what you would call a surf band today. Ok, this is true, but there are several bands calling themselves surf bands today that I would call, something other than surf myself.
In the beginning, where The Beach Boys are considered a surf band, most of the other early Surf bands had vocals in some of their songs also.
So I say originally The Beach Boys were Surf, then deviated to modern.

Last edited: May 27, 2018 22:54:57

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spskins

Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 3795
tn
United States

Posted on May 29 2018 01:10 AM

Shut Down Part II. nuff 'said.

—

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

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tahitijack

Joined: Nov 03, 2006
Posts: 693
San Clemente, CA
United States

Posted on May 29 2018 10:44 AM

Like jazz, surf music can be broken down into sub-genres such as vocal and instrumental. So, I accept the Beach Boys, Jan and Dean, the Sunrays and others that sing about the culture.

—

Happy Sunsets!

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Kawentzmann

Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 1062
Berlin, Germany
3 Link Pins

Posted on May 29 2018 11:04 AM

Your position depends on how you define a genre: by characteristics of the music - such as reverb heavy instrumentals, or on the other hand by cultural situation - such as early 60s coastal California.

A hybrid of these framings would be bands from other places that reference the west coast surf scene more or less directly in their lyrics (which is a musical trait if you will), such as The Tradewinds or The Rivieras.

—

The Exotic Guitar of Kahuna Kawentzmann

You can get the boy out of the Keynes era, but you can’t get the Keynes era out of the boy.

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Tailrocker

Joined: May 09, 2018
Posts: 63
Tacoma, WA
United States

Posted on May 29 2018 02:03 PM

Yes.

Another way to define surf music is music that has a connection to surfing. Dick Dale surfed as does Jim Thomas. The Sandals ES soundrack was selected by a surfer and Gary Hoey did ESII. I guess to that you would have to add Jack Johnson and Donovan Frankenreiter along with Tom Curran's music perhaps.

I would call the Beach Boys Americana.

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youngreverb Joined: Jun 07, 2017 Posts: 48 University Place, WA	Posted on May 26 2018 11:09 AM Do y'all think the Beach Boys fit into the surf genre? They aren't instrumental at all but do sing about a great sport. — Gabe Our beaches here get 3 foot tall waves, but it doesn't matter. You don't need to surf to play surf. Top
ArabSpringReverb Joined: Jul 13, 2012 Posts: 490 San Diego CA	Posted on May 26 2018 12:02 PM They did a very popular version of Miserlou concurrent with Dick Dale's version and would throw a few instros into theor live set back then ....so yeah , 100% surf group to go with the 'beach and car ' songs . Top
thomasd Joined: Aug 17, 2012 Posts: 94 Eugene, Oregon	Posted on May 26 2018 12:24 PM No, the Beach Boys are not a surf band - never were. We know this because we play and or know what real surf instrumentals are. That said the general public thinks they are a surf band. When I tell people I've just met that I play in a surf band the most general reaction I get is, "Oh, yeah like the Beach Boys"! FWIW, we play lots of Beach Boys music along with classic surf instrumentals. Our audience does appreciate classic stuff and will respond accordingly. But what they really like is "Fun, Fun , Fun" and "409". So, nothing wrong with playing surf instrumental music. But to work and earn in our market, BB music is what we need to do. — Rock A Man from S.U.R.F. http://menfromsurf.com Top
Matti Joined: Apr 15, 2018 Posts: 11	Posted on May 26 2018 02:31 PM Yeah, I regard them as a surf band, The early stuff. Top
skandhi Joined: Apr 15, 2018 Posts: 23 OBX, NC	Posted on May 26 2018 03:33 PM Their first couple of albums did have some surf instrumental covers, but Brian Wilson's songwriting was what made the Beach Boys what they were. I wouldn't consider them a "surf band," however they are one of my favorite bands of all time. I was fortunate enough to see Brian perform on the 50th anniversary of Pet Sounds tour. Top
LosVenturas Joined: Feb 10, 2011 Posts: 443 Antwerp, Belgium	Posted on May 26 2018 05:17 PM I guess this has been discussed a hundreds of times... But yeah, at some point they were a surf band for sure. They did a bunch of instros, both originals and covers. Let's not forget that, for instance, Dick Dale's live set was 70% vocal.. Now we remember the Beach Boys as a band that sung about the life on the beach.. And still, they did some great stuff. Fwiw, Andy — www.LosVenturas.be Top
tired Joined: Sep 03, 2006 Posts: 334 Herten - Germany	Posted on May 27 2018 12:35 AM They even played "Mr. Moto" live in 1963. There is a tape of it circulating among collectors for decades. They had often included instrumentals in their live gigs, even in the late 80s when they played "Wipe Out" which had been a huge vocal hit with the Fats Boys/Beach Boys. The BBs Band really rocked it instrumentally while the singers stepped back from the front of the stage. Brian himself said already in 1964 " we are not a surf band, we play music for teenagers! " Top
websurfer Joined: May 14, 2007 Posts: 1753	Posted on May 27 2018 12:45 AM Hard to argue with Paul Johnson who I believe categorizes them and similar vocal surf as "the California sound", and not strictly surf per se as we think of it here (i.e. instro). I don't know where or when it was decided that pure surf music had to be instrumental only. However, to me the early Beach Boys were a surf group. Top
Matti Joined: Apr 15, 2018 Posts: 11	Posted on May 27 2018 03:12 AM We play Stoked once in a while. Cool song, and great for practising tightness and improvised solos, https://youtu.be/MuqKZnuAdoQ Top
Joelman Joined: Sep 07, 2006 Posts: 1506 Redlands, CA	Posted on May 27 2018 10:53 PM Well I like Paul Johnson's idea. The SOCAL sound. But you gotta admit the the early beach boys sounds were as surfy as any of their time. Why? Because they were at the start of the surf music craze. And they sang about surfing. Duh.. Their first few albums had a surf board in the picture on the cover, one even had a woody. Surfing and woodies kinda go together. So they aren't what you would call a surf band today. Ok, this is true, but there are several bands calling themselves surf bands today that I would call, something other than surf myself. In the beginning, where The Beach Boys are considered a surf band, most of the other early Surf bands had vocals in some of their songs also. So I say originally The Beach Boys were Surf, then deviated to modern. Last edited: May 27, 2018 22:54:57 Top
spskins Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 3795 tn	Posted on May 29 2018 01:10 AM Shut Down Part II. nuff 'said. — http://www.satanspilgrims.com http://www.facebook.com/pages/Satans-Pilgrims/8210228553 https://satanspilgrims.bandcamp.com/ http://www.surfyindustries.com Top
tahitijack Joined: Nov 03, 2006 Posts: 693 San Clemente, CA	Posted on May 29 2018 10:44 AM Like jazz, surf music can be broken down into sub-genres such as vocal and instrumental. So, I accept the Beach Boys, Jan and Dean, the Sunrays and others that sing about the culture. — Happy Sunsets! Top
Kawentzmann Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 1062 Berlin, Germany	Posted on May 29 2018 11:04 AM Your position depends on how you define a genre: by characteristics of the music - such as reverb heavy instrumentals, or on the other hand by cultural situation - such as early 60s coastal California. A hybrid of these framings would be bands from other places that reference the west coast surf scene more or less directly in their lyrics (which is a musical trait if you will), such as The Tradewinds or The Rivieras. — The Exotic Guitar of Kahuna Kawentzmann You can get the boy out of the Keynes era, but you can’t get the Keynes era out of the boy. Top
Tailrocker Joined: May 09, 2018 Posts: 63 Tacoma, WA	Posted on May 29 2018 02:03 PM Yes. Another way to define surf music is music that has a connection to surfing. Dick Dale surfed as does Jim Thomas. The Sandals ES soundrack was selected by a surfer and Gary Hoey did ESII. I guess to that you would have to add Jack Johnson and Donovan Frankenreiter along with Tom Curran's music perhaps. I would call the Beach Boys Americana. Top

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The Beach Boys