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The new issue of The Continental Magazine is now available. Issue #15 includes a huge feature on Dick Dale (in-depth reviews of the recent Sundazed reissue CD's, written by Ivan Pongracic of The Madeira), plus articles on Japanese surf trio The Whys and The Phantom Surfers. There is also a 22 track CD filled with lots of great surf, instro and garage rock tunes.

Tracks:

1. The Barbwires - You Sun Of A Beach
2. Low Fidelity Jet-Set Orchestra - Modal Shopping Guide
3. The 'Verb - Bikini Sunrise
4. The Neptunes - Betheny Rides Again
5. Meshugga Beach Party - S'Vivon
6. The Incredible Mr. Smith - Get Out Of The Van!
7. The Peek-A-Boos - Don't Lie To Me
8. The Astroglides - Fanatic Mule Ride
9. Los Kahunas - 6G15
10. The Silhouettes - Tornado
11. The Barbary Coasters - Hi-Fi Baby
12. Secret Samurai - Don't Fear The Reverb
13. The Nematoads - Deadwood
14. The Illuminoids - Funeral For Queen Mary
15. The Lava Rats - Peligroso
16. Speedball Jr. - Le Chat Noir
17. The Sidemen - Peligro
18. The East Coast Tremors - Sandblaster
19. The Reverb Syndicate - The Martini Cluster
20. HJ - The Man With The Surfodot
21. Rockin' Rod & The (New) Strychnines - I Like Your Style
22. Retroactive Gamma Rays - The Last Gamma Ray

I am busy sending out subscriber copies, as well as copies for all of the bands on the CD. However, if you aren't a subscriber you can get a 3-issue subscription, starting with issue #15, for $16.00 US ($20.00 if you live outside the US) or get a single issue for $5.95. (add $1.05 for postage if you live in the US, or $2.05 anywhere else in the world. You can send a Paypal payment to: records@dblcrown.com or order online at www.dblcrown.com

Sean
Double Crown Records
www.doublecrownrecords.com

Surf CD's / Vinyl / Fanzines / DVD's
Aloha Screwdriver - Lunar Wobble CD
The Nebulas - Euphorion LP / CD
Supertubos - The Fourth Drive CD
Continental Magazine - Issue #38 w/17 Song CD

really good CD...................

www.surfintheeye.com

I've already started work on the next issue - if you want to be on the next Continental CD e-mail me at: records@dblcrown.com

Sean
Double Crown Records
www.doublecrownrecords.com

Surf CD's / Vinyl / Fanzines / DVD's
Aloha Screwdriver - Lunar Wobble CD
The Nebulas - Euphorion LP / CD
Supertubos - The Fourth Drive CD
Continental Magazine - Issue #38 w/17 Song CD

So, I have gotten very little feedback on the Dick Dale article/review that I wrote for the Continental. I'd love to hear if anybody actually read the whole thing, how many found it informative or provoking, how many found it unbearably pompous and arrogant, or just plain wrong, wrong, wrong? I'm not looking for an ego-stroke, really, I'm just curious what I screwed up and whether people think that my take on the whole thing has any merit. I put in a lot of time on it, and I'd love to see it trigger at least a bit of discussion. What do you think?

Ivan

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
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I read it all. Good Job informative for me. Since unlike some on this forum I don't know a super lot about the Dick Dale history. I'm a fan of his music and that's actually enough for me, I see the treads going around about Dick said this and I've noticed a lot of people are really opinionated on him, which is ok, too I guess. But I learned a lot. Kudos for taking all the time and effort. Its obviously biased by your take on his career but, I dig reading about surf music and the surf music scene. I'd like to see more stuff writen about the pioneers of surf.

Dick recorded a lot of stuff during the sixties and most surf music fans know little about it.

I loved the entire peice, Ivan. I found Mr.Eliminator at a yard sale when I was a kid, and that was the only Dick Dale I knew for years. It had it's share of filler, as did all his other 60's albums. While Mr Eliminator will always be his best, most consistent album IMHO, (definitely my fave...) your reviews in The Continental put things in a context I hadn't really thought about before, and made me revisit some of this stuff with fresh ears, especially Summer Surf, and there are some gems on there I would otherwise have overlooked. They aren't neccesarily guitar songs, and I think I'd unconciously/unfairly put him in this surf guitar hero/originator box and viewed everything else as just filler. Some of it is, but obviously not all and your great writeup helped me to recognize that.

I still haven't read it yet.

Site dude - S3 Agent #202
Need help with the site? SG101 FAQ - Send me a private message - Email me

"It starts... when it begins" -- Ralf Kilauea

First let me say, that I am new to this forum having just discovered it a few weeks ago. Should have been here much sooner as I have been into rock and surf instrumentals for years. I was there in the 1960's when it all began and fondly remember as a small tyke listening to what may have been my first introduction to this music, Telstar. I was there during the first revival in the early '80's when Rhino Records introduced me to the likes of The Malibooz, The Evasions, Jon & the Nightriders, The Wedge and others. I still have the LP "The History of Surf Music: The Revival 1980-1982". And I am still with it following the explosion created by Pulp Fiction.

Ivan, I was very interested in the Dick Dale article in Continental. Helped to highlight among other things the frustrations many musicians felt toward record labels that attempted to control their artistry. More so back then than now. The fact that much of the surf music today is independently produced or done so on smaller labels makes it a better world for us enthusiasts. You just have to search out a little bit more and that is what makes forums like this so wonderful.

Continental # 15 will join Surf Beat: The Dick Dale Story and The Illustrated Discography of Surf Music on my bookshelf. A delightful and more importantly, informative, addition.

Thanks.

Mike

Ivan,
I've just readt your article abou the first two albums, really interesting (I must finished to read other pages)

Now I can listen those albums with differents ears and with your contribution in my hands when the tracks go on.

A question about the unit reverb on first LP: is it possible they used a reverb unit on the mixer consolle and not directly on the guitar?

You have certainly the LP and CD version of DD: did you notice a difference in power sound between the LP and CD? Did you think that LP could immagazine more power than digital production?

Massimo Pafumi
Jaguar & The Savanas facebook
Jaguar & The Savanas web

Wow, thanks so much for such wonderful comments - Carol, Jeff, cricket853, jaguar and Brian. I'm really, really glad you found the piece informative and interesting, and that some of you were motivated to buy the CDs after reading it.

jaguar
A question about the unit reverb on first LP: is it possible they used a reverb unit on the mixer consolle and not directly on the guitar?

I don't think so - the main reason being that such things didn't exist back then. The first 'outboard' reverb unit was the Fender Reverb Unit (I think). I suppose it's possible that they used one of those during the mixing rather than Dick using it straight into his amp during the recording, but given the primitive production (probably straight to 1- or 2-track tape, with the exception of Misirlou Twist and Sloop John B, which got the string overdubs), I doubt it. In addition, these songs were supposed to be recorded live at Rendezvous or Harmony (the liner notes may not be completely trusted on this, according to John Blair), so the recording would have been even more primitive than what actual studios were capable at the time (and some studios did have the facilities to add reverb prior to the existence of outboard reverb units by using a water tank or a tiled room, pumping the sound into it through speakers, and then recording the reverberated, effected sound and adding it into the song mix - it's unlikely that could have been done if the recordings were done live on location).

The point about the guitar sounds on "Surfers' Choice" that I tried to make is - just listen to them. They sound pretty much the same as the later reverbed guitar sounds by Dick. And where he's not using a reverb unit, like on Let's Go Trippin', Del-Tone Rock, Jungle Fever, the original Shake-n-Stomp, his guitar sound is very clearly dry. So, given that there are good examples of his dry sounds, things like Miserlou and Surf Beat, etc. should be pretty non-controversial. Just use your ears.

You have certainly the LP and CD version of DD: did you notice a difference in power sound between the LP and CD? Did you think that LP could immagazine more power than digital production?

Honestly, I didn't compare the two back to back, so I can't say. I'm sure somebody else has done that, though, that might be able to answer this. Though I have a lot of vinyl, I'm not one of the "vinly rules!" types, I like CDs and don't really pay much attention to that kind of sound difrerence minutae. So, I'm not the right person to ask.

Thanks again!
Ivan

Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube