Bob Bogle, the bassist for the seminal surf-rock band The Ventures, died Sunday of cancer at age 75, the band reported yesterday. His health had prevented him from touring with the band over the last four years.
The Venture's instrumental songs made them easy to market around the world; in the 1960s, the group found their biggest success in Japan, where they recorded some of their finest live records. The two songs below, two of their bigger hits, illustrate how easily their very-American sound translated internationally:
