The AdVentures is an instrumental band from Syracuse, NY. We are a tribute band for The Ventures, the world’s #1 instrumental group. The sound of The Ventures was far and above the best in our opinion for instrumental guitar music. The quality of their recordings and their outstanding musicianship put them in a class by themselves. This helped contribute to their success and longevity. Our goal is to sound as much like The Ventures as possible, covering many of their tunes as well as other artists, most notably Nokie Edwards, who was the lead guitarist of The Ventures for many years. The Ventures have been recording and performing since 1959. They still record and tour to this day. They have recorded over 250 albums/CDs, and have sold more than 110 million copies. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008. Nokie Edwards was their lead guitar player for many years. He is among the best, most copied, and most respected guitarists in the world. Nokie continues to record and tour world wide. This CD is simply a collection of songs we like, and includes movie themes, old Ventures’ hits, and songs from some of newer Ventures’, Nokie Edwards’, and Los Straitjackets’ recordings. We hope you enjoy. The AdVentures are: Byron Tietjen – Lead Guitar Fran Daher – Bass Guitar Mark Tietjen – Keyboards Kurt Schmidt – Rhythm Guitar Ed McBarron – Drums Track Notes: Slaughter on 10th Avenue (written by Richard Rogers) This was originally a Broadway number from Rodgers and Hart's 1936 Broadway musical comedy On Your Toes. Nokie Edwards re-arranged this song with a driving beat and it became a hit for The Ventures in the 1960’s. This was the basis for our version. A Hitchhiker guitar, designed by Nokie Edwards, was used for the lead. Ginza Lights (written by The Ventures - Bogle, Edwards, Taylor, Wilson) This song can be found on the “Go With The Ventures” album from the mid-1960’s. Written by Nokie Edwards of The Ventures, this song became one of the all time greatest songs in Japan. “Go with the Ventures” is a great album, featuring the sound of Mosrite guitars. A 1960’s original Mosrite guitar was used on the lead here as well. Diamond Head (written by Danny Hamilton) This song is based on The Ventures’ version found on their excellent Walk, Don’t Run ’64 album. A Hitchhiker guitar was used for the lead. Spanish Harlem (written by Jerry Leiber & Phil Spector) This piece is based on Nokie Edward’s rendition on his Nokie Plays Latin album released in 2014. This was so well done we felt we could not have improved on it, so we basically played Nokie’s version - and added some bongos! Added acoustic guitar was supplied by Kurt Schmidt. If you want to hear an excellent CD played by one of the great masters of the guitar, listen to Nokie Edwards’ Latin Album (available from his website). A Hitchhiker guitar was used for the lead. You Only Live Twice (written by John Barry) We wanted to do a James Bond song, so we included this tune based on The Ventures’ version found on their “Your Hit Parade 60’s” album released in 2003. A Hitchhiker guitar was used for the lead. Theme from Magnificent 7 (written by Elmer Bernstein) We heard the Los Straitjackets’’ version of this song from their Play Favorites CD. A very catchy and popular western song. We also used some of The Charades arrangement, which can be found on their Wild Cards CD. The Charades’ CD had Bob Bogle and Don Wilson of The Ventures as guest artists. A Wilson Bros Ventures’ Model USA Custom guitar was used for the lead. Peace Pipe (written by Norman Paramor) This song appeared on The Ventures’ Last Album on Liberty album, and is the one on which we based our version. It was also recorded by The Shadows, the great instrumental group from England. This is a very pleasant song that we enjoyed recording. Very smooth bass guitar here from Fran Daher. For the lead, a Wilson Bros Ventures’ Model USA Custom guitar was used. It Doesn’t Matter Anymore (written by Paul Anka) Made popular by Buddy Holly, this song was written by Paul Anka. Also recently recorded by Nokie Edwards, our version is a simplified version of Nokie’s instrumental arrangement of this great vocal tune. We added a piano, played nicely by Mark Tietjen. An acoustic rhythm guitar was also added by Kurt Schmidt. Nokie’s recording of this can be found on his new album which pays tribute to the late great Buddy Holly. The lead was played on a Hitchhiker guitar. Driving Guitars (written by The Ventures - Bogle, Edwards, Wilson) A great song by The Ventures, we based this on their original version on the Twist with The Ventures album from the early 1960’s. We added a piano part by Mark Tietjen to add a little something extra. Very nice drumming by Ed McBarron. The lead was played with a Wilson Bros Ventures’ Model USA Custom guitar. Tsunami (written by Paul Johnson) We enjoyed this song by Paul Johnson and wanted to record it. The Ventures never recorded this song, so it would have to be placed in the category of “Songs The Ventures never did, but should have”. We wanted to capture the driving sound laid down by Paul Johnson, and hope we succeeded. Once again strong drumming here by Ed McBarron. Dom Scicchiyano also added some percussion for the bridges. A Wilson Bros Ventures’ Model USA Custom guitar was used for the leads on this song. Out of Limits (written by Michael Z Gordon) The Ventures recorded this song on their great “In Space” album, which is considered one of their very best, and one which was ahead of its time in terms of sound effects. We based our recording on the more simple version by The Marketts, who originally recorded this song. A very good rhythm guitar by Kurt Schmidt on this number. The lead was played on a Wilson Bros Ventures’ Model USA Custom guitar. Tell’em I’m Surfin’ (written by P.F. Sloan & Steve Barri) Performed as a vocal in 1964 by The Fantastic Baggys (Baggies), this song was recorded recently by The Ventures as an instrumental on their Sounds of Summer CD in 2014. A catchy, strong surf song that we liked. The lead was played on a Wilson Bros Ventures’ Model USA Custom guitar. Theme from The Endless Summer (written by Gaston Georis and John Blakeley) A 1960’s surf classic by the Sandals from the movie by the same name. The Ventures also recorded this song, and it is on what we based our version. We basically extended The Ventures’ version and added a riff from the Sandals version at the end. A very pleasant piece. We tried to sound as close to The Ventures version as possible on this one, as they did a beautiful rendition of this song. A very nice sounding bass here by Fran Daher. Dom Scicchiyano also added percussion. The lead here was played on a Wilson Bros Ventures’ Model USA Custom guitar. Under the Boardwalk (featuring Nokie Edwards on lead) (written by Kenny Young and Arthur Resnick) A great tune from The Drifters back in the 1960’s, we decided to do a mainly instrumental version, with some backing vocals provided by Ed McBarron and Fran Daher. Acoustic rhythm guitar was provided by James Daher. Nokie Edwards was kind enough to play the lead for us on this with his Hitchhiker guitar. The lead by Nokie was recorded at Mark Moseley’s Sound Control Studio in Nashville, TN. We wish to thank Mark for taking the time to help us with recording Nokie on this track. Mark and Nokie provided us with an awesome and much appreciated experience! This CD was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Ron Keck of Subcat Studios, Syracuse, NY/subcat.net Nokie Edwards’ lead guitar for Under the Board walk was recorded at Mark Moseley’s Sound Control Studio in Nashville, TN. Graphic Design & Layout by Amanda Rogers / amandaspiano.com Photo of the band by Juan Junco and Sandy Roe Added percussion provided by Ron Keck and Dom Scicchiyano A Fender Twin Reissue amplifier was used for all lead guitar parts.