Your least surfy "surf" record?

nosprings

Joined: Aug 22, 2020
Posts: 31
United States

Posted on Mar 08 2021 11:33 AM

Just picked this album up at a local record store, "Hang Ten" by The Wedges. Discogs marked it as "big band" and "jazz" and I had to see what it was going to sound like. Sure enough, it's some pseudo-noir jazz with absolutely no surf at all. Still is pretty killer, but it got me thinking about what else is out there masquerading as "surf" to capitalize on a moment.

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No Springs, the premiere lo-fi bedroom one-man surf band!

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websurfer

Joined: May 14, 2007
Posts: 1753
United States

Posted on Mar 08 2021 02:49 PM

I have that one too and it's like you describe--rebranded crime jazz to cash in on the fad. Along those same lines is what they did to Freddy King. I have Let's Hide Away and Dance Away but that same Album was later overdubbed with crowd noises and released as Freddy King Goes Surfin'.

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Baine

Joined: Mar 08, 2008
Posts: 197
NJ shore
1 Contributor Pin

Posted on Mar 09 2021 04:54 PM

I received this book as a gift from one of my kids. It made me wonder how Ricky Nelson's "Lonesome Town" and Little Richard's "Slippin and Sliddin" are surf guitar.

—

"We're lousy, we can't play. If you wait until you can play, you'll be too old to get up there. We stink, really. But it's great," Johnny Ramone .

Last edited: Mar 09, 2021 16:55:00

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Ben

Joined: Feb 11, 2007
Posts: 591
Encinitas, Ca

Posted on Mar 09 2021 07:12 PM

That album isn't really "surf music" as most of us think of it today but that was a typical soundtrack for the early surf movies. We got invited to play a party for Bruce Brown, producer of The Endless Summer. He was being given the Key to the City of Oceanside, CA. Followed by a screening of some of his old surf movies where he did live narration over a jazz soundtrack...that sounded a lot like that record!! In '63 that stuff was cool and hip!!! And it still is...just not what you expect for a "surf" record.

Last edited: Mar 09, 2021 23:32:22

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da-ron

Joined: Jan 02, 2009
Posts: 1307
The original Plymouth, UK.
United Kingdom

Posted on Aug 05 2021 05:45 PM

I have some Jack Johnson....

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http://thewaterboarders.bandcamp.com/

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synchro

Joined: Feb 02, 2008
Posts: 4465
Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.
United States

Posted on Aug 05 2021 11:53 PM

It’s definitely not going to be confused with Dick Dale, but I like it. It’s probably closer to Spy-movie music than Surf, but WTH? It’s cool.

Jack Neitche’s the Lonely Surfer is a curious work. It’s mostly orchestral music, but it does have some Surf tunes on the record. Besides that, about every other track has a Bass VI, played by none other than David Gates, who later founded Bread. While it’s hardly the sound of the typical Surf band of the early sixties, there is some very interesting tracks and the reverb on that Bass VI is amazing. Among my collection, The Lonely Surfer gets a steady rotation. While it is far from the mainstream of Surf, at that time, it is an excellent example of how Surf Music influenced other segments, beyond the youth market, back in the sixties. There was a lot of music at that time that had a degree the flavor of Surf Music, even if it was aimed at what would be called the Adult Contemporary market, these days.

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The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.

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da-ron

Joined: Jan 02, 2009
Posts: 1307
The original Plymouth, UK.
United Kingdom

Posted on Aug 06 2021 03:20 AM

Ben wrote:

That album isn't really "surf music" as most of us think of it today but that was a typical soundtrack for the early surf movies. We got invited to play a party for Bruce Brown, producer of The Endless Summer. He was being given the Key to the City of Oceanside, CA. Followed by a screening of some of his old surf movies where he did live narration over a jazz soundtrack...that sounded a lot like that record!! In '63 that stuff was cool and hip!!! And it still is...just not what you expect for a "surf" record.

Most of those late 50's/early 60s surf movies used jazz as a soundtrack - it was kind of pre electric guitar really. I think a lot of surfers of the time listened to jazz as part of the bebop and beat generation from the late 50s. My dad was a surfer in the late 50s and he listened to a lot of bebop jazz. I guess it was outside of the mainstream similar to surfing - it also had a free and improvisational approach. Very difficult to gauge the attitude and mindset looking backwards from 60years in the future.

The thing I love about that era is the low budget solution to technical difficulties:

This from Surfers Journal:
Since they couldn’t afford studio time, the Bud Shank Quartet squeezed itself into the tiny offices of World Pacific Records in Los Angeles and Bruce projected Slippery When Wet through the mail slot in the door onto a wall and Shank and crew improvised along to the screened action while the tape recorder rolled.

—

http://thewaterboarders.bandcamp.com/

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synchro

Joined: Feb 02, 2008
Posts: 4465
Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.
United States

Posted on Aug 06 2021 07:56 AM

da-ron wrote:

Most of those late 50's/early 60s surf movies used jazz as a soundtrack - it was kind of pre electric guitar really. I think a lot of surfers of the time listened to jazz as part of the bebop and beat generation from the late 50s. My dad was a surfer in the late 50s and he listened to a lot of bebop jazz. I guess it was outside of the mainstream similar to surfing - it also had a free and improvisational approach. Very difficult to gauge the attitude and mindset looking backwards from 60years in the future.

On into the ‘60s, there was a lot of this sort of music still in use, but the sound of the electric guitar was incorporated, to give it a contemporary sound. My own parents favored Big Band music, and their tastes were reflected in their choice of radio stations. I remember hearing a lot of music on that station Which kept that vibe, but added an electric guitar sound, sort of a Ventures meet Burt Kaemfurt thing.

—

The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.

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bigtikidude

Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 25610
Anaheim(So.Cal.)U.S.A.
United States

Posted on Aug 06 2021 09:20 AM

Honk, 5 summer stories. Ooooof

—

Jeff(bigtikidude)

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nosprings Joined: Aug 22, 2020 Posts: 31	Posted on Mar 08 2021 11:33 AM Just picked this album up at a local record store, "Hang Ten" by The Wedges. Discogs marked it as "big band" and "jazz" and I had to see what it was going to sound like. Sure enough, it's some pseudo-noir jazz with absolutely no surf at all. Still is pretty killer, but it got me thinking about what else is out there masquerading as "surf" to capitalize on a moment. — No Springs, the premiere lo-fi bedroom one-man surf band! Top
websurfer Joined: May 14, 2007 Posts: 1753	Posted on Mar 08 2021 02:49 PM I have that one too and it's like you describe--rebranded crime jazz to cash in on the fad. Along those same lines is what they did to Freddy King. I have Let's Hide Away and Dance Away but that same Album was later overdubbed with crowd noises and released as Freddy King Goes Surfin'. Top
Baine Joined: Mar 08, 2008 Posts: 197 NJ shore	Posted on Mar 09 2021 04:54 PM I received this book as a gift from one of my kids. It made me wonder how Ricky Nelson's "Lonesome Town" and Little Richard's "Slippin and Sliddin" are surf guitar. — "We're lousy, we can't play. If you wait until you can play, you'll be too old to get up there. We stink, really. But it's great," Johnny Ramone . Last edited: Mar 09, 2021 16:55:00 Top
Ben Joined: Feb 11, 2007 Posts: 591 Encinitas, Ca	Posted on Mar 09 2021 07:12 PM That album isn't really "surf music" as most of us think of it today but that was a typical soundtrack for the early surf movies. We got invited to play a party for Bruce Brown, producer of The Endless Summer. He was being given the Key to the City of Oceanside, CA. Followed by a screening of some of his old surf movies where he did live narration over a jazz soundtrack...that sounded a lot like that record!! In '63 that stuff was cool and hip!!! And it still is...just not what you expect for a "surf" record. Last edited: Mar 09, 2021 23:32:22 Top
da-ron Joined: Jan 02, 2009 Posts: 1307 The original Plymouth, UK.	Posted on Aug 05 2021 05:45 PM I have some Jack Johnson.... — http://thewaterboarders.bandcamp.com/ Top
synchro Joined: Feb 02, 2008 Posts: 4465 Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.	Posted on Aug 05 2021 11:53 PM It’s definitely not going to be confused with Dick Dale, but I like it. It’s probably closer to Spy-movie music than Surf, but WTH? It’s cool. Jack Neitche’s the Lonely Surfer is a curious work. It’s mostly orchestral music, but it does have some Surf tunes on the record. Besides that, about every other track has a Bass VI, played by none other than David Gates, who later founded Bread. While it’s hardly the sound of the typical Surf band of the early sixties, there is some very interesting tracks and the reverb on that Bass VI is amazing. Among my collection, The Lonely Surfer gets a steady rotation. While it is far from the mainstream of Surf, at that time, it is an excellent example of how Surf Music influenced other segments, beyond the youth market, back in the sixties. There was a lot of music at that time that had a degree the flavor of Surf Music, even if it was aimed at what would be called the Adult Contemporary market, these days. — The artist formerly known as: Synchro When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar. Top
da-ron Joined: Jan 02, 2009 Posts: 1307 The original Plymouth, UK.	Posted on Aug 06 2021 03:20 AM Ben wrote: That album isn't really "surf music" as most of us think of it today but that was a typical soundtrack for the early surf movies. We got invited to play a party for Bruce Brown, producer of The Endless Summer. He was being given the Key to the City of Oceanside, CA. Followed by a screening of some of his old surf movies where he did live narration over a jazz soundtrack...that sounded a lot like that record!! In '63 that stuff was cool and hip!!! And it still is...just not what you expect for a "surf" record. Most of those late 50's/early 60s surf movies used jazz as a soundtrack - it was kind of pre electric guitar really. I think a lot of surfers of the time listened to jazz as part of the bebop and beat generation from the late 50s. My dad was a surfer in the late 50s and he listened to a lot of bebop jazz. I guess it was outside of the mainstream similar to surfing - it also had a free and improvisational approach. Very difficult to gauge the attitude and mindset looking backwards from 60years in the future. The thing I love about that era is the low budget solution to technical difficulties: This from Surfers Journal: Since they couldn’t afford studio time, the Bud Shank Quartet squeezed itself into the tiny offices of World Pacific Records in Los Angeles and Bruce projected Slippery When Wet through the mail slot in the door onto a wall and Shank and crew improvised along to the screened action while the tape recorder rolled. — http://thewaterboarders.bandcamp.com/ Top
synchro Joined: Feb 02, 2008 Posts: 4465 Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.	Posted on Aug 06 2021 07:56 AM da-ron wrote: Most of those late 50's/early 60s surf movies used jazz as a soundtrack - it was kind of pre electric guitar really. I think a lot of surfers of the time listened to jazz as part of the bebop and beat generation from the late 50s. My dad was a surfer in the late 50s and he listened to a lot of bebop jazz. I guess it was outside of the mainstream similar to surfing - it also had a free and improvisational approach. Very difficult to gauge the attitude and mindset looking backwards from 60years in the future. On into the ‘60s, there was a lot of this sort of music still in use, but the sound of the electric guitar was incorporated, to give it a contemporary sound. My own parents favored Big Band music, and their tastes were reflected in their choice of radio stations. I remember hearing a lot of music on that station Which kept that vibe, but added an electric guitar sound, sort of a Ventures meet Burt Kaemfurt thing. — The artist formerly known as: Synchro When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar. Top
bigtikidude Joined: Feb 27, 2006 Posts: 25610 Anaheim(So.Cal.)U.S.A.	Posted on Aug 06 2021 09:20 AM Honk, 5 summer stories. Ooooof — Jeff(bigtikidude) Top

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Your least surfy "surf" record?