Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA Lenny and the Thundertones - S/T
 | Most notable for their obscurity, Lenny and the Thundertones have appeared on a number of comps from the handful of singles they released over a couple of years in the early sixties. Some surfable material here, and interestingly enough, a kinda cool cover of Little Brown Jug, the same tune The Belairs used for the flip to "Mr. Moto." There are also six tracks as The Five Thundertones. |
Picks: Hot Ice, Jungle Fever, Happy Little Jug, Street Beat, Thunder Express, Alabamy Bound, The Social, On The Loose, Homicidal, Banshee, The Moon Of Manakoora, Easy GoinÔ - Part One, Aim High, Mr. Big
Track by Track Review
Surf (Instrumental)
"Hot Ice" is a jammy track, a progression without any direction. Aside from a great drum break, it has little to offer.
Jungle Fever Rock (Instrumental)
"Jungle Fever" is a very basic and primitive riff rocker. It sounds as if it was intended to b played loud, but was recorded a bit more subdued. OK, but unremarkable.
Surf (Instrumental)
The traditional drinking song "Little Brown Jug" is adapted to a presurf format with shimmering vibrato lead guitar. In many ways, "Happy Little Jug" is closer to what became the surf genre than the Belairs' first single B-side. Pretty cool!
Surf (Instrumental)
"Street Beat" is a slow stroll in what might be described as a clean Link Wray mold. Too simple to really capture your attention, but hinting at what coulda been a contender with more power and energy, and a little reverb.
Surf (Instrumental)
"Thunder Express" is a low-E grumbler hinting of the surf singles to come in the next two years. This reminds me of Gene Gray and his Stingrays in some ways, just a little less edgy and energy laden. A great and ultimately surfable riff drives "Thunder Express." Rhythm dominated low watt rock instros from the day when instros were structured like backtracks waiting for a vocal melody line. There are some nice guitar licks in the bridge, but mostly it's a riff rocker.
Surf (Instrumental)
This standard gets a real rock instro treatment that surely could be a surf track if not for the lack of reverb. Great tone and drums!
The Social Surf (Instrumental)
Echoed drums, grumbly bass, a few cries of "oh yeah," and a basic fifties sock hop riff. Kinda cool, but much more dated than the rest of the Thundertones' output.
On The Loose Surf (Instrumental)
Buddy Holly's "That'll Be The Day" provides the intro to this otherwise pedestrian jam.
Rock (Instrumental)
A handful of instros have surfaced over the years from Lenny and the Thundertones. Presurf, raucous instrumental madness with primal stompin' credentials. Pretty cool!
Surf (Instrumental)
"Banshee" sports a wet reverbed guitar with muted splash in places. It doesn't employ a traditional surf beat, and is sometimes a bit jammy, but it's an extremely obscure surf instro.
Rock (Instrumental)
This is a very pretty surf tune originally from Roy Smeck's soundtrack to Adventures In Paradise. He was very effective at writing just the right Polynesian stereotypes into his island jewels. "The Moon Of Manakoora" is a splendid song, and in a pretty darn surfy format, it's even better! Melodic, smooth, romantic, and a little mysterious.
Blues (Instrumental)
"Easy GoinÔ - Part One" is as you'd expect from the title. It's an easy going number with rolling piano and a bluesy feel. only the wet reverb on the hand claps tell you it's 1962.
Rock (Instrumental)
This is a piano driven light rocker with an easy gate and engaging playfulness. It's quite fun, but seems to not really go anywhere.
Surf (Instrumental)
This has pretty murky sound, and has some distortion on the lead guitar, plus incredible drums. The rhythm guitar is inspired by "Flamingo Express." A tone of energy!