Guitar Beat is the debut album by neo-surf combo

Musical ensemble

A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...

 the Raybeats

Raybeats

The Raybeats were an instrumental neo-surf rock combo from New York City that arose from the No Wave musical scene. The original line-up consisted of Don Christensen , Jody Harris , Pat Irwin , and George Scott III .- History :The Raybeats formed in 1979, brought together by George Scott...

. It was produced by Martin Rushent

Martin Rushent

Martin Rushent was an English record producer, best known for his work with The Human League, The Stranglers and The Buzzcocks.- Early life :Rushent was born on 11 July 1948 in Enfield, Middlesex. His father was a car salesman...

. The album features ten original instrumentals

Instrumental

An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....

, plus a Jan and Dean

Jan and Dean

Jan and Dean were a rock and roll duo, popular from the late 1950s through the mid 1960s, consisting of William Jan Berry and Dean Ormsby Torrence...

 cover.

In tongue-in-cheek

Tongue-in-cheek

Tongue-in-cheek is a phrase used as a figure of speech to imply that a statement or other production is humorously intended and it should not be taken at face value. The facial expression typically indicates that one is joking or making a mental effort. In the past, it may also have indicated...

 fashion, the original LP sleeve characterized the first side as the "listless, spotty & wasteful side" and the second as the "brave, clean & reverent side". The record sleeve

Record sleeve

A record sleeve is the outer covering of a vinyl recording. The sleeve is technically the paper covering that is closest in contact to the surface of the recording, as in "dust sleeve", "liner" and "album liner". The term has come to be synonymous with "record jacket" and "album jacket", which is...

 also featured on the front a hand-colored photo

Hand-colouring

Hand-colouring refers to any method of manually adding colour to a black-and-white photograph, generally either to heighten the realism of the photograph or for artistic purposes...

 of the band by photographer Laura Levine.

Track listing

All compositions by Pat Irwin

Pat Irwin

Pat Irwin is an American composer and musician, who was a founding member of a number of groups that grew out of New York City's No Wave scene in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including 8-Eyed Spy and Raybeats. He has composed the scores for numerous films and cartoons...

, Jody Harris

Jody Harris

Jody Harris is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and composer who was born in Kansas and became a central figure in the seminal No Wave scene in New York City in the 1970s.-Career history:...

, Don Christensen and George Scott III except as indicated.

Side one

1. "Tight Turn"
2. "Big Black Sneakers"
3. "Tone Zone"
4. "The Backstroke" (Irwin, Harris, Christensen)
5. "B-Gas Rickshaw" (Jan Berry)
6. "International Operator"

Side two

1. "Searching"
2. "The Calhoun Surf" (Danny Amis)
3. "Piranha Salad"
4. "Cocktails" (Irwin, Harris, Christensen)
5. "Guitar Beat" (Irwin, Harris, Scott, Amis)

Personnel

• Jody Harris
  Jody Harris
  Jody Harris is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and composer who was born in Kansas and became a central figure in the seminal No Wave scene in New York City in the 1970s.-Career history:...
  
   - electric guitar
  Electric guitar
  An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
  
  
• Danny Amis - bass
  Bass guitar
  The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
  
  , guitar
• Pat Irwin
  Pat Irwin
  Pat Irwin is an American composer and musician, who was a founding member of a number of groups that grew out of New York City's No Wave scene in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including 8-Eyed Spy and Raybeats. He has composed the scores for numerous films and cartoons...
  
   - alto saxophone
  Alto saxophone
  The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in 1841. It is smaller than the tenor but larger than the soprano, and is the type most used in classical compositions...
  
  , organ
  Organ (music)
  The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
  
  , guitar
• Don Christensen - drums