The Surprising History of Surf Music
Every once in a long while, a new genre of popular music emerges, evolves a little bit and then stays almost exactly the same with only the slightest of variations\u2026not that there\u2019s anything wrong with that\u2026a formula is discovered\u2026it seems to work\u2026so why change it?...\nOld-school 12-bar blues is an example\u2026it features one of the most common chord progressions in Western music\u2026the style of lyrics, phrasing, structure, and duration have been pretty much standard since the days of gospel and spirituals and African-based oral traditions\u2026an Alabama musician named W.C. Handy was the first to codify 12-bar blues playing around 1905\u2026\nSka might be an example\u2026it has many different flavours, but there are common components under the hood, rooted in playing on the off-beat\u2014the \u201cone\u201d and \u201cthree\u201d instead of the \u201ctwo\u201d and \u201cfour\u201d\u2026\nYou might say the same about Reggae and its foundations in the debow beat, although you\u2019ll probably get a little pushback from fans\u2026\nLemme throw this into the mix: garage rock\u2026two or three chords played on guitar, bass, and drums with a loose, rebellious vibe\u2026nothing too complicated\u2026it\u2019s just gotta feel good\u2026\nAnd here\u2019s one more that might not spring to mind right away: surf music\u2026it, too, can come in different forms\u2026as a type of garage rock\u2026it can be punky\u2026it can be hardcore\u2026it\u2019s great for skateboarding or snowboarding\u2026and yes, it\u2019s also about the beach, the boards, and the swells\u2026\nBut it\u2019s also more than that\u2026it\u2019s about guitars, amps, pedals, amps, cars, girls, beer, and parties\u2026it can feature vocals but it might be best experienced as instrumentals\u2026.\nThere\u2019s a lot more to surf music than you might think\u2026and its importance and influence and legacy goes far beyond the beach...\u2026here\u2026let me show you.\n\nShow contact info: \nX (formerly Twitter): @AlanCross\nWebsite: curiouscast.ca\nEmail: Alan@alancross.ca\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices