To celebrate over 50,000 views of my top ten surf and hot
rod vocals compilation, I have added this blog to let you know why I chose
these songs and what makes them so great.
There have been many comments on these songs, and to date
46 likes and 6 dislikes. The one reason for dislikes seems to be because there
is no Dick Dale, or to put it more specifically, no Miserlou. That’s because it’s
a vocal collection and not an instrumental collection. Also, people mention
that there is no Jan & Dean or Beach Boys, yes, that is correct, and that
is because I wanted to show something different… If Jan & Dean and The
Beach Boys were included, you’d miss out on half of these great songs in this
top 10!
So, this is the top ten, and this is why I like them…
10: Bruce &
Terry – Custom Machine
Bruce Johnston of The Beach Boys and Terry Melcher cover
this Beach Boys song and make it something very special, that muggy sound of
Bruce & Terry really is haunting and gives the song a really unique feel.
09: Ronny &
The Daytona’s – Beach Boy
These guys were landlocked surfers and a lot of their music
was drenched in a Country & Western vibe, but Beach Boy is a stunning song with a catchy melody that has summer
written all over it.
08: The Rip Chords
– Hot Rod USA
Featuring our favourite Bruce Johnston again, and written
by none other than Bobby Darin, Hot Rod
USA is to cars, what Surfin’ USA
was to the Surf. Amazing!
07: The Astronauts
– My Little Beach Bunny
Another landlocked American band, The Astronauts recorded
some truly inspiring instrumentals. Although Baja was probably their strongest recording, and one of the greatest
instrumentals ever, My Little Beach Bunny
is fun and far superior to the Gary Usher recording of the same name.
06: The Surfaris –
Boss Barracuda
Boss Barracuda
by The Surfaris is simply awesome. No other word can describe this song, and
Ron Wilson’s vocal along with Gary Ushers production make this song candidate for
one of the best car songs ever.
05: The Fantastic
Baggys – Surfer’s Rule
Jan & Dean’s one-time backing duo are none other than
Phil Sloan and Steve Barri. Surfer’s Rule
shows you what a powerful team these two young lads were, and the song belts
along at a fantastic pace telling the story of every young American during that
era. I wish Surfer’s still ruled.
04: The Super
Stocks – Hot Rod High
Gary Ushers gang of deviants take up the next four
positions, and for good reason. These records could have been The Beach Boys,
or Jan & Dean. These records were raw, full of fun and passion, and Hot Rod High by The Super Stocks rocks!
03: The Devons – Honda Bike
Honda Bike has one of the best melodies ever put to
record. The Devons were basically The Super Stocks/The Hondells, but we don’t
care, this record is as good as Little
Honda, and as much fun.
02: The Hondells –
My Buddy Seat
Next to The Beach Boys and Jan & Dean, The Hondells
were popular at a certain time and place. They had a US chart hit with a cover
of Little Honda, but it is My Buddy Seat
that really shines through as one of the greatest hot rod recordings of all
time.
01: The Wheel Men –
School Is A Gas
We all agree, and I think you’ll see that… school is
A/Gas. Gary Usher and gangs finest piece of work is this fantastic short song.
It can be found by other artists as School Is A Drag, but this recording has
all the right pieces in all the right places. “A/Gas” refers to the type of
fuel that hot rod racers preferred, and the “A” to me represents the pinnacle
of surf and hot rod music. This song is a sonic journey like you’ve never heard
before, it’s mono, it’s raw, it’s rough and its damn right mind-blowing.
There we have it. A review of the top ten surf and hot
rod songs of the 1960’s. Once this video reaches 75,000 I will add a top 10
Surf/Hot Rod instrumentals, and once it gets to 100,000 views I will add videos
11-20 for both vocal and instrumental. Until then, keep surfin’.
