Author Archives: georgefishman2

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,185) Robert Charlebois — “Ordinaire”/”Ordinary” WARNING — If you are a Québécois or from France, read no further! Ne lis pas plus loin! This song is a francophone legend! “‘Ordinaire,’ the heart-breaking cry of a fading show business star . . . ha[s]Continue reading “Robert Charlebois — “Ordinaire”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 23, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,184) The New Mix — “Even Brighter” This absolutely gorgeous ’68 pop psych/sunshine pop confection (out of North Carolina!) is “a hidden gem” that “still reminds me of glimmering golden orange autumn sunsets”. (MoonChild-zg3gx, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7X_XhvZcyBU) Bad Cat Records says that “[i]n spite ofContinue reading “The New Mix — “Even Brighter”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 22, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,182) John Hartford — “The Six O’Clock Train and a Girl with Green Eyes” Country? Folk? Either way, this ’68 B-side by the legendary John Hartford is gentle on my mind, “bounc[ing] along like the happy ’60s pop song it is”; from TheContinue reading “John Hartford — “The Six O’Clock Train and a Girl with Green Eyes”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April , 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,162) Illés — “Történet M.-Ről/”The Story of M.” Here is a slice of “magnificent” (attilamarfi9018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WUfRo1ef64 (courtesy of Google Translate)) classic rock from Hungary’s Beatles. Zikkurat Stage Agency gives us a Hungarian rhapsody (courtesy of Google Translate): Illés was the Hungarian Beatles, “the”Continue reading “Illés — “Történet M.-Ről/”The Story of M.”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 20, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,181) Val McKenna — “You’ve Gotta Tell Me” Sweet pop-soul from the UK’s Val McKenna (see #988), whose songs “many of which she wrote herself, are . . . hard-driving, straight R&B pieces that the mod population allegedly found appealing.” (Paul Pearson, http://paul-pearson.blogspot.com/2015/05/song-20150507-val-mckenna.html)Continue reading “I Shall Be Released: Val McKenna — “You’ve Gotta Tell Me”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 19, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,180) Neal Ford and the Fanatics — “I Have Thoughts of You” This ‘67 A-side is a “sublime” (Lenny Helsing, https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2014/03/neal-ford-fanatics-good-men-2013-review.html) garage rock ballad, “absolutely beautiful . . . [a] masterpiece of pop psych”. (thomassmith8721, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKv0QeGkrxU) It “has a much more thoughtful, etherealContinue reading “Neal Ford and the Fanatics — “I Have Thoughts of You”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 18, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,179) The Music Machine/Bonniwell Music Machine — “Astrologically Incompatible” This infectious ‘67 B-side is an absolute Zodiac killer by the original Music Machine lineup (and was also the opening track on the Bonniwell Music Machine LP). It was “inspired by [Sean] Bonniwell’s fascinationContinue reading “The Music Machine/Bonniwell Music Machine — “Astrologically Incompatible”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 17, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,178) The Harbinger Complex — “I Think I’m Down” This “fuzz-Punk masterpiece” (Cory Linstrum, The Rock & Roll of San Francisco’s East Bay, 1950-1980) is “kick-ass proto-punk at its finest” (Stansted Montfichet, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-harbinger-complex-mn0000554526#biography), “propelled by a nasty, fuzz-guitar riff . . . featur[ing]Continue reading “The Harbinger Complex — “I Think I’m Down”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 16, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD Don’t forget to file . . . away these versions of “Taxman” in the box of all-time fab Beatles’ covers! 1,176) The Loose Ends — “Tax Man” Here is the Loose End’s “superb freakbeat version” (Nick Warburton, https://thestrangebrew.co.uk/interviews/the-loose-ends/) of “Taxman”, “hard-hitting but respectful”Continue reading “Tax Day Special Edition: The Loose Ends/Junior Parker: The Loose Ends — “Tax Man”, Junior Parker — “Tax Man”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 15, 2024″

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,175) Arlo Guthrie — “Running Down the Road” This is not your father’s Arlo Guthrie, and it certainly ain’t Arlo Guthrie’s father’s Arlo Guthrie! Coming out of nowhere, the song’s “guitar freak-out by some studio musicians . . . ought to send 20Continue reading “Arlo Guthrie — “Running Down the Road”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 14, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,174) Chuck Jackson — “Forgive My Jealousy” Forgive my incredulity, but how was this irresistible number from Jackson’s (see #405) first Motown album, ‘68’s Chuck Jackson Arrives, not a hit? How was it not covered by 100 artists? Heck, it wasn’t even anContinue reading “Chuck Jackson — “Forgive My Jealousy”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 13, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,173) Alacran — “Sticky” From the Spanish Beatles (see #1,172) to the Spanish Santana . . . here is Fernando Arbex’s band Alacran’s “Sticky” with its “irresistibly funky rhythm of the bongos and drums along with the wrenching sound of the guitar”. (https://johnkatsmc5.tumblr.com/post/153820812504/alacr%C3%A1n-alacr%C3%A1n-1971-mega-rare-private-spanish)Continue reading “Alacran — “Sticky”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 12, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,172) Los Brincos (The Jumps) — “Flamenco” Trigger Warning — if you are from Spain, read no further! For I am talking about “The Spanish Beatles”, who hit #1 with this song in ‘64, the first flamenco rock hit? It “revealed the swaggerContinue reading “Los Brincos — “Flamenco”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 11, 2024″

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,171) One in a Million* — “Fredereek Hernando” The Scottish band’s ’67 Christmastime 45 (with “Double Sight” as the B-side) is truly one in a million: “one of the very greatest obscure British psychedelic singles” (Richie Unterberger, https://www.allmusic.com/album/double-sight-mw0001743746), “one of the jewels ofContinue reading “One in a Million — “Fredereek Hernando”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 10, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,170) Giles, Giles & Fripp — “One in a Million” This ’68 A-side, representing King Crimson in the womb, sounds a lot like the offspring of Syd Barrett and Monty Python — “very English music hall psych … the sort of track doneContinue reading “Giles, Giles & Fripp — “One in a Million”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 9, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,169) Caleb Quaye — “A Woman of Distinction” I played the A-side (see #807) — here’s the B-side, “just as good . . . though certainly not as mind numbingly lysergic!” (AnorakThing, https://anorakthing.blogspot.com/2010/10/second-greatest-british-60s-psychedelic.html?m=1) The songs together make a “magnificent 45” (liner notes toContinue reading “Caleb Quaye — “A Woman of Distinction”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 8, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,168) Harry Nilsson — “Love Story” A sweet story, told by a man in love pondering a life of happily ever after . . . all the way to the end: “We’ll play checkers all day / ’til we pass away”. WTF? IsContinue reading “Harry Nilsson — “Love Story”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 6, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,167) The Daughters of Eve — “Help Me Boy” This song twice charted in ‘66 — Cleveland’s Outsiders reached #37 and Eric Burdon’s Animals reached #29 (#14 in the UK), both in October. But the best version was issued a year later (withContinue reading “The Daughters of Eve — “Help Me Boy”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 6, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,166) Damon — “Poor Poor Genie” A Lounge Lizard becomes Lizard King and gives us a mystical and almost mythical LP that “just oozes lysergia” (Tymeshifter, https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5DDDE08017204B40), consisting of “tranced out gypsy Arabian acid fuzz crooner psych with deep mysterious vocals, a captivatingContinue reading “Damon — “Poor Poor Genie”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — April 5, 2024”

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD 1,165) Ambrose Slade/Slade– “Pity the Mother” The first song to be written by Slade’s future songwriting team of Noddy Holder and Jim Lea., this “hauntingly folky” (Dave Thompson, https://www.allmusic.com/album/beginnings-mw0000849687) “SAD song [is] about a pitiful lonely single mum, featuring stunningly heart-rending violin byContinue reading “Ambrose Slade/Slade — “Pity the Mother”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — March 4, 2024”