319) The Golden Earrings — “Dream”
The Golden Earrings are my favorite British beat group . . . from Holland! But not only could they sound just as if they had washed up on a bank of the Mersey, a feat in and of itself, they also wrote great songs. Unlike some groups, they didn’t have the luxury of having Lennon and McCartney donate to the cause. The Earrings have earned a lot of good will in my book — everything that happened in the 70’s is forgiven!
“Dream” comes from their second album, 67’s Winter-Harvest, on which they really blossomed (like tulips!). Mark Deming writes in All Music Guide that:
[They] sounded like a crack British Invasion-era outfit who had made a wrong turn somewhere when they cut . . . Winter Harvest, but they were inarguably a stronger and more ambitious group a year after releasing their debut. All 14 songs . . . were originals . . . and the stylistic range of this collection is noticeably wider. . . . If [their first album] Just Earrings was [their] Please Please Me, Winter Harvest is their Rubber Soul, an album that masterfully consolidates their old strengths while revealing many new ones. This LP isn’t quite up to the lofty level of the Fab Four’s early masterpiece, but it stands comfortably beside the work of most of the better-known English acts of the period, and remains impressive [today].
And Kieron Tyler chimes in that:
The Golden Earrings were riding high in 1966. Their first three singles had been massive Dutch hits, and the previous year had seen the release of their classic debut album Just Earrings. Although it would be another seven years before Radar Love became an international hit, and another three before they would first play America . . . [they] were already making records that should have been heard beyond the borders of their native Holland. . . . Winter Harvest marries a tough mod-beat approach to sensitive minor-key melodies . . . . While other Dutch legends . . . were unhinged and freaked-out, The Golden Earrings focused their energies on structure and songwriting. The irresistible Winter Harvest is a testament to their success. . . . a quantum leap. . . . the sound was of a band that were in total control and utterly confident.
http://rockasteria.blogspot.com/2011/12/golden-earrings-winter-harvest-1966.html
Indisputably, Winter Harvest “is one of the essential Nederbeat/Dutch 60s albums . . . a hidden gem of mid 60s rock n roll. . . .” (http://the rising storm.net/the-golden-earrings-winter-harvest/).
“Dream” is a bouncy number that sounds just like . . . no, not “I’m Only Dreaming,” but “I’m Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina and the Waves (but without the bouncy lyrics). I’m thinking of changing my blog’s descriptor to “the greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard but that everyone has nicked.” I’m available as an expert (in my own mind) witness if anyone feels like suing.
Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! / Off the Charts: 60s Rock Revelations 