3 Surf Rock Songs From 1958 You’d Never Skip on the Radio

While surf rock music wasn’t as prominent in the 1950s as it would be in later decades, the era certainly helped to shape the style’s unique, breezy DNA. That’s just what we wanted to dive into here below.

We wanted to highlight three surf rock tracks from back in the day that inspired, well, a new wave of songs. Indeed, these are three surf rock songs from 1958 you won’t change the radio dial for.

“Chariot Rock” by The Champs (Single, 1958)

Listening to this rollicking song from The Champs—the band that gave music fans the popular tune “Tequila”—can’t you just imagine a group of sun-soaked teenagers dancing on the beach with tiki torches burning and grass skirts swaying in the breeze? We sure can! Indeed, keen music fans might even recognize the catchy riff from “Tequila” in this early surf rock offering. It’s enough to get you shimmying in the sun. So, get on your trunks, your favorite surfboard, and hit the waves as The Champs bring you the sounds of the summer, 1958 style.

“Rumble” by Link Wray & His Ray Men (Single, 1958)

Fans of the 1994 movie Pulp Fiction likely recognize this classic track from guitarist Link Wray. The instrumental song is enough to have you in a daze. It’s like the soundtrack of the sunbeams shooting down on your body from the blue sky above. There is something magnetic about this track, but it’s also mellow. You could sit underneath its rays for hours only to come up relaxed and ready for the rest of your life! That’s the fun, yet powerful gift Wray gives his listeners here, one chord strum at a time.

“Rebel-‘Rouser” by Duane Eddy And His ‘Twangy’ Guitar from ‘Have ‘Twangy’ Guitar Will Travel’ (1958)

Listening to this 1958 song from Duane Eddy And His ‘Twangy’ Guitar, you can hear the early beginnings of a lot of music. You can hear rockabilly, rock, surf rock, the blues—it’s all in there, one twangy note at a time. But all the while, it’s easy to imagine surfboards stuck in the sand and a number of smiling young people dancing in the salty air while this song plays. Surf rock was alive and well in the 1950s, on its way to big things!

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