Pipeline

“Pipeline” was a 1963 surf-rock hit for The Chantays. It reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. It is one of the most popular surf tunes ever…maybe the most. There are numerous covers, including the Ventures.

My arrangement, while recognizable and traditional, strays pretty far from the original. My goal was to avoid covering any existing versions.

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Tequila!

Is there an instrumental better known or more recognizable than “Tequila”?

It was a 1957 #1 hit for “The Champs”, a group that at various times included Glen Campbell and James Seals (later of Seals and Crofts).

The Ventures included it on their  1962 album “The Ventures Play Telstar, The Lonely Bull’. My arrangement does not stray far from these.

 

Venturing #6: Penetration

This is “Penetration”, which was a hit in 1964 for the Pyramids. It reached #20 on the Hot 100. The Pyramids other claim to fame was performing with shaved heads!

This arrangement is based on previous versions I have done, but it is quite a bit more elaborate and fuller, using three guitars, bass and drums.

Venturing #5: Surfin’ USA

Installment #5 of my “Venturing” project is “Surfin’ USA”, originally a 1963 hit for the Beach Boys. The song was itself based on Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Little Sixteen”. I have given it a very traditional surf-rock instrumental setting.

Atlantis

This is my cover of “Atlantis”, which was a 1963 hit for the British instrumental group “The Shadows”.  It was composed by Jerry Lordan, who also wrote the instrumental hit “Apache”.

This is my 4th attempt at getting a good recording of my arrangement. The first one I did almost 4 years ago. It think this one is an improvement, but may still have a way to go.

 

Walk Don’t Run

“Walk Don’t Run” was the Venture’s first big hit, making it to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1960. They re-released a different arrangement in 1964. The first video incorporates aspects of both versions, as well as some other period-characteristic things like heavily-echoed muted strings and half-step-up key changes.

The second video is a straight cover of the original version: “The song that started it all”.

Apache

The instrumental “Apache” was first released in 1960. It was written by Jerry Lordan — who was British. The first group to release a recording of it was The Shadows. In the UK, this is the best known version.

In the USA, the version we know the best is the one by Danish guitarist Jørgen Ingmann. Like many other guitar instrumentals of the time, many people in the USA incorrectly assume it was The Ventures. They did record it, but their version did not chart.

My version is not a literal cover of any of the originals, but probably owes the most to the Shadows.

Perfidia

This is my cover of “Perfidia” (composed by Alberto Dominguez) which was a hit for the Ventures, released as the follow-up single to “Walk Don’t Run” in 1960. It is also on their first album.

Trying Again

This tune and arrangement dates from a few years back. I never made a video for it, however. I redid a couple of the rhythm guitar tracks and re-produced the whole thing again in Protools. I think this is one of my best smooth-jazz tunes.

 

First and Last

For a while I’ve been intending to do something in a “smoother” vein than my recent work. That desire combined with the approaching end of my holiday break to produce this tune, “First and Last” — the first of 2016 and likely the last before school starts in a couple of days.

The composition has very distinct sections, and jazz vocabulary, and the form resembles the classic “Rondo”. The mood is somewhat somber and contemplative.