Monthly Archives: January 2026

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,851) Ro-d-Ys– “Winter Woman” Beatlesque pop psych from the Netherlands, this is the band’s (see #1,226) “best song” (Gelkinghe (courtesy of Google Translate), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_kXER46Exg), “[a]bsolutely hypnotic” (archenema6792, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_kXER46Exg), “beautiful and haunting”. (nikink, https://www.discogs.com/release/4169281-Ro-D-Ys-The-Complete-Collection?srsltid=AfmBOoofU9iuEEMh-CTUrex47ZjLKtPCvRnaoq9q-1Wq_ikRIH6T2a7U#:~:text=The%20Ro%2Dd%2Dys%20were%20from%20the,were%20formed%20somewhere%20around%201965.&text=In%201968%20more%20quality%20singles,and%20%22Earnest%20Vocation%22%20in%201968) Richie Unterberger tells us that: Stylistically, the[ Ro-d-Ys] favored, likeContinue reading “Ro-d-Ys– “Winter Woman”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 20, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,850) John Hartford — “Landscape Grown Cold” This stalk, haunting ’67 B-side by the legendary John Hartford (see #1,183) puts the woe in winter. It is one of the “highlights of his RCA period”. (Richie Unterberger, https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-love-album-mw0000860236), coming from The Love Album. Hartford’sContinue reading “John Hartford — “Landscape Grown Cold”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 19, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,849) Zion de Gallier — “Winter Will Be Cold” This Mark Wirtz-produced B-side is a “Swinging 60s dancer . . . [an i]rresistibly bouncy beaty track . . . [with a] Psych Pop edge” (teabiscuit, https://www.45cat.com/record/r5686), “upbeat and jaunty with a whimsical feeling”Continue reading “Zion de Gallier — “Winter Will Be Cold”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 18, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,848) The Impressions — “Long, Long Winter” I hope the Impressions’ (see #118, 285, 1,347, 1,544) meteorological forecast is way off base, or it’s gonna be a long, long, winter. “My girl is gone from me And my hearts in misery And it’sContinue reading “The Impressions — “Long, Long Winter”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 17, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,847) Wendy & Bonnie — “The Winter Is Cold” Baby, it’s cold outside, and Wendy & Bonnie (see #1,774) know that the winter is cold! “Well it might be cold but that ripping ass [guitar] solo [in “The Winter Is Cold”] just warmedContinue reading “Wendy & Bonnie — “The Winter Is Cold”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 16, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,846) The Box Tops — “Trouble with Sam” “Trouble with Sam” “could [be] another song from the 1966-1970 English pop factories . . . . I have no basis for saying this, but I’d bet that Alex [Chilton] hated it. I don’t, becauseContinue reading “The Box Tops — “Trouble with Sam”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 15, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,845) Buddy Miles — “That’s the Way Life Is” Ah, Buddy Miles (see #112, 221, 366, 629, 853, 1,483) As Jamie Ludwig says, he was a “force of nature as a drummer, vocalist, and bandleader. ” (https://chicagoreader.com/music/buddy-miles-wrings-every-drop-of-emotion-from-the-segment/) He moves my soul. This “[s]tone coldContinue reading “Buddy Miles — “That’s the Way Life Is”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 14, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,844) Faine Jade — “Don’t Hassle Me” Here is a stunning number from Faine Jade (see #314, 686) — Long Island’s Syd Barrett (see #87, 315, 922) — that “captures the spirit of rebellious youth”. (Faris Badwan, (https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/oct/27/the-lost-albums-loved-by-the-stars-from-ecstatic-gospel-to-italian-prog) “No! Don’t you hassle me! IContinue reading “Faine Jade — “Don’t Hassle Me”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 13, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,843) Bee Gees — “Turn of the Century” On first listen [the Bee Gees’ (see #291, 484, 594, 717, 962, 1,065, 1,101, 1,125, 1,321, 1,343, 1,685) ’67 LP] Bee Gees 1st plays like a wonderful, lost baroque-pop album, which isn’t far from the truth. The openingContinue reading “The Bee Gees — “Turn of the Century”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 12, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,842) The Cortinas*/Octopus — “Phoebe’s Flower Shop” Brighten your Sunday with a “happy-go-lucky . . . Vaudeville-ian ditty” (Garwood Pickjon, https://rockasteria.blogspot.com/2018/11/), a “[t]oytown classic that seldom gets mentioned. A jaunty piano rave carries the tune, and the falsetto vocals and soaring strings keepContinue reading “The Cortinas/Octopus — “Phoebe’s Flower Shop”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 11, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,841) The Joyfull Noise — “Wrapped in the Hide of a Yellow Cow“ Mellow pop psych/baroque pop inspired by the I Ching.* Some question whether the Noise’s LP is psych, but as one wag put it, “from the first song it’s clear it’sContinue reading “The Joyfull Noise — “Wrapped in the Hide of a Yellow Cow”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 10, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,840) Steppeulvene/The Steppe Wolves — “Dunhammeraften”/”Dunhammer Evening” Something’s funky in the State of Denmark! And, no, I’m not talking about Operation Dunhammer! I’m talking about the Steppe Wolves’ very funky evocation of strange goings on during a Danish evening in the ’60s, asContinue reading “Steppeulvene/The Steppe Wolves — “Dunhammeraften”/”Dunhammer Evening”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 9, 2026″

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,839) Hyde — “Exit Hero Number One” Here is the hilarious Dylanesque lament of a put-upon Canadian farmer. “I’ve got the lower 40 left that I’ve gotta plow and I’m stuck behind a sacred cow.” Canadian Cult Classics (the blog of a CanadianContinue reading “Hyde — “Exit Hero Number One”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 8, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,838) Medicine Head — “His Guiding Hand” This haunting and sublime spiritual meditation was Medicine Head’s first A-side and a track off their first LP New Bottles Old Medicine. The album was produced by their champion John Peel, who had signed the (twoContinue reading “Medicine Head — “His Guiding Hand”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 7, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,837) The Merry-Go-Round — “You’re a Very Lovely Woman” From L.A. wunderkind Emitt Rhodes’ band the Merry-Go-Round (see #50, 156), here is a “sweeping orchestral pop gem” (Tim Sendra, https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-merry-go-round-mw0000862964), a “gorgeous, haunting string ballad” (Richie Unterberger, https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-best-of-the-merry-go-round-mw0000856619), “[a]n exciting showcase of Rhodes’Continue reading “The Merry-Go-Round — “You’re a Very Lovely Woman”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 6, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,836) The Four Tops —  “Wish I Didn’t Love You So” How was this romantic rave not a hit for the Four Tops (see #1,148, 1,429)?! Well, it wasn’t even released as a B-side, but appeared on their ’69 album Four Tops Now!Continue reading “The Four Tops —  “Wish I Didn’t Love You So”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 5, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,835) Timebox — “Walking Through the Streets of My Mind” England’s timeless Timebox (see #1,285, 1,355, 1,750) gives us a “soul-meets-Summer of Love ode” (Jon “Mojo” Mills, https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-deram-anthology-mw0000968588), “combin[ing] sharp blue-eyed soul harmonies with a psychedelic arrangement”. (Jon “Mojo” Mills, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/timebox-mn0000602690#biography)  As to Timebox,Continue reading “Timebox — “Walking Through the Streets of My Mind”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 4, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,834) The Strawberry Alarm Clock — “Barefoot in Baltimore” While I would not recommend walking barefoot in Baltimore, this ’68 A-side by the Strawberry Alarm Clock (see #127, 272, 901, 1,111, 1,700) is “truly magical”, which I “can imagine . . . beingContinue reading “The Strawberry Alarm Clock — “Barefoot in Baltimore”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 3, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,833) The Honeybus — “Scarlet Lady” Another spendid song by Honeybus, with “the Byrds [see #1,430, 1,605] shining through” (Jittery White Guy, https://www.jitterywhiteguymusic.com/2021/02/honeybus-story-1970.html?m=1) 45rpy writes: Colin Hare’s “Scarlet Lady” concerns a different kind of clod—namely, an infatuated one—though his plea to the listenerContinue reading “The Honeybus — “Scarlet Lady”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 2, 2026”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,832) The Peppermint Trolley Co.  — “Sunrise” A new sun rises over a new year. Take a ride on the Peppermint Trolley with this lustrous and consoling song by America’s greatest 60’s TV band, a song “about hope and finding strength to carryContinue reading “The Peppermint Trolley Co. — “Sunrise”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 1, 2026”