Name: It Came From the Beach: Surf, Drag & Rockin' Instro's From Downey
Brand: Ace (UK)
SKU: 160154
Price: 11.53 USD
Availability: InStock

It Came From the Beach

Rating

Album: It Came From the Beach: Surf, Drag & Rockin' Instro's From Downey
#	Song Title	Time
1)	Surf Rat - The Rumblers
2)	Bangalore - The Blazers
3)	Cecila Ann - The Surftones
4)	Twitchin' - Pastel Six
5)	Downey Surf - Nevegans
6)	Hanging One - The Ramblers
7)	Beaver Patrol - The Blazers
8)	Destruction - The Rumblers
9)	Kopout - The Hustlers
10)	One Armed Bandit - Nevegans
11)	Mustang - Sir Frog & The Toads
12)	Shore Break - The Blazers
13)	Wailin' Out - The Hustlers
14)	Mocolotion - The Riviaires
15)	Riptide - The Chevelles
16)	Hi Octane - The Rumblers
17)	Wimo Stomp - Pastel Six
18)	Take It Off - Pastel Six
19)	Rendezvous Rods - Pastel Six
20)	Let There Be Surf - The Chevelles
21)	Mozart Stomp - The Ramblers
22)	Inertia - Alt Tk. of Downey 118 - The Hustlers
23)	Church Key - The Revels
24)	Hustler, The - The Rumblers
25)	Go Go, A - The Rumblers
26)	Oblique - The Rumblers

Album: It Came From the Beach: Surf, Drag & Rockin' Instro's From Downey
#	Song Title	Time
1)	Surf Rat - The Rumblers
2)	Bangalore - The Blazers
3)	Cecila Ann - The Surftones
4)	Twitchin' - Pastel Six
5)	Downey Surf - Nevegans
6)	Hanging One - The Ramblers
7)	Beaver Patrol - The Blazers
8)	Destruction - The Rumblers
9)	Kopout - The Hustlers
10)	One Armed Bandit - Nevegans
11)	Mustang - Sir Frog & The Toads
12)	Shore Break - The Blazers
13)	Wailin' Out - The Hustlers
14)	Mocolotion - The Riviaires
15)	Riptide - The Chevelles
16)	Hi Octane - The Rumblers
17)	Wimo Stomp - Pastel Six
18)	Take It Off - Pastel Six
19)	Rendezvous Rods - Pastel Six
20)	Let There Be Surf - The Chevelles
21)	Mozart Stomp - The Ramblers
22)	Inertia - Alt Tk. of Downey 118 - The Hustlers
23)	Church Key - The Revels
24)	Hustler, The - The Rumblers
25)	Go Go, A - The Rumblers
26)	Oblique - The Rumblers

Performer Notes

Downey Records has a place in surf music history for releasing the Chantays' hit "Pipeline" alone, though that single didn't become a smash until it and the group were sold to Dot Records. This compilation has 26 instrumental sides recorded by Downey from about 1961-1965, much of which was issued on obscure singles on Downey and affiliated labels of the time, though some of it was unissued until many years later (and three cuts make their first appearance anywhere on this CD). Even surf/early-'60s instrumental music lovers will likely approach this compilation without unrealistic expectations of hearing classics along the lines of "Pipeline" or the Pyramids' "Penetration," or for that matter the Rumblers' small 1963 hit "Boss," which was recorded for Downey. Instead it's a disc for genre specialists, the attitude and energy that fired Californian instrumental surf and hot rod music also present, but a good share of the tunes themselves being rather basic and dull. There are nonetheless a good number of tracks that make things more interesting by adding the haunting, occasionally Latin-Eastern-tinged riffs that distinguished much of the better music in the style, like the Blazers' rather Dick Dale-ish "Bangalore." The Surftones' "Cecilia Ann" couldn't fail to remind many listeners of the kind of spooky ambience the Chantays created in "Pipeline"; Sir Frog & the Toads' "Mustang" wins points not only for the engagingly silly band name, but also the mighty speedy guitar picking; and the Chevells' moody "Let There Be Surf," deservedly anthologized on some of the best surf compilations, was a significant regional hit, selling 50,000 copies (though, oddly, it was the only single the group released). The Rumblers' previously unissued "Oblique" is about as avant-garde as this kind of music gets, a jazzy sax bumping incongruously against a scraping horror-movie like riff as bongos obliviously patter away. ~ Richie Unterberger

Professional Reviews

Record Collector (magazine) (p.106) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "The likes of The Blazers and Pastel Six keep the quality high with chunky surf instrumentals that still beguile."