Top photo: The Ventures’ Nokie Edwards, Bob Spalding and Don Wilson rock out to their 1960 hit “Walk, Don’t Run.” Later, drummer Leon Taylor would steal the show with an epic solo on “Caravan.” Second photo: The Fabulous Wailers’ Kent Morrill still has that Little Richard-style howl; guitarist John Hanford in the background.
ERNEST JASMIN

The Ventures and Fabulous Wailers celebrated 50 years of rock and the release of their new CD “Two Car Garage” Friday night at Seattle’s Moore Theatre, a triumphant night for two titans of Tacoma rock.

Dressed in dapper, black suits, the Wailers ripped through an opening set that included fan favorites “Dirty Robber,” “Wailin’” and “Out of Our Tree,” plus a touching photo tribute to fallen Wailers Rockin’ Robin Roberts, Ron Gardner, Rich Dangel, John Greek and Mark Marush.

The Ventures’ and Wailers’ Blue Horizon Records has been working on a documentary about the influential Tacoma bands. And several celebrities involved in the project congratulating the two bands preceded the Ventures set, with Alec Baldwin, Billy Bob Thornton, Joe Perry and Times Square’s Naked Cowboy among those extolling the two groups.

Liberty DeVito gave congratulations, with a passing joke about the Ventures ridiculously prolific output (more than 250 albums and counting.) “I think since I said that, three albums just came out,” he said.

Many of those album covers provided fun backdrops during the Ventures’ 21-song set, with kitschy ‘60s imagery featuring bikini-clad girls, go-go dancers and astronauts.

The quartet onstage Friday -- founding member Don Wilson, Nokie Edwards, Bob Spalding and Leon Taylor on drums – got things started with “Walk, Don’t Run,” the hit that propelled the Ventures to stardom in 1960. The Ventures were joined by Lt. Governor Brad Owen for “Surf Rider,” a track that experienced a resurgence in popularity in the ‘90s, thanks to its use in Quentin Tarantino’s “Pulp Fiction.” And Alan White of Yes made an appearance later, providing the booming snare drum to “Hawaii Five-O.”

But the night’s high point occurred during the Ventures’ last pre-encore number “Caravan.” Leon Taylor delivered a truly epic drum solo during that hit, meandering from behind his kit midway through to band on Bob Spalding’s bass strings as video of his dad, the late Mel Taylor, played behind the band.

For the encore, both bands teamed up for “Needles & Pins” and “Black is Black,” both featured on the new “Two Car Garage” CD. And, yes, Don Wilson sings. His band is known for instrumental rock, but I’m pretty sure he sang more than Britney Spears did Thursday night at the Tacoma Dome.

And three guesses regarding what the two bands finished up with. There are three things you can count on in life, death, taxes and the Wailers playing “Louie Louie” some time during their set.

The Ventures set list
Ventures, Wailers 50th anniversary show
The Moore Theatre
April 10, 2009

Walk, Don’t Run
Blue Dawn
Driving Guitars
Telstar
El Cumbanchero
Slaughter on 10th Ave.
Apache
Penetration
Out of Limits
Surf Rider (with Lt. Governor Brad Owen)
Secret Agent Man
Sleepwalk
I Got a Woman
Walk, Don’t Run ‘64
House of the Rising Sun
Diamond Head
Hawaii Five-O (with Alan White of Yes)
Wipe-Out
Pipeline
Caravan

Encore: The Ventures with the Wailers

Needles & Pins
Black is Black
Louie Louie (And you were expecting what else for the finale?)

Sorry, Wailers fans. My first notebook fell out of my pocket somewhere between the parking garage and my seat, so I didn't have anything to jot their set down on. Off the top of my head, it included "Dirty Robber," "Wailin'," "Out of Our Tree," "Tall Cool One."