Spring 1963: A year after forming, the Trashmen road-trip to California and come back as surf-rockers. Summer 1963: Drummer Steve Wahrer improvises an early version of "Surfin' Bird" at Chubb's ...

Everybody’s heard about the bird, the catchy and weird “Surfin’ Bird,” released on this day in 1963 by the Twin Cities garage band the Trashmen. The Trashmen had been a decent cover band when they ...

“Surfin’ Bird” could have been one of the most annoying and forgettable novelty tunes in the history of rock ‘n’ roll music. Instead, it became the No. 1 hit in Minnesota in early 1964, and made it to ...

Who doesn’t love a little “Surfin’ Bird”? The 1963 surf rock anthem from The Trashmen was a huge hit when it was first released. It climbed to no. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that very year. The ...

Dick Clark smugly asked those words in 1964 at the end of what has to be one of the strangest "American Bandstand" performances in the show's 47-year history. He clearly didn't expect Minnesota's ...