THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,345) Them — “Young Woman”
Belfast’s Them post-Him (see #1,275) had “mastered West Coast psychedelia like no other Irish band”. (Jon “Mojo” Mills, liner notes to the CD reissue of Time Out! Time in For Them) From their second album — Time Out! Time In For Them — comes a riveting song with an insistent, sinuous groove.
Jon “Mojo” Mills tells us that:
“[I]n 1966 the final line-up of Them . . . imploded. Van Morrison quit after a somewhat fruitful tour of the States . . . . Shortly after this split, bass player Alan Henderson picked up the pieces and regrouped with the surviving members and new singer Kenny McDowell under the old “Them” moniker, and set off to conquer America. On meeting impressario Ray Huff their metamorphosis slowly began; growing from R&B tinged garage-band to fully-fledged paisley wearing raga-rockers. First album Now-and-“Them” was a rather mixed affair blending all manner of old and new influences. . . . [T]he lengthy eastern inspired piece “Square Room” . . . gave “Them” their new hip and happening identity. . . . [They took] their foremost inspiration from contemporary West Coast acts rather than the Morrison-era’s vintage black R&B template, and fashion wise the sunny Californian hippy style of dress bore no relation to the ban’s former suited and booted Irish selves. . . . If perhaps called The Lemon Menagerie or Orange Sunshine things may have been quite different for them. If the inevitiable unenviable comparison between Them’s old hit making days and their new US inflected psychedelic approach were not made it is likely they would have been recognized as a far more creditable unit. . . . Time Out! Time In For Them was a huge leap forward in a very short amount of time. . . . containing everything . . . from the out and out mystical to bluesy psychedelic rock and straight ahead well-thought-about pop with bite!
liner notes to Time Out! Time in For Them
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I was aware they reformed but I don’t think I ever heard anything Them did …err then. That’s a grammar (not my strong suit) twister.
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