The
single peaked at number two on the chart of the
Music Vendor trade paper and at number three on the
Billboard and
Cash Box charts.
Billboard ranked "
Surfin' U.S.A. the number 1 song of 1963. It has since become emblematic of the
California Sound, and the song's depiction of
California is emblematic of the genre.
Surfin' U.S.A. uses the comparison of
California to the rest of the
United States to drive its stereotypical images of
California. It uses a recognizable steady, upbeat drum tempo seen in many
surf rock
songs that seems to “drive” the music forward. The Beach Boys
popularized this staccato drum style, and is reminiscent of “a
locomotive getting up to speed”. This technique was seen earlier in the
Jan & Dean 1963 hit
Surf City, which was the first Surf song to achieve the number one position on the
Billboard Hot 100.
In the song the following surfing spots are mentioned, mostly in
California, as well as one in Hawaii (possibly two) and one in
Australia:
- "Del Mar" – Del Mar, San Diego County, California
- "Ventura County Line" – County Line Beach in Ventura County, California
- "Santa Cruz" – Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz County, California
- "Trestles" – San Onofre State Park, San Diego County, California
- "Australia's Narrabeen" – Narrabeen, Australia
- "Manhattan" – Manhattan Beach, Los Angeles County, California
- "Doheny" – Doheny Beach, Dana Point, Orange County, California
- "Haggerty's" – Palos Verdes Estates, Los Angeles County, California
- "Swami's" – Swami's Beach, Encinitas, San Diego County, California
- "Pacific Palisades" – Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles County, California
- "San Onofre" – San Onofre State Park, San Diego County, California
- "Sunset" – Sunset Beach, Oahu, Hawaii – or – Sunset Beach, Orange County, California [Could also be Sunset Blvd at PCH in LA County]
- "Redondo Beach, L.A." – Redondo Beach, Los Angeles County, California
- "La Jolla" – La Jolla, San Diego County, California
- "Waimea Bay" – Waimea Bay, Hawaii
Tracklist: Side 1: A - Surfin' U.S.A., written by Brian Wilson - 2:25
Side 2: B - Shut Down, written by Brian Wilson,
Roger Christian - 1:50
Companies, etc.
Manufactured By – Capitol Records, Inc.
Published By – Arc Music Corp.
Published By – Sea Of Tunes Publishing Co.
Pressed By – Capitol Records Pressing Plant, Scranton
Notes:
This version gives a writing credit to Roger Christian on side B (as opposed to this release which does not).
Side A published by Arc Music Corp.
Side B published by Sea Of Tunes Publishing Co
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Label side A): 45-39181
Matrix / Runout (Label side B): 45-39180
Pressing Plant ID (Stamped in runouts): IAM Triangle logo
Rights Society: BMI
Other (Labels): 3-43
Matrix / Runout (Runout side A, stamped, variant 1): 45-39181-N2#2 IAM
Matrix / Runout (Runout side B, stamped, variant 1): 45-39180-N1 15 IAM
Matrix / Runout (Runout side A, stamped, variant 2): 45-39181-N2#2 IAM
Matrix / Runout (Runout side B, stamped, variant 2): 45-39180-N2 IAM
Matrix / Runout (Runout side A, stamped, [etched] - variant 3): 45-39181-N2[#3] IAM
Matrix / Runout (Runout side B, stamped - variant 3): 45-39180-N1#4 IAM
Beach Boys* – Surfin' U.S.A.
Label: Capitol Records – 4932
Format: Vinyl, 7", Single, 45 RPM, Scranton Pressing
Country: US
Released: Mar 4, 1963
Genre: Rock, Pop
Style: Surf, Vocal
Viewfinder links:
Net links:
YouTube links:
Styrous® ~ Monday, September 7, 2020
