The fourth studio album from the Ventures, 1961's Colorful Ventures was the first in a long line of releases the band built around album title themes. Here the theme is colors, and so listeners get such songs as "Blue Moon," "Yellow Jacket," "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White," and so on. Conceptual themes aside, the album featured more of the group's recognizable instrumental rock & roll, surf rock, and country twang.

Not the first but definitely the most popular rock instrumental combo, the Ventures scored several hit singles during the 1960s – most notably "Walk-Don't Run" and "Hawaii Five-O" – but made their name in the growing album market, covering hits of the day and organizing thematically linked LPs. Almost 40 Ventures' albums charted, and 17 hit the Top 40. And though the group's popularity in America virtually disappeared by the 1970s, their enormous contribution to pop culture was far from over; the Ventures soon became one of the most popular world-wide groups, with dozens of albums recorded especially for the Japanese and European markets.

The Ventures are an American instrumental rock band, formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington, by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle. The band, a quartet for most of its existence, helped to popularize the electric guitar in the United States and across the world during the 1960s. Their first wide-release single, "Walk, Don't Run", brought international fame to the group, and is often cited as one of the top songs ever recorded for guitar. In the 1960s and early 1970s, 38 of the band's albums charted in the US, ranking them as the 6th best album chart performer during the 1960s, and the band had 14 singles in the Billboard Hot 100. With over 100 million records sold, the Ventures are the best-selling instrumental band of all time.

As one of the foremost instrumental surf rock bands of their day, the Ventures produced what seemed like endless collections of standard tunes in their unique beachy style. Originally released in 1963, The Ventures Play Telstar, The Lonely Bull is one of the band's more recognizable titles. Covering a vast array of early-'60s hit paraders, the album is kicked off by a rival surf band's huge hit. "Telstar" was a hit earlier that same year in a much wobblier Joe Meek-produced version by interstellar outliers the Tornados. Taking on a few Latin-tinged easy listening numbers made famous by Herb Alpert as well as Booker T. & the MG's' soul groover "Green Onions," the record hits these numbers with a varied degree of inspiration. Despite a somewhat wooden performance on many of the tracks, the hard-panned stereo production makes for a very big sound…

The Fabulous Ventures (1964). Originally issued on Dolton in 1964, The Fabulous Ventures combined six original compositions including the single "Journey to the Stars" and "Walking with Pluto," which sound like outtakes from The Ventures in Space LP released a few months earlier. Also included are six cover versions of popular songs from the era including "Needles and Pins," "The Cruel Sea," "Tall Cool One," "Only the Young," "Fugitive," and "The Pink Panther Theme." In general the Ventures' albums have stood the test of time and hold together well, especially the ones that follow a particular theme. While the playing time on this disc is only 28 minutes in length, in the case of many Ventures' albums, less is more…

Rhino closes its five-volume rock instrumentals series with an 18-track outing devoted to surf guitar. This fast-paced, prickly, and frequently exciting form may not be among the most diversified structurally, but if does offer some surging playing from its practitioners. They range from founding father Dick Dale to its most popular bands, the Surfaris, Belairs, Ventures, and Chantays. While not particularly a hardcore surf collection, this disc certainly outlines its virtues, and the tunes were long enough to display guitar proficiency, but short enough to prevent self-indulgence and repetition.

The Ventures are an American instrumental rock band formed in 1958 in Tacoma, Washington. Founded by Don Wilson and Bob Bogle, the group in its various incarnations has had an enduring impact on the development of music worldwide. With over 100 million records sold, the group is the best-selling instrumental band of all time. In 2008, the Ventures were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Their instrumental virtuosity, experimentation with guitar effects, and unique sound laid the groundwork for innumerable groups, earning them the moniker "The Band that Launched a Thousand Bands". While their popularity in the United States waned in the 1970s, the group remains revered in Japan, where they tour regularly to this day.

American rock ‘n’ roll icon The Ventures return with the first all-new studio album in 24 years! With the fresh New Space LP they seek to echo and pay homage to 1964’s (The) Ventures In Space, one of their biggest-selling and most popular albums of all time. Although with a different line-up than sixty years ago, Bob Spalding (lead guitar), Ian Spalding (rhythm guitar), Luke Griffin (bass) and Leon Taylor (drums) succeed well in similarly merging instrumental surf pop and space rock into twelve fascinating cinematic pieces. Melodic originals and fitting covers – Fly Me to the Moon (written by Bart Howard, popularized by Frank Sinatra) and Vibrations and Eleventh Hour (by the founders of The Ventures) – make this a welcome return.

Over the course of several '60s albums on the Liberty subsidiary, Dolton, the Ventures became the most popular instrumental combo in the U.S.; they would later go on to international fame in the '70s and '80s as pop icons in Japan and Europe. Staying consistent with other globally appealing theme albums like The Ventures' Beach Party and Super Psychedelics, the band opt for a mod, go-go spin on 1966's Wild Things! Along with high-profile covers like "Wild Thing," "Summer in the City," and "The Work Song," some respectable originals like "Wild Trip," and "Fuzzy and Wild" are also included. With the aid of their fuzztone- friendly Mosrite guitars, the group keep things sufficiently grainy and hard-edged throughout; the occasional Farfisa organ, Peter Lorre impersonation ("Wild Thing"), and Martin Denny exotica flourish help balance out the mix. Later released on a See For Miles' two-fer with the Guitar Freakout album, Wild Things! might not compare to classic early releases like Surfing and In Space, but it still is a good bet for die-hard Ventures fans.