Brian
<u>Surfin' Guitars: Instrumental Surf Bands of the Sixties</u>by Robert J Dalley. It is pretty hard to find. Amazon lists 2 new & used for $195

The book is a treasure trove of information, but the writing style is kind of informal and rambling. Great photos. Highly recommended if you can find it.

Wow $195! I got mine for $45 two years ago and thought I got ripped. Brian is right about this book being so poorly written, the grammer is pretty bad as well. But the photos make up for it(all black and white). There are some cool interviews with guys from first wave bands.

It lacks the Jesters, the New Dimensions, and the Trashmen.

"as he stepped into the stealthy night air... little did he know the fire escape was not there"

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BillAqua
The book is a treasure trove of information, but the writing style is kind of informal and rambling. Great photos. Highly recommended if you can find it.

I just want to give some thanks to Bob Dalley. Yes the book is poorly written, hand typed (on a typewriter!) and unedited. It could really use a third edition. BUT, holy cow, Bob Dalley did so much research, contacting so many musicians and getting their stories, photos, flyers. This book is a touchstone to the first wave. If anybody thinks that surf music didn't have the chance to be a major movement, this book reveals the potential. (Unfortunately, all the stories end pretty much the same way-- the Beatles made the girls wan't vocal songs, but it didn't matter since the band members got drafted to go to Vietnam). But, in the dark days of surf music (the 80s) Bob Dalley had the enthusiasm to track down these guys and take their oral histories. If you can find this book, it is well worth having.
Ferenc

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Brian,
Thanks for peeling this off into a new thread... No one is being hard on Bob, just realistic. The book is filled with spelling errors and other grammatical flaws. After all, you would be hard pressed to give a good review to a CD with out of tune guitars, unless it was just absolutely incredible in other ways. The same goes for Bob's Surf Music U.S.A., which was one of the only fanzines dedicated to surf music in the early 90s. Those are worth seeking out as well because they chronicle the time just before and after the "third wave" started.
fd

Buy Speed of Dark @ Bandcamp
Buy Spin the Bottle @ Bandcamp
My Blog- Euro Tour Blog
Pool Boys on Spotify
INSTAGRAM
Frankie & The Pool Boys on FB
Pollo Del Mar on FB
DJ Frankie Pool Boy on North Sea Surf Radio

Mr. Dalley sat in with the Pilgrims in Salt Lake City in late 92 (one of our first jaunts out of the NW). I think he played Mr. Moto and Movin with us. At the time he was doing the fanzine and was planning a new edition of the book adding in the 70s, 80s, and early 90s surf bands. I guess that never happened and I hear he may have moved back to Orange County. Very nice guy and supportive of us early on. My copy of Surfin' Guitars has a permanent home in my Sanctum Sanctorum (downstairs commode).

http://www.satanspilgrims.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Satans-Pilgrims/8210228553
https://satanspilgrims.bandcamp.com/
http://www.surfyindustries.com

Surfin' Guitars is a good book. The research involved was very thorough. There are lots of good bands in the book, but some bands are not in the book. It is a nice companion piece to Jon Blair's Illustrated Discography. The pictures and promo flyers are also neat. The book is a valuable research tool and I am glad I own it. The writing style could be improved, but one does not buy the book for the writing style. Bob Dalley is a dedicated surf fan before there were many such folks. I am glad Bob wrote the book. And I am glad that a publisher published it.

Hey Rev,
Please invite him over to SG101, it would be great to see him here.
And ask him if he does have/or know where to get the book.
If he could post his address or the address of where to get it.

Thanks,
Jeff(bigtikidude)

Jeff(bigtikidude)

Very cool, Klas!

Klas
I too would be very interested to know if the book is still available somewhere for a decent price. Bob Dalley wrote the very kind liner notes for our 3rd album and I think the writing style was just fine. Haven't read his book though.

_I first became aware of the Daytonas and their music in early 1994 when I received a copy of their highly successful debut CD, Ready, Set, Go! I listened to the first couple of songs and became an instant fan. Instrumental surf music has been a part of my life now for 30 years and it is apparent to me that the Daytonas have recaptured the original sound and spirit of the sixties. To this they have added a touch of originality and freshness not seen or heard in over 30 years.

The Daytonas are fortunate to be part of the current world wide instrumental surf music revival. No longer is surf music an exclusiceSouthern California phenomenon, but touches many beaches through out the world. Surf music has appealed to all cultures since the original sixties and the Daytonas are bringing it to the nineties!

The Daytonas' first CD showed the world the group's capabilities and Quarter Mile is a classic example of the group's ability to record melodic surf vocals and instrumentals. The group takes the music one step farther by adding a bit of uncanny originality and freshness to it.

The Daytonas' surf music of today will certainly become the new standard of tomorrow. The Fender Jaguars and splashy reverb units the Daytonas use continue to be the signature sound of surf music. As the years go by, the Daytonas will be there making new and exciting instrumental and vocal surf music for the next generation.

• Robert J. Dalley, author of "Surfin' Guitars: Instrumental Surf Bands of the Sixties" and lead guitarist of the Surf Raiders_

Very cool Klas! I don't think the problems are with Dalley's writting style. The book is very straight foreward and is basically interviews. My only qualms were with the grammer, simple things that a decent editor could have picked out.

and to Ferenc...
I know he was rushed, and I'm not saying that he did not put a lot of work into this. I was hoping just to get a hold of Eddie Bertrand and was never able to do even that, and it's pretty obvious just by reading it that Bob put a lot of work into the book. Either way some of the simple mistakes are pretty bad. I don't know, maybe the book would have been taken more seriously outside of the surf circles.

"as he stepped into the stealthy night air... little did he know the fire escape was not there"

https://www.facebook.com/reluctantaquanauts/
https://www.facebook.com/TheDragstripVipers/

Shoot. Well, I'd better start saving now.

Or...maybe Mr. Dalley can be convinced to publish an e-book version in Adobe Acrobat???

I have that book, and it is a very worthwhile investment...a real gem of a book...

-dp