The First Surf/Whatever Song On Record?

[JSngry]

Well I woke up this mornin', bright shone the sun,

Blue skies up above, I think I'll have my fun.

Goin' down to the ocean, down to the oceanside.

I'll make the trip, hit the drip, roll out with the tide.

Say hey all you girls, with sex appeal,

Stay off the lake, bound to make a steal.

Goin' down to the ocean, down to the water blue.

I'll hide(?) some tan, climb the sand, hang on with you.

There on the beach, I'll have my fun,

Watchin' those dolls stroll in the sun.

On the sand, as far as you can see,

The cute little girls, oh-ho they killin' me.

Goin' down to the ocean, down to the mighty sea.

This ain't no fake, I'll make the lake, come along with me.

As you might surmise by the lyric structure, this is a 12-bar structure. And not surprisingly, it was recorded by a California band. But more surprising is the fact that it was recorded in 1954, and by a Black R&B band at that!

The song is "Down To The Ocean", the band was that of Big Jim Wynn, and the songwriter was band vocalist Bernie Anders. Although the music is prtotypical West Coast greasy R&B, and the lustiness of the lyrics (and their delivery) is a far cry from the idealistic naive hedonism of later, "real" Surf Music, to my knowledge, this is the very first song that treats the beaches of California as a sensual/sexual playground. Whether or not it was in any way "influential", I don't know, but as a document of "things to come" as far as California beaches as Teenage Promised Land, I think a case can be made that it's not wholly insignificant.

Corrections of any kind, lyrical and/or historical, are welcome. All I know is that the first time I heard this song, I thought that this surely had to be the first R&R/R&B "sun and fun" song ever. If it's not, tell me!

I'll try and attach a .wma file so you can hear for yourself [EDIT - This didn't work, so I'm attempting to find somebody to host the file for a few days]. but please know that the song is available on this CD:

and this LP:

http://web.telia.com/~u41602033/record.html

Edited November 20, 2005 by JSngry

[JSngry]

Ok, the song is available for listening HERE as a mp3 file.

See what you think.

Edited November 20, 2005 by JSngry

[rostasi]

Well, I like this song.

I never would've made the connection that our illustrious

perceptive friend has made here - not because it's wrong, but,

rather, because it is SO right on!

I sometimes wish I could think this way about music, but instead of

historical context, I just immerse myself in the sound of things.

This is one heck of a SoulSexy piece of wax we got here!

[BruceH]

The crucial thing is that they rhyme the words "fun" and "sun"------the germination of surf music.

[couw]

the text may be sunny, but there are way too few twangy geetarrs to add a white surf to the waves. Makes it all sound more cumbersome than reading the text alone would let you asume.

[JSngry]

the text may be sunny, but there are way too few twangy geetarrs to add a white surf to the waves. Makes it all sound more cumbersome than reading the text alone would let you asume.

←

Exactly. But had anybody else done a song with this type of "salacious" "sun, fun, and girls" lyrical focus before this?

I mean, you think of R&B in 1954, and a song about going to the beach is not exactly the first thing that comes to mind, ya' know? And you think of "Rock & Roll" in 1954 and you think of...R&B.

Musically, no, there's no "surf music" to be found here. And considering that the first "real" surf music was probably another 5 years or so away, and it mostly instrumental (I'm thinking Dick Dale here, and my dates might be off), I'm not saying that this song had any "impact" in the developement of the genre. But as a document of an evolving "sociological" type thing, I think there's interest in the lyrics here. Prior to this, weren't most popular songs with a "beach" theme based aroung a Hawaaian type motif? And weren't they mostly idealistic and/or idyllic?

Here's something that suggests that by 1954, there was something going on in California pertaining to young (well, younger anyway) people going to the beach, not for some moonlit luau, but to check out hot babes in the warmth of the sun. The fact taht this is a song by a Black band makes it all the more intriguing from a cultural standpoint - just how integrated were Southern California beaches in 1954? (an honest question; I myself have no clue). Again, I'd not go so far as to say that this was "the beginning of surf music" per se. But otoh, the "sun and fun" culture didn't just spring up out of nowhere, and this record might be the first document of its nascient formation.

And even if it's not, it's got a helluva greasy groove to it!

[couw]

wasn't there a whole scene of stylistically rather unrelated music played at beach parties or -clubs that came up somewhere towards the end of the 40s? One that really was only about having fun. So you had your jump and R&B and proto-R&R and whatnot; all of it as a predecessor of "true" surf music. I wouldn't bet on anything, but it seems there would be a good green to grow some similar lyrics on. Not terribly familiar with any of this, but I believe much took place on the other coast as well (?) and I wonder what all of this was like and how much was lost in the waves. So, I'm curious as well. Did Donald Clarke write any on this in his popular music book?

[JSngry]

wasn't there a whole scene of stylistically rather unrelated music played at beach parties or -clubs that came up somewhere towards the end of the 40s? One that really was only about having fun.

←

You got me on that one. Never heard of such a thing, but would like to know more!

[Sundog]

Dick Dale has mentioned numerous times that "surf music" was being played in a live context since the mid-fifties. It wasn't until November 1962 that he had his first hit album, Surfers Choice which sold 80,000 copies and established him as "King of The Surf Guitar". Incidentally, the Fender-style reverb which became closely associated with the "surf" sound had not been invented yet. It was only after Dick's first album was a hit, that he convinced Leo Fender to build him a device to compensate for the lack of natural vibrato in his voice (made from a Hammond Organ spring tank ). The rest, as they say, is history....

[couw]

wasn't there a whole scene of stylistically rather unrelated music played at beach parties or -clubs that came up somewhere towards the end of the 40s? One that really was only about having fun.

←

You got me on that one. Never heard of such a thing, but would like to know more!

←

well, I read it somewhere some time and it does not seem to be Clarke (I just checked), so I will look and google some then.

[Sundog]

This had a little something to do with popularizing "surf music" (1959).

[rostasi]

Oh...you said surf!

sorry

[JSngry]

Well, wasn't this one of The Beach Boys' best albums?

[JSngry]

This had a little something to do with popularizing "surf music" (1959).

←

Ok, back on a serious note. If this movie was 1959, then the odds are that 1954 was not too early for some sort of youthful "beach culture" to have been happening in some form, right?

The Big Jim Wynn song isn't about "surf", it's about "beach", but still....

[couw]

okay, a google search for [beach music history] (hey, sue me. it worked!) gave some results on "white" beach clubs that played "black" music back in the days and on the East coast at that.

From http://www.beachshag.com/ImagesSoundsResou.../BeachShag.html :

FIRST WAVE: 1945--November 1954 (Hurricane Hazel):

They were the seminal years. Rhythm 'n Blues, Jump Blues, and Blues first appeared on juke boxes in Caucasian clubs in the Southeast. The `Beach Cat' population evolved with fighters, dancers, lifeguards, resort employees constituting a new culture, with new social more´s reflected in the new music.

The Virginia Beach / Norfolk / Chesapeake area offered clubs like the Casino, the Mecca, the Top Hat, the Surf Club, the Cavalier, the Ebb Tide, the 2:00 Club, the Triangle, the Latin Quarter and the Sand Bar; and Baron Be-Bop was the reigning DJ on WFOG.

Jimmy Capps offered "My Best To You", a nighttime request show for lovers, on WPTF, a 50,000 watt regional powerhouse in Raleigh (he was impresario of many 60's Beach bands through his JCP record label).

Inland were numerous weekend getaway spots where the kids (and adults) went to relax along the water (lakes, rivers, and pools). Nearly all had piccolos featuring some of the biggest Beach songs of the era: Smitty's Beach on the Catawba River south of Charlotte, Lake Lure, Happy Lake in Kannapolis, Mirror Lake in Salisbury, Harris Lake near Concord, Joe's Beach in Lexington, Mountain Lake near Chester, Williams Lake near Fayetteville, Belew's Lake north of Greensboro, High Point Lake, Lake Murray near Columbia, Sustare's Pool in Matthews, Grace Park Recreation Center and Pool in Statesville, Sunrise Beach on Lake Lookout between Statesville and Hickory, plus there were indoor dances and concerts at places like the Pickle Tobacco Warehouse in Faison, NC and armories throughout the Southeast.

The Shag developed into the form recognized today.

This era ended with the devastation wrought by Hurricane Hazel. Pavilions, piers and the familiar haunts of the First Wave disappeared under the waves and into the sand.

[rostasi]

Well, wasn't this one of The Beach Boys' best albums?

←

Sheeesh...just what the hell was pixie boy thinking?

[Sundog]

If this movie was 1959, then the odds are that 1954 was not too early for some sort of youthful "beach culture" to have been happening in some form, right?

←

Absolutely, surfing was introduced on the west coast around 1907. Duke Kahanamoku further popularized the sport with his demonstrations in the 1920's. By the early to mid-fifties surfing was well underground again, and was getting a bit of a reputation with the mainstream. Bruce Brown's Slippery When Wet also premiered in 1959, and had a big effect on the underground surf movement in California. He really hit the mark with everyone else in 1966 with the classic surf movie Endless Summer. By then surf music was pretty much dead with the general public (Beatles, Motown) but the culture in general was alive and well.