THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,443) Norma Tanega — “Jubilation”
Norma Tanega was so much more than “Walkin’ My Cat Named Dog”. From a free spirit if there ever was one comes “a free love [folk] anthem” (Quinn Miller, https://www.hoodedutilitarian.com/2014/11/hey-people-come-free-with-me-new-voices-from-1966/) that’s “a sexy-as-hell come-on in which an oboe deepens Tanega’s most lovesick melody; the valentine has the lilt of a canticle”. (Alfred Soto, https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/norma-tanega-im-the-sky-studio-and-demo-recordings-1964-1971/)
Heather Phares tells us that:
In 1966, Norma Tanega had a worldwide hit with the title track of her debut album, Walkin’ My Cat Named Dog. A bouncy number that blended the au courant sounds of folk-pop and New York soul-pop . . . [it was] her lone moment of mainstream success, but . . . Tanega remained a cult favorite years later. . . . Since the music world didn’t really know what to do with her in the ’60s and early ’70s, Tanega followed her wayward muse and became a teacher, painter, and percussionist with experimental groups . . . .
Tanega had a longer and more complex career than [“Dog”] might suggest. . . . When her early success wasn’t repeated, she continued to make music on her own terms, whether writing songs for her lover Dusty Springfield or collaborating with Blossom Dearie in the early ’70s, adding touches of psych rock to her 1971 album . . . or creating avant-garde sounds with later projects . . . . Tanega was born in . . . California . . . to a Panamanian mother and a Filipino father . . . . [and] moved to New York City in 1963. Living in Greenwich Village, she became a part of the thriving folk music scene. . . . Tanega . . . worked summers as a music counselor at a camp in the Catskill Mountains. Producer Herb Bernstein saw her perform there and introduced her to producer and songwriter Bob Crewe, most famous for his work with the Four Seasons.* Tanega signed to Crewe’s New Voice label in 1965 and released [“Dog”] in 1966. Inspired by her real-life pet (which she owned because her apartment building didn’t allow dogs), the song . . . became an international hit, reaching number three in Canada and peaking at number 22 on the U.S. and U.K. charts. . . . Tanega appeared on American Bandstand and Where the Action Is and was the sole female performer on a North American tour that included Gene Pitney, Chad & Jeremy, and Bobby Goldsboro . . . . Later in 1966, she toured England and performed on the TV show Ready, Steady, Go!, where she met Dusty Springfield. . . . Tanega moved to London to be with Springfield. Along with painting, Tanega spent her time writing songs, many of which Springfield recorded. . . She . . . record[ed] a 1969 album, Snow Cycles, that was never released. . . . [but] was more successful with 1971’s I Don’t Think It Will Hurt If You Smile, a set of songs inspired by her relationship with Springfield . . . .
https://www.allmusic.com/album/walkin-my-cat-named-dog-mw0000053323#review, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/norma-tanega-mn0000387220#biography
Jesse Locke continues her story:
After her six-year relationship with Springfield ended, Tanega began working as a gallerist and emerged as a prolific painter. Her vibrantly colourful body of work—surrealist portraits, neon hockey masks and otherworldly landscapes . . . . Tanega continued as a musician, yet switched her focus to percussion in a number of experimental groups . . . . While an interest in unusual time signatures dates back to her 1960s folksinger era, these later projects freed her from traditional songwriting entirely.
https://xtramagazine.com/culture/music/norma-tanega-folk-music-retrospective-221984
Heather Phares again:
In 1972, her relationship with Springfield was over. . . . [and she] returned to Claremont, California, and embarked on a long career as a teacher. Along with teaching art, music and English as a second language in the city’s schools, she became an adjunct professor at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. She continued to paint and make music, switching from folk to more experimental sounds and often performing as a percussionist. During the ’80s, she performed with the Ceramic Ensemble, a project led by Scripps ceramics professor Brian Ransom that played handmade instruments. In the ’90s, she founded the group Hybrid Vigor with Mike Henderson. . . . . [Later, she was in] the Latin Lizards . . . . Push. . . . [and Baboonz].
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/norma-tanega-mn0000387220#biography
* However, Bernstein corrects the story:
Two days after starting at the studio, Bernstein got a phone call from one of his students, persistently promoting her friend Norma. “She wouldn’t take no for an answer,” laughs Bernstein. He caved and invited Tanega [in. “]The truth of the matter is that I really expected her to be there for 10 minutes, and that would be it. She started playing me these songs, and each one was weirder than the next. It was almost impossible to figure out her rhythms. I felt like I was going to school.”
https://xtramagazine.com/culture/music/norma-tanega-folk-music-retrospective-221984
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