Hi I recently discovered this site, It's a great wealth of information. This is my first post I hope it's in the right forum. I've a story to relate and couple of gear related questions.

Three other guys and myself all in our late 40's / early 50's
Have formed a surf band we are located in Brisbane Australia where the Instrumental music scene is virtually non existant. After a few Rehersals we have been looking for somewhere to play. We went to an open mic/Blues jam,were allocated a 15 minute slot at 9pm. The crowd is around 100 people playing pool and drinking and not paying much attention to the music.

We get up and play" Diamond Head" finish the song and I notice the crowd has appeared to double in size and massed around the stage area but it's deadly silent. Most of the crowd are blues fans . I'm beginning to think we made a mistake coming here. next thing someone lets off a load whistle then we hear a few cheers.
We play "walk Don't Run" and all the girls get up and dance and the crowd gets even more exited we then play "Sleepwalk" "Foot Tapper" " Hiroshi " and finish up with "Pacifica" By this time the crowd is electric and wanting more. But we follow the rules and step down. we got asked if we were coming next week we said we were . We turned up the next week Got allocated 30 minutes at 10-15 pm , all night prior to us playing we kept getting strangers coming up to us asking if we were the surf guys and that they had come out especially to hear us play. Well we played our set to an even bigger crowd response. I was on such a high I could not sleep when I got home, I soon came down to earth at 4am the next morning when the alarm went off to go to work.

My question is this. Does anybody use a Les Paul or 335 style guitar for Instrumental Surf music ?. Our lead player uses a Strat or a Yamaha SGV guitar while I use a les Paul or a Dot . Two reasons ,I have a bit of arthritus in my left hand and prefer a fatter neck and shorter scale. plus we have both come to the conclusion that that a clean humbucker sound set slightly on the bright side. compliments his single coil lead sound.
Thanks for spending the time to read my post

the guitarist for the killer bananazz plays a deusenburg semi, very much like a 335. great tone.

anyway, what works for you works for you, as simple as that. If you're satisfied with your tone than it's settled.

fwiw, I think the sound of guitars mixing rather then staying apart in the mix can be part of the surf idiom. so there's no need to keep the guitars apart. some bands also use mosrite v. jag to keep the sounds apart, listen to the nebulas e.g.

great story about the blues jam!

Rules to live by #314:
"When in Italy, if the menu says something's grilled, don't assume it is."

https://www.facebook.com/The-Malbehavers-286429584796173/

The now defunct Ultras guitarist always played an ES335.

Danny Snyder

"With great reverb comes great responsibility" - Uncle Leo

Playing keys and guitar with Combo Tezeta

Formerly a guitarist in The TomorrowMen and Meshugga Beach Party

Latest surf project - Now That's What I Call SURF

DOH!

How could I forget.... the les paul as well as hollowbodies were big, as in huge in the indorock scene, which is closely related to surf. started somewhat earlier than surf, and before reverb. it's mostly tape echo's what they used, but anyway, much big fat guitars with big fat sounds for instro music. many of them later switched to jazzmasters (not jaguars! that tells you something about the sound they were after). I read somewhere that ANdy Tielman switched to the JM cause it was lighter and allowed more tricks and jumping and stuff, and he preffered the sound of the LP - which he now plays again.

look up some andy tielman on youtube

WR

EDIT:
- spotnicks: lespaul_ish_ guitar
- tijuana bibles: SGs
- Magnetic IV: lespaulish DeArmond, big heavy guitar but with DeArmond 2K pups.
- Link Wray's been seen with an LP (again, not really surf)

Rules to live by #314:
"When in Italy, if the menu says something's grilled, don't assume it is."

https://www.facebook.com/The-Malbehavers-286429584796173/

Last edited: Jun 10, 2007 10:47:14

JakeDobner
Dave Arnson uses a P-90 equipped SG. This should always be differentiated from a PAF(or other pickup) equipped Gibson

i did not know that, thanks

www.surfintheeye.com

I was playing with a guy who had a Gibson Firebird and that thing sounded pretty cool. (although he played through a marshall jcm-2000) They look pretty wicked too, 60's all the way.

JakeDobner
Dave Arnson uses a P-90 equipped SG. This should always be differentiated from a PAF(or other pickup) equipped Gibson.

If I had a ES-335 I would have no shame playing it in a surf band. Absolutely amazing guitars. However, I'd always go for the Jazzmaster or Jag first.

Les Paul visually wouldn't fit very well. You should get a ES-355.

Dano Sullivan of the Insect Surfers, however, does play a Gibson
Flying V with Humbuckers. Way not trad, but IMHO it more than
works.

Bob

Bob

I have a ES-347 that really snarls thru my Pro Reverb and works well when you want to get surfy. The 347 has a coil tap switch that puts the humbuckers in single coil so you can get a kind of Fender sound out of it. If i played gigs dont know if I would use it though, it gets real heavy on your shoulder after about an hour.

2012-2013: FILTHY POLAROIDS

JakeDobner
I love firebirds. Really great guitars. The minibuckers are fantastic. I also really want a non-reverse firebird with P-90s.

Yeah I want one too. My friends got the non-reverse custom shop one, I think its got burstbuckers in it, he told me once but I wasnt listening. Its like a wacky looking SG or something.

Thanks for the report on the Blues Jam. I've often wondered how surf music would go over in that type of venue.

We get a great response playing surf music in a town of blues and classic rock lovers. Last week the bartender came out and hugged us for bringing something fresh.