Blue Stingrays Surf-N-Burn 180g LP

The facts in 2021 : A fictional '50s surf-guitar band (Blue Stingrays), on a fictional record label (Epitone Records), actually created by a master guitar player. A story akin to the Traveling Wilburys, this long out-of-print LP has been dubbed by many as the "holy grail of modern surf guitar albums."

The Blue Stingrays' story starts in '59... The band formed that summer in Southern Cali and created a new sound unlike any before or ever since. That sound was surf music. Like those who roamed the globe for the perfect wave, the Blue Stingrays nailed the perfect sound when their twang rang 'round the world.

A singular devotion to surf guitar music became a way of life for The Blue Stingrays and they considered it to be the only art form profound enough to truly express the passion in man's soul. They were extremely prolific artists and with no time for anything but their music. These surf guitar pioneers produced three legendary recordings on the now defunct DEL-REY records: "Let's Go", "Surf Party" and "Valley Of The Rays". This discography of classic surf music is now impossible to find, but the mark made by these records on the music world is indelible.

When Bill Bucks, an Electro Records executive, heard about the Blue Stingrays, he offered them $1 million to sign with them. The label hoped to get the band to recruit a young vocalist they had lined up for the Blue Stingrays and produce a series of soundtracks for Hollywood's latest trend... surf movies! After they learned of the band's vow of anonymity and refusal to appear live or to participate in anything that would create fame, the label quickly withdrew their offer. (Note: their vow of anonymity was a serious matter for the Blue Stingrays, they even required recording engineers to wear blindfolds!)

In the meantime, surf bands sprung up everywhere. Some emerged on the East Coast, some even had vocalists! Next came the British invasion in '64 and that was all these humble artists could take. They fled the USA and spent the next three decades in exile on a tiny island two miles southeast of Tahiti. These dedicated musicians wished to live out their lives unknown and never receive recognition for their art until they died...like Da Vinci, Raphael and other great artists that went before them.

On the South Pacific isle, they spent their days honing their skills and refining their art without intrusion. This isolation was driven by their intention of one day returning to their California home with the last word on their art...the definitive recording of surf guitar music. The result is this piece of history. Recorded for Southern California's legendary Epitone Records, Surf-N-Burn is the very last and only available Blue Stingrays record. Period. They made their masterpiece, their "Mona Lisa". Listen and you will appreciate what these guys were trying to achieve and have accomplished. The most profound expression of the human condition ever communicated through art, the passion in man's soul expressed through surf guitar and captured on record!

Now the Blue Stingrays will disappear, as this is the last record you'll ever hear from them. You will never know their names, but you will always remember their sound.

Supposedly the Tom Petty Band playing surf music for their own pleasure, the Blue Stingrays keep their identities secret and have never played a show. This record, perhaps their only release (though the CD claims they put out three other, impossible-to-find records in the '60s, which is probably as true as their claim of inventing surf music), is a pleasant, mellow stroll through Polynesia and beyond. Whoever these guys are, they can definitely play their instruments... There are several great songs here including their gorgeous, surfy take on the Goldfinger theme.