| "Surfin' U.S.A." | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by the Beach Boys | ||||
| from the album Surfin' U.S.A. | ||||
| B-side | "Shut Down" | |||
| Released | March 4, 1963 | |||
| Recorded | January 5, 1963 | |||
| Studio | United Western (Hollywood, California) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:29 | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Nick Venet | |||
| The Beach Boys singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Surfin' U.S.A." is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys, credited to Chuck Berry and Brian Wilson. It is a rewritten version of Berry's "Sweet Little Sixteen" set to new lyrics written by Wilson and an uncredited Mike Love. The song was released as a single on March 4, 1963, backed with "Shut Down". It was then placed as the opening track on their album of the same name.
The single peaked at number two on the chart of the Music Vendor trade paper (within a year renamed Record World) and at number three on the Billboard and Cash Box charts. Billboard ranked "Surfin' U.S.A." the number 1 song of 1963.[1] It has since become emblematic of the California Sound, and the song's depiction of California is emblematic of the genre. Professor Dale Carter notes that the Beach Boys' lyrics depict them as “enjoying all the material benefits of the promised land (typified by southern California) … liberty and security are accommodated at drive-in and drag strip, on surf board and in T-Bird, from hamburger stand to beach party...".[2] This theme is present in "Surfin' U.S.A," as well as other Beach Boys' songs.
The song "Surfin' U.S.A." is part of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list.[3]
- ^ "Top Records of 1963", Billboard, Section II, December 28, 1963. p. 30. Retrieved October 16, 2018.
- ^ Carter, Dale (September 2, 2021). "Band of the Free: The Beach Boys as an American National Interest". Rock Music Studies. 8 (3): 187–204. doi:10.1080/19401159.2021.1983985. ISSN 1940-1159. S2CID 239604025.
- ^ "500 Songs That Shaped Rock". Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Retrieved November 15, 2014.