THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
1,637) The Secrets — “I Think I Need the Cash”
Cliff Ward (see #1,418), 70s singer-songwriter extraordinaire and writer of the defining UK pop-psych masterwork “Path Through the Forest” (see #5), together with the Secrets (see #1,417) give us pop rock perfections, a “droll” number that is their “catchiest” song. (David Wells, liner notes to the CD comp Let’s Go Down and Blow Our Minds: The British Psychedelic Sounds of 1967) He wants his diamond ring back “Cause I’m just about decided that we’re through . . . And what’s more than to point out, I think I need the cash”. Maybe Gary Lewis & the Playboys also needed the cash!
David Wells tells us that::
Led by Cliff Ward, Kidderminster band The Secrets were undertaking a tour of southwest English coastal resorts in the summer of 1966 when they were introduced to music industry all-rounder Eddie Trevett. Over the next couple of years, regular Trevett outlet CBS would issue five Secrets singles (the last two as Simon’s Secrets) that, although not wildly successful, were notable for Ward’s witty, erudite songs. Sadly . . . [“Cash”] was buried away on [a] B-side . . . and Ward would remain hidden from public view until his re-emergence a few years later as sensitive singer/songwriter Clifford T. Ward.
liner notes to the CD comp Let’s Go Down and Blow Our Minds: The British Psychedelic Sounds of 1967
As to Cliff Ward, All Music Guide informs us that:
Clifford Thomas Ward . . . . typified the early 70s bedsitter singer-songwriter with a series of albums that were at best delightful and at worst mawkish. Ward left grammar school before A-levels to work as a clerk, but by 1962 was fronting local beat group Cliff Ward and the Cruisers. The group changed their name to Martin Raynor and the Secrets and made their recording debut for EMI Records in 1965, before recording several more tracks as the Secrets for CBS Records. In 1967 Ward enrolled at Worcester teacher training college to study English and divinity, after which he taught at Bromsgrove high school. His debut album appeared on disc jockey John Peel’s brave-but-doomed Dandelion Records label in 1972. His second album and his first release for Charisma Records, Home Thoughts, proved to be his finest work and gave him wider recognition. . . . The beautiful “Gaye” became a UK Top 10 hit but surprisingly the stronger “Home Thoughts From Abroad” and the infectious and lyrically excellent “Wherewithal” failed to chart. Mantle Pieces and Escalator contained a similar recipe of more harmless tales . . . . Ward’s refusal to tour and promote his songs did not help endear the singer to his record company, however, and he switched to the Phonogram Records label for 1975’s No More Rock ‘N’ Roll.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/clifford-t-ward-mn0000157416#biography
Dave Laing adds:
The best songs of Clifford T Ward . . . synthesised pop melody and an English poetic sensibility. His most creative years were the mid-1970s, when such songs as “Home Thoughts From Abroad” and “Gaye” brought commercial success and critical accolades. . . . [B]orn in . . . Worcestershire . . . . [b]y 1962, he had become the singer with Cliff Ward and the Cruisers, a proficient local beat group that won the 1963 Midland Band of the Year contest in Birmingham. As Martin Raynor and the Secrets, the group made a recording for EMI in 1965, and several more for CBS as the Secrets, though none was successful. . . . [H]e continued to make private recordings of his songs, and, in 1972, his tapes were passed to . . . John Walters . . . producer of John Peel’s BBC Radio 1 show. However, his first album, Singer Songwriter, issued by Peel and Clive Selwood’s Dandelion Records, sold few copies. Soon afterwards, Dandelion closed but Selwood, by now Ward’s manager, placed him with the Charisma label.
https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/dec/22/guardianobituaries1
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