It’s late on Friday afternoon, and after much consideration I’ve decided to go with some surf tunes, all instrumentals from some of the lesser-known bands (at least, I haven’t heard of them). Get ready for lots of reverb and tremelo and the occasional saxophone.
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The Bel-Airs, "Mr. Moto": From South Bay in Los Angeles, The Bel-Airs were one of the earliest and most-influential surf bands. "Mr. Moto" is from 1961.
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The Tornadoes, "Bustin’ Surfboards": Not to be confused with The Tornados, who were from the UK and had a huge hit with "Telstar." These Tornadoes were from Redlands, California and were the second surf band to receive national attention (after The Marketts). "Bustin’ Surfboards" is the record they did it with, in 1962.
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The Lively Ones, "Surf Rider": Another Southern California band, The Lively Ones played mostly in California and Arizona. "Surf Rider" was written by Nokie Edwards of The Ventures. "Surf Rider" was featured in the movie Pulp Fiction, as was "Bustin’ Surfboards."
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The Centurions, "Bullwinkle, Part II": Yet another song that was featured in Pulp Fiction. They were a septet from Costa Mesa, California, and are best known for "Bullwinkle, Part II." They did the original "Bullwinkle", also.
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The Eliminators, "Dawn Patrol": The Eliminators are of more recent vintage, getting their start in the mid-’90’s. Like the other bands, they’re from Southern California. "Dawn Patrol" is from their 1997 album Unleashed.
That’s Five For Friday for August 27, 2021.
The Sound of One Hand Typing 
Groovy Man!
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Cowabunga!
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Hi John – I’ve never heard of these … but I did enjoy your ‘Surfin’ … thanks – cheers Hilary
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Surf was real specific to Southern California, though a lot of garage bands throughout the US picked up on it. I don’t think it got out of the US, though Hank Marvin did something similar. Glad you liked it!
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I’ve never heard any of these but real cool music.
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I knew the first (that’s how I got this) and let YouTube suggest the rest. Some were new to me.
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Pulp Fiction probably explains why some of these songs were familiar. Nice selection 🙂
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Thanks! I started with “Mr. Moto” and YouTube suggested the rest.
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Thanks!
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I can get into this!
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Surf was great music, especially the instrumentals…
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I love that twangy rubber band guitar.
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The old amplifiers with reverb had an actual spring that probably accounts for a lot of that.
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Those Fender Twins were good for that also
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