Do you find the idea of surfing music in countries that were under the influence of the Soviet Union a bit strange? Me, too.
Although there are some fine instrumental sounds, recorded from 1963-66, to be heard on this CD released in 1997, the surfing influence isn't the strongest one on display. Most of the groups seem to be influenced by The Ventures (U.S) or The Shadows (U.K.), neither of which can be described as a surfing band.
The title of this album is also misleading on another front: Only about half the bands are actually from behind the so-called Iron Curtain. The rest are from West Germany, Japan, Italy, Holland and the U.K. Among them were The Capras, a West German outfit that was mainly a vocal group. Beginning of Autumn appears to be their only instrumental, which you can sample below.
Beginning of Autumn
Planetary Pebbles, Vol. 1: Surfbeat Behind the Iron Curtain is readily available from most of the major online merchants. The cheapest prices appear to be in the Amazon Marketplace. Be aware that all this stuff was dubbed from vinyl and surface noise is quite noticeable on some tracks.
Three volumes of the Planetary Pebbles series were released. Here's a video sample from Vol. 3, an East German group, Satelliten, playing something called Scary Night.
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