Surf Rock

Surf rock is a style of music that originated in the USA that mixes elements of surf music and rock music. The most influential styles on surf rock were general rock n roll, pop rock and surf music. While in the 1960s surf music and rock n' roll were distinct styles, associated with competing dance styles and representing distinct and competing youth cultures, the development of rock music since then has built upon both styles. Many authorities now retrospectively classify all surf bands as rock bands, and surf music therefore as a subgenre of rock music.

Duane Eddy's instrumental "Movin' and Groovin'" is thought by many to be the main contender for laying the groundwork as the first surf rock record, while others claim the genre was invented by Dick Dale on Let's Go Trippin', an instrumental which became a hit throughout California. . Dale's influence on the surf genre was profound. He was a surfer himself and sought to transfer the excitement and adrenaline of the sport through his guitar playing. He often drew on his Lebanese heritage, incorporating modal tonalities and instruments such as finger cymbals and reeds. Many surf bands that followed him incorporated Eastern influences, as well as Dale's generous use of reverb. His rapid double picking and staccato playing was also very influential and an important part of the early surf sound, perhaps even more so than the reverb, which was only introduced years after Dale had already released his first singles. In Australia, which has always had a strong beach culture, the genre was strongly embraced in the 1960's, although Australian surf rock bands such as The Atlantics took their influences more from the famed British instrumental band The Shadows.

Instrumental rock band The Ventures also had a number of surf hits, their most widely known being "Walk Don't Run". The Chantays recorded a top single with "Pipeline".... Probably the most widely known surf melody and rock drum solo in the history of rock and roll however, is from The Surfaris.The most famous surf tune hit was in 1963 by the Surfaris "Wipe Out", making it to number 2 and number 10 on Billboard in 1965. They had two other global hits "Surfer Joe" and "Point Panic". The Surfaris are known for their cutting edge advangart lead guitar Jim Fuller and Ron Wilson drum songs. During the mid- to late 1990s, surf rock experienced a revival in the works of such artists as The Blue Stingrays, Bomboras, Man or Astro-man?, and The Aqua Velvets. The popularity of the movie Pulp Fiction, which featured surf music, fueled the revival well into the 21st century.