THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
2,065) King Fox — “Unforgotten Dreams”
It seems almost miraculous that “a group of [15 and 16 year old] Sydney high school students” could write and perform such an “[i]ncredible [five minute] psych-pop [verging on prog] track . . . [r]eminiscent of the Moody Blues in some ways” (akent, https://rateyourmusic.com/release/single/king-fox/unforgotten-dreams-alone-so-alone/), a “masterpiece of lo-fi psychedelia”. (Alec Palao, liner notes to the CD comp Peculiar Hole in the Sky: Pop-Psych from Down Under) “Unforgotten Dreams” is “Great. Like an iron fist in a velvet glove. K-I-L-L-E-R”. (thomassmith8721, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PT9s9pjwBsE) It seems almost miraculous that the song could reach #8 in Sydney and stay on the charts for 18 weeks and #27 nationally in Australia and stay on the charts for 18 weeks. (Badger45, https://www.45cat.com/record/sdm307) It seems almost miraculous that the band could then lay down the tracks for an extraordinary LP, pointing toward future prog rock glory. It is tragic that the band then broke up before their tracks were even mixed. As the definitive Milesago: Australasian Music & Popular Culture 1964-1975 puts it, “King Fox would almost certainly have gone on to greater things if the band had endured”. (http://www.milesago.com/artists/king-fox.htm)
Milesago writes of “Unforgotten Dreams”:
[It] remains a much-admired and groundbreaking Aussie record, long acknowledged as one of the classics of Australian ‘psych/prog’ genre — Ian McFarlane rates it alongside Russell Morris’ “The Real Thing” [see #2,000] and The Dave Miller Set’s “Mr Guy Fawkes” [see #1,010] . . . . [T]he group had the song down on tape within an hour. . . . [I]t was a strikingly accomplished effort for such young musicians, and frankly incredible for a first effort in the studio. The atmospheric arrangement was highlighted by [co-writer] Paul[ Radcliffe]’s haunting flute, which was counterpointed by [co-writer] Dave[ King]’s stinging guitar lines. As producer and engineer, Martin Erdman achieved amazing results, especially considering the relatively basic [studio] equipment . . . . [It] generated a tremendous response when it was played on air . . . . [R]eleased as a single in April 1969 and shot into the Sydney Top 40 . . . and stayed in the charts for more than four months. This was an extraordinary achievement in many respects: King Fox was a virtually unknown amateur band with an average age of 16. Even more significantly, [it] was an original Australian composition . . . that achieved great success in a period when local bands were expected to record covers of proven songs by overseas acts. . . . [It] clocked in at a whopping 4’56” . . . . at a time when the ‘standard’ 3-minute duration was an unspoken industry law that only a handful of major groups (like The Beatles) had been able to flout with impunity.
Milesago tells us the story of King Fox:
The nucleus of King Fox was multi-instrumentalist Paul Radcliffe and guitarist Dave King (then aged 14). Ca. 1967 they formed a casual band with schoolmates . . . . gigg[ing] for about six months, honing their chops on the obligatory blues and R&B repertoire . . . . Dave and Paul wrote their first song together, “Timepiece”, and they recorded a rough demo at [singer] Billy[ Field]’s house. . . . [T]he boys spotted drummer Andy Evans playing at a neighbour’s house. He impressed them with his ability . . . and they immediately “begged him” to join. Andy’s friend Peter Muller was a guitarist, but since King Fox already had three guitarists, Peter was persuaded to buy an organ and became the group’s fifth member. . . . [A] few months later, [Muller] entered the band in . . . a talent competition being run by Sydney commercial radio station 2UW. . . . the brainchild of enterprising independent producer Martin Erdman, owner of the World of Sound record store and studio . . . . who had recently launched his own label, Du Monde[. I]n early 1969 he . . . . approached 2UW (then Sydney’s top pop station) with the idea of a band competition, in which new groups would tape studio recordings at Martin’s studio. The best tracks would then be played on 2UW every Friday afternoon . . . the ten acts who generated the biggest response would have their songs released as singles by Du Monde. The reality turned out to be a mammoth undertaking . . . . Over the weeks of the competition, almost two hundred local bands descended on the . . . studio, with . . . just one hour to set up, record two songs and lug out . . . . Band and producer felt that they were on a winner with the track, and the public backed them up. . . . [Its] success . . . swept King Fox up into a whirlwind of public attention, with concert performances in front of thousands of people, press interviews, radio spots and TV appearances . . . . Over the Xmas holidays in January 1970, they cut a series of ambitious tracks . . . . Unfortunately, it was at this point that reality intruded . . . . It’s long been reported that the band broke up because the members were devoting too much time to music, and that their instruments were confiscated after their parents discovered that the boys had failed their end-of-year exams. . . . [But a]s Paul and Dave . . . recalled . . . the boys’ parents had been happy for them to pursue their music as long as it didn’t intrude on their families’ privacy or involve their schools. Unfortunately . . . Sydney tabloid The Sunday Mirror published an intrusive article . . . that named the boys’ schools and mocked their supposedly affluent backgrounds. This proved too much for their parents, and just days after they taped the last track . . . King Fox broke up. The multitracks — which had not even been mixed — were put into storage, but when Martin moved his studio some years later, the tape went missing. . . . [T]he King Fox album became one of the great lost artefacts of Australian pop. . . . [T]he ambitious album was a truly impressive and groundbreaking effort . . . . [O]ne can’t help but be impressed by how adventurous and accomplished the music is. . . . The sophistication . . . is remarkable, considering that the five lads were all still under 18 at the time.
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