The Surfaris Headline Glendora
Village July 5th 2011 Festivities
Concert is Homecoming for Guitarist-Founder Bob Berryhill,
Who Grew Up in Glendora
GLENDORA – Glendora Village’s Independence Day Jubilee on Monday, July 5, will be a homecoming of sorts for Bob Berryhill. Berryhill was a founder of The Surfaris, part of a group
of Glendora High School students who composed the international hit Wipe Out in 1962
that not only catapulted them to f a m e , but helped spread California’s signature surf
sound worldwide. Berryhill and The Surfaris
return to Glendora to headline the Village’s July 5th celebration that starts with pancake breakfast Monday morning after all the fireworks are over Sunday night, July 4. The day includes a community parade and free concerts, including two sets by The Surfaris.
The Village , located on Glendora Avenue between Foothill Boulevard and Bennett Avenue in
scenic Glendora , is turning up the volume on fun for its first Independence Day celebration. To make it even easier for everyone to enjoy the day full of fun, a shuttle will run every half hour
between Glendora Village and Citrus College f rom 7:30 a .m. to 4:30p.m.
The Surfaris will play not only their own hits, but also take
music lovers on a wave of nostalgia with hits from the era:
Wipe Out, Surfer Joe, Pipeline, Walk Don't Run, Summertime Blues, Louie, Louie, Peter Gunn,
James Bond Theme, Misirlou, Point Panic and so many others. In 1962, four teenagers – Bob Berryhill (rhythm guitar), Ron Wilson (drums), Jim Fuller (lead
guitar), and Pat Connolly (bass)– got together in a Cucamonga studio to record a song based
on a dream Wilson had, Surfer Joe.”They pressed up 500 45
rpm copies and sold them at school to raise money for guitar amps. The B-side, Wipe Out,
was composed on the spot and recorded in less than an hour –
and the rest is recording history.
Summertime is primetime for Berryhill’s group to hit the road
The Surfaris Headline Glendora Village July 5th Festivities
Concert is Homecoming for Guitarist-Founder Bob Berryhill, Who Grew Up in Glendora
The Surfaris will perform on July 5th at the Glendora Village.
for concert tours . Since he teaches automotive engine performance courses at an Orange
County community college, Berryhill has summers off, allowing him and his family –
wife (and high school sweetheart) Gene, and sons Deven and Joel – to spread The
Surfaris ’ good - time sound around from here to Hawaii (including this July’s Honolulu Zoo
Concert Series in Waikiki). It’s no surprise to Berryhill that his sons followed him in his
musical steps. “After all, their bedrooms were right above my recording studio,” he said during a recent phone interview. Deven plays lead guitar for
part of the set, with a “Dick Dale kind of energy that drives people nuts,” said Berryhill of
his son’s emulation of Dale, considered to be the king of surf
guitar. “His playing helps make our show one big energy burst.” Joel takes inspiration from
The Surfaris’ late drummer Ron, Berryhill added. “As a child, he would go along to all
of our concerts and studied all of our old records. He’s learned all of Ron’s flares and slams.
It’s an exact copy; Joel makes sure he plays them the way Ronnie played.” Passing his music onto the next generation “just makes it a blast,” Berryhill enthused. “For true devotees of classic rock music, how can you get more original than this? It’s a father and - sons operation
where they’ve come out to support the ‘old man.’” Wipe out lives on 40 plus years after it was written. It was the theme song for the first season of ABC-TV’s outrageous obstacle - course game show, “Wipeout,” and the song stepped onto the Broadway stage in the
musical version of Dirty Dancing. Not bad for four guys fromGlendora.
And on Monday, July 5, Wipe out comes home to Glendora Village to celebrate the nation’s birthday. For more information about all of Glendora Village’s Independence Day Jubilee festivities, call (626) 852-9337.
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