Classic Surf

[version sound]

Any other fans on the board? I'm talking vintage '60s stuff, not any of the revivals. A Fender with outboard reverb through a Fender amp has to be about the best guitar sound ever.

[WrEtcH]

if we're talking THE VENTURES, the answer is yes.

[version sound]

if we're talking THE VENTURES, the answer is yes.

The Ventures definitely count. I'd even count pre-surf and UK/Euro instro stuff like Duane Eddy and The Shadows, respectively. I love all that shit.

[yourenotevil]

yeah, i like the lively ones, dick dale and stuff like that, but i would say i don't need a lot of albums by those guys.

[scannest]

A Fender with outboard reverb through a Fender amp has to be about the best guitar sound ever.

We will have to agree to disagree. I actively dislike that sound with a passion. Needless to say I don't have much use for surf music.

[version sound]

A Fender with outboard reverb through a Fender amp has to be about the best guitar sound ever.

We will have to agree to disagree. I actively dislike that sound with a passion. Needless to say I don't have much use for surf music.

I'm going to guess by your set-up you prefer Les Pauls. That sound has its place, but it's been done to the point that it's a bit of a rock cliche. It's still a great sound, it's just a little boring from a tone standpoint.

[version sound]

yeah, i like the lively ones, dick dale and stuff like that, but i would say i don't need a lot of albums by those guys.

A little can go a long way, but there are some bands that do it well enough, or differently enough, that they stand out from the pack. The Surf Teens and Eddy & The Showmen immediately come to mind.

[scannest]

I'm going to guess by your set-up you prefer Les Pauls. That sound has its place, but it's been done to the point that it's a bit of a rock cliche. It's still a great sound, it's just a little boring from a tone standpoint.

Are you claiming that surf-music isn't cliched?
It's not about a preference for Les Pauls.. I just don't enjoy really thin sounding guitars slatehred with reverb. Especially on solos or single note riffs.

[version sound]

In the context of straight surf music it's definitely a cliche, which is why I don't really listen to modern surf. As a basic sound in other contexts, it's a hell of a lot less of a cliche than crunchy humbuckers. One man's thin is another man's defined and clear, and another man's fat and rich is just muddy and muffled to some ears.

[MXV]

I friend of mine recently gave me his entire record collection. There was a couple Ventures LPs in there. I played one so far and liked it. I was familiar with the band a little from JFA covering their songs but I never owned any Ventures records until now.

[gregpolard]

I'm with Sal.

[matt]

An old surf band from Colorado??? Yep.

[scannest]

...it's a hell of a lot less of a cliche than crunchy humbuckers.

Sure, but does that make it better (ie - more pleasurable)? Sometimes things are more popular for a reason.
But this a dumb argument, isn't it?
BTW, can you explain the baguette icon? I sense the joke is lost on me.

[version sound]

It's a totally dumb argument. It's all a matter of taste, of course. I'm actually trying to think of PAF type tones I love, and even in the realm of "classic rock" I can only come up with Steve Jones on Bollocks. There are plenty of great single coil, Filtertron, and P90 tones that a lot of people probably assume are PAFs, though...

EDIT: Oh yeah, there's also Raw Power, duh.

PS: No idea what the baguette really means, though I get the basic message

[scannest]

I had to Google "PAF tone".
I have never met a guitarist who knows so much about guitars/amps who doesn't play in a band. I don't know how you do it. If I didn't have that outlet I'd go crazy. You're lack of interest in playing with other people (even just practicing every now and then, not even playing shows) just mystifies me.

[gregpolard]

At this point I'm most concerned with finding out what the baguette icon means. matt????

[scannest]

PS: No idea what the baguette really means, though I get the basic message

I don't even get the basic message!

[xxxHunterxxx]

PS: No idea what the baguette really means, though I get the basic message

I don't even get the basic message!

And you never will.

[scannest]

And you never will.

I don't care for the exclusionary turn this board has taken as of late.

[xxxHunterxxx]

And you never will.

I don't care for the exclusionary turn this board has taken as of late.

[version sound]

I had to Google "PAF tone".
I have never met a guitarist who knows so much about guitars/amps who doesn't play in a band. I don't know how you do it. If I didn't have that outlet I'd go crazy. You're lack of interest in playing with other people (even just practicing every now and then, not even playing shows) just mystifies me.

It's more a lack of opportunity than interest.

I'm a true geek, so I even geek out about stuff that's not totally my bag, like Gibsons and humbuckers.

[matt]

Bánh mì once, shame on you. Bánh mì twice, and I'll have lunch tomorrow.

[JGJR]

I just don't enjoy really thin sounding guitars slatehred with reverb.

This explains a lot (like why you hate Vivian Girls). I'm totally serious. I'm not an expert on guitar sounds, but I think about half of the recent bands I enjoy employ a variation on that sound. As for surf music, I like the Ventures, but only have a few albums and same with Dick Dale. I always put Link Wray's "Rumble" (a big influence on Pete Townshed, FWIW) in that same category, though I don't consider Wray to be a surf-rock artist. I don't really know too much about the genre beyond those and some '90s revivalists (but we're not talking about them), though. As for the sound itself, though, I'm with VS.

[JGJR]

...it's a hell of a lot less of a cliche than crunchy humbuckers.

Sure, but does that make it better (ie - more pleasurable)? Sometimes things are more popular for a reason.
But this a dumb argument, isn't it?

Yes it is. If you're gonna down that road, then we should be posting about Miley Cyrus or some other such BS, not debating the merits of Les Pauls and thin-sounding guitars with reverb. Now with that said, all of the above stuff has its place.

[gregpolard]

[JGJR]

And you never will.

I don't care for the exclusionary turn this board has taken as of late.

I always thought it was just an inside joke with obik and maybe someone else. He had demanded a baguette icon on the old board and we have it on the new one now. I don't know or remember the origin, though!

[pedro]

The baguette thing was funnier when it didn't exist.