Jan & Dean Sidewalk Surfin'
Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me... Don't be afraid to try the newest sport around (Bust your buns, bust your buns now) It's catchin' on in every city and town You can do the tricks the surfers do, just try a "Quasimodo" or "The Coffin" too (why don't you) Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me... You'll probably wipeout when you first try to shoot the curve (Bust your buns, bust your buns now) Takin' gas in a bush takes a lotta nerve... Those hopscotch poledads and pedestrians, too, will bug ya... Shout "Cuyabunga!" now and skate right on through (why don't you) Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me... You can do the tricks the surfers do, just try a "Quasimodo" or "The Coffin" too (why don't you) Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me... So get your girl and take her tandem down the street (Bust your buns, bust your buns now) Then she'll know you're an asphalt athlete. A downhill grade, man, will give you a kick, But if the sidewalk's cracked, ya better pull out quick (why don't you) Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me... (Skateboard with me, why don't you skateboard me?) Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me... (Skateboard with me, why don't you skateboard me?) Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me... (Skateboard with me, why don't you skateboard me?) Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me... (Skateboard with me, why don't you skateboard me?) Grab your board and go sidewalk surfin' with me...(FADE OUT) --- A couple of notes (from [email protected]): This song uses some words, slang and phrases that were popular with surfers back when the song was a hit on the radio (late 1964). Doing a "Quasimodo" (named after the Hunchback of Notre Dame character) or "The Coffin" were two maneuvers a surfer could perform on a board. For example, doing "The Coffin" was to lie on your back on your board and ride it in with your arms folded over your chest, eyes closed, as if you were lying dead in a coffin. "Takin' gas" means the same as "wiping out" -- as in, "My board flipped out from under me and the next thing I knew I was takin' gas!" And, since skateboarders were "surfing" on concrete or asphalt, you were liable to "bust your buns" if you fell. Also, sidewalk surfers (skateboarders) faced the hazards of pedestrians as well as kids playing hopscotch on the sidewalk -- "hopscotch-poledads" -- "poledads" being a term similar to "gremmie" or "dweeb" that surfers used to describe an annoying geek or nerd. And, lastly, in the song, Jan Berry uses the surfing battle cry "Cuyabunga!" (a slight variation on "Cowabunga!") -- a word that, today, still surfaces occasionally.
