Bombora
The Atlantics, 1963. Solo by The Atlantics.
Sydney's answer to Dick Dale, with a rumbling low-string lead named after an offshore wave.
Bombora proves surf guitar was not just a Californian affair. The Atlantics, from Sydney, build the tune on a rumbling, low-string lead that rolls forward like a swell rising offshore, which suits a title borrowed from an Australian word for a wave breaking over a submerged reef. The picking is fast and insistent, and the minor-key melody has a darker, moodier edge than much of the Californian surf music of the time. Drums and rhythm guitar keep a driving pulse that never lets the tension drop. Listen for the heavy, low-register phrases that give the tune its weight, and notice how the band builds intensity by repeating the melody with more force each time around.
Bombora by The Atlantics is featured in our Surf (#10) list. The solo is played by The Atlantics and the song was released in 1963.
In our lists
Sources
Who played the guitar solo on Bombora?
The Atlantics played the solo on The Atlantics's Bombora (1963).