Lost Legends of Surf Guitar 1: Big Noise From

Various Artists (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 24, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sundazed Music Inc.
• ASIN: B00009IB5U
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #57,318 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #94 in Music > Rock > Oldies & Retro > Surf Rock

Track Listings

1. El Gato - The Chandelles

2. Loophole - The Royal Coachmen

3. Big Noise From Waimea (prev. unissued) - The Ebb Tides

4. Gear! - Dave Myers and his Surf-tones

5. The Breeze And I - Steve and The Emperors

6. Failsafe (prev. unissued) - The Original Surfaris

7. Jetster - The Chandelles

8. The Rising Surf (prev. unissued) - The Tandems

9. Contact - The Pyramids

10. Surfs Up - The Original Surfaris

11. Cemetary Stomp - The Essex

12. The Jester (prev. unissued) - The Jesters

13. Repeating - The Royal Coachmen

14. Pressure - The Pyramids

15. Ian Fleming Theme - The Menn

16. Pray For Surf - The Essex

17. Point Surf (prev. unissued) - The Surf Teens

18. Ishamatsu (prev. unissued) - TheCenturions

19. Exotic (prev. unissued) - The Original Surfaris

20. Beyond The Surf (prev. unissued) - The Tandems

Editorial Reviews

Sundazed loudly launches our supercharged new series, indelibly capturing the widescreen picture of pounding vintage surf and hot rod guitar instrumentals—the first-ever, broad-based, legitimate survey of these incendiary recordings! LOST LEGENDS OF SURF GUITAR!

• The first releases in our new series: the most fun and comprehensive compilations ever of rare 60’s surf and hot rod guitar instrumentals!

• Featuring performances from echo-drenched legends such as the Pyramids, David Marks & The Marksmen, the Original Surfaris, Trashmen and Tornadoes, as well as unsung longboard heroes like the Royal Coachmen, Thom Starr & the Galaxies, Jan Davis, Dave Myers & his Surftones, and a ton of others!

• Full color fold-outs jam-packed with rare photos and tons of memorabilia...total beach boppa-nova and tuff guitars galore!

• Liner notes and sidebars feature interviews with the who’s who of the early 60’s tidal-tribe; the legendary musicians, producers, designers and more!

• Big sounds from the original masters—20 tracks per disc including previously unheard vintage cuts on each volume... Speedway tested!

From the endless beaches of Orange County to the countless lakes of Minnesota, Lost Legends Of Surf Guitar spotlights an avalanche of reverb-guitar staccato-ripping surf and speed-fest sounds from the original masters!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ASTOUNDING Collection of Unearthed Treasure!, September 17, 2003

By 

K. Brown "El Rudo Lucky Pierre!" (Walnut, Ca USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lost Legends of Surf Guitar 1: Big Noise From (Audio CD)

I think of all the times I've run across what I call "The Lost Syndrome," ie compilations of lost music by forgotten bands. These compilations often consist of mediocre garage bands performing forgettable tunes, lost tracks by legendary bands who probably wish the songs could stay lost, or so-so live covers of classic tunes. There might be a track or two of gems, but the bulk of these collections are fool's gold!

However, you do come across the occasional exception.

The first volume of "Lost Legends of Surf Guitar" is the most amazing exception to the "Lost Syndrome." I'm a surf music admirer who is approaching the cusp of being a rabid surf music fanatic, and have heard other "Lost Surf Music" collections with tepid covers of Miserlou, Pipeline and the likes. This collection is such a stark contrast. Sundazed Studios have produced a clean sweep of 20 surf guitar tunes that are all excellent!

You see a few familar names like The Pyramids, The Centurions, and The Original Surfaris ("original" as compared to The Surfaris that surf music aficionados are familiar with---the CD's liner notes give a brief explanation of the legal battle between two bands who used the same name). But the most surprising treasures are the way-rad tunes by obscure groups who are forgotten by all but the ultra-surf fanaticos!

The tune that stole me is "The Jester" by...The Jesters! The Jesters begin the tune with a cackling giggle ala "Wipe-Out" before going into an exotic guitar tune that has mix of melody and that "Super-Sleuth" mood that you would hear in surf classics like "Mr. Moto."

You really get a fantastic variety of songs here from the Halloween essence of "Cemetary Stomp" by "The Essex" to the peppy "El Gato" by The Chandelle's to The Royal Coachmen's moody "Repeating." The sharp sound quality on these tunes is every bit as surprising as the quality of the music itself!

While I would like to sum up "Lost Legends" with an articulate conclusion, the only way I can do it justice is to exclaim "BUY THIS CD!" Seriously, this is absolutely the finest compilation of surf music I have ever seen, and I cannot remember the last time I was this pleasantly surprised to find an exception to "Lost Syndrome!" The producers of this album get my highest fanboy salute!

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Big Noise From Sundazed Records!, November 11, 2003

By 

Mike King "Mike Vegas King" (Taunton, MA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Lost Legends of Surf Guitar 1: Big Noise From (Audio CD)

The liner notes to this CD give the best definition of surf music that I have ever read. To quote, "The lilt of Hawaiian music and the flavor of flamenco guitar would be complemented by...pre-Motown rhythm and blues, West Coast cool jazz and rockabilly instrumentals." In addition to the liner notes, great care went into the selection of songs and the quality of the sound. "Cemetary Stomp" by the Essex and "The Jester" by the Jesters come close to being novelty songs, but they are also among my personal favorites. "Contact" by the Pyramids and "Surf's Up" by the Original Surfaris are two outstanding surf instrumentals. With twenty songs, clocking in around forty-five minutes, my only complaint would be that Sundazed Records didn't include more obscure and unreleased songs in this classic compilation.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bust Out the Surfboards!, November 23, 2003

By 

downtown (Brighton, MA USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Lost Legends of Surf Guitar 1: Big Noise From (Audio CD)

Sundazed has made a name for itself by specializing in re-releasing vintage 45s from the 1960s, and they've really struck gold with the "Lost Legends of Surf Guitar" collection. All three volumes are simply brilliant, and will leave you salivating for more. Unfortunately, some of the artists on this collection are so rare that this is pretty much all you can find!

Ever since Quentin Tarantino put Dick Dale's "Miserlou" on the Pulp Fiction soundtrack, Surf Guitar has experienced a bit of a revival. But most of the contemporary bands lack a certain feeling in their music. It takes more than just heavy reverb to make it true surf guitar. "Lost Legends" is the genre at its best. The tracks are almost exclusively from the early 60s, from 1961-1964. The music is still barely divorced from its R&B roots, with a number of other influences mixed in, including Latin guitar and there are even some hints of Middle Eastern.

Five minutes is all it will take to get you hooked. Pretty soon you'll find yourself scouring the garage sales of Southern California, desperately trying to find some original pressings on vinyl. Hang ten!