Here’s a shoe for you:
The original skateboard shoe from 1966 – Vans.
Keds would be even more period perfect, as worn by The Challengers:
Are Keds still available? The last time I was in Biarritz I saw them in a shop window.
Retro To Go: Vans Authentic – original 1960s trainers back on the market.
Special book available for Brian Wilson fans. Here’s a quote from Facebook:
Genesis Publications Launch Limited Edition That Lucky Old Sun featuring unique collaboration between Brian Wilson and Sir Peter Blake
London, 17 June 2009 – Genesis Publications, the world’s leading publisher of signed and numbered limited edition books and fine art prints, today announces the launch of That Lucky Old Sun, an extraordinary book and print set that is the culmination of a unique collaboration between one of popular music’s most revered figures, Brian Wilson, and one of today’s greatest British artists, Sir Peter Blake.
As Brian prepares to tour Europe and North America in 2009, this fine art boxed book and print set will launch with just 1,000 copies available worldwide. Described by Brian as ‘a spiritual record’, it includes 12 exclusive new prints created by Peter, presented as numbered, fine art serigraphs.
Makers
Dr Z
Gomez
Allen
Naylor
Vox
Electrosonic
Schematics
Fenderholic
Tonstacks
Tremolo
Parts & Kits
kcanostubes.com
thetubestore.com
dougstubes.com
tubesandmore.com
audiotubes.com
military-tubes.com
mojotone.com
ees-audio.de
tubedepot.com
hoffmanamps.com
Know-How & History
vibroworld.com/magnatone
guitaramplifierblueprinting.com
myrareguitars.com/vintage_magnatone
preamp-tube-gain-factors-and-substitution-chart
tonequest.com
geofex.com
ampwares.com
Darrell Brogdon writes:
On Saturday, June 27 at 7:00pm, The Retro Cocktail Hour blasts off on KPR stations with a night of ‘outer space exotica’, featuring music from such memorable albums as Les Baxter’s Space Escapade, Fantastica by Russ Garcia, Music Out of the Moon (featuring the theremin!), Music for Heavenly Bodies (with the electro-theremin) and many more.
As a preview, check out the NEW album cover gallery, featuring images from some classic outer space records of the 1950s and ’60s.
And please join us in orbit for The Retro Cocktail Hour – Saturday, June 27 at 7:00pm on KPR stations (and available on-demand soon after at the RCH website).Les Baxter’s ‘Space Escapade’
Many more images available at our new cover gallery!
I am listening just this moment to a really good surf album by The Reluctant Aquanauts. The band decided to make it available as a free mp3 download. Here’s what Bill of The Reluctant Aquanauts wrote on Surf Guitar 101 with the link to the download.
Here are the masters to what would have been the Reluctant Aquanauts second album “Aquanauts Can’t Swim”. All the songs are original except for Fistful of Dullards and Altered State Trooper which were given to us by Denis from the Treblemakers.
quote form the campaign site:
Fair Play for Creators is an online forum set up by PRS for Music so that creators everywhere can publicly demonstrate their concern over the way their work is treated by online businesses.
Fair Play for Creators was established after Internet-giant, Google, made the decision to remove some music content from YouTube.
Google’s decision was made because it didn’t want to pay the going rate for music, to the creators of that music, when it’s used on YouTube.
Music creators rely on receiving royalties whenever and wherever their work is used. Royalties are vital in nurturing creative music talent. They make sure music creators are rewarded for their creativity in the same way any other person would be in their work.
Fair Play for Creators believes that fans should have access to the music they love, and that the work of music creators should be paid for by the online businesses who benefit from its use.
If you’re not happy for us to use your comments on this site, please uncheck the first box underneath the comments box.
Let’s help the creators keep on creating.
Other than the turbine, Anaconda has no moving parts and unlike other wave power devices it needs only one tether to the ocean floor. That lowers construction costs and reduces the need for maintenance – an expensive undertaking in offshore settings where corrosion and accessibility are problems, explains Rainey.
Here I list some boutique guitar makers (or luthiers) who have some designs that could be working well for Surf music. Obviously they often have features familiar from the various famous Fender guitars such as the Stratocaster, the Jazzmaster or the Jaguar. There’s also a new model which combines features of the Jazzmaster and the Jaguar, called The Johnny Marr Jaguar. My rule of thumb was really for them to have at least two single coil pick-ups and a vibrato unit. I haven’t played any of these, but from my experience of digging at Surf music since the late eighties I have an idea what works. You have to acustom yourself with a guitar, especially for instrumental music, and for some players the feel of the whole Fender package might be too far from their heritage, or the sound is too cookie-cutter-like.
The pictures are links.
OK, this might already be a controversial choice. But recently I find myself listening to Morpheus by The Toads who had a Gibson for lead, and it worked for them. This here is obviously based on Gibson’s Les Paul model, except for the unusual shape.
Harvester
Here we have a similar candidate, with a set neck too and even mini humbuckers. Isn’t it a beauty? The 1963 Mosrite Ventures model had a set neck as well, with no lack of attack for sure! This being a very boutique enterprise, the builder would probably drop in a pair of singles coils if you ask him to. Kindly.
Roadrunner Bazaar
Roadrunner Surfmaster
Roadrunner Grave Digger
Roadrunner Anty
These are creations by a frenchman. He seems to be into all the right bands and the inspiration for his guitars is as cool. He beats his own path, never copying a bodyshape, and coming up with different electronic layouts and color schemes. Unique stuff, perfect references for Surf.
Needham
Needham double cutaway
Needham Guitars from Austin, Texas. They remind me of Les Paul Juniors, Danelectros and a bit of Microfrets. Very nice, clean dual single coil designs.
Campbell Transitone
Unusual combo of Jazzmaster style pick-ups with a 3/3 headstock and a Stratocaster-style vibrato.
Micro-Frets Signature
This american 1960s and 70s company was revived in recent years. As far as I gather the company fits the boutique builder description. Carl Perkins and Buddy Merrill were famous Micro-Frets players.
Billyboy
The italians. Gone are accordion cover materials and pearloid fretboards, but this Billyboy is just as creatively weird in the style department as his ancestors of Eko and Galanti fame.
This one here by Fano looks like a cross between a Rickenbacker and a Les Paul – but if you are aware of the Chantays original recording of Pipeline you know they used a Barth guitar. Paul Barth was a southern California luthier who worked for Rickenbacker and Magnatone before making a few instruments under his own name. Pipeline happens to be a prototypical Surf instrumental, despite the lack of a vibrato on any guitar involved, so this guitar gets the blessing for its purist, Barth inspired style.
Wronski Slackercaster
Dave Wronski of Surf instrumental greats Slacktone is working for Fender Musical Instruments and got this one of a kind Surf-machine together. This could also be in the later Do-It-Yourself article in this series, but since a proper custom shop of a righteous guitar company is involved I decided to declare it a boutique guitar.
Billy Childish
Unfortunately I have no idea who made this guitar for Billy Childish. I certainly haven’t seen one before, so maybe it’s a one off, who knows? I would describe it as Bo Diddley meets Chuck Berry in the Höfner workshop. Sounds like a good description for Billy Childish’s music. The reason I don’t consider it a D.I.Y. project is that I can’t picture him building guitars instead of carving expressionistic woodcuts or recording punk-rock-rave-ups.
Here are two more links I couldn’t find proper photos for:
Galasso from Argentina
and Koll Guitars,
for which I have a very soft spot, the Gretsch design influence is a great variation, that few builders successfully pull off.
Ronnie Sargent Custom
Oops I almost forgot this guy. Maybe the weirdest, and a big inspiration for this post!
Ronnie Sargent Custom Guitars
As usual I demand of my readers to provide further info where I missed it! Please use the comment function below.
If you have The Cowabunga Box Set of Surf Music or the Taschen book about Leroy Grannis’ work you have already seen some of the greatest surf culture photography. What an incredible legacy for us late comers to witness these times through the lense of such a great photographer.
Malcom from Legendary Surfers writes (excerpt):
…Leroy Grannis — Granny — has fallen on hard times. Famous for his surfing photos and as an elder of the tribe — a local of Carlsbad and Hermosa — you would think he’d be able to supplement his Social Security and MediCal with modest earnings from his photography and his life savings.
Unfortunately, what ‘estate’ he had has been eaten up by executors, and others.…
Granny no longer can afford to stay in the assisted living home he has been living in and has moved to his son’s home. John Van Ornum has been helping Leroy’s daughter Katie get the word out and is exploring setting up a fund for donations. For more information, you can reach John at: jvo_v101@yahoo.com
To read about Granny’s contribution to surfing, please go to the Legendary Surfers chapter, updated 2/15/2005: LeRoy ‘Granny’ Grannis