Skip to content
The Tornadoes
artist

The Tornadoes

The Tornadoes is a surf rock artist formed in 1960. 13 releases are catalogued on Riffiter.

Surf Rock · Best surf rock albums

13
Releases
19602023
Active years
1960
Formed

Discography

7Rank them 1 vs 1 →Two covers at a time. Pick the one you rate higher, we build the order.
Bustin' Surfboards cover

Most popular

Bustin' Surfboards

1993 · 15 tracks

Singles & EPs

2

Live & compilations

4

Upcoming shows

All concerts →

Past shows

All past shows →

Community

More about The Tornadoes

About

The Tornadoes were a surf band from Redlands, California, the second band to receive national airplay with a surf instrumental, after The Marketts. The song was "Bustin' Surfboards", released on Aertaun Records in 1962, and it has since become a classic and mainstay of the surf genre. One of its distinctions, and appeals, was that the song opened with the sound of an ocean swell (that continued throughout the song), thereby creating a sense of being at a beach. The album with the same name was released in 1963. The band, however, did not manage to follow up on their success. Their song "Shootin' Beavers" was banned from airplay because of its suggestive title. The band temporarily changed their names to The Hollywood Tornadoes, because the British band the Tornado(e)s, were charting with the song "Telstar".

Read more

"Bustin' Surfboards" was included on the Pulp Fiction soundtrack in 1994, thereby renewing interest in the band. The Tornadoes continued to perform through 2007. Members as of 2007 (including four members of the original band) were brothers Gerald (bass) and Norman "Roly" Sanders (lead guitar), their cousin Jesse Sanders (rhythm guitar), Leonard Delaney (drums) and Joel Willenbring (saxophone). In 2005, they released a CD called Now and Then on the Crossfire Publications label containing 29 tracks, including live recordings from their performance at the Zappanale concert in Germany in 2003, cuts from a 1998 CD and two new recordings. According to the band's website as of November 2008, the band has decided to retire and is no longer touring or performing.

The Tornadoes in brief

How many The Tornadoes releases are on Riffiter?
13 releases are catalogued, spanning 1960 to 2023.
When was The Tornadoes formed?
The Tornadoes formed in 1960.
What genre is The Tornadoes?
The Tornadoes is catalogued under Surf Rock, Rock.
What is the most recent The Tornadoes release on Riffiter?
Please Come Home, released in 2023.

Fans of The Tornadoes also listen to

Name two more and find something you haven’t heard