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Surf guitar (etc.)

A

Anex

Señor Member
About as close as I've got is The Gift, The Dreamers etc. (and other Marc Ribot things). What do I need? Interested in all suggestions but particularly relaxed down tempo sounding stuff (things that make me think of Hawaii :) )

Thanks!
 
I always thought Surf Guitar was yer Dick Dale, Link Wray, Surfaris sorta thing. You know sixties, twangy, dirty sounding stuff. But I wouldn't have said it was relaxed and down tempo, more rough and rock and roll ... so maybe we are talking at cross purposes.

Tell me about this Marc Ribot fella, I've never heard of him.
 
I might be getting my genres crossed a bit - I know about Dick Dale etc. and want recommendations in that area, but I thought some of the more Hawaiian relaxed sounding stuff would also fall under the surf heading? Maybe I'm talking about two different styles so perhaps I want surf recommendations and Hawaiian sounding stuff (I'm sure there's a better description of it - stuff that sounds like track one of The Gift for those that know it).

Marc Ribot played on Rain Dogs by Waits if you've got that? And a million other things, he blends surf sound, R&B, blues, lots of jewish stuff, punk/hardcore, improv and probably a load of other things too with his own style.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc_Ribot
 
Anex said:
I might be getting my genres crossed a bit - I know about Dick Dale etc. and want recommendations in that area, but I thought some of the more Hawaiian relaxed sounding stuff would also fall under the surf heading? Maybe I'm talking about two different styles so perhaps I want surf recommendations and Hawaiian sounding stuff (I'm sure there's a better description of it - stuff that sounds like track one of The Gift for those that know it).

Marc Ribot played on Rain Dogs by Waits if you've got that? And a million other things, he blends surf sound, R&B, blues, lots of jewish stuff, punk/hardcore, improv and probably a load of other things too with his own style.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc_Ribot
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Ah, maybe. Sounds interesting ... but I can't help, sorry :rolleyes:
 
Duncan: Excellent, thanks. So, could I have some essential Hawaiian Steel recommendations, and some essential Surf recommendations please?

Ian: Now on order

jimb0: Not really what I'm looking for at the moment, but thanks. After something without the melancholy.
 
sideshowbob said:
How about Sun Ra with Dan and Dale playing tunes from Batman? Yes, there really is such a record.

http://www.amazon.com/Batman-Robin-Sensational-Guitars-Dale/dp/B00005K9XU

-- Ian
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I have that on 12" Picture disc. Not really representative of the rest of Sun Ra's ouvre, but certainly fun.

There are really two 'Surf' musics. One is 'Surf' which id the lightweight harmony, Beach Boys style stuff that evokes the carefree lives of beachbums and never ending summers. The other is 'Drag'. This is down and dirty and evokes the sounds and excitement of drag racing meets.

I prefer the latter and it's what most people mean when they talk about 'surf' music.

Link Wray, Walkin' with the Link, an LP from the late 60's is great, but I can't seem to find a, ahem, link to it.

Davie Allen and The Arrows are pretty good too. This would be a good primer, although, like Dick Dale, his tone gets a bit 'metal' on the more recent stuff. They also did the soundtrack to the biker flick 'The Wild Angels' which is worth seeking out in it's own right.

On a more contemporary bent, Man or Astroman have made some good tracks, but none of their LP's are that consistent. There is an LP by a band called 'The Finks' from the early 90's which is one of the best surf LP's I have ever heard, but I only have this on vinyl and cannot find anything on the web about them at all - there were probably only 500 copies of this LP pressed, which is a great shame as it's fantastic.

edit: I tell a lie, The Finks on CD here or for free here.

As for Hawaiin steel, try King Benny Nawahi, he's probably the earliest recorded proponent of Hawaiin steel and a virtuoso to boot. 'Singin' in the Bathtub' is bound to put a smile on your face......
 
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The best Dick Dale album I know of is Tribal Thunder, from around 1994. A very loud, angry, clean, doom-laden record. Amazing recording too.

It also features a fantastic smoky acoustic version of the Pulp Fiction theme.
 
Yes playing the Finks now, it's excellent. Definitely has parallels with the Tzadik sound I'm familiar with.

Kit: It's all good, I'm off on holiday at the end of the month and not entirely sure what I'm going to do for 10 days so looking for lots of holiday choonz. I'll order them both tomorrow.
 
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