The Centurians were an

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...

surf rock band started by Dennis Rose from Newport Beach, California. They were active in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Their music has been used in at least two films. They reformed as The Centurions in 1995 and released new material.

Background

The group originated from Costa Mesa, California, they were a septet. In recent times, they are best known for their recording "Bullwinkle Part II", a dark and saxy surf tune from their album ''Surfers' Pajama Party''. This tune is featured in the 1994 film ''

Pulp Fiction ''Pulp Fiction'' is a 1994 American crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, who conceived it with Roger Avary.See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; ; Starring John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth, Vin ...

''. The song was used to highlight a scene. It was also used in an episode of the TV show '' How I Met Your Mother'' entitled " Girls Versus Suits". Less well known is their cover of the classic song "Intoxica" a twangy and upbeat surf instrumental originally by

The Revels ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

, used in the 1972 film ''

Pink Flamingos ''Pink Flamingos'' is a 1972 American film directed, written, produced, narrated, filmed, and edited by John Waters. It is part of what Waters has labelled the "Trash Trilogy", which also includes '' Female Trouble'' (1974) and '' Desperate Liv ...

''.

Career

1960s

In 1963, their line-up consisted of Pat Gagnebin, Ken Robinson, Dennis Rose, Joe Dominic, Dennis Kiklas, Ernie Furrow, and Jeff Lear. When they released their album on Del-Fi records in 1963, its cover was identical (as well as catalog number) to

Bruce Johnston Bruce Arthur Johnston (born Benjamin Baldwin; June 27, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who is a member of the Beach Boys. Johnston also collaborated on many records with Terry Melcher (his bandmate in Bru ...

's release, hence the title "''Surfers' Pajama Party''" – which was not the name The Centurians had in mind. Their name was changed from ''The Centurions'' to ''The Centurians'' sometime after 1967 due to legal reasons. In 1966, some of the music they recorded, along with music by Dave Meyers and the Surf Tones and The Sentinels was involved in legal action by Al Schlesinger against the

Del-Fi Records Del-Fi Records was an American record label based in Hollywood, California and owned by Bob Keane. The label's first single released was "Caravan" by Henri Rose released in 1958, but the label was most famous for signing Ritchie Valens. Valens' fi ...

label. Schlesinger was representing Anthony Music and its principal shareholder

Anthony Hilder Anthony J. Hilder (1935 - April 26, 2019) was an American author, film maker, talk show host, broadcaster, news correspondent and former actor. In the late 1950s to the mid-1960s he was also a record producer, producing music mainly in the sur ...

in an action pursuing $122,000 over royalties not being paid as per an alleged agreement for the masters of albums and another album, ''Battle of the Surf Bands''.

Later years

In June 1995 Dennis Rose reformed the group as "The Centurions" with Dennis Rose (guitar), David Jobes (drums), Charly Grey-Son (bass), Perris Alexander (keyboards),

Norman Knowles Norman Knowles is a surf musician, band leader, and record producer from California. He is the composer of several classic surf songs, including as co-writer of the surf classic "Church Key", which was a hit for The Revels. He also has been invol ...

(tenor sax) and Dennis Rehders (tenor and baritone sax). They recorded a new album called ''Bullwinkle Part III'' produced by Dennis Rose and Perris Alexander. In August 1995 the group performed a concert at ''Pierfest'' in Huntington Beach.Perris Alexander �
Jul 4, 2016
/ref>

Original members

Legacy

The song "Bullwinkle Part II" was used in the 1994 film

and features on the soundtrack album. The film's success led to the band's reunion. In 1999 "Bullwinkle Part II" was covered by

Elliot Easton Elliot Easton (born Elliot Steinberg, December 18, 1953) is an American guitarist. He played lead guitar and sang backing vocals for The Cars, and his guitar solos are an integral part of the band's music. Easton has also recorded music as a so ...

's Tiki Gods on the Del-Fi tribute compilation "Delfonic Sounds Today!".

Discography

References

External links

*
Myspace: The Centurions
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Centurians, The Surf music groups Sextets Septets Musical groups from Orange County, California Del-Fi Records artists