The Act — “Cobbled Streets”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 10, 2025

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,456) The Act — “Cobbled Streets”

Watch out, today there is an Invasion of the Easybeat Snatchers! This “[b]loody brilliant” song (notmarkatall, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=No_nOJwZ2wQ), a “triumph . . . a psych-infused pop nugget” (liner notes to the CD comps Piccadilly Sunshine: Volumes 1-10: A Compendium of Rare Pop Curios from the British Psychedelic Era), just must have been an Easybeat classic. But it wasn’t, just the first of three A-sides by a band out of Essex.

Robin Wills writes:

Here is a surprising case of a band trying to emulate the genius of 66/67 Easybeats [see #201, 1,310, 1,359, 1,415]. OK Friday on My Mind was a huge hit, but here Essex band The Act delved deeper reprising elements from “Happy is The Man” [see #1,359], “Made My Bed”, “Remember Sam” or other lesser known Easybeats gems. It’s a very enjoyable affair and a fun near-facsimile which assembles the parts that make up the essence, although not quite the genius of Vanda, Young and co.

https://purepop1uk.blogspot.com/2017/01/the-act-cobbled-streets.html

The Act was “[a]n Essex-based beat group who were signed to Columbia for whom they recorded three 45s. None of them made much impression and they split in 1968 after being dropped by the label.” (Vernon Joynson, The Tapestry of Delights Revisited)

Piccadilly Sunshine explains further that:

“Cobbled Streets” [was] written by Brian Trusler who later turned up in Force West, a Bristol band that would eventually become better known as the Oscar Bicycle . . . and then Glam rockers, Shakane. . . .

The group w[as] heading out under the supervision of singer/song-writer and EMI label-mate, Kenny Lynch (Small Faces, The Game) who would now co-write their remaining [two A]-sides leaving them to compose their own gestures as b-sides. Even with two relative flops behind them, Lynch persuaded those at head office to invest further in his protegees and managed to secure a third release. . . . but it quickly disappeared . . . .

liner notes to the CD comps Piccadilly Sunshine: Volumes 1-10: A Compendium of Rare Pop Curios from the British Psychedelic Era and Piccadilly Sunshine: Volumes 11-20: A Compendium of Rare Pop Curios from the British Psychedelic Era

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