The Astronauts were an American surf‑rock group formed in Boulder, Colorado, in 1956 by Jon “Storm” Patterson, Robert “Bob” Demmon, and Brad Leach; the band later added Rich Fifield and Dick Sellars, adopting the name The Astronauts in 1961 to honor local hero Scott Carpenter. Their breakthrough came with the RCA single "Baja" in 1963, which peaked at Number 94 on the Billboard Hot 100 and established them as a notable instrumental surf act. The group released their debut LP Surfin' With The Astronauts in 1963, reaching Number 61 on the Billboard Top LPs chart, followed by Everything Is A‑OK! (live) the same year and Competition Cup in 1963; Astronauts Orbit Kampus (live) appeared in 1964. The band toured extensively in the United States and Japan, where they outsold The Beach Boys, with singles such as "Movin'" (retitled “Over The Sun”) reaching Number 1. In 1965 they released Go…Go…Go!! and Rockin' With The Astronauts, while their 1967 album Travelin' Men marked the last release before the Vietnam draft removed Gallagher and Lindsey, leading to lineup changes and the eventual dissolution of the group in 1968. Members Dennis Lindsey, Mark Bretz, Bob Demmon, Rich Fifield, and Jim Gallagher passed away between 1992 and 2021.
