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SurfGuitar101 Forums » Surf Music General Discussion »

Permalink Surf bands that fuse jazz with the surf format?

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Are there any Surf bands or musicians that fuse and mix jazz with the surf format? Eg I have heard Bill Frizell play straight surf tunes with extended jazz soloing over the changes. Be interested if any straight ahead jazz players have taken surf or instrumental tunes into that style?

Philjudd,
I try to do both. I've found some gypsy/Django Reinhardt jazz material suitable for surf- especially on choruses.
The best I've heard surf/jazz fusion-wise was back in the 1990s with Laika and the Cosmonauts from Finland and Spies Who Surf - a short-lived band from Chicago, USA.
You can catch videos of both on Youtube. Happy listening
Cheers..
J Mo'

There is band here in Germany called Expressway Sketches, which consists of jazz players dan takes inspiration from surf music. I have heard mixed things about their record though and have yet to see them live. But it puts me off a little, that in their PR stuff they say things like "bringing surf music in the 21st century". Other people have done that long before them.

If you don't mind a little Cuban influences in your jazz surf mix, I would recommend:
Manuel Galban & Ry Cooder - Mambo Sinnuendo
Marc Ribot - Los Cubanos Poalstizos

Los Apollos - cinematic surf music trio (Berlin)
"Postcards from the Scrapyard" Vol. 1, 2 & 3 NOW available on various platforms!
"Chaos at the Lobster Lounge" available as LP and download on Surf Cookie Records!

Our local jazz station plays songs that sound like a jazz extension of instrumental surf music. Russ Freeman and the Rippingtons go there from time to time.

Happy Sunsets!

Walk Don't Run was originally by the jazz guitarist Johnny Smith. Kai Winding and some studio cats did a "surf" jazz album in the 60's, sorta cool. And Frizell's recent tribute to the music of his youth.

Checking out these guys now: https://expresswaysketches.bandcamp.com/ and http://www.muchogusto.at/

I've gotten local jazz groups, in looser moments, to play a little surf-jazz after shouting out drunkenly...

It's out there, just requires deep searching.

Rev. Willis

www.revwillis.com
www.willisclow.com
www.slajo.com

My now defunct band used to do this a lot. We did many surf inspired jazz standards with soloing. I found that doing this broke up the set a little bit to the listener. Also some of the exotic harmonies of surf work well with some of the extended chords of jazz. It also allowed me stretch out and do some soloing which was fun and sometimes helped fill time if needed.
Along the lines of Walk Don't Run learn the jazz standard "Softly as in a morning sunrise" which is what was changed to be Walk Don't Run. You can play the melody over the chords and it sounds like a solo.
Laika and The Cosmonauts did and awesome version of A Night in Tunisia (a Dizzy Gillespie tune) that morphs into Wipeout.

simoncoil wrote:

There is band here in Germany called Expressway Sketches, which consists of jazz players dan takes inspiration from surf music. I have heard mixed things about their record though and have yet to see them live. But it puts me off a little, that in their PR stuff they say things like "bringing surf music in the 21st century". Other people have done that long before them.

If you don't mind a little Cuban influences in your jazz surf mix, I would recommend:
Manuel Galban & Ry Cooder - Mambo Sinnuendo
Marc Ribot - Los Cubanos Poalstizos

Expressway Sketches are great. They remind me of the brilliant Australian jazz guitarists, Ben Haupman and Aaron Flowers, who fuse country, surf, blues and jazz into different tunes in a similar way.

Last edited: Jan 14, 2017 13:58:41

I'm not a big jazz guy but some of this stuff strikes me as 'jazzy'. A few numbers on Los Straitjackets brilliant "Jet Set" kind of scratch at the genre as well.

The Squares - 1995-2002
The Mystery Men? - 2012-
MOONBASE - 2012-2017
The KBK - 2017-2022
The Frigidaires 2021-
Southern Surf Stomp!

Yonatan Gat takes a lot of the heavier John McLaughlin/Carlos Santana influence and adds surfy reverb, definitely check him out.

Marc Ribot's Los Cubanos Postizos project, mentioned above, is frighteningly good, especially live if they still play out.

I don't want to put Ernest on the spot, but King Pelican from San Antonio seems to have a lot of jazz influence to my punk-rock ears. Pure joy to watch those guys play.

The Spoils - FB - RN
Second Saturday Surf in Austin, TX - FB

The classic, big band song, "The Breeze and I" has been covered by a few surf bands. My favorite is by The Eleminators".

Happy Sunsets!

Hey Kaleb, thanks for the mention. The slight jazz influence that tickles a couple of our tunes comes from the fact that our drummer, Darren Kuper is an excellent jazz drummer in the Joe Morello, Shelly Manne style...coupled with the fact that I'm a huge Wes Montgomery fan...a little bit of West Coast Cool is gonna find it's way into a few tunes.

But, ok...having said all that, Los Cubanos Postizos and Manuel Galban are the shiz.

https://kingpelican.bandcamp.com/

Last edited: Jan 17, 2017 18:50:36

The Australian bassless trio 'The Alchohotlicks' are made up of three of Australia's great jazz players that pays homage to surf, rockabilly, blues and free jazz...fantastic guitarists...

Last edited: Jan 18, 2017 17:03:36

simoncoil wrote:

There is band here in Germany called Expressway Sketches, which consists of jazz players dan takes inspiration from surf music. I have heard mixed things about their record though and have yet to see them live. But it puts me off a little, that in their PR stuff they say things like "bringing surf music in the 21st century". Other people have done that long before them.

If you don't mind a little Cuban influences in your jazz surf mix, I would recommend:
Manuel Galban & Ry Cooder - Mambo Sinnuendo
Marc Ribot - Los Cubanos Poalstizos

It's just a problem of genres invented by record companies that would segregate any guitarist from any tune he wanted to play. But now that we are living the aftermath of 2+ generations of training this way, we have to try to tear down, or better transcend false barriers through better playing and listening.
I'm thankful that Marc Ribot and Bill Frisell and other cool guitarists have reinvested interest in vintage music that brings it all into the present as a living vernacular. Brian Setzer and Jr.Brown are no slouches and Oleg Gitaracula may be 'our' most capable stylist. And Oleg constantly quotes our father among the guitar masters, George Barnes/Dean Hightower.
So to my mind, surf is a way of playing jazz guitar WITH THE AMP ON AND BOTH PICKUPS!!

Squink Out!

Last edited: Jan 18, 2017 20:01:16

Check out Mike Vernon's band 3 Balls of Fire... he often plays without a pick and they were the band that I thought of as lounge-y, jazzy surf when I was first getting into the style.

3 Balls was based in Austin for a long time. Last I heard Mike is in California, playing as 3 Balls. Sometimes he plays bass for Davie Allan.

Not their jazziest tune, but it was the best I could find on YouTube.

Chris
www.facebook.com/TheBossJaguars/

Here's a fun one... check out BTD roaming around in the background.

What I was getting at above, which no one seems to think is interesting, is that nowadays serious players known for jazz ensemble playing are open to a whole other songbook that includes what we call surf, etc. They are
freed up from the old Tin Pan Alley / Show Tunes standards and are open to stuff those guys who play only on the neck pickup sneer at. Ribot, Frisell and Cooder are playing with overdrive and reverb without apology. I'm just glad they have been able to dissolve this whole oppressive highbrow/lowbrow dichotomy. The origins of jazz are in some pretty low places. Teenage culture, trash and movie themes are perhaps more relevant to contemporary listeners than Hoagie Carmichael, great as he is.

Squink Out!

GT Stringer from my home town.

Peter

http://www.youtube.com/user/jenipete
http://instromania-makhno.blogspot.com.au/
https://www.facebook.com/Instromania3DRadio
https://www.facebook.com/GammaRaysInstroRock
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Slingshot-Dragster/15013389378

I hear you, JObeast! Wink
I remember similar discussions in the threads about the Guitars in the Space Age album by Frisell.

I like the idea of surf being jazz with louder amps (and both PUs) but would add: played by teenagers (or adults that never really grew up). Surf always was a little silly and weird; modern jazz definetly could use some of that. Maybe that actually was my problem with the Frisell album: it was all about nostalgia and perhaps a little to serious. Ribot on the other hand...

Los Apollos - cinematic surf music trio (Berlin)
"Postcards from the Scrapyard" Vol. 1, 2 & 3 NOW available on various platforms!
"Chaos at the Lobster Lounge" available as LP and download on Surf Cookie Records!

Last edited: Jan 19, 2017 01:59:59

JObeast wrote:

What I was getting at above, which no one seems to think is interesting, is that nowadays serious players known for jazz ensemble playing are open to a whole other songbook that includes what we call surf, etc. They are
freed up from the old Tin Pan Alley / Show Tunes standards and are open to stuff those guys who play only on the neck pickup sneer at. Ribot, Frisell and Cooder are playing with overdrive and reverb without apology. I'm just glad they have been able to dissolve this whole oppressive highbrow/lowbrow dichotomy. The origins of jazz are in some pretty low places. Teenage culture, trash and movie themes are perhaps more relevant to contemporary listeners than Hoagie Carmichael, great as he is.

I get you and play jazz myself hence being interested in surf with people attemping more soloing than just pentatonics and set arrangements. Bill Frisell is well worth checking out. He does surf snd instrumentals in his jazz concerts. I saw him in concert a few years ago and he did s whole surf medley with improvising on tele. Was brilliant.

Bill Frisell isn't everyones cup of tea. But I love that he has such great chops and yet loves to play great melody. Keeping it simple. The guy just create atmosphere with music.
He has said he grew learning surf and Venture stuff and still loves it. With so much newer surf being more punk and metal driven it's great to hear these tunes done like this as a different direction using a jazz sensibility.
Plus you have to hand to the guy. He has a completely recognizable sound. And does music his way not caring what critics, jazz or rock, say about him. He digs the melody and atmosphere out of anything and makes great music.
I saw this band live a few years ago and it was amazing. No millions note and showing off. Just lots of great music.

Last edited: Jan 19, 2017 06:11:21

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