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10 - 27 - 2014 - The OuterEdge With Merrell Fankhauser
Merrell Fankhauser is one of the most multi-faceted musicians around.
Born in Kentucky, he moved to Southern California as a teenager, and that’s where and when he began playing music. It was the early 60s, the music community was bustling, and Merrell fit right into the picture as ringmaster of the instrumental surf combo, the Impacts. Pioneers of the genre, the band’s solitary album, “Wipe Out!” is a classic of its kind.
The times were a changing though, and so was music, with Merrell adapting quickly to the consistently-shifting sonic sands, leading to Merrell and the Exiles, whose repertoire encompassed everything from British Invasion influenced pop to folk rock to psychedelic innovation. The band cut a trio of singles, along with an album under the moniker of Fapadokly, and it was during this period that Merrell transformed into the grand guitar king that has sealed his reputation tight.
Before the ’60s drew to an end, Merrell fronted HMS Bounty, whose lone album Things collected stellar reviews and comparisons to the Byrds and Buffalo Springfield.
Come 1970, Merrell put together MU with Jeff Cotton from the Captain Beefheart Band, and relocated to Hawaii shortly thereafter. The band, which focused mainly on instrumentals, sired a series of spellbinding efforts covering folk, blues, acid rock, hard rock, progressive rock, pop and tropical sounds. Positive responses were plenty, and such discs have been reissued for new generations to cherish.
Collaborations with a mob of different musicians, including John Cippolina of Quicksilver Messenger Service, Ed Cassidy and Jay Ferguson of Spirit, piano legend Nicky Hopkins, Dean Torrence of Jan and Dean, Louis Ortega of the Texas Tornados, and Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits (to name all but a few famed faces) additionally appear on Merrell’s thick resume. Merrell has also hosted radio and TV shows, and recently completed his autobiography.
As active today as he has ever been, Merrell continues to produce stunning records exposing his forte for not only stroking a mean and melodic guitar, but for composing material that’s memorable, fascinating, colorful, and steeped in his own unique style. Merrell is an international treasure, and has a widespread and devoted fan base to prove such a statement. Be it surf instrumentals, smoky blues, acid-fried blues, exotica, ringing folk rock, psychedelic magic, heavy rock, country twang, or radio-friendly pop, Merrell is the guy to go to for ear-pleasing results.
Merrell has been interested in UFOs since he was young. His father was a flight instructor and believed that we were not alone in the universe. Merrell hopes that someday there will be communication with aliens. He says that if he ever meets an alien, he would greet them with peaceful open arms: Welcome, space brothers — let’s talk!
merrellrockinsurfin-small
Please join us on Sunday Night, October 26th, 2014
Midnight EST / 9 pm PST
Call-in number: 786-245-8127
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/theouteredgeradio
Go to psn-radio.com to chat live in our chatroom during the show.
View all episodes
Merrell Fankhauser is one of the most multi-faceted musicians around.
Born in Kentucky, he moved to Southern California as a teenager, and that’s where and when he began playing music. It was the early 60s, the music community was bustling, and Merrell fit right into the picture as ringmaster of the instrumental surf combo, the Impacts. Pioneers of the genre, the band’s solitary album, “Wipe Out!” is a classic of its kind.
The times were a changing though, and so was music, with Merrell adapting quickly to the consistently-shifting sonic sands, leading to Merrell and the Exiles, whose repertoire encompassed everything from British Invasion influenced pop to folk rock to psychedelic innovation. The band cut a trio of singles, along with an album under the moniker of Fapadokly, and it was during this period that Merrell transformed into the grand guitar king that has sealed his reputation tight.
Before the ’60s drew to an end, Merrell fronted HMS Bounty, whose lone album Things collected stellar reviews and comparisons to the Byrds and Buffalo Springfield.
Come 1970, Merrell put together MU with Jeff Cotton from the Captain Beefheart Band, and relocated to Hawaii shortly thereafter. The band, which focused mainly on instrumentals, sired a series of spellbinding efforts covering folk, blues, acid rock, hard rock, progressive rock, pop and tropical sounds. Positive responses were plenty, and such discs have been reissued for new generations to cherish.
Collaborations with a mob of different musicians, including John Cippolina of Quicksilver Messenger Service, Ed Cassidy and Jay Ferguson of Spirit, piano legend Nicky Hopkins, Dean Torrence of Jan and Dean, Louis Ortega of the Texas Tornados, and Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits (to name all but a few famed faces) additionally appear on Merrell’s thick resume. Merrell has also hosted radio and TV shows, and recently completed his autobiography.
As active today as he has ever been, Merrell continues to produce stunning records exposing his forte for not only stroking a mean and melodic guitar, but for composing material that’s memorable, fascinating, colorful, and steeped in his own unique style. Merrell is an international treasure, and has a widespread and devoted fan base to prove such a statement. Be it surf instrumentals, smoky blues, acid-fried blues, exotica, ringing folk rock, psychedelic magic, heavy rock, country twang, or radio-friendly pop, Merrell is the guy to go to for ear-pleasing results.
Merrell has been interested in UFOs since he was young. His father was a flight instructor and believed that we were not alone in the universe. Merrell hopes that someday there will be communication with aliens. He says that if he ever meets an alien, he would greet them with peaceful open arms: Welcome, space brothers — let’s talk!
merrellrockinsurfin-small
Please join us on Sunday Night, October 26th, 2014
Midnight EST / 9 pm PST
Call-in number: 786-245-8127
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/theouteredgeradio
Go to psn-radio.com to chat live in our chatroom during the show.