Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Dick Dale & The Del-Tones: Misirlou

It is said that a young fan challenged Dick Dale, the king of the surf guitar, that he couldn’t play a song only one string of his guitar. Being half Lebanese, Dale had seen his relatives play the Turkish song “Misirlou” on one string of an Oud. So, as the story goes, Dick cranked up the tempo and made this Middle Eastern classic a classic surf-rock tune. It appears that he actually uses two strings – the low and hi Es.


The song was recorded by Dick Dale and his Del-Tones in 1962 and modern fans will remember the one string tune as the theme to Quentin Tarantino’s “Pulp Fiction.” Dale, the left handed sultan of surf and faqir of the Fender Strat, brought this song to a rock crowd, while others paved the way for its inclusion as a standard in Greek rebetiko, klezmar, jazz, and exotica musical circles. But for today, it is our Tasty Licks Tuesday recording.



Live Version from “A Swinging Affair”








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