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| Beach | |
|---|---|
| Other names | Carolina beach |
| Stylistic origins | Pop-soul,R&B,doo wop,Northern soul,country music,pop rock |
| Cultural origins | 1950s, theCarolinas andGeorgia, United States |
Beach music, also known asCarolina beach music, and to a lesser extent,beach pop, is a regional genre of music in the United States which developed fromrock/R&B andpop music of the 1950s and 1960s. Beach music is most closely associated with the style of dance known as the shag, or theCarolina shag, which is also the official state dance of bothNorth Carolina andSouth Carolina. 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.
Though primarily confined to a small regional fan base, specifically to "Grand Strand" communities such asMyrtle Beach,Carolina Beach, and theGolden Isles of Georgia, in its early days what is now known as Carolina beach music was instrumental in bringing about wider acceptance ofsoul music/R&B among the white music lovers on the south-east coast.
While the older styles of R&B have faded from popularity nationally, the Carolina shag has gained wide popularity in dance circles around the US. This has not generally led to increased appreciation for the music of the beach bands, however. Many of these new shag dance aficionados prefer the "R&B oldies" and/or shagging to currently popular tunes that happen to have the required beat. As more networking is being done on the Internet among shag deejays and beach music fans nationwide, however, there is a growing acceptance of the regional bands by the "new shaggers".[1]
Historical accounts of beach music as it relates to the development of this dance are often conflicting, but most agree that theOcean Drive section ofNorth Myrtle Beach, South Carolina is where the beach/shag phenomenon had its greatest impact among vacationing teenagers and college students. The early development started around 1950.[2]
In the period from roughly the end ofWorld War II through the mid-1950s, many white youth in thestill-segregatedSouth could not always hear the compelling music of primarily black popular recording artists in their home towns. At the time, much of these recordings were characterized as "race music", a term later replaced by "R&B."[3] In some communities, this remained in effect even after racial desegregation was implemented in the region. However, young people flocked to the bars and pavilions of the Carolina beaches where the shag was gaining popularity, R&B instrumentals by artists such asEarl Bostic ruled thejukeboxes, and the "beach clubs" where R&B artists performed live also thrived. Even though toward the end of the 1960s more and more such clubs with similar jukebox selections and live band performances opened in locations other than the beach resorts, the term "Beach Music" which began to emerge in the mid-1960s, keyed off of the memorable experiences of dancing the shag to this music at venues by the sea.
A major contributing influence upon this musical affinity beginning in the late 1950s was radio stationWLAC inNashville, Tennessee, which blanketed the Southeast with everything from R&B toblues and more. Stations with similar playlists began to emerge in the Carolinas and surrounding states throughout the late 1950s and the 1960s, 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.
Among the most popular and influential R&B artists who produced "beach records" in the 1950s and 1960s werethe Dominoes,the Drifters,the Clovers,Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs,the Tams,the Tymes,the Platters,the Temptations, theFour Tops,Brenton Wood,the Capitols,the Marvelows,The Swingin' Medallions, The Reflections,Clarence Carter,the Casinos,[4] and theChairmen of the Board.[5] Beginning in the 1960s, pop soul records that had the right tempo came to be included within the beach music genre. Among the best-known examples are "It will Stand" bythe Showmen,[6] "So Much in Love" by the Tymes", "My Girl" bythe Temptations (1965) and "Build Me Up Buttercup" by UK pop soul groupthe Foundations (1968). 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 1960s, beach music has much in common with thenorthern soul phenomenon in theUK, and perhaps even more with thepopcorn sound inBelgium.[7]
Another wave of artists, known today as the "beach bands" came into prominence in the mid-1960s to early 1970s, heavily influenced by the sound ofMotown and the other prominent R&B labels of the day such asAtlantic Records,Stax, etc. These included the nationally-charting groupsThe Swingin' Medallions (South Carolina),The O'Kaysions (North Carolina), andBill Deal and the Rhondels (Virginia).[1] This wave of primarily white R&B artists was part of a strong but nationally short-lived musical trend known asblue-eyed soul. The Tymes gained UK hit "Ms Grace" in 1975. By the late 1970s,The Trammps,Tavares, andJimmy Buffett were popular in the beach music scene.
In the 1980s, 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.The Tams[8] and Chairmen came back to Beach Music scene.[9] Bertie Higgins recorded tropical country songs such as "Carolina Blue", "Palm Beach", and "Key Largo".[10]
At around the same time, afanzine calledIt Will Stand (from the song of that name byThe Showmen) began to delve into the history of beach music. 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 1960s. 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.[1]
In 1981, Virginia entrepreneur John Aragona sponsored "The First Annual Beach Music Awards" show at the Convention Center in Myrtle Beach. Video MC of this event was Linda Blair. In the late 1980s interest in Beach Music was revived and expanded. On November 19, 1988, live from Reynolds Coliseum, on the campus ofNorth Carolina State University, "The Third Annual Beach Music Awards" was videotaped by Creative Center, a Los Angeles-based TV production company. The Awards show featured 20 of Beach music's stars and groups, ten Los Angeles based dancers, 20 professional shag dancers, and a twenty-piece back-up band, performing 50 of beach music hits.In 1987,O.C. Smith released new single "Brenda",[11] written and produced by Charles Wallert. "Brenda" was on the Billboard R&B charts and the song reached #58 on R&B chart. "Brenda" was nominated for six Awards and won five at the Beach Music Awards. The telecasts of the Beach Music Awards in the 1990s (the footage appears in TV shows currently being broadcast) brought new awareness to the wide appeal of this music. Aragona spent more than 30 years promoting beach music.
These shows set the stage for the CAMMY Awards show, first held atSalisbury, North Carolina in 1995. The shows soon moved to Charlotte and then toNorth Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where they are still an annual event under their new name, The Carolina Beach Music Awards (CBMA). The CAMMY (CBMA) show has turned into a five-day-long showcase and party for the fans and the bands, with shows all along the strip in NMB. It culminates in a show at the Alabama Theatre. Soul singer Chuck Jackson and William Bell were the national stars featured in 2009, backed by the Craig Woolard Band and the Band of Oz respectively.
In a related trend, since the year 2000, there has been a steady increase in the popularity of Southern Soul, led by such R&B labels asEcko andMalaco. These labels feature both original and new artists of "the old school", and sometimes turn out recordings aimed specifically at the beach/shag market. An example of this is "I'm in a Beach Music Mood" byRick Lawson. In addition, at least one dedicated Beach act,General Johnson and the Chairmen of the Board, charted both nationally and internationally with their brand of Southern Soul - sometimes with songs that were not aimed specifically at the beach and shag market, such as "Three Women". In 1994. General Johnson released a beach music version ofThe Ramones' punk anthem "Rockaway Beach" as a duet withJoey Ramone as part of the collection "Godchildren of Soul." In its October 15, 2010 edition, theNew York Times obituary for General Johnson referred to "beach music" as an "upbeat brand of rhythm and blues".[12]
Tropical country singerJimmy Buffett cites beach music as a major influence. Buffett's follower Bob Baldwin(beach musician) delivered Buffett's-style vocal.[13] The Landsharks performedJimmy Buffett tribute show also.[14] Buffett's CDBeach House on the Moon(1999) was intended as an homage to the genre. Though it featuredThe Tams, and for a while they toured with him as vocalists, the CD did not yield any tunes that were big hits with beach music fans. However, it may have been influential in popular country music. Since that release, there have been others by artists associated with Buffett that have had that "perfect shag beat" and a beach music feel to them. Some have become hits with shaggers, including "Drift Away" byUncle Kracker, "Need You Now" byLady Antebellum, "Bum Beach" byJosh Turner, "Some Beach" byBlake Shelton, and "Two Blue Chairs & You" by theZac Brown Band.[15] Alan Jackson & Jimmy Buffett, andKenny Chesney ("No Shoes, No Shirt, No problems" 2003) gained hit on Hot country chart.[16] Just as was the case with "Dancing, Shagging on the Boulevard" byAlabama in the 1990s, these country-flavored songs went over well on the dance floor regionally but did not please the more R&B oriented beach music fans. They did, however, impact the growing national "shag" dance scene to some degree.
Pop and rock artists have also contributed to beach music in recent years. Among the most notable areRod Stewart,Delbert McClinton,Elton John,The Rolling Stones,The Eagles,Phil Collins,[17]Kelly Clarkson,Pharrell Williams,Robin Thicke,Bruno Mars,Charlie Puth, andJustin Timberlake, all of whom have had records that performed well on the regional beach music charts.Boz Scaggs had a concert in North Carolina.Pablo Cruise andLittle River Band performed at venues in coastal communities in the Southeast.[18]
Carolina beach music was featured on the soundtrack ofShag, a 1989 film starringBridget Fonda andPhoebe Cates, filmed in part at theMyrtle Beach Pavilion and other Grand Strand locations.[19] Though not a wholly accurate portrayal, with the actresses' uneven attempts at Upstate Carolina accents especially notable, many viewers consider it an agreeable and entertaining "coming of age" movie, with a good soundtrack and some excellent shagging. Not widely popular in its initial release,Shag has become something of acult film. No doubt it has helped to foster and maintain some interest beyond the Carolinas for beach and shag music.
The novelBeach Music (1995) by South Carolina authorPat Conroy takes its title from this regional genre of music. The novel's protagonist, Jack McCall, seeks to get his daughter, Leah, more in touch with her Southern roots. He does this by introducing her to the shag and to classic beach music. He describes the Drifters' song, "Save the Last Dance for Me" in this way: "This is your Mama's and my favorite song. We fell in love dancing to it." His brother, Dupree McCall, also tells Leah that "Carolina beach music is the holiest sound on earth."
| Show station details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Station | Frequency | Branding | Location |
| WQFB-LP | 97.3 FM | Surf 97.3 | Flagler Beach, Florida |
| WNCT | 1070 AM | Beach, Boogie, & Blues Radio | Greenville, North Carolina |
| WIKS-HD2 (W266AV) | 101.1 FM | Beach, Boogie, & Blues Radio (Simulcast of WNCT) | Jacksonville, North Carolina |
| WSME (W246CJ) | 1120 AM 97.1 FM | Freedom 97.1 | Jacksonville, North Carolina |
| WKTE | 1090 AM | The Wave | King, North Carolina |
| WDZD-LP | 99.1 FM | The Fun One - Classic Hits & Beach | Monroe, North Carolina |
| WIKS-HD2 (W239BC) | 101.9 FM (HD2) 95.7 FM | Beach, Boogie, & Blues Radio (Simulcast of WNCT) | New Bern, North Carolina |
| WLWL | 770 AM | 770 The Big Wave | Rockingham, North Carolina |
| WIKS-HD2 (W290CB) | 101.9 FM (HD2) 105.9 FM | Beach, Boogie, & Blues Radio (Simulcast of WNCT) | Winterville, North Carolina |
| WPCC (W252BH) | 1410 AM 96.5 FM | Large Time Network | Clinton, South Carolina |
| WRTH-LP | 101.5 FM | Oldies 101.5 | Greenville, South Carolina |
| WVCO | 94.9 FM | 94.9 The Surf | Loris/North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina |
| WFBS-LP | 107.9 FM | Sunny 107.9 | Salem, South Carolina |
