The Trashmen The Best Of The Trashmen (LP, colored Vinyl)

(Sundazed) 16 tracks, colored vinyl in clear orange.

The defining moment in The Trashmen's lightning career is surely the release of their ultimate uber-hit Surfin' Bird from 1963.

It's their first true studio recording, capturing the group's immense energy and masterful live performance. But it is also the culmination of the spirit and experimentation that made them something new and, from the perspective of 50 years, unique. This collection shows them as a top-notch surf band, a great proto-punk outfit, solid rockers with the raw essence of the sound's earliest founders, and savvy enough to throw in some comedy and country as well. That range of skills and interests is probably the true basis for the band's current following.

But "Surfin' Bird" has more toughness than the entire catalogs of other bands, some of which are better, and with this track The Trashmen have created a work that is arguably the most relevant release from this storied decade today.