Not a surf record as you might expect from the group's name but a tasty slice of Detroit instrumental soul from 1966.
Very little is known about the group, which recorded a half dozen or so singles for at least four labels. Credits on the record labels indicate the involvement of Buffalo, N.Y., DJ and record man Tom Shannon and Carl Cisco, who had both relocated to Detroit and were associated with another Swan recording group, the Rockin' Rebels (Wild Weekend). For further information (and some well-informed speculation) on the Buena Vistas read this post on the excellent Funky 16 Corners blog.
Hot Shot came out in May 1966 and was a minor hit on both the Billboard (#87) and Cashbox (#82) charts.
Hot Shot
The flip side of the single was T.N.T., an organ driven number that reminds me somewhat of Dave (Baby) Cortez (The Happy Organ, Rinky-Dink).
Both sides of this single are being peddled as downloads from all the major sources, but I'd be willing to bet they've been dubbed from vinyl.
Hot Shot is also included on the 1996 CD compilation Swan's Soul Sides: Dance the Philly from the highly-regarded Ace label in the U.K. It's available at a reasonable price from Amazon and other online sellers.
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