The Beach Boys | Surfin' U.S.A. (1963)
"Surfin' U.S.A." is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys, credited to Chuck Berry and Brian Wilson. It is a rewritten version of Berry's "Sweet Little Sixteen" set to new lyrics penned by Wilson and an uncredited Mike Love. The song was released as a single on March 4, 1963, backed with "Shut Down". It was then placed as the opening track on their album of the same name.
1963-03-04 19:00:00 - The Beach Boys
The single peaked at number two in the chart of the Music Vendor trade paper (within a year renamed Record World) and at number three on the Billboard and Cash Box charts. Billboard ranked "Surfin' U.S.A." the number 1 song of 1963.
Although this song was Billboard's original number 1 song of that year, later lists from Billboard rank "Sugar Shack" by Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs as the number 1 song of 1963.
It has since become emblematic of the California Sound. The song "Surfin' U.S.A." is part of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list.