Search - Sunrays :: Tower Recordings

Great Surf Music...Not quite early Beach Boys, but close

S. R. Schauer | San Jose, CA USA | 07/06/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Murry Wilson promoted this Southern California Surf band after the Beach Boys (with his 3 sons Brian, Carl, and Dennis) went thier own road, and were able to produce, write, and perform music the way that they wanted. Murry, although he helped get them in the door of the music business, wanted more controll on the group than they wanted.To make a long story short, Murry decided that if the Beach Boys didn't want him, he'd create is own "Beach Boys" and promote them. That's what he did with a group that came to be known as "The Sunrays".Apparently one of the lead singers (Rick Henn) had already written a song called "I Live For The Sun" before the group got it's name. They recorded a full album for Tower records (a sub-division of Capitol records), and recorded the album itself (titled "Andrea") in the Capitol Records building in Hollywood. They released a single ahead of that (both sides penned and produced by Murry Wilson), called "Car Party" and "Outta Gas", but it was "I Live For The Sun" and "Andrea" that would become their best known songs. The rest of the album has more songs by Rick Henn, as well as other original compositions by various band members.They never got national airplay (or very little), and only played small clubs, appeared on TV on "Shindig" once, and once opened for the Beach Boys (ironic huh?). But at least in Southern California and surrounding areas, they were well known (and probably more so now, as they were mentioned in the recent Beach Boys TV movie). After "Andrea" was released at the end of 1965, they recorded a few more singles, then kind of faded away.On the technical side...the entire "Andrea" LP is included on this disc in stereo. The fidelity and sound is fantastic. I own the original LP (in MONO though), and the CD sounds just as good, possibly better. Also included on this CD is thier first Tower single "Car Party/Outta Gas", and a handful of post-Andrea singles. The singles are in MONO, but the LP cuts are in STEREO.Without soundclips here, if you haven't heard their music before, it's very reminiscent of early Beach Boys records; good harmony, some falsetto singing, and some horns mixed in with the songs. Just straight forward goodtimes surfing/beach style songs.The LP cuts were produced by Murry Wilson and Don Ralke. Don Ralke arranged some of the tracks on that album, and Hiam King arranged the others.I know it's just another person's opinion (mine), but I hope this review helps. It's not only a valuable and historic set of recordings, but they're very good too!"

Beach Boys knock-off & California sunshine pop

hyperbolium | Earth, USA | 12/26/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"After being dismissed from the Beach Boys' team, Wilson-clan father Murry set out to recreate some of the sunshine magic he'd helped market with his sons' band. The new quintet included schoolmates of Carl Wilson and featured singer/songwriter Rick Henn as the group's leader. Murry's connections swung a record deal with the Capitol subsidiary Tower, and after a misfiring single that paired two of the elder Wilson's car songs ("Outta Gas" b/w "Car Party"), the group hit locally in 1965 with the Henn-written "I Live for the Sun," charting at #51. The follow-up (also by Henn), "Andrea," faired slightly better, just missing the top-40 the following year. A self-titled LP for Tower (including only one more sappy Murry Wilson tune, "Bye Bye Baby") and a few singles generated little commercial interest, with the side "Still" grazing the bottom of the top-100 in 1966.



The group's harmonies, particularly on their first single, were clearly inspired by The Beach Boys. But the soaring falsetto of "I Look Baby - I Can't See" is closer to New York groups like The Tokens, and the lush harmonies on many tracks suggest the vocal arrangements of The Association. There is some great West Coast sunshine pop here, with the multipart vocals supplemented by horn charts and swinging dance beats. The band recorded at top-notch facilities United Western and Goldstar with engineering by Chuck Britz and Stan Ross, and the high quality results can be heard in Collectables crisp stereo reissue (mono on 1-2, 15-16, and 18-21). Tracks 3-14 constitute the group's LP (though "I Live for the Sun" is moved from its original seventh spot to the top of the order to reflect its pre-LP release). Tracks 15-21 are assorted singles, and the remaining six bonus tracks include a TV mix of "I Live for the Sun," new half-and-half mixes (instrumental, with vocals kicking in mid-song) of "Andrea" "Jo Ann" and "You Don't Phase Me," and the backing track for "Don't Take Yourself Too Seriously."



This collection is plenty generous for anyone who wants a solid helping of the group's commercial output. Mark Marymount's liner notes are typically Collectables-lite, providing an overview that spends an inordinate amount of words on Murry Wilson and little detail on the creation or background of these tracks. Anyone who needs the research version of the Sunrays history should look for the out-of-print "Vintage Rays" 3-CD set. [©2005 hyperbolium dot com]"

Cool Little Gem for Beach Boys/California Sound Fans

Joseph M. Davis | Boston, MA USA | 07/28/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Sunrays of course were never as great as The Beach Boys. A Brian Wilson comes along once in an eternity. But Brian, Dennis and Carl's dad Murray did have some musical talent of his own in spite of his infamy. I have never listened to his lounge record (The Many Moods of Murray Wilson), but I did listen to this after reading Timothy White's "The Nearest Faraway Place" and Jon Stebbin's "The Lost Beach Boy" and I was pleasantly surprised. This cd is worth it for Andrea and especially for I Live For The Sun. Still was apparently another hit. I am at the point where I have already bought every available Beach Boys album except maybe 10 Years of Harmony and rarities like Dennis Wilson's Pacific Ocean Blue- both out of print. If you like this I would reccomend checking out Jeffrey Foskett's work as well. He does a great cover of I Live For the Sun. The 2 star review on here complains that The Sunrays sound a little like The Association. I wouldn't consider that a negative. The Association were a phenominal vocal group and hit pop perfection with Cherish, Never My Love and Windy."