THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
2,091) Roger Nichols and the Small Circle of Friends — “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart”
To me, Roger Nichols and the Small Circle of Friends (see #631, 828, 1,054, 1,300, 1,332) came up with the finest version of this classic composition by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. Sorry, Dionne. Matthew Greenwald writes:
Originally recorded by Burt Bacharach himself on one of his early solo albums, “Don’t Go Breakin’ My Heart” is a modern-day MOR classic. This version by Roger Nichols is in some ways even more elegant than Bacharach’s original, with a magnificent, double-tracked vocal from Melinda MacLeod. The song’s simple, sweet melody is guided by a vague bossa nova tempo, no doubt inspired by some of Anton Carlos Jobim’s early-’60s work. Decidedly literate but passionate lyrics round out the overall effort, which has easily dated as well as any of the celebrated Bacharach/David classics.
https://www.allmusic.com/song/dont-go-breaking-my-heart-mt0034232511
RNSCF’s sole album would have been one of the great lost albums of the 60’s, except that people could have bought it, they just didn’t! Yeah, you know who you are. Huricanslash enthuses:
Legitimately one of the finest, most unsung pieces of late 60s Sunshine/Baroque/Easy Listening Pop, Roger Nichols & The Small Circle of Friends is… Honestly, this album is like laying down in a field of poppies on a pleasant summer day, smelling the nature around you as the warm, radiant yellow of the sun slowly envelops you whole, you hear a creek softly pitter-patter in the distance, birds are flying and just for this one moment, everything is okay without second thoughts. Rogers knack for Pop arrangements, lush and detailed instrumentation, angular rhythms and sugary sweet vocal harmonies is second to none on here, every track washing over you just as lovely as the previous one. It’s funny, because only half of the album is original material by Roger and Murray MacLeod, but they take all these covers by The Beatles, Burt Bacharach and Carol King and more and adjust them to the vibe and atmosphere and sound of the album so well it still forms one beautifully cohesive project overall. There aren’t even any direct highlights outside of the stunning opener, but it doesn’t need them when it’s this cohesively amazing. This album is just a very specific atmosphere that has been so expertly executed by everyone involved that it’s difficult to find any flaws with it (except maybe that “With a Little Help From My Friends” is basically un-cover-able). If you are looking for probably the best Sunshine Pop album of the 60s, it has to be this one. Almost absolutely flawless and beautiful beyond belief.
Matthew Greenwald tells us:
[Roger Nichols and the Small Circle of Friends is a] true sleeper in the context of California pop. . . . The album is a lot of things at once. Soft pop, a smattering of rock, and a heavy dose of easy listening. The group itself has a great vocal blend. Nichols is joined by Murray MacLeod and his sister, Melinda. The three voices combined create a wonderful, soft sheen, equally effective on the ballads . . . and uptempo numbers . . . . The credits on the album are a virtual who’s who of California pop at the time. . . . [including] Lenny Waronker, Van Dyke Parks, Bruce Botnick, and Randy Newman [see #174]. Superbly produced by Tommy LaPuma, the album unfortunately didn’t do very well at the time of its release, which is an incredible injustice. The music, though, holds up extremely well today, and is an authentic slice of California pop. Delicious.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/roger-nichols-the-small-circle-of-friends-mw0000758583
Patrick Lundborg adds:
Mr Nichols and friends present a groovy smorgasbord of late 60’s pop music . . . . The album is full of candy-coated treats such as soft rock, psych pop and commercial pop. . . . Their sound is soft rock-based with a strong emphasis on imaginative male & female vocal arrangements that may include spicy touches of ethnic beats, lush strings and perky horn mixes. . . . There are many other bands from this period with a similar pop sound, but Nichols and friends had more talent and a healthy budget allowing to record with a top-notched production crew at a state of the art studio.
The Acid Archives, 2nd Ed.
And Steve Stanley adds:
[T]he album overall had the hallmark late-sixties soft pop sound that was selling busloads of records for acts like the 5th Dimension and the Association [see #1,264]at the time. . . . [But] when it came to the record-buying public, the . . . LP fell on deaf ears. [Producer] Tommy LiPuma adds his perspective: “I think at the time, radio stations didn’t know what the dell to do with it, it didn’t necessarily fit into a format, and there wasn’t anything that broke out as a hit.”
liner notes to the CD reissue of Roger Nichols and the Small Circle of Friends
Ed Hogan tells us of Nichols:
[Roger Nichols’s] household brimmed with music when he was growing up. His dad was . . . a professional photographer who played sax in local jazz bands. His mother was a music major and a classical pianist. When Nichols started grade school, he picked up the violin, continuing his violin and classical studies throughout grammar and high school. His attention turned to basketball and Nichols forsook violin for the hoops but played guitar on the side. Recruited to U.C.L.A. on a basketball scholarship . . . . [he was] confronted to make a choice between music or basketball by his coach . . . . Nichols chose music. . . . After he left college . . . . [o]n weekends, he worked in clubs with his group . . . . Around 1965, the group was signed to a recording contract by Liberty Records. . . . With the label for eight months without having a record released, Nichols called A&M Records expressing interest in playing some demos for label co-owner Herb Alpert. . . . [N]ichols wrote an instrumental for Alpert that he promptly recorded a week after hearing it.
Though Roger Nichols and a Small Circle of Friends wasn’t a big seller, Albert urged A&M publishing company head . . . to sign Nichols as a songwriter to their company. [The label] introduced [him] to lyricist Paul Williams [see #24, 1,300]. . . . The duo wrote together for four years, resulting in lots of album cuts, B-sides, even A-sides, but no hits. An advertising executive approached a friend of Nichols asking for help with an under-budget commercial project for Crocker Bank. . . . Hoping to capture the youth market . . . Nichols and Williams were given the slogan, “You’ve got a long way to and go and we’d like to help you get there.” They had just ten days to create a song, essentially a jingle. Waiting until the last day . . . Nichols . . . wrote the basic verse melody in a half hour. . . . Richard Carpenter . . . heard the jingle on a TV commercial . . . . [T]he Carpenters recorded the song [as] “We’ve Only Just Begun” . . . .
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/roger-nichols-mn0001353156/biography
Here is Burt Bacharach:
Here is Dionne Warwick:
Here is Astrud Gilberto:
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