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- Before there were Jan and Dean and The Beach Boys, there’s Dick Dale & His Del Tones. This surf band is considered the first-ever surf band in the history, and it’s led by ‘King of Surf Guitar’ himself — Dick Dale.
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Jun 10, 2024 · Despite existing for just three years, the band of innovative guitarist Dick Dale epitomised the golden period of surf rock. Their debut single ‘Let’s Go Trippin’’ was surf music’s first national hit in 1961. Five studio albums genuinely made for surfers followed until Dale took a break from his career after a cancer diagnosis in 1964.
Like Dale and his Del-Tones, most early surf bands were formed in Southern California, with Orange County in particular having a strong surf culture, and the Rendezvous Ballroom hosted many surf-styled acts.
Apr 11, 2019 · Dick Dale was the guy who really coined the term as he was the first self-proclaimed “surf guitarist.” Although his roots were more Hank Williams than Chuck Berry, “The King of the Surf Guitar” would soon be headlining gigs over the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean.
- The Beach Boys
- The Surfaris
- Jan and Dean
- Dick Dale & His Del-Tones
- The Astronauts
- The Trashmen
- The Chantays
- The Challengers
- Man Or Astro-Man?
- La Luz
It’s only right to start our list with The Beach Boys. While they didn’t invent surf rock, they were responsible for popularizing it. They were such a big deal that they were one of the few American bands to survive the onslaught of the British Invasion. The Beach Boys formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. They’ve recorded 29 albums throughout ...
Our next band, The Surfaris, is an influential instrumental surf rock band formed in Glendora, California, in 1962. They released 11 albums during their career, but their hit “Wipe Out” made them famous and created a legacy. The members of the band themselves wrote the song. “Surfer Joe” and “Wipe Out” were the A-side and B-side of the band’s 45 rp...
The vocal surf rock duo Jan and Deanconsists of William Jan Berry and Dean Ormsby Torrence. The two met in high school in Los Angeles, where they were both football players, and ended up harmonizing in the locker room. If the Beach Boys made surf rock famous, it was Jan and Dean who cut the trail. One of their biggest hits is “Surf City,” the very ...
Up next is Dick Dale & His Del-Tones, considered the true pioneers of instrumental surf rock music. Dale’s “Let’s Go Trippin’” was one of the first surf rock songs, and he was highly influential in the genre. Dale used Middle Eastern music scales in his playing along with reverb. His tremolo picking and his quest to get the most out of amplifiers m...
Our next band, The Astronauts, formed in Boulder, Colorado, in 1961 and was active until 1968. They assumed their band name in tribute to astronaut Scott Carpenter who was also born in Boulder. Though The Astronauts were local celebrities, they weren’t as successful as the other bands on this list. Their first single under RCA Records, “Baja,” came...
Up next is The Trashmen, a rock band with its roots in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They took their name from the Kai Ray-penned song “Trashman’s Blues.” The Trashmen became interested in surf rock after listening to Dick Dale. They then conceptualized “Surfin’ Bird,” which their audience liked when they performed it. The song was a mix-up of The Riving...
What made The Chantaysdifferent from other surf rock bands is their use of electronic keyboards and surf guitar. They were able to create ghostly sounds, unlike the other bands. The Chantays were formed in Orange County, California, by high school friends. Just a year later, they recorded their hit instrumental song “Pipeline.” It reached #4 on the...
Coming up is another instrumental surf rock band, The Challengers. The band formed out of Bel-Airs, a surf rock band that broke up following a disagreement over artistic decisions. The Challengers used to play in high school dances and local clubs. Eventually, they had enough money to record their debut album, Surfbeat. The album contained songs th...
While surf rock had a very short time in the sun in the 60s, bands like Man or Astro-Man?drew heavily from its waters and kept it alive. The band formed in Auburn, Alabama, in 1992. This primarily instrumental band performed under the guise of being aliens sent to Earth to play surf rock. The members have personas, which include Star Crunch (Brian ...
Last on the list is the contemporary surf-rock band La Luz. They are a Seattle band formed in 2012 whose members were inspired by surf and rock and roll personalities such as Dick Dale. They’ve released four albums on Hardly Art Records, all of which brought them acclaim. Their sound is often called surf noir and is heavily influenced by surf rock,...
Sep 9, 2017 · In the summer of 1961, Dale and his new backup band, the Del-Tones, played their first show at the Rendezvous Ballroom—a cavernous down-at-heels nightclub eight miles south of Huntington Pier. In better days, the Rendezvous had swung to the music of Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, and Stan Kenton.
Surf rock music clearly came from early experimental rock bands influenced by West Coast beaches of California and the Pacific Northwest. The first bands to be considered "surf rock" were Dick Dale and the Del-Tones and the Ventures.
Apr 28, 2022 · Dale had already been working hard at guitar, and once in California, he picked up surfing, and the rest is history. Dale credited jazz drummer Gene Krupa with being one of his biggest influences; Krupa's crisp, rhythmic attack on the drums can be heard in Dale's own explosive, staccato style.
