Surf rocker Dick Dale shaped the sound of Southern California — and spread it to the world
Dick Dale played electric guitar like he was more interested in the electricity than in the guitar.
Listen to the way he starts his signature song, "Misirlou," with the sound of his pick slicing against a quivering string - a power line, basically - to create the audible equivalent of sparks.
The tune is a traditional Arabic melody that Dale, born Richard Monsour, picked up during his childhood outside Boston as the son of an immigrant
