Time to switch to the first person. A third person blog is just too ego centric and probably requires a flat-billed oversized hat and baggy pants hanging off my butt. That is not my style, and I just cannot destroy language that much!
Some time before Becky surprised me with the Costco Starcaster Special, I rediscovered surf music. I really cannot remember what brought it back.
I listened to The Fabulous Wailers in the early 60s. “Road Runner” was a friend's favorite song. He played it on the juke box at the A&W in Woodland. In my mind, “Road Runner” is the progenitor of “Surf Beat” by Dick Dale. I first heard “Mr. Moto” at UCSB. It stuck in my brain for years as did "Rumble," “Road Runner,” and “Shanghaied.” Since 1962, I considered The Fabulous Wailers album to be important -- a classic. It was one that I pointed to with the pride of a collector and lent to others to hear. Besides, the cover photo had a late 50s rock vibe captured in black and white.
Maybe wearing Hawaiian shirts for years brought surf music back into my consciousness. Brett -- my son -- gave me a Dick Dale anthology for Christmas. Part of my toast at his wedding was thanking him for re-introducing me to surf music. That was in October 2001.
Link Wray, Duane Eddy, Santo and Johnny, and The Ventures preceded surf. They were the music of my teen years. “Rumble,” “Rebel Rouser,” “Sleepwalk,” “Walk, Don’t Run,” “Apache,” and “Raunchy” were hits. The Fabulous Wailers' "Tall Cool One" was a hit in my book. Instrumental music was an integral part of early rock and rock and part of my teens.
Maybe by going back to instrumental rock and surf, I was trying to rewrite the history of my youth. Yes, I heard instrumental rock and surf. Yes, I remember it. Yes, I thought some of the songs were great. Yes, I had friends at UCSB who were in instrumental rock bands in SoCal. Yes, some of the songs stuck with me for years.
Was I devoted to instrumental rock and surf? No. Instead, I was a fan of rhythm and blues. I preferred Ray Charles, James Brown, Ike & Tina Turner, Jimmy Reed, Otis Redding, and John Lee Hooker. I also loved the primitive garage sound of The Fabulous Wailers, The Kingsmen, The Sonics, and The Trashmen. Simple. Loud. But, for the most part, I was a fan of vocals.
Whether I was rewriting history or going back to the times before R&B overtook other music for me makes no difference. At some point in 2000 or 2001, I immersed myself in instrumental rock. Primitive, simple, and repetitive instrumental rock was to my liking -- not shredding, incomprehensible instrumental rock.
So, once the Costco Starcaster Special was in my hands, I wanted to play instrumental rock -- surf. My learning was melody driven. I did not learn chords . . . strumming . . . accompaniment. No campfire songs for me. I wanted to learn to play like Dick Dale or Hank Marvin or Link Wray or Eddie Bertrand.
Some time before Becky surprised me with the Costco Starcaster Special, I rediscovered surf music. I really cannot remember what brought it back.
I listened to The Fabulous Wailers in the early 60s. “Road Runner” was a friend's favorite song. He played it on the juke box at the A&W in Woodland. In my mind, “Road Runner” is the progenitor of “Surf Beat” by Dick Dale. I first heard “Mr. Moto” at UCSB. It stuck in my brain for years as did "Rumble," “Road Runner,” and “Shanghaied.” Since 1962, I considered The Fabulous Wailers album to be important -- a classic. It was one that I pointed to with the pride of a collector and lent to others to hear. Besides, the cover photo had a late 50s rock vibe captured in black and white.
Maybe wearing Hawaiian shirts for years brought surf music back into my consciousness. Brett -- my son -- gave me a Dick Dale anthology for Christmas. Part of my toast at his wedding was thanking him for re-introducing me to surf music. That was in October 2001.
Link Wray, Duane Eddy, Santo and Johnny, and The Ventures preceded surf. They were the music of my teen years. “Rumble,” “Rebel Rouser,” “Sleepwalk,” “Walk, Don’t Run,” “Apache,” and “Raunchy” were hits. The Fabulous Wailers' "Tall Cool One" was a hit in my book. Instrumental music was an integral part of early rock and rock and part of my teens.
Maybe by going back to instrumental rock and surf, I was trying to rewrite the history of my youth. Yes, I heard instrumental rock and surf. Yes, I remember it. Yes, I thought some of the songs were great. Yes, I had friends at UCSB who were in instrumental rock bands in SoCal. Yes, some of the songs stuck with me for years.
Was I devoted to instrumental rock and surf? No. Instead, I was a fan of rhythm and blues. I preferred Ray Charles, James Brown, Ike & Tina Turner, Jimmy Reed, Otis Redding, and John Lee Hooker. I also loved the primitive garage sound of The Fabulous Wailers, The Kingsmen, The Sonics, and The Trashmen. Simple. Loud. But, for the most part, I was a fan of vocals.
Whether I was rewriting history or going back to the times before R&B overtook other music for me makes no difference. At some point in 2000 or 2001, I immersed myself in instrumental rock. Primitive, simple, and repetitive instrumental rock was to my liking -- not shredding, incomprehensible instrumental rock.
So, once the Costco Starcaster Special was in my hands, I wanted to play instrumental rock -- surf. My learning was melody driven. I did not learn chords . . . strumming . . . accompaniment. No campfire songs for me. I wanted to learn to play like Dick Dale or Hank Marvin or Link Wray or Eddie Bertrand.