I wrote the first part of this post, and Bob Coates wrote the rest.

By the title, the "Surfing" LP album (Dolton BLP-2022) should be one of the first Ventures Vinyl albums reviewed here. Of its 12 songs only two are standards of the surf guitar repertoire, Pipeline and Surf Rider, and three are covers (Pipeline, Diamonds and Windy & Warm). These four songs are the only ones I've heard other groups play. For most songs Nokie plainly handles the lead, using tones with a prominent gritty overdrive (suggesting a transistor based pedal) and only light reverb. Only Pipeline and Ventures' originals Changing Tides and Lonely Sea have more reverb. The Ventures' surf hits "Diamond Head" and "Walk Don't Run '64" are not on this album.

"Diamonds" was written by Jerry Lordan, writer of "Apache." Diamonds has a remarkably long and melodic guitar riff, and the Ventures' performance is catchy.

"Pipeline" is energizing, with a powerful glissando that skips a few notes.

"Surf Rider" was written by Nokie. As the opening music to Tarantino's movie "Pulp Fiction" it is one of the most recognizable songs in surf guitar. Tarantino used a cover recorded by The Lively Ones. There are several notable differences between The Ventures and The Lively Ones in "Surf Rider." Most plainly The Lively Ones use plenty of reverb with no overdrive grit, while The Ventures essentially do the opposite. The alternation between verse and chorus differs differs between The Ventures and The Lively Ones. The rhythm guitar during the bridge on The Ventures' version has a jazzy syncopation atypical for surf guitar and is prominent, but neither applies to The Lively Ones. Overall, The Lively Ones' version has a more straight ahead surf guitar feel.

The record's track order does not appear on the album cover. Side One starts with Pipeline, Diamonds, and Windy & Warm, and also includes Surf Rider. The Ninth Wave is a standout on Side Two. Cruncher revolves around drum solos by Mel Taylor. Barefoot and The Heavies use heavy grinding overdrive. Barefoot centers on Improvisations by Nokie in his signature style. Lonely Sea is tense and slowly paced, with a vocal background.

The stereo vinyl EP (Liberty LP-4070) starts with "Kickstand." This is a renamed "Go Go Dancer" with added motorcycle noise at the start. It brings to mind dancing under strobe lights, so I am puzzled why it was presented as "Kickstand." Each of the four songs on the EP appeared on a different LP album, and the other three are widely covered (Surf Rider, Wipeout, Yellow Jacket). The photo shows The Ventures on stage wearing blue suits and skinny neckties. All three amplifiers are of the same brand I can not identify, and it does not appear to be Sunn, Fender or Ampeg.

Bob Coates wrote the rest of this post:

The Ventures Surfing LP is a departure from prior Ventures albums which followed the somewhat general recipe of  6 covers--3 hit songs plus 3 songs that were on the rise in the pop charts--along with 6 originals. Surfing has 3 covers and 9 originals. It appears Nokie plays lead on all of the tracks and I strongly suspect he is still using Fender guitars. Bob's bass line follows many of the melodies.

The only bonafide hit on the LP is Pipeline. The Ventures stick to the Chantays version, but with a bit more panache. Regarding "Diamonds," the Ventures listened to the guitarists from the Shadows. The Ventures undoubtedly heard Jet Harris and Tony Meehan's version of Diamonds. The Ventures' "Diamonds" is one of my favorite Ventures tracks. The sparse interplay between Mel and Bob on bass during the middle part is terrific.

Nokie again plays tribute to Chet Atkins on Windy and Warm. Chet plays a masterful finger picking version, while Nokie chooses a more bluesy style. Ten Over is a Ventures 12 bar filler. Surfrider (originally Spudnik) is a Ventures and surf classic. Nokie's melodic song writing switching from minor to major key is one of his personal touches. Changing Tides is slower song with the sounds of waves in the background. Nokie plays it well.The Ninth Wave has been played in Venture shows in recent years. It is a strong minor key melody. Mel plays a very infectious drum part. Party in Laguna is a chance for Nokie to show off  his licks and Don to make vocal noises in the background. Barefoot Venture is an original employing fuzztone in a 12 bar pattern. The Heavies is another chance for Nokie to show off his 12 bar improvising style, with a minor chord middle. Cruncher appears to be an answer to songs recorded by drummer Sandy Nelson. The Ventures end their album with a strong slower song written by Don, The Lonely Sea.

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Last edited: Mar 14, 2017 22:38:00

Wonderful topic! Somewhere here I once compiled a list (since added to) of all The Ventures I've acquired through the years. I've put out the vinyl since the move, but STILL (Insert unprintable colorful language here!) can't find my boxes of CDs in them. Only one more room to go through.

I know I have an unopened Ventures in Space. I'll be back.

This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got.

I really enjoy this. I'm in the minority here in that I include the Ventures as an instrumental surf music band. Don't know why others are so closed minded about that. Thanks for the post.

Happy Sunsets!

This month the featured vinyl are the LP Album "Joy" (UA UAS-5575) and a Japanese 45 rpm with Stranger in Modoosuji on Side A and Naruto on Side B (Liberty LR-2869).

Conrad's comments:
.....Both songs on the 45 were credited to "Bogle-Durrill-McGee-Taylor-Wilson." Naruto reminds me of "I Heard it On the Grapevine" in feel, melody and accompaniment. It is lively and easy to enjoy. Stranger is reticent, staying in the background, but pleasant. Both feature Jerry McGee's lead guitar.
.....The "Joy" album was selected because Bob Bogle identified it as his favorite Ventures' album. The Ventures personnel include those on the 45 plus Larry Taylor on bass for most songs. Although the album notes indicate Bob on lead guitar for most songs, all place horns or keyboard as most prominent. Here the Ventures took an orchestral rather than guitar-forward approach, in the style of Apollo 100 (Tom Parker), for whom the title song "Joy" was a big hit. Bob returned to his role as producer and arranger.
.....Beethoven wrote the Moonlight Sonata for solo piano, and sonata means solo instrument. Here the piece gets full orchestration, clearly proclaiming that these renditions represent The Ventures rather than Beethoven. That's fine because the intentions differ.
.....Every recording on this album feels pleasant to me, regardless of differences from the original and sometimes because of them. Several seem more pleasant than the originals, particularly Beethoven's "Ode to Joy," Ravel's "Pavane for a Dead Princess," and "Peter and The Wolf." The Ventures' Pavane is upbeat, instead of the original grieving dirge. The Ventures' "Ode" does not suggest a German call to arms, as Beethoven's original does (to me). "Peter & The Wolf" features a strong and jolly chorus-like effect on the guitar. "Joy" is similar to Apollo 100's hit version, is lively, and is my favorite track on this album. Mozart's "Minuet" has an expressive guitar played by Bob.
.....On most other songs the lead guitar is businesslike and avoids prominence. The apparent usual pickup selection is bridge with another. The bass guitar is sometimes prominent, most notably in Swan Lake, and I enjoy it.

Bob Coates' comments:
.....Joy: The Ventures Play the Classics is quite an album. First, it does not feature much guitar playing. Second, it shows the Ventures weren't driven solely by commercial success, they were their own bosses doing what they wanted musically. Third, it is a bit amazing the album was even released, as it was so different from their previous albums.
.....The album is a most pleasing listen. Mel's brother Larry plays bass very tightly. His style is different from Bob Bogle's bass style. Beethoven's Sonata in C# minor has no discernible guitar part, while featuring John Durrill on keyboard..One Fine Day has such smooth tremolo picking the guitar resembles a Middle East stringed instrument. In a Persian Market Place features Bob Bogle's signature Jazzmaster sound, with good use of the whammy bar.
.....Swan Lake features Jerry McGee's guitar style. Bach's Prelude was a vocal hit for the girl group The Toys titled A Lover's Concerto. For Peter and The Wolf Bob Bogle reportedly played through a Leslie speaker to get the guitar sound. Joy features an unusual fade in keyboard. In live Ventures shows, both Nokie and Jerry performed this piece on guitar, and Nokie recorded it on a solo album.
.....Ravel's Pavane is my favorite track. Mel's rhythm is so infectious and Bogle plays the melody with excellent whammy bar use. The last piece Melody of Joy is a clever arrangement of a familiar Beethoven melody. There are no dramatic guitar solos or improvisations on the album, the strong melodies and playful orchestral arrangements speak for themselves.

"Joy" Side One
1. Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata
2. One Fine Day (Puccini)
3. In a Persian Market (Ketelbey)
4. Swan Lake (Tchaikovsky)
5. Prelude from Anna Magdalena Bach Notebook (Bach)
6. Peter & The Wolf (Prokofiev)
"Joy" Side Two:
1. Mozart's 40th Symphony Theme
2. Joy Jesu (Bach)
3. For Elise (Beethoven)
4. Pavane for a Dead Princess (Ravel)
5. Minuet (Mozart)
6. Ode to Joy (Beethoven)
Personnel cited on "Joy" album: Drums: Mel. Rhythm: Don. Bass: Larry Taylor & Bob. Lead Guitar: Bob & Jerry. Keys: John Durrill Strings & Horns: George Tipton, Ian Freebairn-Smith, Mike Melvoin

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Last edited: Apr 10, 2017 13:34:16

This month's selections are the LP "Ventures in Space" and the 45rpm of The 2000 Pound Bee Parts 1 and 2.

My comments follow:
With 129,386 monthly listeners on Spotify, the Ventures reveal that twang instrumental rock-n-roll remains popular. "Ventures in Space" is one of the most mentioned Ventures' albums here on SG101. IMO it and "Fabulous Ventures" are their most emotionally expressive albums.

Side 1 starts with a straightforward cover of "Out of Limits" recorded by studio musicians under the name of "The Markettes." The Ventures add a strong delay to the signature riff and their tones are sweet. "He Never Came Back" is a widely liked Ventures' original featuring an usually long lead guitar phrase. This recording has several non-guitar rhythmic additions including a creaking door and Don's silly screaming. For me this piece evokes a unique mood of mystery. I admired it so much that I recorded an original to evoke the same mood, and several reviewers agreed.

"Moon Child" is a sweet but unusually slow piece for The Ventures, written by Julius Wechter, famous for writing Herb Alpert's hit "Spanish Flea." It is followed by a cover of "Fear" the theme song from "One Step Beyond." Fear begins with a creepy thin organ narrative, followed by a bass riff, and then Nokie's lead guitar with strong delay effect and Don's arpeggios of thin notes with short intense reverb. The song has a strong melody.

"Exploration in Terror" is a riff-based rhythmic original with a dark edgy lead and a clanging gong echoing rhythmically in the background. I remember mostly the gong. "War of the Satellites" covers a song comprised of a collection of chord-based riffs resembling "Penetration" in overall structure, although the content is different. The background has prominent vocal "oohs" and a guitar with strong delay effects on top of string sliding to suggest sci-fi rayguns.

Side 2 leads with a cover of "The Bat," with gritty distortion on the lead guitar, accompanied by sirens. It has a strong slow riff alternating with bluesy riffs. Next comes "Penetration" a straightforward cover of The Pyramid's hit. If there is a simpler rock instrumental I don't know it. The Ventures commonly perform this song live. Next comes Don Wilson's original "Love Goddess of Venus," with a slow pace reminiscent of Frankie Avalon's 1950 vocals and a melody line of notes from the accompanying chords. It has a prominent background chorus of oohs and aahs. Another original "Solar Race" follows. Nokie's guitar has a prominent delay while Don's chord accompaniment has a very strong electronic tremolo, giving a racing vibe. Don's guitar has an intense brief reverb.

Next comes a cover of "The Fourth Dimension," with prominent rhythm guitar swells and strong tremolo. Out in front is a piercing trebly lead guitar riff, an unusually dark tone for Nokie. The album closes with a whimsical "Twilight Zone" theme song cover. Nokie's guitar is chimey but not piercing. The signature riff has a strong delay effect, just as with "Out of Limits." Similarities between these two songs in riffs and guitar tones probably explains why they are widely separated in this album. "Twilight Zone"has a prominent background of "oohs" and rhythmic guitar notes with extremely strong echo and tremolo effects for whimsical weirdness.
My favorite recordings in this album are "Out of Limits" and "He Never Came Back." The others are pleasant but they don't stick with me, except for some weird background effects.

The only version of 2000 Pound Bee Part 2 I could find on Spotify was a prickly germanium fuzzed recording by The Martian Denny band; the lead guitar sounds like Eddie of Los Straitjackets. The rarity of this song is a surprise because it was made notorious by John Belushi on Saturday Night Live. It has a strong catchy calling guitar riff, highly fuzzed and overlaid by pentatonic twangy improvisations in Nokie's style. I enjoy the Ventures' recording of Bee Part 2, but not Martian Denny's. Why cover Ventures' originals unless you play it as well or differently? 2000 Pound Bee Part 1 is not on Spotify at all. Its riff is much simpler than Part 2 and resembles a boogie-woogie accompaniment. The pentatonic improvisations played over it are too quiet, even faint. The 45 rpm record Bee Part 1 is attributed to Mel Taylor alone, while on an LP collection I have it is attributed to Don Wilson alone. I recommend Part 1 only for extreme fans.

Bob Coates' comments:
Ventures in Space is probably one of the most well known Ventures albums. It is quite a departure from the immediately preceding album Let's Go! The cover is luscious with a white hot rod overlooking LA and a dark, hazy sky. A look at the back of the albums shows some other major changes. Let's Go! shows the Ventures in matching sports jackets with sunburst Fender guitars. In Space shows the Ventures in casual clothes, action poses and playing Mosrite guitars.

Out of Limits is a great Ventures cover, played with high energy and some quick lead parts by Nokie. He Never Came Back is a Ventures original. It highlights how tightly Nokie on lead and Bob on bass played melodies together. The same can be said of the two other Ventures originals on the album, Exploration in Terror and Solar Race.

Moon Child is a very beautiful melody played with a fast rhythm underneath, akin to the song More on their previous album Let's Go. Two theme songs from trendy sci-fi shows are included, Fear (from One Step Beyond) and The Twilight Zone. The second strong cover on the album is Penetration, originally recorded by the Pyramids. It has been a Venture favorite at live shows for years. For the ballad on the album, Nokie played instrumental lead on a song written by Don called Sally, but the title was changed to Love Goddess of Venus. The song The Fourth Dimension sounds like it is played on a Fender, not Mosrite guitar.

Listening all these years later made me ponder the longevity and success of the album. One part that sticks out to me is the strong drumming of Mel Taylor and how it is in the forefront of almost all of the mixes. He gave every song strong rhythm and life.

Del Halterman in his book about the Ventures notes that Bob Bogle did not play on Twilight Zone, Out of Limits, War of the Satellites and Fear.

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Last edited: May 11, 2017 23:11:41

Footnote this month Nokie Edwards turned 82 this week. Happy birthday sir.

Happy Sunsets!

Mmmm....I like this thread!

Fronkensurf wrote:

It's never made sense to me that Nokie felt Bob's talent was tapped out and that they should switch.

My sense is that Bob was shy and self-effacing while the others were not. I expect Bob felt more comfortable as bassist and this drove the switch.

Thanks for posting about this interesting question, and also for the kind words about my comments.

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I also agree that Bob Bogle technique and tone were spot on, not to take anything away from Nokie Edwards. I still listen to The Ventures every week and play their tunes out live. Heck we're cutting a version of Hot Line for our new Rondo Hatton CD this summer. I met the original 4 back in the early 80's when they played 2 shows here in Baton Rouge. They were professional to the hilt and very warm and friendly with the fans. That is something we should all strive for.

The Ventures Knock Me Out! (Dolton BST-8033) and Liberty LR-1243 45rpm with Bird Rockers and Mariner No. 4 are the Ventures Vinyl featured this month. The track listing on the LP is: I Feel Fine, Love Potion Number Nine, Tomorrow's Love, Oh Pretty Woman, Mariner No. 4, When You Walk in the Room, Gone Gone Gone, Slaughter on Tenth Avenue, She's Not There, Lonely Girl, Bird Rockers, and Sha La La.

My comments:
Knock Me Out was released in February 1965, shortly before the genesis of the classic rock genre. Yet Nokie's tones are halfway to classic rock, with pronounced overdrive compression, thickening and grit, yet not the sustain and deep grind of the fuzz tone. The overdrive grit in Nokie's tone leads me to imagine that the recordings were made with his amp volume near its maximum and its speaker (and perhaps tubes) distorting. Eric Clapton's "Disraeli Gears," a landmark of early classic rock, appeared in 1967. In the Summer of 1965--half a year after Knock Me Out-- The Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction" established a prominent new role for the fuzz tone and its variations in lead guitar. Clearly, Nokie's tones on Knock Me Out were innovative, and quite different from surf guitar.

I find these tones pleasant, and this album is dominated by tone, beat and technique. Several songs have strong and complex melodies but the quality of melody varies widely. The qualities of tone, beat and technique are consistently interesting and pleasant, despite the guitar's grit.

The 45 rpm record's photo shows The Ventures lined up on stage in Japan, performing on Mosrites through what I think are Guyatone amplifiers. Nokie's guitar is strapped on with the neck horizontal and half a foot above his waist.

Of the eight covers only "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" was originally instrumental. Performing vocals songs without a vocalist is a challenge. You don't want the audience to wonder when the vocalist will start or feel that one is missing. So, I use techniques and tones that vocalists (except Michael Winslow) do not. In this album Nokie shows how to do this, starting with The Beatles' "I Feel Fine." Nokie's guitar leaves John Lennon's great voice and the Beatles' vocal harmony unmissed. This recording is a showpiece of the Ventures in their prime. I imagine that Nokie overdubbed the lead guitar on top of of the melody guitar line.

Released at about the same time as The Shadows covered "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue," The Ventures' version is utterly different, and likewise different from the original Broadway show presentation. It is so different it's an impressionistic interpretation, not a cover. There's not a shred of the melancholy introspection and morbidity in the original or by The Shadows. The Ventures drive through the piece, "Run Don't Walk." It's American hard rock, with an overdriven guitar, fast pace, and resounding percussion. It's "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" only because it was before. It's worth citing that what sounds like an organ solo is a highly effected saxophone, with rotary (Leslie), delay and reverb heaped on. This resembles what we guitarists do to make our guitars sound like organs.

"Mariner No. 4" was a satellite, and this recording is reminiscent of Joe Meek's "Telstar" with both guitar and organ contributing to the melody line. Mariner is also quite different from Telstar, with its melody line shorter (11 vs 42 notes) and consonant with the underlying chords, rather than dissonant. IMO Mariner has special appeal when guitar chords take prominence, and this too differs from Telstar.

"Gone Gone Gone" has a novel alternation between guitar and electronic piano, and it rocks hard on Mel's prominent percussion. "Sha La La" was originally recorded by female vocalists The Shirelles. Nokie again uses techniques and tones that leave the vocal verse unmissed. Replacing the four girls singing the chorus "Sha La La" is Don Wilson's overdubbing. I find myself listening hard to his chorus for several reasons. She's Not There is another standout, and it carries the feel of the vocal original. It's the only cover on this album I find myself singing along with. In my opinion there's not a weak song on the album, and when I listen I don't skip any.

Bob Coates writes:

When asked to choose the next VVinyl album selection, Knock Me Out came immediately to mind. It is my favorite Ventures. It has great songs and great playing by all four Ventures.

The album starts with a version of the Beatles "I Feel Fine" It is so true to the Beatles version, but has such strong energy, a Ventures trademark. According to Del Halterman, the Ventures had trouble with the intro A note, so the engineer lifted the first part of the Beatle recording. Though they will never get credit, the Ventures were probably the first group to use sampling, albeit quite a short segment.

Nokie uses some type of device (Fuzz-overdrive-increased gain) to get the very cool sustain sound on "Love Potion Number Nine" (Coasters), "When You Walk in the Room" (Jackie Deshannon, the Searchers), and "She's Not There" (Zombies). Two of the Ventures originals have wonderful melodies-"Tomorrow's Love" and "Lonely Girl". I have wondered if Don came up with the chord progression and Nokie supplied the melodies. His highest note C# in "Lonely Girl" is one of my favorite single Ventures notes for pathos. "Lonely Girl" also uses two keys E and A.

The other two originals use prominent organ-"Matiner No. 4" and "Bird Rockers". According to Del H again, Leon Russell played organ on "Slaughter", so it is likely he is playing many of the organ and piano parts on the album. "Pretty Woman" (Roy Orbison) and "Sha La La" (Shirelles and Searchers) are two more excellent covers. Mel was such a terrific drummer. "Gone, Gone, Gone" (Everly brothers) starts out like a freight train and never looks back.

That leaves my all time favorite Ventures single track, "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue", an old show tune. It shows how clever the Ventures were at adapting songs to their style and giving life and energy to the song. I suspect after it was recorded, "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" was played at every live show the Ventures played. They switch key three times in the song-D, Eb, C, Db. It is so smooth. Don and Bob play so percussively together after the diminished chord-drum intro.

There is not a weak track on the album. It is still a joy for me to listen to all 12 tracks straight through.. Mosrite guitars never sounded better. If you haven't listened to the album recently, give it a listen, and you'll hear the many moods and skills of the Ventures.

We invite your comments about this album and its songs, of course.

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