Pray For Surf interviewed SPIHUNT
PFS ~ Who is SPIHUNT and how did you get started?
SPIHUNT is Tim SPIvey and Steve HUNTer. We were born in Long Beach, California and have known each other most of our lives. We grew up in the same church. My father was the song leader and Steve’s mother was the iconic junior high Sunday school teacher. They actually sang duets together. We grew up in a world of four part acappella gospel singing. I had inherited an old Story and Clark upright piano. My dad could play “Midnight Sonata” but that was about it. It was really just a piece of furniture.
One day, right after I had gotten married, I started playing around on it. I figured out if I played every other key it would create a harmony. I fell in love with the black keys-they had a sound that was rich. I kept banging around until I started playing what would be later described as chord progressions. I began to hear melodies in my head as I played. I would literally bang out chords, then sing the melody that I heard into an old Wallensack reel to reel tape recorder. I was just singing, “do do do dee dah” while I played a chord progression. I didn’t know the names of the chords, I just remembered where they were on the piano. One day I played one of my “songs” for Steve. He took the tape recorder home with him and wrote some words. It became our first song entitled, “Mighty Fine Day.” Our first recordings were done on a Sony 2 track reel to reel with similsync. I would record a piano on track one then flip the similsync switch, put on some earphones, and record a second piano track. Both tracks would end up on track two. I would patch track two back to track one and add a third. For the vocals, we would set up a mike in my shower, turn on the tape, run into the shower and sing. In order to get the harmonies we wanted, we would have maybe 10 generations of recorded tracks. Needless to say our first recordings were a little muddled, but we thought they sounded great.
We basically record the same way today. The only difference is that we record on an Ampex 2 inch 24 track reel to reel tape deck we purchased from Universal Studios, and instead of singing in the shower, we have our own recording studio in my garage. Along the way we have brought in several musical friends to help us with guitars and drums. But, Steve and I write, sing, arrange, and produce all of our stuff.
PFS ~ What is the influence of Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys on your music?
I have what I describe as a “healthy obsession” with Brian Wilson. I had two older brothers, and while other kids my age were listening to Gene Autry, I was cutting my teeth on Elvis and Ricky Nelson. I especially loved the songs that the Jordanaires sang background on. The first song that I can remember being knocked out by was “Tonight I Fell In Love” by the Tokens. It is still one of my favorites…”Dom do-bee dom woah oh…” I always loved great harmonies even before the Beach Boys began. Steve’s big influences were Elvis and Frankie Avalon. I have to admit that between 1962 and 1964 I was a huge 4 Seasons fan. The Beach Boys won me over with “Little Deuce Coupe.” I remember playing the 45 over and over. I think “Don’t Worry Baby” was the flip side. Those two sides could cover just about any mood you were in. Back then, I bought all the singles and when the album came out, I felt like I already had most of the songs. I think my first Beach Boy album was “Summer Days (And Summer Nights)” It is still one of my very favorites. I went back and bought “Today.” My three favorite songs are on that album. They don’t make songs any better than, “Dance, Dance, Dance”, “Please Let Me Wonder”, and “Kiss Me Baby.” I would record the albums onto my Sony tape deck and listen endlessly on the earphones. I would listen and isolate each guy’s part in my head. Like many people, I was mesmerized by those harmonies. When you listen to SPIHUNT you can easily hear the influence of Brian and the Boys.
PFS ~ List 4 or 5 of your songs and how they were influenced by the Beach Boys and Brian Wilson.
I think it is important to note that while Steve and I have been musically influenced by Brian Wilson, we think we have developed our own sound. For instance, Brian often uses what I call “lead harmonies” on his verses. The lead vocal is actually four or even five voices singing the same words at the same time but in three or four part harmony. “Surfer Girl,” and “In My Room” are classic examples. SPIHUNT never does that. We try to create a catchy, feel good melody then compliment it with vocal harmonies. Just like Brian Wilson was shaped by the 4 Freshmen, SPIHUNT has been shaped by Brian Wilson.
Having said that, I think “Let’s Celebrate” from our "California Beach Praise" CD would be right at home on the “All Summer Long” album. “Oh Lord,” from that same CD has a “That Same Song,” kind of thing going on. “I Know The Feelin’” on our CD by the same name, has a real “Summer Days (And Summer Nights)” feel to it. A track entitled, “You’ll Always Be There” from our “Grace and Mercy” CD, might be described as Carl Wilson singing “Cuddle Up.” We were very fortunate to have that song selected for inclusion on the amazing Carl Wilson tribute CD “Under God,” that David Beard produced for the Endless Summer Quarterly. We have another song on “Grace and Mercy” entitled, “Full Blown Measure of Love” which has an “It’s About Time” feel to it. It’s fair to say that people who like Brian and the Beach Boys will like SPIHUNT. By the way, all of our songs can be sampled at www.spihunt.com .
PFS ~ Your lyrics have a spiritual focus…
Steve and I were born into the church, and Jesus Christ is the center of our lives. Steve attends Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa where Chuck Smith preaches. Chuck is the person who brought contemporary music to worship (he created Maranantha Music) and attracted many young people to the Lord. I am a lay minister and elder at the Los Altos Church of Christ in Long Beach. I have taught a Bible class every Sunday since 1968! Our first “serious” CD (several garage albums lead up to it) was “I Know The Feelin.’” It was a secular pop album. Good clean lyrics though. A track entitled, “Trying To Believe In Love,” was included on “One In A Million,” (the Dennis Wilson tribute CD that David Beard produced about four years ago). Then Jeff Smith, Chuck’s son and a good friend of Steve’s, suggested that we write some Christian songs. So, we did. Our first Christian CD was, “California Beach Praise.’” Chuck Smith loved it and we were moderately successful distributing it through the Calvary’s stores. We followed that up with our latest release, “Grace and Mercy.” Steve and I both believe that music is a gift from God and there is no better way to use music that to glorify him. It is a really fun way to shine our light in this dark world.
PFS ~ How do listeners react to your lyrics?
While a couple of our songs are pretty “crossover,” most of them are straight at you right out of the Bible. “Let My People Go,” is about the Exodus. “Get Behind Me Satan,” is about the temptation of Christ. “Grace and Mercy,” describes the two most important things in this life which allow us to live again in the next life. I was chatting with Karen, who runs the “Beach Boy Gems” internet radio station, and she said that our songs are getting really positive responses from her listeners. We have also gotten a lot of positive response from being on the two Endless Summer quarterly tribute CD’s. We’ve gotten emails from Mitch Ryder and Pappa Do Run Run. And then there is Phil Miglioratti, who heard us on Beach Boy Gems and asked us to do this interview.
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