After exhaustive research of the very crowded field of contenders, Skate And Annoy is finally able to give you the definitive top 2 record covers featuring violinists playing while riding a skateboard. In the interest of fairness, I’m going to list them in chronological order. Drumroll please… First there was the country, rock, Cajun and calypso sounds of Steamin´ Freeman, a guy who once hailed from Bellingham, Washington. Who knows, maybe he can be found lurking at the Bellingham skatepark. Then in 1979, Rounder Records released Mark O’Connor’s “On the Rampage,” which he recorded at the ripe young age of 17! So it likely wasn’t the record company’s idea that he pose on a skateboard. According to this review, he was an excellent bluegrass player. UPDATE: Added videos of Mark O’Connor concert performed on skateboards.

Upcycle, recycle, bicycle. Yet another Kickstarter for a skateboard project, this time to make skateboards out of used bourbon barrels. It seems moderately cool at first and I was kind of on board until I watched the video. I must have been in a bad mood, because listening to these guys made me want to punch them in the face. I’m not a violent person, and I’m sure they are nice people, so I apologize to the folks at Hepcat, which unfortunately has nothing to do with the excellent band Hepcat. The company is not primarily a skateboard brand, they just want to make lifestyle products out of upcycled material, an idea that has been recycled a lot lately. Yes, this is backlash. I am one sour (mash) old man today. Silly and overpriced, but I bet they smell good. – Thanks to MC for the tip.

In 1991 McDonalds issued Happy Meal toys consisting of memvbers of the “Laf-Squad” riding motorized vehicles. The Laf Squad must have been the secret, paramilitary arm of the Laff-A-Lympics splinter group known as the Yogi Yahooeys. Of the four figures, only Boo Boo Bear had the privilege of riding the customary out of scale skateboard. Here he is, more stylish than your average bear. And yes, he is on actual pool coping.

When this came up for auction I made myself stop following it because I was trying to save money and my basement is already filled with all kinds of bullshit. Now I’m kicking myself because it sold for only $40, although I think shipping was something like $20 if I recall correctly. Still, for the money, this is the kind of bulshit I should have added to my collection. On the surface, the board is nothing special, but on closer inspection the truck and wheel combination is pretty interesting. It’s got 60’s style Chicago Trucks with the sheet metal baseplate, and yet it has 70’s era urethane wheels. Then there’s that awesome color sticker with a hotdog skateboard that says “Frankly the Best.” The icing on the cake is the 2 color screen printed graphic on the box. They were really giving this thing the hard sell. – Thanks to David Maes for the tip.

From the brand you can trust for all your creepy, electronic cockroach needs, Hexbug brings you Tony Hawk’s Circuit Boards. It’s a hybrid of fingerboards and RC skateboard technology that sounds like a bad idea, but looks kind of cool in the demo videos. The promo footage shows some cool maneuvering, however it’s speculation whether this is due to hours of practice and precise timing or some built in mechanism or inherent design that makes lip tricks and kick turns on such a small scale seemingly easy. It comes with a TV commercial featuring Tony Hawk in one of his least wooden advertising appearances ever. Radio controlled Circuit Boards! Get it? Get it?

S&A reader Johan snapped a few pics of a CD he found at a flea market. Smurf Hits are compilations of smurfed versions of pop tunes. The Smurfarna versions are sung in Swedish, some by this lady. Surfarna 5 came out in 1998, and features some excellent skateboarding (Smurfboarding?) action on the covers. Back in 1997 they used a skateboard in the art for an English speaking compilation as well. It will make your ears bleed.

I’ve been remiss in posting this on S&A, as it is about a week old by now, but it has been reported that Mike Weed passed away. I’ve read it was after a battle with lymphoma. There appears to be no official announcement online, and Weed’s official web site has not been updated at this time. You can read a 2009 interview with Mike in Juice Magazine #66.

Apparently frat boys have a long history with skateboarding. This Delta Tau Delta skateboard allegedly came from a pledge dance in 1965. The board style and condition of the skateboard would seem to support that. I have to say, it’s a pretty cool party favor, much better than some stupid paddle. This board was spotted at a Goodwill online auction, and eventually sold for $102. – Thanks to Guy Housewright for the tip.

I completely spaced on posting the release party for Pure Fun #11 that featured none other than the Johnny Rad. So you’ve all missed the release party but you can still grab a copy of Pure Fun. The latest issue is 36 professionally printed and saddle stitched pages of photos, interviews, reviews and articles, including Awake Zine, Tod Swank, Johnny Rad, and Mike Vallely. 3 lucky people out of the first 100 orders will receive a free bonus copy of Bonus Brigade from Powell Peralta. I don’t even know what Bonus Brigade is… (Now I do. It’s a 175 minutes of footage and extras not used in the Bones Brigade documentary. Interesting…) Get yours here. P.S. Publishing your own zine? Don’t forget to get yours listed on SkateZines.com.

Craig Snyder has been working on this book for 7 years, and it seems to be growing. As of now it clocks in at around 850 pages and more than 1000 images. If funded successfully (by Kickstarter) it should be published in November of 2014. Incredibly, this is only volume one, focussing on the 70’s. If successful, volume 20 will cover the 80’s and beyond. In case you’re wondering about the authenticity, there are some big names behind the incentives, including face to face time with Paul Schmitt, Mike McGill, and some guy named Alan “Ollie” Gelfand that you might have heard of… Check out olliebook.com for more info, or you can watch the Kickstarter video (features skateboarding but ironically no ollies) after the jump.