They served as an influence to the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Stephen Stills and John Fogerty, among others. When asked to name the most influential rock guitar solo, Joe Walsh said he would have to include the entire song "Walk Don't Run" because it changed so many guitar players' lives.Formed in Tacoma, Washington in 1958, the instrumental group the Ventures' first hit came in 1960. They'd originally heard Walk Don't Run on a Chet Atkins album and rearranged it. Some say it opened the door to surf music. It certainly opened the door for the Ventures who had a string of hits throughout the 60s including the theme from Hawaii Five-O.
The Ventures have made hundreds of albums and have sold over 100 million records throughout their career. They're associated with the surf music genre but are quick to say they aren't a surf band. While their popularity in the States faded in the 70s they remain wildly popular and continue to tour in Japan. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008.
Here's a 1964 performance of Walk Don't Run from Japan...
Posts
Awesome. I love The Ventures, just really couldn't remember their name. Reminds me of Dick Dale and the Del-tones, one of my favorites.
ReplyDeleteUR: They really set the standard for the basic r&r group of drums, bass, rhythm and lead guitar.
ReplyDeleteThe Ventures are great. Saw them for the 1st time in 2008 then they came back in 2009. Nokie had some problems with his left hand, cramps maybe, but he managed. They put on a good show.
ReplyDeleteFreewheelin
Freewheelin: Hard to imagine they're still going strong.
ReplyDelete