10 Noteworthy Surf-Rock Songs Not by the Beach Boys or Jan and Dean
I’ve been a Beach Boys fan for a long time, and even though I was a teenager a good decade or more after the Beach Boys’ real surf-music heyday, I was introduced to them through their greatest hits compilations Endless Summer (1974) and the lesser known follow-up Spirit of America (1975). Although I surfed, I wasn’t good enough at it that that’s what made me relate to or like the Beach Boys; it was because I know of no better music that conjures up warm summer days, girls, the sun, surf — you get the picture. Those were things I enjoyed about life and could relate to, and so I became a Beach Boys fan during a period when their music was somewhat passé.
After I got to know the Beach Boys’ sound I bought an old Jan and Dean album at a thrift store, and though I liked them, to me, they weren’t quite on the same level. After all, their biggest hit, “Surf City,” was a song Beach Boy Brian Wilson wrote for them. (On the other hand, Dean Torrance did sing uncredited lead on the Beach Boys’ hit “Barbara Ann,” so I guess that evened the score.) Nevertheless, these two groups more or less monopolized the mainstream surf-rock sound of the ’60s Billboard charts and are the most recognizable names in the genre even today.
There were other groups who made viable contributions to the surf sound, however, though admittedly some of these songs don’t have the same mainstream appeal that songs such as “Surfin’ USA” or “Surf City” did. Listed below, in chronological order, are 10 surf songs that may not be as well known as hits by the Beach Boys or Jan and Dean but are just as important, and in some cases, actually influenced that Beach Boys and Jan and Dean sound.
Take note, however, of a definite arc you’ll see here: the early surf songs (1961 and 1962) don’t chart or chart low, then in 1963 and ’64, they do well and almost all are Top 10. But then in 1964, the Beatles came to America, and surf music seemed to die. Even mainstays like the Beach Boys and Jan and Dean struggled — The Beach Boys’ last surf song to make the Top 40 was “Surfer Girl”(#7) in 1963, and for Jan and Dean it was “Sidewalk Surfin” (#25) in 1964, another hit penned by Brian Wilson. Maybe the conclusion we can draw from this was when the British Invasion hit America, surf music flamed out pretty quickly. The Beach Boys would adapt, change their sound, and continue to have some success, but most of these other groups would die a slow death.
1) “Mr. Moto,” The Belairs (1961); did not chart
You’ll notice that the first few songs here are instrumentals, because before the Beach Boys started creating surf songs with vocals (they first charted with “Surfin'” in 1962), most surf songs were guitar-driven instrumentals. The Belairs’ very fine tune “Mr. Moto” was an instrumental with a flamenco-like opening, a piano interlude, and wailing sax. This song, like many early surf tunes, wasn’t a song sung about surfing — it was surfing. The tempo of the song coincides with the slow buildup as you wait for, then paddle into, then catch the wave. The remainder of the song matches the exhilaration of actually riding the wave, though obviously no one rides a single wave for a full two minutes. Nevertheless, this song and “Miserlou” are more of a soundtrack to the act of actually surfing than music about surfing’s context.
2) “Let’s Go Trippin'” (1961); Billboard #60/”Miserlou” (1962); did not chart – Dick Dale and His Del Tones
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-y3h9p_c5-M
Dick Dale was and is known as the “King of the Surf Guitar,” and he did more to popularize the early surf sound than any artist in America; he was the Beach Boys before there was a Beach Boys! According to Joel Whitburn, “Let’s Go Trippin'” was the very first surf record, and it’s a pleasant little song that peaked at #60. Unquestionably though, the Dick Dale song that really resonates the surfing experience is “Miserlou.” It’s mystifying how this song never charted, but fortunately Quentin Tarantino exposed a whole new generation of moviegoers to it when he included it in 1994’s Pulp Fiction.
3) “The Surfer’s Stomp,” The Marketts (1962); Billboard #31
Another instrumental, though this one is a little less frenetic and a little jazzier than most of the entries here. Actually their songs “Out of Limits” and, to a lesser extent “Balboa Blue,” sound more surf-rock-like. But this was clearly written for the surf crowd.
4) “Surfin’ Bird,” The Trashmen (1963); Billboard #4
Other than the title, there’s nothing here that relates to surfing. It’s more of a novelty song, and it’s not even very original; it’s a mashup of The Rivingtons’ “The Bird’s the Word” and the catchy “Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow.” But there’s no denying that it was a big hit with a surfing moniker, and as such, it qualifies for inclusion here. And it’s pretty damn catchy — unfortunately.
5) “Pipeline,” The Chantays (1963); Billboard #4
The Pipeline is the Banzai Pipeline on Sunset Beach Park in Hawaii, one of the most popular, challenging, and deadliest surfing spots in the world. In 1962, California group the Chantays recorded and released their instrumental homage to the site, and by May of 1963, it had climbed all the way to #4 on the Hot 100. It would be their only Top 40 hit.
6) “Wipeout” b/w “Surfer Joe,” The Surfaris (1963); Billboard #2
“Wipe Out” is one of the all-time great surf-rock classics, one of the songs that defined the genre. Like a lot of early surf songs, it was an instrumental, and the drum accompaniment was the stuff legends are made of — if you could play the drum part from “Wipe Out,” you qualified as a hell of a drummer! Oddly enough, “Wipe Out” was intended as the B-side of the record; the A-side was to be the goofy “Surfer Joe.” “Surfer Joe” did okay, peaking at #62, but “Wipe Out” went all the way to #2. It was such a big hit that when released again in 1966, it went to #16.
7) “California Sun,” The Rivieras (1964); Billboard #5
The Rivieras version of “California Sun” was actually a cover, as Joe Jones of “You Talk Too Much” fame had first recorded the song in 1961. New Orleans-based Jones had more of an R&B sound, and so listeners didn’t really connect with his recording about California, and it peaked at #89. In 1964, the Rivieras recorded the song, and due to their guitar-based surf-rock sound, they were able to take the song all the way to #5 — despite the fact that the boys from Indiana were no more of a surf band than Jones was a surfer. But the song fit the surf-rock blueprint and was a massive hit. It would be the group’s only Top 40 effort.
8) “New York’s a Lonely Town,” The Tradewinds (1965); Billboard #32
There’s really no way this song should have been successful. The Tradewinds (sometimes Trade Winds) were from Rhode Island, hardly an American surfing Mecca. They weren’t a longtime surf band who paid their dues for years like most of these other groups, and in fact, they went under several different names and played a variety of different sounds. Despite all that, this song about a surfer living in New York (yet another unlikely occurrence) is actually a very good recording. Their harmonies are tight, the lyrics make sense, and their music is more than passable. It was their highest charting record.
9) “I Live for the Sun,” The Sunrays (1965); Billboard #51
This group from Pacific Palisades, California, had many ties to the Beach Boys. A couple of members of the group were friends with Beach Boy Carl Wilson and later Dennis Wilson, and they auditioned for Murry Wilson — father of Brian, Dennis, and Carl — in the Wilsons’ home. Murry Wilson agreed to become their manager and actually tried to remake them in the image of his sons’ group, trying to duplicate their harmonies, their car and surf songs, and even their clothing. But the Sunrays were never able to duplicate the Beach Boys’ magic. “Andrea” (1966) was their biggest hit (Billboard #41), but their best song, by far, was “I Live for the Sun,” a Beach-Boys-like tune that peaked at #51 in 1965. The group called it quits in the late ’60s, having never broken into the Billboard pop Top 40.
10) “Hawaii Five-O,” The Ventures (1969); Billboard #4
Technically, I guess this only marginally qualifies, because after all, it was popular primarily because it was a TV show theme (although arguably one of the best ever), and that also explains why a surf song charted a good four to five years after the surf sound had become obsolete. But it is about Hawaii, the Ventures were primarily a surf-rock instrumental band, and the sound is not all that far removed from the early Surfaris and Dick Dale hits. Perhaps we should think of it as surf-rock’s last gasp.
What are your favorite non-Beach Boys/Jan and Dean surf-rock songs? Let us know in the comments!
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