Posted on Feb 16 2018 09:37 PM
Liked what I heard and there’s definitely a Surf influence, but certainly not down the “centerline” of the genre. I tend to think in terms that I’ve heard credited at times to Duke Ellington or to Louis Armstrong: there are only two kinds of music; good and bad.
When Rock n’ Roll came along, it wasn’t long before some instrumentals came into the picture. Honky Tonk was an R&B instrumental from the mid fifties and influenced Rock n’ Roll guitar greatly at the time. For that matter, it still has considerable influence, albeit cumulatively, from the numerous songs that have made use of its motifs.
Duane Eddy was a pioneer of Instrumental Rock and he was hardly alone. Link Wray, The Champs and any number of bands that came and went, leaving an instrumental tune as their only legacy. When Surf came along, it was a reflection of the Rock n’ Roll of the time, some of it quite reminiscent of the Twist music which was all over the airwaves. Surf adopted some Spanish influences, many tunes using variations of the Andalusian Cadence. (Walk, Don’t Run chord changes.)
Personally, I see Surf as a culmination of the Instrumental Rock which came before. After the Beatles arrived, instrumentals became pretty rare on the charts. Some say that the Psychedelic music of the late sixties grew out of Surf, but I wouldn’t argue either side. I see it, in the sense that it’s instrumental Rock n’ Roll, but I have a hard time reconciling the distorted sounds of Psychedelic with the ultra clean sounds of Surf.
Its probably worth mentioning that contemporary with Surf, was the heyday of the Bakersfield sound, which employed twangy guitars and lots of reverb in a Country setting. I love Surf and I love the Bakersfield sound.
When it comes right down to it, I love twangy guitars, and have since the first time I heard one (most likely when Duane Eddy first came along). I was roughly seven years old and freezing my toccus off in Minnesota when Surf first came along, so my affinity for it was more related to the sound of twangy guitars than any affinity for Surfing, the ocean, etc. I’m glad to see that the influence of Surf is still being felt to this day and I’m very happy that I have an outlet for the Surf Music that I enjoy playing.
It is my privilege to be the guitarist in a band named Clutch Draggin’ & the Lug Nuts. We do some Surf, some non-Surf Instrumental Rock, some Country and a mixed bag of other songs, from the ‘50s on into the ‘70s. I am hoping to add some Shadows material and possibly some Jazz-Fusion instrumentals too, in the future. We are not a bespoke Surf band, but we do take our Surf quite seriously, and it is a calling card of sorts.
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The artist formerly known as: Synchro
When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.
May Birthdays 
