Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA The Tornadoes - Bustin' Surfboards c/w Beyond The Surf
 | This first single from the Tornadoes is simply essential to any surf library. The [Hollywood] Tornadoes were a raw band assembled by the three Sanders brothers plus a drummer. Their echoplexed surf sound was ominous and tribal. Confusion between them and the Tornados (no "e") of "Telstar" fame drove them to augment their name to the Hollywood Tornadoes and eventually the Nu Tornadoes. Early on, they were called the Vaqueros. |
Picks: Bustin' Surfboards, Beyond The Surf
Track by Track Review
Surf (Instrumental)
"Bustin' Surfboards" is one of the most recognizable of the tribal surf instros from the sixties. It's drum dominated raw sound was nothing short of magical when I first heard it on KRLA. This is one of the essential surf instros, a desert island must-have.
Surf (Instrumental)
This is one of the coolest of the haunting flat water instros. It's right up there with Davie Allan's "Beyond The Blue." It's slow, piercing, fluid, and relentlessly mysterious, with a wandering vision permeating the whole piece. The superfine use of echo on the guitar adds much, as does the coming and going of the brushed crash cymbal. Great track!