It can’t be easy to sum up Southern California in a song. But that hasn’t stopped songwriters from trying to make sense of the West Coast scene in just a few minutes’ time. Naturally, some of the best ...

Dean Torrance, one-half of the duo behind the song "Surf City," celebrated his 86th birthday on Tuesday.

I knew this would be fun. The response to the story on “AM versions” of songs hit a chord, so to speak, with your memories matching mine … and more. But before we get into it, I had a chance to talk ...