THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,022) Chapter Four — “In My Life”
No, not John Lennon’s “Life”! Rather, the greatest British freakbeat ever laid down by Americans, two members of Jay and the Americans that is (who, of course, were Americans)! This, their only A-side, is “a vicious slab of freakbeat with a guitar sound that could almost be Sonic Youth! Devastating!!!!” (belmontrecordshopct, https://www.discogs.com/release/1064309-Chapter-Four-In-My-Life) Mr Happening calls it:
Explosive! Malevolent prime Brit pop-art mixed up with demented US psych punk. Several guitars battle with minor chords, sustain and a fuzz box, going all eastern psychedelic in the manic break.
https://www.headheritage.co.uk/unsung/review/1656/
Mr Happening adds:
“I wanna spend all my money with the richest man. I wanna know how it feels, to starve with the poor, picking out of garbage cans”. It is brooding, dark and foreboding, asking fundamental questions about our very existence and our purpose in this “sick, sick world”. Like a teenage mystic in the throws of extreme acid/dope paranoia, the singer resembles someone either on the verge of a mental breakdown, or a crystal clear white light revelation about The Meaning Of Life. “I wanna know the feeling, of not feeling anything, at all.” . . . This 45 was their sole effort and only ever released in the UK. One of the few pieces of information I’ve managed to find, suggests this was just released to fulfill publishing/ contractual obligations or something. Criminal. “I wanna know about going to sleep knowing I’ll wake, to no tomorrow.”
https://www.headheritage.co.uk/unsung/review/1656/
Sweet Floral Albion: The Journal of British Psychedelia tells us that despite longstanding rumors to the contrary, Chapter Four was not in fact Jay and the Americans. How does SFA know? It went straight to the source and asked American #1 Jay Black, that’s how. But two of the Americans, Kenny Vance and Marty Sanders, did co-write the song and were indeed the core of Chapter Four. See: http://www.marmalade-skies.co.uk/sfa13.htm.
Pay to Play! The Off the Charts Spotify Playlist! + Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock Merchandise
Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).
The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.
All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.
When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.
Just click on the first blue block for a month to month subscription or the second blue block for a yearly subscription.
Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! / Off the Charts: 60s Rock Revelations😊 