The Surfaris

This surf group from Glendora, California are remembered for Wipe Out - the number two hit from 1963 that ranks as one of the great rock instrumentals, featuring a classic up-and-down guitar riff and a classic solo drum roll break, both of which have been emulated by millions (the number is no exaggeration) of beginning rock & rollers.

The Surfaris recorded half a dozen albums in the 60s, but their Wipe Out follow-up, a track called Point Panic - named after a renowned surfing location in Hawaii - was the only single to struggle up to the middle of the charts.

The Surfaris were not extraordinary, but they were more talented than the typical one-shot surf group. 

Drummer Ron Wilson was praised by session stick-man extraordinaire Hal Blaine, and his uninhibited splashing style sounds like a direct ancestor to Keith Moon. He also took the lead vocals on the group's occasional passable Beach Boy imitations. Wilson died on 7 May, 1989, at the age of 43.

The Surfaris broke up in 1966 but have re-formed periodically . There are currently two versions of the band performing throughout the US and Europe - Bob Berryhill's Surfaris and Jim Fuller's Surfaris.