Biography of The Surfaris Then and Now

http://www.jimfacey.com/Surfarisbio.htm

Take an African safari, mix it with a hunt for good surf, and you have a SURFIN’ safari. A simple mixing of these concepts gave "THE SURFARIS" their name. In 1962 they had dreams of forming a band like Dick Dale, whom they had seen at Harmony Park. They only had one guitar amp and that was not enough. Luckily, their drummer had a dream about a mythical surfer and wrote a song about him, SURFER JOE. With a $100 investment for studio time and a few records, they put his dream on a few 45’s and then sold them at high school for a $1 to buy more amps. A song entitled WIPE OUT was quickly cooked up in about 15 minutes to fill the other side. It featured a drum solo which was a marching cadence for the Charter Oak High School marching band.

SURFER JOE became well known in it’s own right, charting to #62 after WIPE OUT was no longer charting. The "The Surfaris" followed up with POINT PANIC in 1963 and it charted #49,s and today it still gets Classic Oldies airplay nationwide. "THE SURFARIS" also had a #2 hit in Japan (Kareen, 1965) and recorded music for the movie The Lively Set, starring James Darren. Throughout the early 60’s they recorded five albums and numerous singles, most of which have been constantly in reissue worldwide since their initial release.

Their current "best of " anthologies are available on CD from Varese Sarabande (Wipe Out, The Best Of The Surfaris 18 songs/VSD-5478) and Surfaris Stomp (19 songs/VSD-5588). In addition, a live reunion concert has been released on GNP Crescendo Records entitled Surf Party! The best of Surfaris live (16 songs/GNPD 2239). The Surfaris also appear on numerous recently released collections. Their international fame and original recorded output as a surf band is only exceeded by the Beach Boys and Jan & Dean.

The Surfaris continue to have a significant impact on American culture. Over the last ten years Wipe Out has been featured in numerous national commercials and major motion pictures. Advertisers such as Nissan, Pepsi, Kodak, and Wendy’s Hamburgers and films such as Dirty Dancing, The Vanishing, and Sandlot are a few examples. It has also appeared in children’s toys such as musical tops, mechanical bouncing balls, and video games. Wipe Out’s melody has become cultural musical language not only for a surfing wipe out, but "wiping out" at any endeavor; the drum solo is undoubtedly the most famous in the world. Guitar World Magazine recently declared Wipe Out as one of the ten most influential songs on rock guitarists in rock history. On their 30th anniversary, The Surfaris were presented with numerous awards of recognition. One in particular from the California Senate reads: "In recognition of your contribution to the musical culture of California with the introduction of Surf Music which opened countless opportunities for musicians and businesses." Today, you can see George OF The Jungle playing Wipe Out on a conga drum and kids on TV playing it on the top of a Pringles potato chip can.

In 1991, The Surfaris were inducted into the Surf Music Walk Of Fame at Euro Disneyland, (France). On April 12th, 1996 they were inducted into Hollywood’s Rock Walk and Museum, being recognized as having made a significant contribution to the history of Rock and Roll. After the ceremony they headlined at Hollywood’s House of Blues, which was sold out.

Their recent national television appearances include an episode of The New Gidget Show for which they recorded new music (Bred to Shred), The Vickie Lawrence Show, The Home & Family Show, and numerous entertainment magazine shows and live news coverage of their appearances. David Letterman used Point Panic for his "surfing in his suit" skit during his L.A. broadcast.

As with all classic acts, the public is interested in the current band membership in comparison ;with the founding members. The original lead guitar player, Jim Fuller, and the original sax player, Jim Pash, are the currently active original members.

Though the original lineup is no longer intact, the current membership includes one of the recognized founders of surf music’s colorful heritage, Paul Johnson. Paul began developing what was to become surf music as early as 1959, and made L.A.’s top 40 with his composition Mr. Moto, in 1962. Paul went on to write several other instrumental classics and perform on many surf and hot rod recordings. Paul’s distinctive playing style and musical insights were featured in two consecutive issues of Guitar Player magazine. He is a prodigious composer with several albums in world-wide distribution.

Pounding out the uniquely frenetic Surfaris’ style on drums is David Raven. Besides working with The Surfaris he is also a much-sought-after session drummer, which includes his performance on Amy Grant’s hit, "That’s What Love Is".

On bass is Jay Truax, who has played surf music since his high school days in 1963, with his band, the Nomads. He went on to become a founding member of the early contemporary Christian group, Love Song, and later played for several years with The Richie Furay Band, (Richie Furay is a founding member of both the Buffalo Springfield and Poco). As a session bassist, Jay has appeared on over 25 albums.

Rob Watson, The Surfaris’ keyboard player, is also a gifted TV and movie Composer and Arranger. In the past he has toured with Dodie Steven, Donna Summer, and Tonio K. He has considerable album credits as both a session musician and as an award winning producer.

The Surfaris today have continued to mature as musicians and offer live performances which are enhanced arrangements of their classic repertoire. New electronics and a willingness to let surf music take new directions appeals to younger audiences, yet The Surfaris never stray too far from their roots, which provides memorable authenticity for oldies fans. While doing their version of Peter Gunn, Rob’s synthesizer provides a piano with one hand, and a horn section with the other; Jim Pash can sound like three saxophones with his pitch synthesizers. Jim, however, also retains vintage Fender guitar equipment to play Misirlou "just like the record." All members also sing, giving Surfin’ USA it’s true "California sound".

Over the years, countless millions of fans have attempted to play the Wipe Out drum solo on car dashboards, desks, and even drums! The Surfaris recently introduced a new tradition in recognition of this loyal following. When time allows, three members of the audience are invited up on stage to give the drum solo their best shot, while The Surfaris perform the music. As souvenior of their performance, they receive ;a free set of Hollywood’s Rock Walk drum sticks.

Though The Surfaris have performed at concert venues such as L.A.’s Forum, after baseball games, and the Universal Amphitheater, they are still very much a dance band, and are often hired specifically for dances. At a recent street fair for the City of Glendale, The Surfaris attracted 16,000 people virtually from 8 to 80 of many diverse ethnic backgrounds. Spontaneous street dancing went on throughout their 70 minute headliner set. When both the under 30 and the over 40 age groups requested an encore, surf music made new friends and, (as The Surfaris have been told many times),made the ‘60’s generation feel young again.

Now The Surfaris instrumental rock surf music can be found on over 30 CD varieties. The most recent Surf Party CD is called The Best Of The Surfaris Live, Surf Crazy, original Surfin Hits, and Jenny McCarthy’s Surfin Safari.

The Surfaris classic surf band continues to ride that wave with Jim Pash’s dynamic surf sound. Jim’s unique dynamic style double picking takes The Surfaris on that ride to a Surfin Surfari. Playing such hits as Wipe Out, Surfer Joe, Point Panic, Scatter Shield, and many more. Note Jim Pash dies at 56, April 29, 2005. Jim will be missed by family, friends, and fans.

The Surfaris music can be heard on various TV and Radio commercials, as well as Movies. They will be appearing live in concert on selected dates on tour in the United States and in South America.