THE CRUNCHER – Surfin’ Wattenmeer, Germany - homegrown Surf music

In the late seventies I bought some re-issues of Rock ’n’ Roll rarities on LPs issued by NPR records. I was living in Mülheim/Ruhr then, and one of my favourite shops was somewhere in the south of Düsseldorf at the arterial road direction Leverkusen, Kölner Landstraße. Unfortunately, I can’t remember the shop’s name, though I spent a decent amount of money there and the shopkeeper was a man of Rock ‘n’ Roll knowledge, Dieter Boeck. Anyway, the LPs were titled “The Real Rock And Surf Sound - Archive Series” and the address given for the label was 2945 Sande. I tried to make contact then, as I was publishing the Gorilla Beat fanzine then, but the guys did not respond. I most probably wanted to get free review copies and the NPR guys smelled the rat. Little did I know then that I would settle in the neighbouring town just a dozen or so years later. Yet, it was through these LPs that I would get to know the names of Hugh Barrett & The Victors (“Got The Bull By The Horns), Dick d’Agostini (“Nancy Lynn”), The Hollywood Vines (“When Johnny Comes Slidin’ Home”) and the likes. The NPR guys surely were among the pioneers of spreading the gospel.

 No, this isn't Boris Johnson on a surf board

And, after moving to where I am still living today, I didn’t know that the guys involved in the record label were making music also and ran an excellent Surf cover band called The Cruncher. They got it all right, and even acquired the apropriate equipment. Sande is just a few miles from the North Sea, so Surf music might be the natural choice, unfortunately the North Sea coast here is all mud and silt instead of sandy beaches, and the waves are rarely more than a ripple in the sea.

Anyway, Herbert Hooke, gtr, Klaus Brunner, gtr, Norbert Heinke, sax, org, Wolfgang Peters, b, and  Harald Zeidler, perc, had set their heart on a brand of music that was not especially popular in Germany and they were – like Jon and The Night Riders – forerunners in making Surf music part of the burgeoning Garage scene.

I have now compiled a kind of “Best Of” from their early LPs “go surfin’ with” and “Jupiter C” as well as CD compiling early recordings: “Schlicktao Surfer”. And please, bear in mind, they are no innovators but connoisseurs. 

                                     The Cruncher in the studio in the 80s, kings of the jolly trousers

 

01 THE CRUNCHER – Wild Weekend     02 THE CRUNCHER – Theme From Sheena     03 THE CRUNCHER – Midnight Run     04 THE CRUNCHER – The Wasp     05 THE CRUNCHER – Redondo Strand     06 THE CRUNCHER – Baja     07 THE CRUNCHER – Latinia     08 THE CRUNCHER - Jupiter C     09 THE CRUNCHER – Casbah     10 THE CRUNCHER – Surf Beat     11 THE CRUNCHER – The Bronze Surfer     12 THE CRUNCHER – El Aguila     13 THE CRUNCHER – Ventura     14 THE CRUNCHER – Honky Tonk