Their first wide-release single, "Walk, Don't Run" (1960), brought international fame to the group, and is often cited as one of the top songs ever recorded for guitar. In the 1960s and early 1970s, 38 of the band's albums charted in the US, ranking them as the 6th best album chart performer during the 1960s, and the band had 14 singles in the Billboard Hot 100. With over 100 million records sold, the Ventures are the best-selling instrumental band of all time.
The Ventures have had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide. The band was among the first to employ and popularize fuzz and flanging guitar effects, concept albums, and twelve-string guitars in rock music. Their instrumental virtuosity, innovation, and unique sound influenced many musicians and bands, earning the group the moniker "The Band that Launched a Thousand Bands". Their recording of "Walk, Don't Run" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame for its lasting impact, and in 2008 the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Don Wilson and Bob Bogle first met in 1958, when Bogle was looking to buy a car from a used car dealership in Seattle owned by Wilson's father. Finding a common interest in guitars, the two decided to play together, while Wilson joined Bogle performing masonry work. They bought two used guitars in a pawn shop for about $10 each. Initially calling themselves the Versatones, the duo played small clubs, beer bars, and private parties throughout the Pacific Northwest. Wilson played rhythm guitar, Bogle lead. When they went to register the band name, they found that it was already taken. Disappointed, they cast about for an appropriate name. Wilson's mother suggested the name "The Ventures", upon which they eventually agreed in 1959.
During their first years (1958–1961), the Ventures played Fender guitars (a Jazzmaster, a Stratocaster and a Precision Bass) for both their live performances and their recording sessions. These instruments are prominently visible on the covers of two early albums: The Ventures and The Colorful Ventures. From 1962 to 1963 they used two Jazzmasters with a Precision Bass, shown on the album cover of "Bobby Vee meets The Ventures". Then in early 1963, California guitar manufacturer Mosrite re-branded their uniquely styled, futuristic-looking Mark 1 electric guitar model for the Ventures by applying decals that stated "The Ventures Model" on the headstock. The band adopted these guitars (which included a bass model) and first used them on The Ventures in Space (1963), one of their most influential albums because of the unique, otherworldly guitar sounds it contained. From 1963 through 1968, a statement on their album covers announced that the Ventures used Mosrite guitars "exclusively" (the Ventures and designer Semie Moseley were partners in the distribution of these instruments). After the expiration of their contract with Moseley, the Ventures returned to playing mainly Fender guitars. Only rarely have they used Mosrite guitars since that contract ended.
In the mid-1990s, Fender issued a limited edition Ventures Signature Series of guitars consisting of a Jazzmaster, a Stratocaster, and a Fender Jazz Bass, all with specifications determined by the band.
Aria Guitars and Wilson Brothers Guitars have subsequently issued Ventures Signature Model instruments. The Wilson Brothers guitar, in particular, is closely modeled physically on the original Mosrite design.
The Ventures pioneered the use of special effects on such songs as "The 2000 Pound Bee", recorded in late 1962, in which lead guitarist Nokie Edwards employed a fuzz pedal. Edwards' use of "fuzz tone" predated the "King of Fuzz Guitar", Davie Allan of The Arrows, by at least three years. In addition, Edwards was among the first to use the twelve-string guitar in rock. The 1964 The Ventures In Space album was a primer in the use of special guitar effects, and made pioneering use of 'reverse-tracking'. The Ventures In Space, because of its ethereal space-like effects, was deemed an influence on the later 1960s San Francisco psychedelic generation, as well as being cited as a favorite by Keith Moon of the Who.
The band's cover of the Tornados' "Telstar" (released in January 1963) featured one of the first instances of flanging on a pop record. The song "Silver Bells" on The Ventures' Christmas Album, released in November 1965, has one of the first recorded uses of a talk box as a musical effect, voiced by Red Rhodes.
The Ventures have had an influence on many musicians, both professional and amateur. Their instructional album, Play Guitar with the Ventures, was the first such record to chart on the Billboard Top LPs list, peaking at No. 96, and taught thousands of budding guitarists how to play the guitar. George Harrison stated in a Guitar Player interview that he preferred the American guitar sound of the Ventures to British contemporaries. When asked to name the most influential rock guitar solos, Joe Walsh said he would have to include the entire song "Walk, Don't Run" because it changed so many guitar players' lives. John Fogerty, during his introduction of the Ventures at their Hall of Fame induction, said that it "kicked open a whole movement in rock and roll... The sound of it became 'surf music' and the audacity of it empowered guitarists everywhere." Stephen Stills told Ventures guitarist Don Wilson that he learned to play on Ventures records. Jeff Baxter and Gene Simmons were early members of the Ventures Fan Club. Carl Wilson called the Ventures a major influence on his early guitar playing, stating that the Beach Boys had learned to play all of their songs by ear.
Bob Bogle lived in Vancouver, Washington, for years and died there on June 14, 2009, of non-Hodgkin lymphoma; he was 75.
Nokie Edwards died on March 12, 2018, due to complications after hip surgery. He was 82.
Gerry McGee died on October 12, 2019, after having a heart attack and collapsing onstage four days earlier in Japan. He was 81.
Don Wilson continued to record with the band, but retired from touring at the end of 2015. He died of natural causes on January 22, 2022, at the age of 88.
Mel Taylor died on August 11, 1996, of cancer, at the age of 62. He was diagnosed two weeks before his death.
Wipe Out
The Ventures Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Something is telling me I must go home
And the lights all went out in Massachusetts
The day I left her standing on her own
Tried to hitch a ride to San Francisco
Gotta do the things I wanna do
And the lights all went out in Massachusetts
They brought me back to see my way with you
Speak about the people I have seen
And the lights all went out in Massachusetts
And Massachusetts is one place I have seen
I will remember Massachusetts
The lyrics of The Ventures' song "Wipe Out" have nothing to do with Massachusetts but instead are all about surfing. However, the lyrics to "Massachusetts" were included in the song to pay homage to the band's New England roots. The opening lines, "Feel I'm goin' back to Massachusetts, something's telling me I must go home," suggest a longing for their home state while on the road touring. The use of "lights all went out" could be a reference to the popularity of surfing, where surfers would stay out all day until the sun went down, tying in with the "wipe out" reference in the chorus.
The verses also touch on the freedom of hitchhiking to San Francisco to do the things they want to do, another nod to the carefree nature of the surf culture. The chorus, on the other hand, repeats the phrase "wipe out" over and over, evoking the image of a surfer wiping out, which is falling off their board. Through the contrast of the verses and chorus, the lyrics of the song paint a picture of the exhilaration and risk that comes with surfing.
Line by Line Meaning
Feel I'm goin' back to Massachusetts
I have a strong feeling of returning to Massachusetts
Something is telling me I must go home
I have an inner voice that urges me to return home
And the lights all went out in Massachusetts
There was a sudden darkness in Massachusetts
The day I left her standing on her own
I abandoned someone I cared for in Massachusetts
Tried to hitch a ride to San Francisco
I attempted to get a ride to San Francisco
Gotta do the things I wanna do
I have to do the things that I desire
They brought me back to see my way with you
I was brought back to see the way to be with someone I care for
Talk about the life in Massachusetts
I have stories to share about the lifestyle in Massachusetts
Speak about the people I have seen
I have experiences to share about the people I met in Massachusetts
And Massachusetts is one place I have seen
Massachusetts is one of the places I have visited
I will remember Massachusetts
I will always remember Massachusetts
Writer(s): James E. Fuller, Robert E. Berryhill, Patrick V. Connolly
Contributed by Nathaniel T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@CeeOlleab388
2024 and I'm 75 still listening to these tunes - they keep me young <3
@fredlibby8518
xactly!!!! @75
@jacquelinedavis6607
67 but these songs make me so happy and I am gonna dance. Wow!
@steveperreira5850
64-year-old surfer boy in the year 2024, my favorite instrumental of all time, and these guys do it right!
@taffyddu
born 1946, still loving it. I thought I'd have joined my parents by now, but still here ! It must be the music.
@BotYoutubevertification
Boomers hehee im only 11 and this was in my game when i was inside vehicle
@donyonta5023
I’m only 83 yrs old and I still love this fantastic music
@divdevilliers6234
Im 70 years young and l've been a rocker from my childhood years and I still love to listen to old time rock n roll. I also have a great love for guitar groups. Of course the Ventures my favourite. I have a selection of records of them.
@jasonjones6125
Music......the ultimate time machine (:
@divdevilliers6234
They were one of the best if not the best ever.