In 1962, they also found a permanent bass player, Bob Reed, and became a frequent attraction on the Twin Cities rock & roll circuit. The Trashmen adopted it as their new guiding sound. Before long, the group parted ways with Thaxter, and began playing dances and teen clubs in Minnesota under a variety of names before they settled on the Trashmen, the handle inspired by a local hit, 'Trashman's Blues' by Kai-Ray.Īs the Trashmen honed their approach and went through a handful of bass players, they fell for the sound of surf music, a new style pioneered by guitarist Dick Dale that was an extension of West Coast surfing culture.

The three landed a gig as part of Jim Thaxter's backing band the Travelers, with Thaxter on bass, Andreason on lead guitar, Winslow on rhythm guitar, and Wahrer on drums. Not long after that, Jann dropped out of the act and Andreason, a teenager whose head was turned by the new rock & roll sounds that were making the charts, began playing with a pair of fellow young rock fans, Dal Winslow and Steve Wahrer. Drusky liked Andreason and Jann's demo disc and spun it on air, giving them their first taste of success. The duo cut a pair of songs, and Roy Drusky, years before he became a successful country singer, was working at a radio station as a disc jockey. On the advice of a friend, they entered a talent contest being held at a local Knights of Columbus hall, and won studio time at a local recording facility. The two were country music fans, and they'd worked up an act where they impersonated Johnny Cash and his guitarist, Luther Perkins. The story of the Trashmen begins in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1955, when close friends Tony Andreason and Mike Jann were learning to play guitar. 1964's Surfin' Bird was the only album they released in their original run, but 2022's The Best of the Trashmen gives a better overview of their career, and 1990's Live Bird '65 – ''s Teen Trot are archival releases that capture how they sounded on-stage in front of an audience. It's also an anomaly in their catalog for the most part, the Trashmen were a surf band in Minnesota, a land of lakes, singing about cool cars and hanging ten over reverb-enhanced guitar lines and a crisp rhythm section.

It was wild in a way few singles were in 1963, and guaranteed the Trashmen a certain immortality it's been a staple in movies, television shows, commercials, and oldies radio shows ever since. Arguably the greatest landlocked surf band of all time, the Trashmen are best remembered for their debut single, 'Surfin' Bird,' a manic blast of primitive garage rock thunder with a crazed, gravel-voiced singer howling 'Papa Oom Mow Mow' over it all.

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