Artist:The Pyramids
Song:Penetration
Album:Hard Rock Cafe: Surf
Not to be confused with the doo wop group of the same name, The Pyramids scored a top 20 pop hit in 1964 with Penetration. Supposedly this was the final surf rock instrumental hit before The British Invasion. The Pyramids formed in 1961. They were students at Poly High School in Long Beach, CA. The members were Skip Mercier on lead guitar, Willie Glover on rhythm guitar, Tom Pitman on sax, Steve Leonard on bass and Ron McMullen on drums. They started playing local clubs. This got them a manager and eventually a deal with London Records. Steve Leonard wrote Penetration. It was on the B-side of the 1963 single Here Comes Marsha. But as sometimes happens, DJs preferred Penetration and flipped it over. It was rereleased as the A-side and Penetration reached #18 on the Billboard Hot 100. This was followed by an album. In his book Surf & Hot Rod Music of the 60s: Collectors Quick Reference, Duane Cozzen claims that Penetration was the final surf instrumental hit before the British Invasion took over the music business. The Pyramids appeared in the 1964 film Bikini Beach starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funichello. You can get Penetration on this Rhino various artists budget CD. Mercier, Glover and Leonard continued to play local clubs. Here's The Pyramids performing Penetration on American Bandstand Mar. 28, 1964. Dick Clark makes a big deal about the band's hairdos.
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