The Birth of Surf in Bloomington, MN

Although it's called
The Birth of Surf
, this 26-track compilation could actually be titled The Best of Surf. It includes all three of the major instrumental
surf
hits of the early '60s (there really were only three!) --
the Surfaris
'
"Wipe Out,"
the Chantays
"Pipeline,"
and
the Pyramids
"Penetration"
-- as well as a big wave of tracks that might have only seen regional action or flopped, but have since become highly regarded by historians and collectors, like
Dick Dale
's
"Miserlou,"
the Astronauts
"Baja,"
the Gamblers
"Moon Dawg,"
the Bel-Airs
"Mr. Moto."
There is also a bunch of cuts by
instrumental rockers
that might not have been usually (or ever) classified as
artists, but who were mighty influential on
music, as heard on
Duane Eddy
"Ramrod,"
Johnny & the Hurricanes
"Crossfire,"
Link Wray
"Jack the Ripper,"
the Fireballs
"Bulldog,"
the Ventures
"Walk Don't Run"
-like
"Lullaby of the Leaves."
While the rest of the names might not be as familiar outside of
music specialists, there are plenty of hot instrumentals here with the reverbed guitar, cool insistent beats, and mysterious melodies that were
's trademarks. Some of those lesser-known songs are almost as good as the more famous tunes here, and nothing is mediocre. Sure, knowledgeable
music listeners will note the absence of some superb cult favorites, many of which can be heard on other top
comps like
Cowabunga! The Surf Box
,
Guitar Player Presents Legends of Guitar: Surf, Vol. 1
, and
Rock Instrumental Classics, Vol. 5: Surf
. This still makes one of the top single-disc introductions/overviews of
music, enhanced with expert track-by-track annotation. ~ Richie Unterberger