Beach music

Beach music, also known as Carolina beach music, is a regional genre which developed from various musical styles of the forties, fifties and sixties. These styles ranged from big band swing instrumentals to the more raucous sounds of blues/jump blues, jazz, doo-wop, boogie, rhythm and blues, reggae, rockabilly and old-time rock and roll. Beach music is closely associated with the style of swing dance known as the shag, or the Carolina shag. Recordings with a 4/4 "blues shuffle" rhythmic structure and moderate-to-fast tempo are the most popular music for the shag, and the vast majority of the music in this genre fits that description.

Early history

A majority of the recordings that constituted and/or influenced beach music early on were originally termed "race music". As popular R&B tastes changed to encompass funk, reggae, disco, hip hop and gangsta rap, the predominantly white beach music enthusiasts have remained more loyal to the "old school" stylings. This has been due primarily to the beat and tempo of the music.

Historical accounts of beach music as it relates to the development of this dance are often conflicting, but most agree that the Ocean Drive section of North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina is where the beach/shag phenomenon had its greatest impact among vacationing teenagers and college students.

Socio-political context

Prior to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, white youth in the Jim Crow South could not always hear the compelling music of primarily black R&B artists in their home towns. In some communities, this remained in effect even after racial integration was implemented in the region. However, these young people flocked to the bars and pavilions of the Carolina beaches where the shag was gaining popularity and R&B ruled the jukeboxes, and to the "beach clubs" where R&B artists performed live.

A major contributing influence upon this cross-racial musical affinity was the powerful radio station WLAC in Nashville, TN, which blanketed the Southeast with the gritty, driving sound of jump blues and other forms of R&B. Stations with similar playlists began to emerge in the Carolinas and surrounding states throughout the late fifties and the sixties, increasing the popularity of the music across racial lines and contributing to the increasing popularity of the emerging new gospel-infused R&B sound, soul music.

"Classic Beach"

Artists and groups that were important to the formative years of this genre include: Artie Shaw, Wynonie Harris, Jimmy Cavallo and The House Rockers, Ruth Brown, Little Willie John, Earl Bostic, The Drifters, Wilbert Harrison, Clyde McPhatter, Billy Ward and The Dominos, Hank Ballard, Maurice Williams and The Zodiacs, The Tams, The 5 Royales, The Coasters, Fats Domino, Jimmy McCracklin, Solomon Burke, Sam Cooke, The Platters, The Four Tops, Louis Prima, Arthur Alexander, Stick McGhee, Jackie Brenston, Willbert Harrison, Big Joe Turner, Bruce Channel, Wilson Pickett, Clarence Carter, Dinah Washington, Billy Stewart, The Temptations,The Impressions, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Marvin Gaye, The O'Jays, The Spinners, Otis Redding, Jackie Wilson, Etta James, The Checkers, The Clovers, Barbara Lewis, Don Covay, Jimmy Ricks and The Ravens, Mary Wells, Garnett Mimms and The Enchanters, Ben E. King, Major Lance, Willie Tee and Ernie K-Doe.

While some of the "beach hits" by these artists appeared on the R&B and rock and roll charts nationally, a great many of them were "b-sides" -- or even more obscure recordings that never charted at all. With this penchant for obscure R&B, especially from the sixties, beach music has much in common with the northern soul phenomenon in the UK.

Transition and renewal

The "Beach Bands"

Another wave of artists, known today as the "beach bands" came into prominence in the mid sixties to early seventies, heavily influenced by the sound of Motown and the other prominent R&B labels of the day such as Atlantic Records, Stax, etc.. These included The Tassels, Gene Barbour and the Cavaliers, Calvin Lindsay and the Hysterics, The Men of Distinction (Original), The In-Men, Ltd., The Attractions, Cannonball Band, The Embers, The Monzas, The Sardams, The Catalinas and the nationally-charting groups The Pieces of Eight (Original), The Swinging Medallions, The Okaysions, and Bill Deal and the Rhondells. Many of these bands got their start backing the famous R&B/soul artists who played at The Beach Club in Myrtle Beach, The Coachman and Four in Bennettsville SC, The Cellar in Charlotte NC, The Embers Club in Raleigh, NC, Rogues Gallery and Peppermint Beach Club in Virginia Beach, VA and other such venues.

This wave of primarily white R&B artists was part of a strong but nationally short-lived musical trend known as "blue-eyed soul" which also produced The Rascals, The Box Tops, John Fred, Rare Earth, Leon Russell, Johnny Rivers, Bonnie Bramlett, Mitch Ryder and The Detroit Wheels, and The Righteous Brothers.

The revival years

In the '80s, after decades of waning popularity, Beach music enjoyed a major revival in the Carolinas, thanks largely to the formation of a loose-knit organization known as The Society of Stranders (SOS). Originally intended as a relatively small social gathering of shag enthusiasts, "beach diggers" and former lifeguards meeting yearly in the Ocean Drive section of North Myrtle Beach, S.O.S. quickly grew to become a major Spring event.

At around the same time, a fanzine called "It Will Stand" (from the rock'n'roll/R&B anthem of that name by The Showmen) began to delve deeper into the history of beach music than any publication before or since. Concurrent with the new enthusiasm for the shag, and an increased emphasis on the roots of the music came a period of revival for many of the beach bands that had come to prominence in the sixties. In addition to these groups, younger artists began to emerge, either as members of established groups, or with groups of their own. Dedicated beach music charts began to appear, tracking the musical tastes of shaggers and other aficionados of the genre. The number of regional radio stations playing beach music began to increase substantially.

In 1981, Virginia entrepreneur John Aragona sponsored the first Beach Music Awards show at the Convention Center in Myrtle Beach. He would sponsor two more shows of this type over the next several years, setting the stage for the CAMMY Awards show, first held at Salisbury, NC in 1995. The shows soon moved to Charlotte and then to Myrtle Beach, where they are still an eagerly-anticipated and well-attended annual event under their new name, The Carolina Beach Music Awards (CBMA).

The Current Regional "Beach & Shag" Scene

Link title===Artists Of Note=== The best of beach music from the early decades, from both national and regional artists, is known today as "classic beach". However, there is more to beach music than just the "oldies". New recordings in this style are being produced regularly as part of the regional music industry in the Southeastern US.

Current regional artists and groups who appear on the Beach and Shag music charts include The East Coast Party Band General Johnson and The Chairmen of the Board, the Craig Woolard Band, The Coastline Band, The Embers, Billy Scott, The Poor Souls, The Carousels with Tony Baker, The Attractions Band, Donny and Susan Trexler, Lia and The Wave, J.D. Cash, Band of Oz, The Fantastic Shakers, The Memphis All-Stars, Heart and Soul, The Rickey Godfrey Band, The Coppertones, The Mixed Emotions and Sea Cruz. While the terms "beach music" and "Carolina beach music" are still used, the increasing popularity of the shag has led to it sometimes being identified as "shag music". Many web sites have lately begun to refer to this music as "beach & shag".

This is the music being played by shag deejays in dance clubs, as well as on the "Beach and Oldies" radio stations that exist primarily in the Carolinas. Also charting regionally are such well-known national and international artists as Van Morrison, Ray Charles, Huey Lewis, T. Graham Brown, Simply Red, Wilson Pickett, Hall and Oates, Al Green and Delbert McClinton. In recent years, national artists of note -- such as O.C. Smith, Alabama, Jimmy Buffett, Eugene "Hideaway" Bridges, D.K. Davis, and the Carolina's own Nappy Brown and Roy Roberts -- have recorded music specifically aimed at this market.

Link title===Artists Of Note=== The best of beach music from the early decades, from both national and regional artists, is known today as "classic beach". However, there is more to beach music than just the "oldies". New recordings in this style are being produced regularly as part of the regional music industry in the Southeastern US.

Current regional artists and groups who appear on the Beach and Shag music charts include The East Coast Party Band,General Johnson and The Chairmen of the Board, the Craig Woolard Band, The Coastline Band, The Embers, Billy Scott, The Poor Souls, The Carousels with Tony Baker, The Attractions Band, Donny and Susan Trexler, Lia and The Wave, J.D. Cash, Band of Oz, The Fantastic Shakers, The Memphis All-Stars, Heart and Soul, The Rickey Godfrey Band, The Coppertones, The Mixed Emotions and Sea Cruz. While the terms "beach music" and "Carolina beach music" are still used, the increasing popularity of the shag has led to it sometimes being identified as "shag music". Many web sites have lately begun to refer to this music as "beach & shag".

This is the music being played by shag deejays in dance clubs, as well as on the "Beach and Oldies" radio stations that exist primarily in the Carolinas. Also charting regionally are such well-known national and international artists as Van Morrison, Ray Charles, Huey Lewis, T. Graham Brown, Simply Red, Wilson Pickett, Hall and Oates, Al Green and Delbert McClinton. In recent years, national artists of note -- such as O.C. Smith, Alabama, Jimmy Buffett, Eugene "Hideaway" Bridges, D.K. Davis, and the Carolina's own Nappy Brown and Roy Roberts -- have recorded music specifically aimed at this market.

External links