The Ventures Play Telstar and the Lonely Bull | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | January 1963 | |||
Recorded | 1962 | |||
Genre | Surf rock | |||
Length | 27:43 | |||
Label | Dolton | |||
Producer | Josie Wilson, Bob Reisdorff | |||
The Ventures chronology | ||||
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The Ventures Play Telstar and the Lonely Bull is an album by the band the Ventures, released in 1963. It consists entirely of cover versions of popular instrumentals from the late 1950s to early 1960s (all of which reached the Top 15 on Billboard, including eleven Top Tens and three #1's) and became their highest charting album, peaking at #8 on Billboard and earning the band a gold record for over 500,000 copies sold.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
In his review for Allmusic, critic Fred Thomas wrote of the album "Despite a somewhat wooden performance on many of the tracks, the hard-panned stereo production makes for a very big sound. While reading somewhere between campy and nostalgic in the context of the decades that followed, The Ventures Play Telstar is still a high point in the band's overwhelming discography, and as strong a sample of early-'60s commercially viable surf rock as you're likely to find." [1]
As written on the back cover
At the point that Edwards ceased strictly playing "base" [2] (as spelled on the cover), he became the chief guitarist, and co-founder Bogle settled on bass.
The Ventures are an American instrumental rock band formed in Tacoma, Washington, in 1958, by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle. The band, which was a quartet for most of its existence, helped to popularize the electric guitar across the world during the 1960s. While their popularity in the United States waned in the 1970s, the group remains especially revered in Japan, where they have toured regularly. The classic lineup of the band consisted of Wilson, Bogle, Nokie Edwards, and Mel Taylor (drums).
The Clones of Dr. Funkenstein is the fifth album by funk band Parliament, released in September 1976. The album is notable for featuring horn arrangements by ex-James Brown band member, Fred Wesley. The album charted at #3 on the Billboard R&B Albums chart, #20 on the Billboard pop chart, and became Parliament's second album to be certified gold. Two singles were released off the album, "Do That Stuff", which charted at #22, and "Dr. Funkenstein" which charted at #43.
The Kentucky Headhunters are an American country rock and Southern rock band originating in the state of Kentucky. The band's members are Doug Phelps, Greg Martin, and brothers Richard Young and Fred Young. It was founded in 1968 as Itchy Brother, which consisted of the Young brothers and Martin, along with Anthony Kenney on bass guitar and vocals. Itchy Brother performed until 1982, with James Harrison replacing Martin from 1973 to 1976. The Youngs and Martin began performing as The Kentucky Headhunters in 1986, adding brothers Ricky Lee Phelps and Doug Phelps to the membership.
"Owner of a Lonely Heart" is a song by British progressive rock band Yes. It is the first track and single from their eleventh studio album, 90125 (1983), and was released on 24 October 1983. Written primarily by guitarist and singer Trevor Rabin, contributions were made to the final version by singer Jon Anderson, bassist Chris Squire, and producer Trevor Horn.
H. P. Lovecraft was an American psychedelic rock band, formed in Chicago, Illinois, in 1967 and named after the horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. Much of the band's music was possessed of a haunting, eerie ambience, and consisted of material that was inspired by the macabre writings of the author whose name they had adopted. Combining elements of psychedelia and folk rock, the band's sound was marked by the striking vocal harmonies of ex-folk singer George Edwards and the classically trained Dave Michaels. In addition, Michaels' multi-instrumentalist abilities on organ, piano, harpsichord, clarinet and recorder provided the band with a richer sonic palette than many of their contemporaries.
Walk, Don't Run, Vol. 2 is the 16th studio album by The Ventures, released in 1964. It features "Walk Don't Run '64," an updated recording of the Johnny Smith cover; as a single, it would be the second time the band had a Top 10 hit in the U.S. with that same composition. The album also includes a rendition of blues classic "The House of the Rising Sun," and "Rap City," the Ventures' arrangement of Brahms' Hungarian Dance No. 5.
And Then... Along Comes the Association is the debut studio album by the Association, released on Valiant Records in July 1966. It became one of the top-selling albums in America, peaking at number five, and remains the Association's most successful album release, except for their Greatest Hits compilation. The album's success was primarily credited to the inclusion of their two U.S. hits "Along Comes Mary" and "Cherish", which peaked at number seven and number one respectively on the Billboard Hot 100; "Cherish" was number one on Billboard's Top 40 list for three weeks starting on September 24, 1966.
Richard Marx is the debut studio album by singer/songwriter and record producer/arranger, Richard Marx, released in June 1987.
"Walk, Don't Run" is an instrumental composition written and originally recorded by jazz guitarist Johnny Smith in 1954, which achieved worldwide fame when The Ventures recorded a cover version in 1960.
Hawaii Five-O is an instrumental album by the Ventures. It is named for the popular 1968 television series, and featured the theme song from the series composed by Morton Stevens as its title track. It was released in 1969 on Liberty Records LST-8061 and reached #11 on the Billboard Top LP chart, staying for 24 weeks. The album was certified gold by RIAA on July 21, 1971. The popularity of the album was propelled by the hit title track, which reached #4 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart.
The Ventures in Space is an LP album by the guitar-based instrumental group the Ventures, released in 1964. Information on its jacket states that "All of these unusual & other-worldly sounds have been created with musical instruments rather than electronic gimmicks". It was one of the first albums on which the group played the new Mosrite brand guitars instead of their traditional Fender instruments. The album was released in 1964 on the Dolton label, and reissued in the late 1970s by Pickwick Records.
"The Lonely Bull (El Solo Toro)" is a song by Sol Lake recorded by Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass among others. The song was the title track to the album The Lonely Bull, released in December 1962. The Herb Alpert single represents the first release on A&M Records. Its original title was "Twinkle Star".
"Apache" is a song written by Jerry Lordan and first recorded by Bert Weedon. Lordan played the song on ukulele to the Shadows while on tour and, liking the song, the group released their own version which topped the UK Singles Chart for five weeks in mid-1960. The Shadows' guitarist Hank Marvin developed the song's distinctive echo and vibrato sound. After hearing the Shadows' version, Danish guitarist Jørgen Ingmann released a cover of the song in November 1960 which peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US.
Walk, Don't Run is the debut studio album by American instrumental surf rock band The Ventures, released in 1960 by Dolton Records. It features cover versions of well-known songs as well as original compositions.
Another Smash!!! is the third studio album by the Ventures, released in 1961 on Dolton Records.
Fire Up Plus is an album by Merl Saunders and Friends. It contains most of the songs from two LPs from the early 1970s — Heavy Turbulence, and Fire Up. It was released on CD by Fantasy Records on July 9, 1992.
Future is the third studio album by Los Angeles rock band the Seeds. The album is a notable shift in musical direction for the band as they moved away from garage rock, and began experimenting more with psychedelic rock. Upon its release in 1967, the album reached the Top 100 on the Billboard 200, but their single, "A Thousand Shadows", was less successful than The Seeds' previous hits.
Wild Things! is a 1966 studio album by American band the Ventures, released on Dolton Records BLP-2047 (mono) and BST-8047. A 4-track reel-to-reel release was subsequently issued by Music Tapes, Inc. The album is noted for its marked turn towards a heavier sound in comparison to earlier Ventures releases, and the standout track Wild Child which was prominently featured as a sample in "Start the Commotion" by The Wiseguys.
Twist with the Ventures is the fifth studio album by the band The Ventures; released in 1962 on Dolton Records BST 8010 (stereo) and BLP 2010 (monaural). It consists mostly of instrumental versions of popular dance tunes from the late 1950s to early 1960s, with a couple of original compositions. It was on the charts for 29 weeks and it peaked at # 24 on the Billboard 200. It was later retitled Dance! with new album cover. During the recording of this album, original drummer Howie Johnson left the band and was replaced by Mel Taylor, thus forming the classic Ventures lineup. Therefore, the drum credit(s) are shared on this album between both Johnson and Taylor.
The Ventures a Go-Go is the seventeenth studio album by the band The Ventures; released in 1965 on Dolton Records BST 8037 (stereo) and BLP 2037 (monaural). It consists mostly of instrumental covers of popular tunes from the late 50s and early 60s, with a few original compositions. It was on the charts for 35 weeks and it peaked at #16 on the Billboard 200. This album was the fourth highest charting album that The Ventures released.