Ventures, The

Durable surf band from Tacoma, Washington; formed in 1959 by guitarists Bob Bogle and Don Wilson and described by Rolling Stone as the "first, best, most lasting, and influential of instrumental guitar-based rock combos." The original Ventures' demo, a twangy pre-surf-sound cover of jazz guitarist Johnny Smith's "Walk Don't Run," was a #2 hit in 1960, and was followed by a string of hot-selling albums and singles, including a surfed-up "wetter" version of "Walk Don't Run" in 1964 and the them...