THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,200) The New Wave — “Little Dreams”
This gorgeous ‘67 B-side and track from the duo’s only album is “enchanting . . . such a Rare Gem full of BEAUTY & MAGIC which I have had the rare privilege to discover in this life”. (eleni930038, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hTOx3qfdM44&pp=ygUaVGhlIG5ldyB3YXZlIGxpdHRsZSBkcmVhbXM%3D) The album is “sunshine, baroque pop at its best, with two male voices duetting on delicate arrangements“. (chrismass61, https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/the-new-wave/little-dreams-the-canterbury-recordings-deluxe-stereo_mono-edition-1/)
Mickaël Choisi (courtesy of Google Translate) writes of the album:
“[A] collection of jewels . . . . The songwriting, astonishing for young men barely twenty years old, is constantly enhanced by the arrangements of Gene Page and the inimitable playing of the “West Coast” musicians of the time, most of them from the famous Wrecking Crew . . . . At the turn of a harpsichord note, we even find Van Dyke Parks, whom pop symphony enthusiasts know well for having greatly participated in the construction of the “Smile” cathedral with Wilson. Just like the genius of the Beach Boys, André and Reid also possess this incredible instinct for complex harmonies (but never pretentious) and baroque reveries all enveloped in oboes, vibraphones, strings, brass and light guitars.
http://poprunners.blogspot.com/2022/04/wonderful-bossalight.html?m=1
As to the New Wave, Joe Marchese explains:
[Reid] King found inspiration in the tricky chords of the bossa nova. He mastered them and went on to write his own songs, often in collaboration with one-time child actor Thom Andriola, who performed under the stage name of Tommy André. By 1966, [they] were recording demos, and one year later, they were signed to Canterbury Records. At the cult favorite Sunset Boulevard label, home to the Yellow Balloon, they found themselves collaborating with rock royalty as The New Wave. Van Dyke Parks, Gene Page, Mike Post, Hal Blaine and Carol Kaye all added their magic to the duo’s debut. But the promise of the day soon gave way to disappointment, and the New Wave’s lone LP has been shrouded in mystery for over forty years . . . . The New Wave brought together the sounds of King’s beloved bossa nova with jazz, pop and classical strains, while the harmonies recalled late-period Chad and Jeremy or even Peter and Gordon. . . . The New Wave took its name from the French filmmaking movement [that] included directors Francois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard . . . . King and André hoped to bring that singular vision to their music. As such, they wrote all but one of the songs . . . . It is no surprise that members of the famed Los Angeles “Wrecking Crew” participated . . . . Gene Page, another Phil Spector session veteran, was in the arranger’s chair and co-produced (uncredited) with Canterbury’s Ken Handler. Van Dyke Parks was enlisted into service on piano while in the midst of work on [Brian Wilson’s] SMiLE . . . . The album performed well in the Los Angeles area, but Canterbury wasn’t behind it. King and Andriola continued to explore the boundaries of popular music, taking their sound in a less commercial direction (inspired by modern classical composition) and recording a second album in the U.K. that never saw release. But the New Wave’s self-titled LP has remained a favorite among sunshine pop collectors for its intelligent lyrics and quirky, moody, individual melodies.
https://theseconddisc.com/2011/05/18/before-blondie-and-talking-heads-now-sounds-presents-the-original-new-wave/?fbclid=IwAR3JY7dzxfqmGiQEmWuDqxJKXEHoG37xfjxtq8Mi5yOgnup47vKqcEOWtCE
Scott Blackerby is ambivalent and snarkily notes that “[m]ost of the songs boast fairly attractive melodies, though the arrangements are occasionally overwhelming and their lyrics suffer from standard college student angst, which probably drove female English majors crazy.” (The Acid Archives, the Second Edition) Richie Unterberger is less than complimentary:
The album is in fact so soft and pop-ish that its relationship to rock music is slight and it sometimes sounds geared as much or more to the adult pop market as the pop/rock one. Their material emphasizes breezy, samba-influenced close-harmony romantic tunes, acoustic guitars, and light percussion embroidered by vibes and some orchestration. The music is pleasant but fluffy . . . .
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-new-wave-mn0001891881
Pay to Play! The Off the Charts Spotify Playlist! + Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock Merchandise
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The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.
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Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! / Off the Charts: 60s Rock Revelations😊 