DESCRIPTION:
The Atlantics are an Australian surf rock band formed in the early 1960s and arguably Australia's most successful of the genre. Most well-known for their classic hit, "Bombora", their later recordings such as "Come On" are examples of 1960s garage rock. They were the first Australian rock band to write their own hits. In 2000 the group reformed with three of the original members, and they are still actively releasing new material and performing live.

The surf rock era was rather short lived and with the arrival of the Beatles in the US it was followed by what was termed garage punk rock, influenced more by the Rolling Stones, with Seattle's Wailers and Sonics being probably the most important bands in that line, and some diversity added by the 13th Floor Elevators, Love and The Monks who brought in new elements such as a psychedelic touch, but that was a few years later.
By the early 1960s instrumental rock and roll had been pioneered successfully by performers such as Duane Eddy, Link Wray, and The Ventures. This trend was developed by Dick Dale who added the distinctive reverb, the rapid alternate picking characteristic of the genre, as well as Middle Eastern and Mexican influences, producing the regional hit "Let's Go Trippin'" in 1961 and launching the surf music craze, following up with songs like "Misirlou" (1962). Like Dale and his Del-Tones, most early surf bands were formed in Southern California area, with Orange County in particular having a strong surf culture, and the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa hosted many surf-styled acts. Groups such as the Bel-Airs (whose hit "Mr. Moto" was released months before Dale's "Let's Go Trippin'"), the Challengers, and Eddie & the Showmen following Dale to regional success. The Chantays scored a top ten national hit with "Pipeline" in 1963 and probably the single most famous surf tune hit was 1963's "Wipe Out", by the Surfaris, kown for their cutting-edge lead guitar and drum songs, which hit # 2 and # 10 on Billboard charts in 1965. The group had two other global hits "Surfer Joe" and "Point Panic".

Although beginning as a purely instrumental form, surf music achieved its greatest commercial success as vocal music. Most associated with this movement were the Beach Boys, formed in 1961 in Southern California. Their early albums included both instrumental surf rock, including covers of music by Dick Dale and vocal songs, drawing on rock and roll and doo wop and the close harmonies of vocal pop acts like the Four Freshmen. Their first chart hit, "Surfin'" in 1962 reached the Billboard top 100 and helped make the surf music craze a national phenomenon. From 1963 the group began to leave surfing behind as subject matter as Brian Wilson became their major composer and producer, moving on to the more general themes of male adolescence, including cars and girls, in songs like "Fun, Fun, Fun" (1964) and "California Girls" (1965). Other vocal surf acts followed, including one-hit wonders like Ronny & the Daytonas with "G. T. O." (1964) and the Rip Chords with "Hey Little Cobra", which both reached the top ten, but the only other act to achieve sustained success with the formula were Jan & Dean, who had a number 1 hit with "Surf City" (co-written with Brian Wilson) in 1963.
The surf music craze and the careers of almost all surf acts, was effectively ended by the arrival of the British Invasion from 1964. Only the Beach Boys were able to sustain a creative career into the mid-1960s, producing a string of hit singles and albums, including Pet Sounds in 1966, which made them, arguably, the only American rock or pop act that could rival the Beatles. More on all this under the video Misrilou of Dick Dale and his Del-Tones http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLxqm7ey4Nw on this channel