THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,262) Erick Saint-Laurent – “Le Temps D’y Penser”/”Time to Think About It”

Talk about a genre-bender, here from a ‘67 EP is “rare, perfect beat-pop-jerk-psychedelic-folk-garage French” (gerardo9633, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nnd-zbIK_94) “with its beatnik air, its fuzz guitar, the soulful winds and its rhythm section in steamroller mode, covering a lyric portrait of the times: the desire for emancipation, to be different, the new codes of youth, generational incommunicability and America as the promised land”. (estudiodelsonidoesnob, https://estudiodelsonidoesnob.wordpress.com/category/erick-saint-laurent/)

The lyrics*, still relevant (here in English): How long, tell me, will I have to stay with my parents? As long as I can’t make enough money Yes, but how long will it take me to earn some? And That’s what my dad keeps asking himself

As to Erick Saint-Laurent, estudiodelsonidoesnob (“study of snob sound” 🙂 ) says:

Between July 1966 and December 1967 Patrice Raison (aka Erick Saint Laurent ) would release five EPs on the Barclay label. . . . [He] made his music debut in 1963 with Les Little Boys, who the following year became Les Hornets. They finished first in the Twistorama music competition and performed in various Parisian venues such as the Weekend Club and the Locomotive, located on the ground floor of the famous Moulin Rouge. In 1965 . . . they met Pierre [“Saka” Sakalakis], a writer/radio journalist/entertainer with an extensive career behind him . . . . Saka saw in him, a boy with a formidable voice and image, the opportunity to mould someone to his liking from the beginning. Erick/Patrice impeccably embodies the prototype of late Mod-Baroque in its French version: Blazer, skinny trousers, fitted shirt, ankle boots and the measured haircut of his messy mid-length hair sculpted with a razor. He signs for the Barclay label and takes with him his friend Jean-Louis Desumeur, the guitarist of Les Hornets. With Barclay he will release five Super 45 tours . . . between 1966 and 1967. No expense is spared: the best arrangers and musical directors . . . and the best studio musicians. [They] are the living portrait of an era. Covers of all kinds, from the most obvious: The Beatles («Eleanor Rigby», «C’est devenu un homme/She’s leaving home»), Tommy Roe («Un Canard»/»Sweet pea» , Neil Diamond («Je devine la vérité»/»I got the Feelin «) or the Monkees («J’ai cru a mon rêve»/»I’m a believer» ) to less obvious ones: The Nice (« Aprés la batalle»/»The night of Emerlist Davjack «), Procol Harum («Lila Mary»/»She wandered through the garden fence»). It doesn’t forget the French classics either, it seems to play on percentages: «Les fueilles mortes» by Jacques Prévert, «L’amour est mort» by Jean Michel Rivat and Franck Thomas … in short, what appears to be a careful photograph of two unforgettable years in which everything seemed to fit, in which everything could happen. But, despite everything, perhaps it is the songs that Saka contributes (with music by [Jacques Bulostin “Monty”] and Jean Pierre Bourtayre and also by Erick Saint Laurent himself) that best show what could have been and was not. . . . Unfortunately, at the beginning of 1968, when everything seemed ready for the ignition, Erick Saint Laurent had to leave for military service. When he returned, a year and a half later, times had changed. In fact, it was as if a decade had passed. Hippies were rife, psychedelia had swept away the Beat and the time of soloists had been wiped off the map. The casualties were considerable . . . and even the untouchables had to reinvent themselves . . . . Erick Saint Laurent joined Eddy Mitchell’s band as a backing vocalist and even tried, with the group Présence, to make his mark in the new order. All in vain. [I]n 1972 he released a new single and [then] disappeared forever.

https://estudiodelsonidoesnob.wordpress.com/category/erick-saint-laurent/

Wikipedia adds:

[Erick Saint-Laurent] was part of the French pop wave of the late 1960s . . . . [He] joined Les Little Boys d’Orly . . . . in 1962. . . . Patrice renamed his group the Hornets . . . in homage to the Beatles . . . . The Hornets band performed at a competition, Twistorama in Orly, which they ended up winning. This gave the group some visibility on the local Parisian scene. The group covered Beatles songs, which pleased Kiki Chauvière, who invited the group to play on stage at la Locomotive. The group then spent their weekends on stage. In 1965, the[y] met Mike Pasternack, with whom they signed a contract. Pasternack had them open for the Kinks, when the latter performed at the Olympia in February 1965. . . . The Beatles’ influence was increasingly felt in the band, who performed live covers of the Fab Four’s classics, as well as other hits from the English-speaking scene. . . . They tried to sign with Barclay in 1965, but the record company refused. The band spent the rest of 1965 playing on stage at La Locomotive. At the beginning of the summer of 1966, under the leadership of Mike Pasternack, the group auditioned at Barclay, who signed Patrice, who would be renamed “Erick Saint-Laurent”. The rest of the group would end up accompanying their singer in the rest of his career, Barclay not wanting to produce a group. . . . He collaborated with the lyricist Pierre Saka from 1966. In his book “Tout finit par des chansons” Saka describes Erick as “a young singer who is not like the others (…) He stands out from the rockers whose uniform is the black leather jacket. He plays the elegance card, a bit like Dutronc before his time”. It was under the impetus of Pierre Saka that Erick Saint-Laurent would sing songs in French, he who at the time mainly covered Anglo-Saxon songs​ ​.A first album was released in June 1966. . . . In September 1966, Erick Saint-Laurent [went] to a London studio. Accompanied by Eddy Mitchell’s musicians , he recorded a few songs, including a French adaptation of “Eleanor Rigby” . . . . [which] earned the singer his first success. . . . rank[ing] 36th in the tops between October 23 and November 6, 1966. . . .

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erick_Saint-Laurent

* Combien de temps, dis-moi, il va me falloir rester chez mes parents? Aussi longtemps que je ne pourrai pas gagner assez d’argent Oui mais voilà combien de temps il me faudra pour en gagner? C’est ce que mon père n’arrête pas de se demander

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

Our July 4th Spectacular starts off with one of Paul Revere and the Raiders’ first singles, retelling the “Midnite Ride” of, of course, Paul Revere! Then we turn to songs of freedom from the Netherlands and England. OK, that may be a little tone deaf!

109) Paul Revere and the Raiders — “Midnite Ride”

No, not the ‘66 album, the ‘61 B-side telling it like it was, rockabilly style! Um, no offense meant to my English friends.

William Ruhlmann tells us of the Raiders’ first album (including an alternate version of “Midnite Ride”) that:

Gardena Records issued Paul Revere & the Raiders’ debut album in the wake of the Top 40 success of the instrumental “Like, Long Hair,” and much of it is in the same vein as the single, which is a boogie-woogie arrangement of Rachmaninoff’s Prelude in C-Sharp Minor.” Pianist and bandleader Paul Revere and saxophonist (and occasional vocalist) Mark Lindsay lead the instrumental attack . . . . It’s lively, if basic music, but offers little hint that the group would go on to make polished pop/rock in a few years.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/like-long-hair-mw0000478716

Of the Raiders’ early history Michael Jack Kirby writes that:

Of all the acts that sprang up out of the Pacific Northwest during rock and roll’s early years, Paul Revere and the Raiders were the most fun-loving of the bunch, possessing the ability to excite an audience and make them cry out for more. . . . Paul Revere Dick spent most of his early life in Caldwell, Idaho, about 30 miles east of Boise, while . . . Mark Lindsay . . . moved to the same area and began singing at age 15 with a local band, Freddy Chapman and the Idaho Playboys. . . . Revere had worked as a barber at age 18 and by 1958 he owned a small walk-up/drive-thru burger restaurant in Caldwell called Reed & Bell Root Beer, which he kept running even after his music career had kicked in. Lindsay had a job as a baker but walked out after meeting and singing for Paul one night at the Elks Lodge in Caldwell. Both were fans of Jerry Lee Lewis . . . . Paul and Mark joined forces in a band called The Downbeats, performing mostly instrumentals and gaining a word-of-mouth reputation in Southern Idaho and parts of Washington and Oregon. In 1960, after recording some songs in a local studio and shopping the tapes around, they got a bite from John Guss, the owner of a small L.A.-based label, Gardena Records, who suggested taking advantage of Revere’s given name, which the two had previously considered. They thought Night Riders sounded good but settled on the Raiders . . . and promoted themselves as “the wildest sound for miles around.” . . . They began working in Los Angeles with Gary Paxton (fresh off his  “Alley-Oop” chart-topper); the idea of arranging classics as rock numbers was further explored with “Like, Long Hair,” based on Sergei Rachmaninoff’s 1892 “Prelude in C-Sharp Minor.”  This third single hit the national charts and entered the top 40 in April 1961. Paul was drafted by the Army, leaving Mark and the band to go out on performance dates as Paul Revere’s Raiders, though only for a short time as Paul was designated a conscientious objector. Paul and Mark cut their first album (Like, LONG Hair) with studio musicians . . . . Portland, Oregon was the group’s home base . . . . Top 40 deejay Roger Hart of KISN, a Vancouver, Washington station that broadcast from downtown Portland and made “91-derful” the most popular spot on the radio dial, began promoting their local appearances on his show, which guaranteed packed houses. Roger became fast friends with all the Raiders and wound up as their full-time manager. The band’s shows have since become the stuff of legends; the guys worked out choreographed steps that the crowd would mimic, Lindsay blew sax while hanging from the rafters if the building’s interior design allowed for it, and Paul lit his piano on fire more than a few times. Musicianship was hot and tight and people rocked out at their shows. It was not unlike the kind of mania Jerry Lee had become famous for.

https://www.waybackattack.com/reverepaulandtheraiders.html

1,260) The Motions — “Freedom”

This ebullient number about being free “like the fish in the sea” is a “Great song!!! . . . makes me feel like a kangaroo” jumping in the zoooooo!!! :)” (rhondaeverett8284, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBxc7jrMJXQ)

As to the Motions (see #1,224), Richie Unterberger is dismissive:

A pretty typical Dutch “beat” group of the 1960s, the Motions were pretty popular in their native land, releasing seven albums and over 27 singles in their eight-year career. Far from the best Dutch group, and far from the worst, most of their hits were fairly ordinary fare, ranging from dippy folkish ballads to tough mod rockers. Their best cut is the positively ferocious mod stomper “Everything That’s Mine” (1966), with a searing feedback break worthy of the early Who. They’re really most remembered for their lead guitarist and songwriter, Robby van Leeuwen, who left in 1967 to form Shocking Blue [see #1,214], and penned . . . “Venus.”

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-motions-mn0000479965#biography

I disagree. Had they been an English group, the Motions would have been huge in the UK and revered to this day. In any event, the Dutch online record store Platenzaak.NL says (courtesy of Google Translate):

Founder and main songwriter Robbie van Leeuwen had already given up after two albums to undertake other musical adventures, so the band recorded their third album Impressions Of Wonderful without him. After this album, the band and their then label Havoc also split up. Singer Rudy Bennett subsequently released a number of singles on Decca, the label where The Motions also found new accommodation in 1968 to record a new album. The result was Electric Baby, recorded with producer Hans van Hemert, which was released in 1969.

Electric Baby (LP)

1,261) Gordon Jackson — “Song for Freedom”

This “lost dancefloor friendly sixties anthem” (Derek Anderson, https://dereksmusicblog.com/2019/03/27/gordon-jackson-a-story-of-what-might-have-been/) A-side was stuck in heavy Traffic in ’69 along with the rest of the album Thinking Back (“intimate and mellow psychedelic folk, with a jazzy feeling to several songs”, Vernon Joynson, The Tapestry of Delights Revisited) Brum Beat Reviews writes of “Song for Freedom” that:

The highly-driven ‘Song For Freedom’ is really one of the stand-out tracks on the album. With Gordon Jackson’s acoustic intro, it combines a fantastic rhythm section powered along by congas courtesy of Rocky Dzidzorni and Jim Capaldi’s characteristic drumming along with Dave Mason’s distinctive bass. You can really dance to this one and indeed will have a hard time resisting the urge to! Brilliant backing vocal by Julie Driscoll (of Brian Auger and The Trinity) [see #1,032-33] . . . . Note also the atmospheric tenor sax and organ contributed by Chris Wood and Poli Palmer respectively.

http://www.brumbeat.net/revgord.htm

Of the album, Richie Unterberger opines that:

Gordon Jackson’s only album sounds a little like a Traffic LP with a singer who isn’t in the band. The similarity is really no surprise, since Traffic men Steve Winwood, Dave Mason, Jim Capaldi, and Chris Wood all played on the record, and Mason produced. . . . There’s a languid, minor keyed jazz-folk-psychedelic vibe to the songs, which have a meditative, spontaneously pensive air, appealingly sung by Jackson. Touches of Indian and African music are added by occasional tabla and sitar. What keeps this from being as memorable as Traffic or some of the other better late-’60s British psychedelic acts is a certain meandering looseness to the songs that, while quite pleasant, lacks concision and focus. . . . the songs are more interesting mood pieces with a yearning, mystic tone than they are outstanding compositions. . . .

Thinking Back had the same sort of loose mixture of psychedelic rock with jazz, folk, and bits of soul and world music that characterized some of Traffic’s work. The material wasn’t as strong or focused as Traffic’s or Family’s but it had a nice, introspective groove with haunting, minor-keyed melodies.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/thinking-back-mw0000543552, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/gordon-jackson-mn0000450368#biography

Brum Beat Reviews adds as to Jackson and his album:

Although often described as a “lost Traffic album”, Gordon Jackson’s Thinking Back, upon closer examination, reveals itself to be something more. It’s true that almost every track on this rare 1969 album does have Dave Mason, Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood, and Steve Winwood playing on it, but what we have here is a highly personal collection of songs composed by a long-overlooked talent who was then at the crossroads of his career. In the beginning, there were The Hellions – a Worcester-based band who during the mid 1960s came close to breaking into the charts with a series of finely crafted pop singles. The line-up was drummer/vocalist Jim Capaldi, and guitarists/vocalists Dave Mason and Gordon Jackson along with bass guitarist Dave Meredith and John “Poli” Palmer on flute and vibes. The Hellions (minus Dave Mason and Meredith) with the addition of Luther Grosvenor, evolved into Deep Feeling who, produced by Yardbirds manager Giorgio Gomelsky, could well have developed into a force to be reckoned with. Ultimately, this was not to be and Deep Feeling were sacrificed when Jim Capaldi left to form the legendary Traffic along with Steve Winwood, Dave Mason and Chris Wood. Poli Palmer joined Blossom Toes [see #709, 1,115] and later became a pivotal member of Family. Luther Grosvenor went on to success in Spooky Tooth and later Mott The Hoople under the alias of “Arial Bender”. . . . [F]ollowing the demise of Deep Feeling, Gordon Jackson and Poli Palmer continued on as a song-writing team until Georgio Gomelsky offered Gordon a solo contract on his own Marmalade Records label. The result of this was the release of a single in 1968 by Gordon Jackson entitled Me Am My Zoo which was produced by Dave Mason as well as featuring the complete Traffic line-up. By late 1968, Gordon Jackson began the recording of tracks for his solo album . . . with the sessions produced by Dave Mason. All the songs were composed by Gordon Jackson who sings the lead vocal and plays acoustic guitar on every track. . . . [A] large number of other luminaries from the late 1960s British rock scene [also] dropped by the studios to contribute. The list includes Gordon’s former Deep Feeling band-mates Poli Palmer and Luther Grosvenor, Chicken Shack’s Robbie Blunt, Julie Driscoll, Rick Grech, Jim King and Meic Stevens, percussionist Rocky Dzidzorni as well as members of the Blossom Toes. . . . ‘Thinking Back’ was issued on the Marmalade Records label in July of 1969 with an initial pressing of around 2,000 copies. . . . [T]here were immediate problems with distribution and the record received little if any promotion. The financial collapse of the Marmalade label [was a final blow].

http://www.brumbeat.net/revgord.htm

Here is the album version:

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The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,259) Sandie Shaw — “Mama Roux”

Today, Sandie Shaw (see #324) proves that this mama was no puppet on a string! Shaw was seen “as epitomizing the ‘swinging Sixties’, and her trademark of performing barefoot endeared her to the public at large.” (https://www.vintag.es/2021/09/sandie-shaw.html). “Mama Roux” (see #177) is from Dr. John’s debut Gris-Gris (’68), “the spookiest album ever recorded”. (Gabe Soria, https://www.trunkworthy.com/dr-johns-gris-gris-spooks-us-the-hell-out/) A “co-composition with local New Orleans R&B star Jessie Hill” “Mama” is “spooky [and] snaky” and “[w]ith incantatory background vocals that seem composed to invoke a spirit . . . is deeply, funkily New Orleans . . . .” (Alison Fensterstock, https://www.rollingstone.com/feature/dr-john-essential-songs-845549/) I know this is sacrilege, but I like her version even more than Dr. John’s original. Shaw makes “Mama” both spooky and sexy, as if she was in a voodoo trance.

But what was Sandie Shaw doing singing “Mama Roux”?! On her last album of the ’60s [Reviewing the Situation] Shaw proved that she was hipper than a lot of people would have suspected.” (Richie Unterberger, https://www.allmusic.com/album/reviewing-the-situation-mw0000477493) The LP was Shaw’s self-emancipation from her controlling manager, Eve Taylor, and from the Britgirl hit factory. Alexandra M. Apolloni writes:

Shaw assembled the track list herself, drawing together songs that she thought best exemplified the musical innovations of the past decade . . . . Critics expressed disbelief that Shaw would approach songs by groups like the Stones and Led Zeppelin . . . . Shaw was trying to move away from the path to middle-class family entertainment even as [manager] Eve Taylor was trying to push her into it. . . . Reviewing the Situation sounds like an act of rebellion on multiple fronts. It was a personal rebellion and manifestation of a desire for creative control (she and arranger Ken Woodman conspired to keep Taylor entirely out of the studio during the recording process) But beyond this personal rebellion, it was a rejection of the pipeline that the British music industry tried to push young women into. . . . Shaw’s rock covers offer a compelling example of gendered performance that appropriate the moves that white men had appropriated from black women to communicate sexuality in rock.

Freedom Girls: Voicing Femininity in 1960s British Pop

Patricia Juliana Smith adds that:

Shaw recorded and produced the adventurous Reviewing the Situation . . . without Taylor’s knowledge. Upon the album’s release, Taylor, incensed by Shaw’s rock ambitions, quashed its promotion, and the album completely vanished from the public eye and ear until 2004, when Shaw herself oversaw its reissue. Though unfocused in its attempt to do too much at one, the album nonetheless gives Shaw the rock credibility critics have denied her and stands as a sad relic of what might have been had Shaw been left to her own devices.

Brit Girls: Sandie Shaw and the Women of the British Invasion in She’s So Fine: Reflections on Whiteness, Femininity and Class in 1060s Music

Richie Unterberger is less enthusiastic:

Moving away from the usual light pop and MOR, [Shaw] chose a set of covers heavy on material by the likes of Bob Dylan, the Lovin’ Spoonful, the Rolling Stones (“Sympathy for the Devil”!), Led Zeppelin’s “Your Time Is Gonna Come” (double exclamation point!), Donovan, Dr. John, and the Bee Gees. Which doesn’t mean it’s a great album. It’s thoughtfully arranged and energetically delivered, but Shaw’s slight, wispy voice is as ill-suited for some of the material as a nun is for the mosh pit. Hearing her attempt even the slightest hint of funky menace, as on “Sympathy for the Devil” and Dr. John’s “Mama Roux,” is apt to induce snickers, however heartfelt the endeavor might have been.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/reviewing-the-situation-mw0000477493

As to Sandie Shaw, the Second Disc reminds us that:

Shaw was one of U.K. pop’s most notable female performers, thanks to her idiosyncratic performances (she was often seen on Top of the Pops and other British pop shows performing to her singles while barefoot) and reputation as an interpreter of other peoples’ songs. Between 1964 and 1969, Shaw had eight U.K. Top 10 hits . . . including No. 1 singles “(There’s) Always Something There to Remind Me” (the first hit interpretation of the Burt Bacharach-Hal David classic, before Naked Eyes made it a U.S. hit in the ’80s), “Long Live Love” and “Puppet on a String” – the latter of which, although not a favorite of the performer’s, earned her wider acclaim when her performance won the Eurovision Song Contest. It was the first time a British act took home the prize.

https://theseconddisc.com/2013/06/04/sandie-shaw-reissues-are-at-your-feet-from-salvo/

Stephen Thomas Erlewine writes:

British singer Sandie Shaw had a string of girl group-styled singles in the mid-’60s before she retired in the early ’70s. Shaw was discovered by pop singer Adam Faith in 1963, who led her to his manager, Eve Taylor; she released her debut single, “As Long as You’re Happy,” the following year. It didn’t hit the charts, yet her next record, “(There’s) Always Something There to Remind Me,” hit number one in the U.K.; the single hit number 52 in the U.S., yet Shaw was never as big a star in the States as she was in the U.K. For the next three years, she had a string of hits — most of them written by her producer Chris Andrews — that kept her at the top of the charts. In 1967, Taylor began to move Shaw into cabaret territory; the approach proved a success when . . . “Puppet on a String” hit number one. . . . However, none of her further work with Andrews resulted in hit singles. Released in early 1969, her English version of the French “Monsieur Dupont” managed to crack the Top 20; it would turn out to be her last hit. In 1970, Shaw tried to become a family entertainer, yet those plans were scuttled by a failed marriage and scandalous rumors that circulated in the British newspapers. She subsequently retired for the rest of the ’70s.

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/sandie-shaw-mn0000240081#biography

Here is Dr. John:

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The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,258) Val McKenna and Robin Shaw — “Hey Girl (No Need to Push)”

Sweet sultry soul from the UK’s Val McKenna (see #988, 1,181) that gets under your skin, a “fabulous duet” with Robin Shaw “that somehow escaped release”. (Mark Frumento, liner notes to CD comp The Ministry of Sound: Men from the Ministry & Midsummer Nights Dreaming) Man, it coulda been a hit. But it wasn’t even released! The song was written by The Ministry of Sound’s Robin Shaw and Micky Keen.

As John Carter explained:

The Ministry of Sound was really a substitute venture for me when I left The Ivy League[.] I got together with [bassist/singer] Robin Shaw and [guitarist] Micky Keen and we started writing together and recording tracks in Southern Music’s studio. . . . Val McKenna was signed to Southern as an artist and Lesley Duncan was a friend and always around the studio, so it seemed natural that when we needed girl vocals on tracks they would be brought in to guest.

liner notes to the CD comp Dreambabes Volume Six: Sassy and Stonefree

Val’s 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) Bruce Eder says about Val that:

A singer whose career was managed by Ivy League members John Carter and Ken Lewis, Val McKenna was one of the better white female pop soul-style singers to come out of early- to mid-’60s England. Apart from a convincing delivery on numbers like “Mixed Up, Shook Up Girl,” she also benefited from the presence of Jimmy Page on lead guitar on her records, which also included “Baby Do It” and “Now That You’ve Made Up Your Mind,” the latter her own composition and very good indeed.

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/val-mckenna-mn0000303369

Kieron Tyler tells us that “Val later attracted attention from the Northern Soul brigade with her 1970 Spark A-side “Love Feeling” and then went into session singing, and was featured on Rick Wakeman’s 1984 single “Glory Boys” and Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzaneras’s 1990 solo album Southern Cross.” (liner notes to Dreambabes Volume Six: Sassy and Stonefree)

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The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,257) Les Sauterelles* — “Montgolfier”

Well, after the Beatles, let’s listen to the “Swiss Beatles” (see #500), led by Toni Vescoli! Bad Cat Records says:

[“Montgolfier” is] a surprisingly engaging slice of classic pop-psych.  Full of breezy lysergic touches and waves of shimmering backing vocals (loved the chipmunk sounds), this one just had 1967 dripping out of it’s aural pores.   Easy to see why it was tapped as what was to be the band’s final single.

http://badcatrecords.com/SAUTERELLE.htm

“Je-be-du-ba-je-be-du-ba-je-be-du-ba-je-be-du”!

Richie Unterberger gives some history:

A Swiss ’60s band that have sometimes been mistakenly identified as a British group due to their 1968 single “Dream Machine,” a quite catchy and enjoyable facsimile of British flower pop . . . . The band had actually been recording since 1965, and established themselves as one of Switzerland’s best and most popular groups. . . . . Much of their first LP (1966) was filled with covers of popular rock hits. . . . interpreted . . . with a brash energy that makes the record stand out . . . . “Dream Machine” was a more original effort, and an album from 1968, View to Heaven, also had a more pronounced folk and psychedelic feel than their earliest outings. Les Sauterelles continued recording all the way into the early ’70s . . . .

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/les-sauterelles-mn0000837494

The band’s website relates two transformational moments in the band’s history (courtesy of Google Translate):

For the first time abroad, to Germany, to the beat club “Kaskade” in Cologne. Full of enthusiasm, the Sauterelles drive to what was then the beat mecca in a rented VW bus. After the first set, the club manager takes the band aside and his verdict is devastating: “We don’t need that Shadows rubbish here anymore! What people want to hear are songs by the Stones, the Beatles, etc.” .. .

Hansruedi Jaggi has connections to beat clubs and takes on the job of getting as many gigs as possible for the Sauterelles. Jaggi and the manager are also the ones sitting in the audience and can therefore hear a lot of what people are thinking and gossiping about. You get the feeling that a woman doesn’t fit well into the “modern image of a beat band.” How is Toni supposed to tell his sister this[?] 

https://www-sauterelles-ch.translate.goog/story7.php?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=sc

Bad Cat Records adds that “Showcasing an almost Spinal Tap-like roster of band members (it appears a sizable chunk of the Swiss population passed through the band at one time or another)[, b]y 1968 the band had already gone through nine line-ups with Vescoli being the only remaining member of the original line-up. ” (http://badcatrecords.com/SAUTERELLE.htm)

* Where did the name come from? Well, the band’s website explains:

“How about: LES SAUTERELLES,” says one of the two French-speaking [original band members]. “What does that mean in German?” you want to know. “Hop, grass-hop or something like that!” “Ah, locusts!” Toni specifies. “I think it’s great, it goes well with the chirping, shrill guitar tones.”

https://www-sauterelles-ch.translate.goog/story.php?_x_tr_sl=de&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=sc

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Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).

The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.

When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,256) The Beatles — “If You’ve Got Trouble”

The Beatles song that many Beatlemaniacs love . . . to hate, but I love it! John and Paul wrote it for Ringo to sing for the Help! album but “[t]hat the song wasn’t working as planned can be heard in Ringo’s desperate call before the guitar solo: ‘Ah, rock on – anybody!'” (The Beatles Bible, https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/if-youve-got-trouble/)

Beatles know-it-all (in the best way!) Mark Lewisohn says that “[t]he Beatles captured the basic track . . . in a single take and then lead and backing vocals were overdubbed, but the overall sound did not gel” (liner notes to The Beatles Anthology 2) and that it was “not one of the better Lennon–McCartney numbers … nor was it brilliantly performed.” (The Beatles Recording Sessions) It didn’t see the (official) light of day until Anthology 2.

George Harrison said “We’ve just come across that, and it’s the most weird song. I’ve no recollection of ever recording it. It’s got stupid words and is the naffest song. No wonder it didn’t make it onto anything.” (The Beatles Anthology)

Ian MacDonald said the song is “a the only unmitigated disaster in the Lennon–McCartney catalogue”! (Revolution in the Head: The Beatles’ Records and the Sixties)

The Beatles Bible says it “bears the unfortunate hallmarks of the two songwriters going through the motions: uninspired lyrics about diamond rings, ‘money and things’, references to Starr’s haplessness (his persona within the group’s early years was that of an amiable clown), and a tune which was less than inspired.” (https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/if-youve-got-trouble/)

“George’s solo is so bad to border on the sarcastic. Yet it works in a sort of “so bad it’s good, avant garde” way.” (Bungalow Bob, https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/if-youve-got-trouble/) “Holy crap that’s an awful song and Harrison’s lead is absolutely dreadful. It sounds like a band practicing in someone’s basement. Poor Ringo.” (Ron Nasty, https://www.beatlesbible.com/songs/if-youve-got-trouble/)

But the song does get some love. “My most favorite bad Beatles song. Love it.” (davidmarshall7752, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9hszVbIoRg) “This is actually a really good song. It’s sad they scrapped it but I’m happy they put it on Anthology.” (umno806,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9hszVbIoRg) “This song is so good that I unliked it just so I could like it again.” (kyledonahue9315, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9hszVbIoRg) “I think this song was ahead of it’s time. Maybe that’s why It was scrapped. George’s hypnotic guitar riff with Ringo’s vocal and that monotone oh oh. Gives it a punk sound. Love it.” (babu357, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9hszVbIoRg)

Richie Unterberger tells us :

One of the strangest early Beatles songs . . . . [o]n relatively rare occasions when critics have discussed [it] at all, they’ve usually been very derisive about the song. It’s true that it wasn’t up to the usual Beatles standard, and it’s not hard to see why it was passed over for release, but really, it’s not so bad. The tune’s not as melodious as most the Beatles wrote, but its ringing, circular guitar riffs are very much in keeping with the group’s 1965 arrangements, actually sounding more like their Rubber Soul era than their Help! one. . . . What’s oddest about “If You’ve Got Trouble[]” . . . are the lyrics. . . . [T]hey are goofier and more sardonic than anything else John Lennon and Paul McCartney had come up with before that year. The thrust? If you’ve got problems, you should get a load of mine! It almost sounded like a satire of clichéd whiny pop lyrics. Maybe it was felt that Starr’s sad-sack image suited that kind of tune. If that was so, Starr seem to take them entirely seriously, shouting, “Oh rock on, anybody!” right before the instrumental break. For all its lack of seriousness, “If You Got Trouble” is hummable, likable, and performed with good-natured spirit.

https://www.allmusic.com/song/if-youve-got-trouble-mt0007392232

They could at least have given it to Billy J. Kramer! It’s like your mother used to tell you, don’t throw away good food, they’re starving in . . .

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Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).

The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.

When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,255) Bobby Jameson — “Windows and Doors”

Supercatchy sunshine pop produced by Curt Boettcher, with two more catches: the lyrics are profound and the singer/songwriter’s life was tragic.

Richie Unterberger says of the song that it “bears an early Love influence” and of the LP Color Him In that:

[I]t’s much more a Californian-sounding, faintly psychedelic-speckled pop/rock record than a British Invasion one. Produced by Curt Boettcher, it’s an odd LP . . . [for] its strange juxtaposition of 1966-1967 rock styles. Jameson writes intense songs of soul-searching and questioning, yet the tunes are dressed up in rather normal good-time Southern California pop/rock arrangements, with cheerful female backing vocals that verge on the too-chipper, sometimes to the point of annoyance [not to me!] At times, his sly, mind-rushing-to-keep-pace-with-the-tongue lyrics recall early Arthur Lee . . . . It’s an interesting, but not terribly interesting [yes, terribly interesting!] mildly eccentric pop/rock album with a dash of flower power.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/color-him-in-mw0000989607

Tosh Berman adds:

The [LP] is co-produced by Boettcher, as well as Jim Bell and Steve Clark. All three producers part of the Los Angeles music scene along with Bobby. Color Him In conveys a sound of sweetness with Jameson’s soulful voice, but the songs also have slicked backup singing. There is tension between the backup singing and Jameson’s lead. It conveys a lightness but with an undercurrent of dread and anxiety. There are traces of Forever Changes by Love within the songs, and there are intense Arthur Lee-like vocalisms throughout the album. . . . [T]his record refuses to leave, and layers of meaning or sounds come through repeated listening.

https://tosh.substack.com/p/jameson-color-him-in-verve-records

Jameson himself recalled:

“Color Him In” was a psychedelic work of the times. Much of what is on the record was inspired by LSD, Vietnam, and the Peace Movement. The overall context was freedom from the establishment or so we thought. It was basically a concept album, but most of the music’s conceptual arrangements were Curt’s. Songs I wrote like “See Dawn” dealt with duality. “What goes up must come down.” The lyric “See dawn, see dawn the setting sun” attempts to look at things from opposite ends of a single spectrum simultaneously. These pairs of opposites run throughout the work. Curt Boettcher was delighted by this kind of lyric. My words and melodies, according to Curt at the time, were like a playground for his arrangements. He would take the demos I made of me and a guitar, and arrange vocal harmonies and instrumentation around them. He would come up with entire arrangements based on a specific lick or chord progression of mine. . . . Another problem we encountered in making Color Him In was that Curt Boettcher was trying to finish up an album with The Association at the same time. The Association wanted to produce themselves and argued with Boettcher all the time about who had the final say. So as you can imagine we were never just concentrating on one thing. We were always arranging time to suit numerous demands made by several different entities. This tended to make Curt crazy and unable to do what he wanted on some of our work. . . . Curt was surrounded by people who all became friends of mine, like Michele O’Malley, Jim Bell, and Lee Mallory. . . . At one point I moved into a house with all of these people and we tried living together but it proved too difficult in the long run. Too many dominant personalities in one place. Working together was one thing, living together was another. Curt and I were very close friends while we worked on “Color Him In.” We were never anymore or less than friends. Those of you who are familiar with Curt’s personal life can put your questions away. Curt and I were good friends. We liked working together and we inspired each other.

https://bobbyjameson.blogspot.com/2008/04/part-38-curt-boettcher-and-bobby.html

As to Bobby Jameson, Jason Ankeny tells us:

West Coast folk-rocker Bobby Jameson is best known — or, perhaps, not known at all — for Songs of Protest and Anti-Protest [see #219] the sought-after cult LP he recorded under the alias Chris Lucey. . . . Jameson cut his debut single, “I Wanna Love You,” for the Talamo label in early 1964. The record was a regional hit, and even earned him an appearance on American Bandstand. Although the follow-ups . . . went nowhere, Jameson nevertheless captured the attention of Rolling Stones producer Andrew Loog Oldham, and in late 1964 he flew to London to record the Decca single “All I Want Is My Baby,” co-written by Oldham and . . . Keith Richards . . . . After a 1965 one-off for the Brit imprint, “I Wanna Know,” Jameson returned to Los Angeles, where he befriended producer Marshall Lieb. . . . [who] was in the midst of helming the debut Surrey Records release by folkie Chris Ducey, but with the album covers already printed and the disc ready to ship, contractual snafus forced the project into limbo. Lieb coerced Jameson into writing and recording a new batch of tunes based on Ducey’s existing song titles, and after some creative tinkering with the cover art, [the album] — now credited to Chris Lucey and, for reasons unknown, featuring a photo of Rolling Stone Brian Jones — finally hit retail. Promoted via what was then the most expensive and lavish Billboard advertising supplement ever printed, the album — a deeply idiosyncratic psych-folk opus . . . proved a commercial flop . . . . Jameson did not resurface until mid-1966, releasing “Gotta Find My Roogalator” — arranged by Frank Zappa . . . . He then signed to Verve, where the Our Productions team of Curt Boettcher, Jim Bell, and Steve Clark helmed his 1967 LP Color Him In. That same year, Jameson also appeared in the infamous American International Pictures documentary Mondo Hollywood . . . . A 1969 album for GRT, Working!, proved Jameson’s swan song. During the ’70s, his frustrations with the music industry manifested themselves in substance abuse and two suicide attempts. . . . After he left the music business in 1985, he lived so quietly with his mother in San Luis Obispo County, California that many thought he was dead. He didn’t resurface until 2003, when he learned that Songs of Protest and Anti-Protest had been reissued unbeknownst to him . . . .

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/bobby-jameson-mn0001425046#biography

If you’d like to read Jameson recounting his life, and his overwhelming bitterness, see:

https://bobbyjameson.blogspot.com/?m=1, https://lifeandtimesofbobbyjameson.blogspot.com/

He also left this disturbing video monologue:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=W59QqX8HwHU&pp=ygUWQm9iYnkgamFtZXNvbiBkaWF0cmliZQ%3D%3D

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Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).

The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.

When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.

Just click on the first blue block for a month to month subscription or the second blue block for a yearly subscription.

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,254) Dick Hyman — “The Moog and Me”

Dick Hyman (see #798) put America in the mood to Moog, and put Beck in the mood to whistle. “Switched-on pop for ‘counter’ revolution!” 

The Candyman writes:

Years ago, Dick Hyman established himself as a whistler when he made the first hit recording of “Mack the Knife”. The tune then was still known by its original title, “Moritat”, and Dick’s whistling gave it a fascinatingly, exotically lonely feeling. On “The Moog and Me” . . . he whistles and plays both piano and the synthesizer, accompanied by the Maestro Rhythm [drum machine] unit. “This,” he said, “is the ultimate attempt to humanize the Moog.” Notice the series of timbre changes he achieves in the synthesizer, somewhat similar to the effect that Jimi Hendrix used to get by using the wah-wah pedal on his guitar. And listen, too, to the breaks that [he] takes by turning off his rhythm unit briefly. This is done with a foot pedal. “With the Rhythm Unit you get perfect time,” [Hyman] commented, “but it has no initiative. Of course, this has its advantages. It doesn’t talk back to you and it doesn’t insist on having its own solos.” Some elements from this track, most notably the whistle that serves as the lead-in, were sampled by Beck for the song “Sissyneck” on his 1996 album “Odelay”.

http://stereocandies.blogspot.com/2017/12/dick-hyman-moog-electric-eclectics-of.html?m=1

As to the album, In Sheep’s Clothing Hi-Fi says:

The Electric Eclectics Of Dick Hyman is one of the great early Moog synthesizer records following the groundbreaking instrument’s use at the Monterrey Pop Festival in 1967 and Wendy Carlos’ top-selling Switched On Bach. A master keyboard player, Hyman said his “objective [was] to humanize electronic music as well as to humorize it and to play it as a full performance instead of a collection of unearthly sounds.” Cheeky whistling sounds, lounge instruments, and soundtrack arrangements meet electric drum, pads, basslines, laser tones, and futuristic lead lines from the legendary space age Moog synthesizer. Recorded all the way back in 1969, the album holds up surprisingly well placed up to modern synth recordings. . . .

[T]he now legendary “The Minotaur” . . . was the track . . . which got picked up by radio stations months earlier and was fundamental to the success of the . . . album, becoming the very first single featuring a Moog synthesizer to chart. . . .

https://insheepsclothinghifi.com/album/the-electric-eclectics-of-dick-hyman/, http://stereocandies.blogspot.com/2018/10/dick-hyman-age-of-electronicus-1969.html

Thom Holmes tells us how the album came about:

Dick Hyman was already on his way to becoming a musical legend by 1968, and it had nothing to do with the Moog modular synthesizer. Having established himself as a jazz and studio keyboardist, arranger, and composer, he found himself thrust into yet another role — that of pioneering electronic musician. At the time, Hyman was extremely busy as a session musician for Enoch Light’s Command label, known for its adventurous recordings of instrumental music and exotic arrangements. Hyman’s New York recording sessions for Command and other companies kept him busy for many years as a pianist, organist, arranger, and occasional player, as needed, of other keyboards. Then along came Bob Moog’s synthesizer. When producer Enoch Light . . . heard the Moog, he knew that it had to become a part of the new sound of Command Records. Before long, Light had the most remarkable keyboard player in his organization sitting in front of the Moog to see what would happen, and the results are now part of recorded music history. . . . Many early Moog experimenters viewed the synthesizer primarily as a special effects machine. But Hyman, like a select few of his contemporaries . . . recognized the musical potential of this instrument. . . . the unique tonalities that one could coax from it. . . . His mastery of Hammond and Lowrey organs also gave him insight into how to shape and play intriguing sounds with an electronic instrument. . . . [After] reportedly spending 70 hours crafting the album in the studio, Command unleashed Hyman’s first LP of electronic jazz pop. . . . Electric Eclectics was “Switched-on pop for ‘counter’ revolution!” Hyman had the first chart-making single using a Moog synthesizer, “The Minotaur” . . . . Hyman . . . partnered with audio technician Walter Sear . . . Bob Moog’s New York sales and technical representative. Sear worked with Hyman by programming the Moog patches and engineering the multi-track recordings. Often Hyman would suggest a kind of sound and the two would explore patches until they found what they liked. . . . [“]Walter would suggest registrations or tone productions which were new to me; sometimes I would ask him for settings comparable to my experience as an organist.” . . . Hyman, working with Sear, approached each session as one of exploration. Some pieces were totally improvised in this fashion. When Sear had presented a new and intriguing sound, Hyman would work out a melody or pattern, and then build the piece on successive tracks. The “composition” per se was the multi-track recording itself, not a page of written music. Other pieces were based on compositions by Hyman, newly created for the album, or in some cases older works re-arranged for the new tonal universe offered by the Moog modular. . . .

https://moogfoundation.org/moog-a-history-in-recordings-dick-hyman-master-stylist-of-the-moog-modular/

As to Hyman, Scott Yanow writes:

A very versatile virtuoso, Dick Hyman . . . . worked with Red Norvo . . . and Benny Goodman . . . and then spent much of the 1950s and ’60s as a studio musician. He appears on the one known sound film of Charlie Parker (Hot House from 1952); recorded honky tonk under pseudonyms; played organ and early synthesizers in addition to piano; was Arthur Godfrey’s music director . . ; collaborated with Leonard Feather on some History of Jazz concerts (doubling on clarinet), and even performed rock and free jazz; but all of this was a prelude to his later work. In the 1970s, Hyman played with the New York Jazz Repertory Company, formed the Perfect Jazz Repertory Quintet . . . and started writing soundtracks for Woody Allen films.

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/dick-hyman-mn0000211424/biography

Here is Beck:

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Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).

The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.

When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.

Just click on the first blue block for a month to month subscription or the second blue block for a yearly subscription.

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,253) The Mindbenders — “Uncle Joe the Ice Cream Man”

Man, it’s hot out there. Thankfully, here comes “Uncle Joe the Ice Cream Man”, the Mindbenders’ (see #496) final A-side. This “lost anthem of what John Lennon would have termed ‘granny music’ [was a] curiously mind-expanding tune about the local ice-cream man . . . peak toytown”. (HorseMouth, https://rateyourmusic.com/release/single/the-mindbenders/uncle-joe-the-ice-cream-man-the-man-who-loved-trees.p/ It is “one of the best songs [Graham Gouldman (see #226)] wrote, and it should have been a huge hit for the Mindbenders”. (ZebedyZak, https://www.45cat.com/record/tf961

Anorak Thing says that:

This Graham Gouldman track was the band’s last U.K. single before disintegrating (Gouldman had recently joined the band . . . ). A Mindbenders CD I have states that the band were cutting this track at Olympic studios when Mick  Jagger (who was working on Beggars Banquet at the studio) strolled in and said “Why are you singing this shit?” Regardless of Sir Mick’s assessment this number is a decent candy floss type pop-psych song with some great pop hooks, strings and groovy harmonies.

http://anorakthing.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-mindbenders-10-top-tunes-you-should.html?m=1

Dave Thompson tell us about the Mindbenders:

Remaining together following the departure of frontman Wayne Fontana, the Mindbenders got off to one of the most promising starts any band could enjoy, when their debut single “A Groovy Kind of Love” soared to number two in the U.K. and topped the chart in America. And had the group only succeeded in locating a decent follow-up, they might well have developed into one of the finest British bands of the late ’60s. Instead, a series of disastrous choices of 45s condemned them to the ranks of rank also-rans, and it is only later that the sheer quality of their other work — material hitherto lost on two Mindbenders LPs — had been re-evaluated sufficiently to let listeners state that here was one of the greatest of all Britain’s post-beat bands. A Groovy Kind of Love album totally failed to capitalize on the success of its title track, floundering to a lowly number 92 . . . . The Mindbenders made their final American tour in July 1966 . . . . Fighting hard to keep abreast of the changing currents, the Mindbenders next embarked on their most audacious yet strangely prescient move yet, a full-blown concept album. No matter that, several months before Sgt. Pepper . . . nobody had even heard of concept albums, the Mindbenders’ With Woman in Mind remains a gem in that genre. . . . Unreleased in America, it did little anywhere else and disappeared as quickly as the accompanying single . . . . The group was invited to contribute two songs to the soundtrack of Sidney Potier’s movie To Sir, With Love . . . . Unfortunately, not even major celluloid exposure could break the group’s run of bad luck. . . . By the end of the year, the band was reduced to recording covers of current American hits, which could be rush released in Britain in the hope of beating out the original. . . . The Mindbenders made one final stab at reversing their fortunes, re-recording “Schoolgirl” and pulling out every psychedelic rock trick in the book [see #496]. A BBC ban . . . kept the single a good arm’s length from either the radio or the charts . . . . [I]n March 1968, [bassist] Bob Lang quit . . . . [and] was replaced by Graham Gouldman, in which form the band cut one final single “Uncle Joe, the Ice Cream Man.” The Mindbenders then broke up, calling it a day . . . . [Eric] Stewart and Gouldman, however, would continue working together, first as partners in the newly launched Strawberry Studios, then as one half of 10cc.

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-mindbenders-mn0000403151/biography

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,252) Them — “Could You, Would You”

Before Van Morrison (see #188, 253) was Van the Man, he was Them. The opening track from Them their second album “combine[s] beautifully constructed lyrics with blues and soul in [an] enduring song[] that vibrate[s] and pulsate[s] with feverish R&B fervor.” (Hal Horowitz, https://americansongwriter.com/them/) It is “a moody and brutal beginning [to the LP]. Love that Van vocal growl and the band sounds inspired behind him.” (https://www.allmusicbooks.com/amb-blog/them-again)

Jack Rabid writes that:

Morrison was well on the road to his later genius when he penned “Could You, Would You” . . . . True, his material could stand to rock & roll more, just as the Yardbirds held fast to Chicago blues but made their beat stomp. But still he comes on like some swamp-dwelling, moonshine-drinking, big man on the prowl. Them were raw and ready, and . . . they are an eerie thing of bluesy beauty.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-story-of-them-featuring-van-morrison-mw0000031190#userReviews

Morrison recalls that “Would You” “had nothing to do with any Them lineup whatsoever. [It was] me with session musicians for what was supposed to be my solo record. In fact, I actually wrote [the song] when I was with the Manhattan Showband prior to Them existing.” (liner notes to the CD comp The Complete Them: 1964-1967)

As to Them, Richie Unterberger tells us:

Them forged their hard-nosed R&B sound in Belfast, Northern Ireland, moving to England in 1964 after landing a deal with Decca Records. The band’s simmering sound was dominated by boiling organ riffs, lean guitars, and the tough vocals of lead singer Van Morrison, whose recordings with Them rank among the very best performances of the British Invasion. Morrison also wrote top-notch original material for the outfit, whose lineup changed numerous times over the course of their brief existence. As a hit-making act, their résumé was brief — “Here Comes the Night” and “Baby Please Don’t Go” were Top Ten hits in England, “Mystic Eyes” and “Here Comes the Night” made the Top 40 in the U.S. — but their influence was considerable, reaching bands like the Doors, whom Them played with during a residency in Los Angeles just before Van Morrison quit the band in 1966. Their most influential song of all, the classic three-chord stormer “Gloria,” was actually a B-side, although the Shadows of Knight had a hit in the U.S. with a faithful, tamer cover version. Morrison recalled his days with Them with some bitterness, noting that the heart of the original group was torn out by image-conscious record company politics, and that sessionmen (including Jimmy Page) often played on recordings. In addition to hits, Them released a couple of fine albums and several flop singles that mixed Morrison compositions with R&B and soul covers, as well as a few songs written for them by producers like Bert Berns (who penned “Here Comes the Night”).

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/them-mn0000925181#biography

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The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,251) The Chōb* — “We’re Pretty Quick”

This ’67 B-side is “pure punk genius” with “a breathtakingly frantic pace and one of the more bizarrely entertaining lyrics of the era” (Alec Palao, liner notes to the CD comp Uptight Tonight: The Ultimate ’60s Garage Collection), an “organ thumper with attitude and swagger to spare from Albuquerque, NM teens”. (liner notes to the CD comp Teenage Shutdown: I’m a No-Count: 19 Top Teen Punk Stomp Classics!) “‘Put your love in a bag and swing it round your head…’ Every other music lyric is now vying to be the SECOND greatest of all time”! (johnprestigiacomo2134, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JM7mxugAG1o)

Alec Palao writes:

For all its novelty . . . the arrangement . . . bore a couple of classic hallmarks of the garage band style. For instance, the guitar break’s lengthy, unmodulating crescendo was something commonly adapted by many combos of the time from the Yardbirds’ influential and much-covered “Mister You’re A Better Man Than I.” And the sound at the very end of the record is that of [the] organist . . . switching off his Farfisa whilst holding down a note, providing the odd high pitched sucking sound that can be heard at the climax of several garage discs. Sadly, that was the last we were to hear from this inspired aggregation.

liner notes to Uptight Tonight: The Ultimate ’60s Garage Collection

This single by “five Albuquerque, New Mexico teenagers – Dick Hanson (vocals) Quinton Miller (guitar), Robbie Crnich (organ), Keith Bradshaw (bass) and Dave Elledge (drums)” was issued as “a small pressing in April 1967 on Southwest rock maven Lindy Blaskey’s Lavette label, barely sold at the time, and is now considered a prize rarity.” (Alec Palao, liner notes to Uptight Tonight: The Ultimate ’60s Garage Collection)

Bart Bealmear notes that:

Snotty garage rock from the ‘60s is a genre that causes collectors to drool with delight, and one such record, a 45 by the Albuquerque band the Chob . . . is among the holy grails. It isn’t known for certain how many copies Lavette pressed . . . but Alec [Palao] believes it is likely in the 200-300 copies range, definitely not more than 500…. It’s on Amazon and the asking price is $4,200.

https://dangerousminds.net/comments/were_pretty_quick_prized_1967_garage_punk_45_can_be_yours_for_4200

* “[W]hat is a chob, you ask? Apparently the band’s codeword for a pimple.” (Alec Paleo, liner notes to Uptight Tonight: The Ultimate ’60s Garage Collection)

The Cannibals — “We’re Pretty Sick”:

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The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.

When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

One song so great it couldn’t just be one song, so it became three — in ‘66 by Ray Sharpe, in ‘67 by Aretha Franklin, and in ‘69 by King Curtis. Curtis — the great saxophonist, writer, band leader and producer — was the connection between all three and the provider of the groove.

1,248) Ray Sharpe — “Help Me (Get the Feeling)”

This ‘66 “raw and groovy soul single[]” featured King Curtis’s Orchestra and Jimi Hendrix on guitar. (Ken Burke, https://musicianguide.com/biographies/1608004469/Ray-Sharpe.html) and was “very similar to Van Morrison/Them’s ‘Gloria’ but with punchy brass riffs added.” (Mickey Rat, https://www.45cat.com/record/456402)

Davie Gordon tells us:

Ray Sharpe said that he was playing “Gloria” with the house band at the Galaxy in L.A. King Curtis and Cornell Dupree were there and Cornell “kept hearing something else as opposed to what I was singing” so they basically rewrote “Gloria” to come up with “Help Me” . . . . Given that Ray and Cornell came up with the tracks I’m sure Jimi Hendrix is there in a supporting not lead role and that the guitar break is by Cornell Dupree.

https://www.45cat.com/record/456402

As to Ray Sharpe, Kub Coda writes:

Ray Sharpe’s biggest and only hit, “Linda Lu,” only made it to number 46 on the Billboard charts and his music doesn’t fit into any convenient categories. He is that anomaly of anomalies, an African-American who made records that sounded like a hillbilly doing rock & roll and pop tunes. Sharpe could pick some pretty bluesy guitar and had a way of vocalizing and stuttering and stretching out syllables with a twang that would have given even Jim Nabors a moment of pause. But producer Lee Hazlewood [see #48, 269, 451, 702] sure knew how to get the best out of him . . . . [His] diverse but cool material . . . deserves a much wider hearing.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/linda-lu-mw0000180678

Ken Burke expands:

Described . . . as “the greatest white-sounding black dude ever,” Sharpe’s style encompasses all the best elements of early rock ‘n’ roll. As a singer-songwriter, he has mined Chuck Berry-type humor from the situations and wordplay in his songs. As a guitarist, he alternates snarling single note Albert King guitar bends with with twangy, free-flowing rockabilly. . . . The Sharpe family lived near a seedy bar called Cocoanut Grove. Undaunted by the bar’s tough reputation, young Ray talked the owner into letting him play and sing for tips. He proved so popular that he was repeatedly asked back . . . . Forming a band called Ray Sharpe and the Blues Wailers, he built up a good circuit of blues and rock gigs in and around the Dallas/Fort Worth area. . . . Among Sharpe’s early supporters were “Crying in the Chapel” tunesmith Artie Glenn and his son Darrel . . . . Impressed by his Penguin Club performances . . . . [they produced] two strong demos . . . . [which t]he senior Glenn circulated . . . to music industry contacts, finally securing meaningful interest from independent producers Lester Sill and Lee Hazelwood. . . . “That’s the Way I Feel[]” and . . . “Oh My Baby’s Gone[]” . . . is regarded . . . as inspired Chuck Berry-styled rockabilly, blessed with the feel of Texas blues. However, in 1958 the Dot Records’ subsidiary Hamilton Records was unable to sell the disc to the public. Sill and Hazelwood still had faith in their young singer, and called him back to do the four-song session that was destined to jumpstart his career. . . . He needed one more song to fill out the session. “When I wrote ‘Linda Lu’ back in the 1950s, I didn’t think much of it . . . . A buddy of mine named Mike had asked me to write a song about his girlfriend, Linda, who used to come into the club to dance.” . . . After playing the song in clubs, the singer forgot about it[. Then] . . . Lee Hazelwood . . . asked me if I had one more song to make four, and I was stuck. So I started playing ‘Linda Lu” for him.” “Linda Lu,” with it’s half-stuttered phrasing and rhythmic guitar hook, was the perfect teen rocker. . . . Dick Clark began playing “Linda Lu” on his American Bandstand TV program . . . . [and] the record rose to number 46 on the pop charts and number eleven on the R&B charts. . . . Despite a strong rapport with producers Sill and Hazelwood, Sharpe was never able to conjure a follow-up hit to “Linda Lu.” . . . Sharpe returned to the Texas bar scene, where he earned a steady living playing his danceable mix of rock and blues. . . . The Texas blues explosion of the late 1970s and early 1980s, headed up by the Fabulous Thunderbirds and Stevie Ray Vaughan, threw a fresh spotlight on Sharpe’s work.

https://musicianguide.com/biographies/1608004469/Ray-Sharpe.html

Parts 1&2 — the A and B sides of the single:

1,249) Aretha Franklin — “Save Me”

“The phrasing is almost perfect. Comes in waves of tension and release girls lol. The best thing Aretha ever did”. (JohnLang-yc1su4, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=5YDSeqMaV78&pp=ygUXYXJldGhhIGZyYW5rbGluIHNhdmUgbWU%3D)

Andrew Martone tells us:

In late January of 1967, Aretha began work on her Atlantic Records debut at Fame Recording Studios in Muscle Shoals Alabama. . . . [T]he sessions broke up as a result of some legendary chaos involving Aretha’s husband Ted, a horn player, and Fame’s Rick Hall. After things simmered, Aretha, Jerry, and the Muscle Shoals musicians reconvened in New York City . . . . [T]he first and only record completed that first day was “Save Me.” Saxophonist King Curtis also joined the group in New York, and his presence had a transformative effect on the sessions. . . . It’s his saxophone work that can be heard between verses on “Save Me” (during these sessions he also laid down the sax solo on Aretha’s “Respect”). King Curtis is also the reason that “Save Me” exists. According to Aretha’s autobiography Aretha: From These Roots, King Curtis is the one who wrote “Save Me.” Aretha and her sister Carolyn apparently added some little bits, and “being a generous gentleman, (Curtis) gave Carolyn and (Aretha) credit for (their) minor contributions.” In reality, “Save Me” is based on a record called “Help Me” that Curtis wrote with Ray Sharpe and Cornell Dupree . . . . [I]f the Muscle Shoals sessions hadn’t broken up, Curtis may not have joined the sessions and Aretha’s version of this cut might not exist. . . . [M]usically “Save Me” is a bare bones record that repeats those aforementioned 3 chords over and over again primarily on the guitar and bass, with percussion filling out the instrumentation. Curtis’ sax and the other horns break up the verses, which create the illusion that there’s more to the record. But in actuality it’s the most musically simplistic record on I Never Loved A Man.  It’s also the sole record on the LP where Aretha isn’t accompanying herself on the piano . . . . Aretha carries “Save Me” completely solo. It lacks background vocals or vocal layering, which elevated many of her records to another level . . . . But their absence creates no void on “Save Me”. If anything the single vocal furthers the message of the song. Aretha’s cries of “save me, somebody save me” go unaccompanied perhaps because she’s in this struggle alone, as she pleads for help from a man who wants to taunt her. 

https://365daysofaretha.com/2021/03/21/save-me/

1,250) King Curtis & the Kingpins — “Instant Groove”

This killer groove by the King is “possibly my all-time fave King Curtis track . . . a soul rocker with relentless guitar rhythm” (Mickey Rat, https://www.45cat.com/record/456680) that “showcases the burning R&B Curtis was best known for. . . . [with] him doing the speaking on the track too.” (StooGP, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg) And, it was “[a] discotheque hit in 1969! Cash Box (1969/08/02 p.51 a report from Holland)  Several deejays picked up this record as the discotheque record of 1969.” (yvondouville6460, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg) It even reached #35 on the R&B chart (#127 overall).

Mickey Rat writes:

[“Instant Groove” has] a rare King Curtis vocal followed by Curtis letting out all the stops on a demented Archie Shepp style sax solo and then an electric bass break by Jerry Jemmott. The Curtis and Jemmott bits are overdubs. The backing track on this one is actually part one of Ray Sharpe’s 1966 “Help me” with Jimi Hendrix on guitar. Sharpe’s vocal has been deleted and there are no guitar solos.

https://www.45cat.com/record/456680

As to the bass solo, Blackberryblossom commented on YouTube “First bass solo I´ve ever heard in my life. Still love it.” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg) Seven years later, the bassist Jerry Jemmott himself responded: “First one I ever took!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg) And he added “No overdubbing here. Live at Juggy Murray’s; New York Funk, from the Bronx”! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Lfth8OBlg)

As to King Curtis, Bob Porter writes:

King Curtis was the last of the great R&B tenor sax giants. Born Curtis Ousley in Fort Worth, Texas, he came to prominence in the mid-’50s as a session musician in New York, recording, at one time or another, for most East Coast R&B labels. A long association with Atco/Atlantic began in 1958, especially on recordings by the Coasters. He recorded singles for many small labels in the ’50s . . . . Curtis also had a number one R&B single with “Soul Twist” on Enjoy (1962). He was signed by Capitol (1963-1964), where he cut mostly singles, including the number 20 R&B hit “Soul Serenade.” He returned to Atco/Atlantic in 1965, where he remained for the rest of his life. He had solid R&B single success with “Memphis Soul Stew” and “Ode to Billie Joe” (1967). Beginning in 1967, Curtis started to take a more active studio role at Atlantic, leading and contracting sessions for other artists, producing with Jerry Wexler, and later on his own. He also became the leader of Aretha Franklin’s backing unit, the Kingpins. He compiled several albums of singles during this period. All aspects of his career were in full swing at the time he was murdered in 1971. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/king-curtis-mn0000090803#biography

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The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

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When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,247) Ambrose Slade/Slade — “Knocking Nails into My House”

Cum on feel the pop psych! Yesterday, I featured the Idle Race’s ’68 A-side “The Skeleton and the Roundabout”. Today I feature the B-side, the equally “superb” “Knocking Nails into My House (David Wells, liner notes to the CD reissue of The Birthday Party) But “Nails” a done by Ambrose Slade (see #1,165), which is even better. Don’t just listen to me: “I am a huge Idle Race (also Jeff Lynne) fan………but I will admit……I love the original, but this Slade version is better…..just my opinion. [:-)]” (kiethblack3870, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ns95Vrcj114), “Just heard the original…… more serious than this but bloomin’ marvellous. A stroke of genius by Slade to cover it in the first place and to produce an equally good version, albeit in a lighter vein. Long live Slade, Brum rock and Youtube !!” (bigmagic96, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skG8oPee1Ao) “Slade made a 100 times better version, I would not have appreciated it had Slade not made a cover of it” (carlphone, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skG8oPee1Ao), “[e]ver heard Slade’s version of “They’re Knocking Nails into My House”? Really brings out the best in was a great psych song to start with”. (Seeker_UK, https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/elo.138746/)

Imawalrus recalls:

I started off in the whole Move/ELO etc family tree around the El Dorado period and worked my way back to The Move, Roy Wood and so forth. Along the way I found a copy of the Idle Race’s Birthday Party . . . . I was getting into Slade and doing a similar thing with them. I got a US copy of their first album as Ambrose Slade called Ballzy (Beginnings in the UK). brought it home and started playing it and . . . a song called “Knocking Nails Into My House” came on. I thought “That sounds like a goofy Idle Race song”, so I look at the writing credit, sure enough it was written by Jeff Lynne. . . . I was just amazed at how much of Jeff’s/Idle Race’s style passed thru the Slade filter who seemed very eclectic in their choice of material on their first album.

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/has-jeff-lynne-ever-discussed-his-work-with-the-idle-race-in-any-depth.671809/

About Slade, Vernon Joynson writes:

The roots of Slade go back to a 1964 Wolverhampton-based band The Vendors who included Dave Hill and Don Powell and cut a four-song demo EP. By 1965 The Vendors had evolved into The In-Be-Tweens. The same year Noddy Holder was guitarist and backing vocalist in another Wolverhampton-based band, Steve Brett and the Mavericks. During 1966 The In-Be-Tweens split into two with only Hill and Powell remaining. They were then joined by Noddy Holder and another Wolverhampton lad Jimmy Lea. In early 1969 the foursome, who were now known as Ambrose Slade and playing Motown, Beatles and ska covers, moved down to London. They were spotted playing at Rasputin’s Club by ex-Animal Chas Chandler who became their manager/producer, got them a record deal with Fontana and fashioned them in boots, braces and close-cut hair to cash-in on the skinhead movement. By the end of the year, he’d also persuaded them to shorten their name to Slade.

The Tapestry of Delights Revisited

Chas Chandler recalled:

I was going to take time out to take stock of things. Then John Gunnell told me about this group in the Philips studio… I went to Rasputins to see them. They were like a breath of fresh eayer… Mon. . . . There was a certain amount of amateurism about them but the main fault was that they didn’t play any of their own material. I liked the arrangements they did of other people’s material and I thought that if they could do that, they must be able to write as well. I made up my mind to manage them that night.

https://sladestory.blogspot.com/1971/02/ambrose-slade.html?m=1

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Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).

The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify — now over 750 songs. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.

When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.

Just click on the first blue block for a month to month subscription or the second blue block for a yearly subscription.

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,246)  The Idle Race — “Skeleton and the Roundabout”

As I have said, the Idle Race (see #30, 343, 491) and its “cheerfully trippy” (Bruce Eder, https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-birthday-party-mw0000579621) first album, ’68’s The Birthday Party, were the divine sparks that lit the Electric Light Orchestra. Here is one of the most “memorable” of their “fine” singles, per Vernon Joynson. (The Tapestry of Delights Revisited) David Wells calls it “highly commercial, vaudeville-meets-psych-pop” (liner notes to the CD reissue of The Birthday Party) and Bruce Eder says it is “beguilingly innocent in its zaniness, and the softer middle section anticipates the structure of Lynne’s later work with ELO.” (https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-birthday-party-mw0000579621)

David Wells:

[D]espite their . . . cordial . . . relationship with Radio One, whose support was normally so crucial, The Idle Race just couldn’t buy a hit. Even . . . [“Roundabout”] didn’t do the trick when issued in March 1968 despite a fabulously comic lyric, a hugely contagious chorus, Jeff’s endearing “skellington” mispronunciation (“It’s a localism to get the words wrong’, claimed Roger Spencer) and even a woozy approximation of the theme tune to popular tea-time TV show The Magic Roundabout (“No pastiche was intended”, insists [Dave] Pritchard. “That’s just the way the song evolved. We were trying to convey a fairground image.”) The B-side . . . was the equally superb “Knocking Nails into My House'” another Lynne composition that this time featured a lead vocal from Dave Pritchard, and which was subsequently covered by fellow West Midlanders (Ambrose) Slade.

liner notes to the CD reissue of The Birthday Party

Of the album David Well proclaims that “it showcased the group’s blend of music hall sensibilities, Beatles-ish melodic flair and disturbed flower-child lyrical approach”. (liner notes to The Birthday Party) Bruce Eder adds that:

[The Birthday Party] . . . is a piece of classic British psychedelia that transcends its origins. Most British bands trying to achieve a psychedelic sound in those days simply played softly and sang in a very effete and poetic manner — the Idle Race, by contrast, play hard here and don’t sound effete so much as just cheerfully trippy, a lot like the Beatles of “Penny Lane” and “Strawberry Fields Forever” . . . . Jeff Lynne is the dominant personality here, as composer, guitarist, and singer, and, as one might expect given his presence, the music all has a Beatles-like quality of playfulness amid the musical invention. . . . [T]his album is steeped in beautiful melodies and even prettier embellishments in the singing and playing, yet never loses sight of its rock & roll underpinnings. . . . a great deal of fun, as well as full of little surprises and signposts pointing toward Lynne’s future.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-birthday-party-mw0000579621

James Turner gives a bit of the history of the Idle Race:

The Birmingham music scene in the early to mid ‘60s was incredibly incestuous, and when Roy Wood, guitarist and vocalist with Mike Sheridan and the Nightriders, left to join embryonic Brumbeat supergroup the Move (so named because all members had ‘moved’ to join this new group), the Nightriders found a new guitarist, lost Mike Sheridan and . . . found themselves advertising for a replacement [guitarist] . . . . Eighteen year old guitarist Jeff Lynne . . . was the successful applicant, and . . . the band found themselves putting [him] front and centre . . . . [T]he band’s name evolved from The Nightriders to the more pastoral Idyll Race before settling on The Idle Race, partly because Jeff didn’t want the 9-5 . . . . Jeff [said]“My Mum would come bounding up the stairs, ‘ Come on you lazy bugger, get out, get to work!’ This time she came up, I was holding the sheets down going ‘ Nope, listen, Mum I’ve never got to get up, ever again. I’m a professional musician now ‘ That was the greatest feeling because I was so fed up with (bang, bang, bang) ‘Get up you lazy git!’” . . .

[I] see [the album in] a long tradition of British rock of the ‘60s that was influenced by what came before – skiffle, music hall, vaudeville… (The music hall element is something Jeff Lynne would revisit with Roy Wood on the Move songs The Duke of Edinburgh’s Lettuce and My Marge) and so what you get on Birthday Party is a cast of loners, misfits and the underbelly of society. Eleven songs were written by Jeff Lynne, one by Dave Pritchard . . . . The Birthday Party . . . marked the debut of Jeff Lynne as a songwriter and producer of note, and is one of the great lost albums of the late ’60s.

https://wearecult.rocks/the-idle-race-birthday-party

* “English comedian and singer in musical theatre, known as one of the greatest music hall performers of the early 20th century.” (wikipedia)

Live on the BBC:

The Magic Roundabout theme:

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,245) The Montanas — “Roundabout”

“The Montanas’ . . . Pye Records recordings . . . [constitute] one of the more self-consciously beautiful bodies of music that one is likely to cross paths with from mid-’60s England.” (Bruce Eder, https://www.allmusic.com/album/youve-got-to-be-loved-mw0000229331) And this, their “self-penned . . . Pye swansong in February ’69” (Roger Dopson, liner notes to the CD comp You’ve Got to Be Loved (Singles A’s & B’s): The Montanas) is “their most perfect slice of intelligent, harmony-strewn, psych-inflected pop . . . a criminally neglected . . . A-side” (David Wells, liner notes to the CD comp Psychedelic Pstones II: Haunted)

Birmingham’s Montanas were “essentially a mainstream harmony-pop band. . . . They issued a series of beautifully crafted mid-sixties singles that marked the development of beat into summer pop with even a hint of psychedelia, without getting the success they deserved.” (Vernon Joynson, The Tapestry of Delights Revisited)

Bruce Eder tells us more:

A middleweight outfit from England’s Midlands, their sound was a kind of high-energy pop/rock, with chiming guitars and seriously elegant and robust harmonies, somewhere midway between, say, the Hollies and the Ivy League. . . . generally runs toward fairly punchy beats, chiming rhythm guitars, and high harmonies. . . . By 1967, they’d evolved a bright sunshine pop sound that, had they been based in America on a reasonably strong label, might’ve had them breathing down the necks of the Association . . . .

The group originated in Birmingham in 1964 . . . . The group had a very theatrical presentation, which included bits of comedy between the songs. The Montanas were managed by Roger Allen, who was able to get them a contract with Pye Records, which brought them under the wing of songwriters Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent. . . . [who] also wrote hits for Petula Clark . . . . They had three songs, “Ciao Baby,” “You’ve Got to Be Loved,” and “Let’s Get a Little Sentimental,” that were favorites among reviewers, and got very heavy radio play, all without scoring any major chart action in England. Somehow, however, “You’ve Got to Be Loved” managed to make the American Top 50 — but they lacked the resources to come to the United States to promote the record, and watched as it rose and fell from the sales listings, all under its own power. . . . Everyone who ever saw the Montanas perform live respected and admired them as one of the top bands in Birmingham; they were first-rate musicians and had a powerful sound playing live, and were deserving of a break and a hit. . . . Their reliance on outside songwriters, which had been a mere detail . . . in 1965, had become a liability by 1967, and their records, for all of their excellence, didn’t reflect the group’s actual sound, which was a lot less pop-oriented than their singles would have led one to believe.

https://www.allmusic.com/album/youve-got-to-be-loved-mw0000229331, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-montanas-mn0000891434#biography

Singer Johnny Jones ponders:

Tony Hatch was convinced he was going to get us away eventually . . . he spent an enormous amount of time and trouble with us. He produced all our releases . . . and he wrote some really strong songs for us. But in hindsight, we really should have gone over to The States once we found out “You’ve Got to Be Loved” was moving . . . that would probably have made all the difference . . .

liner notes to You’ve Got to Be Loved (Singles A’s & B’s): The Montanas

Finally, Brian Nicholls notes that:

Their unique blend of R&B, pop, and classic covers together with their close harmony versions of Beach Boys and Four Seasons hits ensured sell-out crowds, particularly in the Midlands area where fans would literally queue before the venue opened to ensure a seat. . . . The Monts were also constantly in demand for live radio broadcasts on Radio One Club with the shows hosted by Jimmy Young, Dave Lee Travis and Simon Bates. On 16 July, 1967 they appeared on ‘Easybeat’ performing ‘River Deep Mountain High’, ‘Morning Dew’ and ‘Take My Hand’ and were told it was one of the finest live performances in the history of the show.

http://www.brumbeat.net/montanas.htm

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,244) Los Mitos — “Cuando Vuelvas”/“When You Come Back”

This first single by Los Mitos (The Myths) from the Basque region of Spain is a delightful and effervescent romp about . . . a guy who has been dumped by his girlfriend! It is “easy to assimilate, with uncomplicated lyrics, arrangements similar to [the] Beach Boys and an ideal structure between an orchestral rhythm and . . . trag[ic] vocal that made it one of the classic melodies of 1968″. (LastFM (courtesy of Google Translate), https://www.last.fm/music/Los+Mitos/+wiki) The song and band are much beloved, eliciting Youtube comments such as “THANK YOU [singer] TONY [Landa] FOR all those songs that with your wonderful voice that transport us to a time that not even the years can make us forget, you and the myths are engraved in the heart”. (mariaalayon4769 (courtesy of Google Translate), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79PkzNL0SC8)

LastFM tells us of Los Mitos:

The group Los Mitos had a short musical history; but there is no doubt about the mark left on Spanish pop. With their pleasant music, free of socio-political commitments and undoubted freshness, they left their hometown, Bilbao, toured Spain and arrived in Latin America as a group of special quality. But for this group, not everything was easy, because since 1966 they were playing together under the name Los Famélicos; but after the name change to Los Mitos and the inclusion of José Ignacio and Paco, the path changed for the better and after presentations first in Vizcaya and on April 8, 1968 in Madrid, they were signed by Rafael Trabucchelli for the label. Hispavox. That same year, the single appeared that served as a presentation for the group, which included [today’s] song . . . . In 1969, the song that gave them total success “Es Muy Fácil” appeared . . . . As it is logical to think, commercial themes assured them success; but . . . melodramatic themes showed . . . unmistakable artistic quality. Another single in 1969 included “Me Conformo” and “ Todos Lo Saben ” (Every Body Knows-Dave Clark Five), showing once again that commerciality and quality went hand in hand. . . . Los Mitos were definitely an excellent group, and the mark left on Spanish pop will be indelible.

https://www.last.fm/music/Los+Mitos/+wiki

On TV ‘69:

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,243) Peter Pan & the Good Fairies — “Balloons”

I’ve played the A-side (see #502), here’s the groovy B-side: both great psychedelic instrumentals.

Who is Peter Pan? Technicolor Web of Sound says:

Very little is known of this presumed to be studio concoction that issued one outstanding instrumental 45 . . . on the Challenge label in 1967. The record was the brainchild of a Jim Gordon . . . who would later go on to cut a respectable instrumental solo LP in 1969. It should also be noted that, contrary to popular belief this is not the same Jim Gordon of Derek & The Dominos fame.

https://techwebsound.com/artist/?artist=963

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,242) John Pantry — “Pitsea Pub”

This demo by John Pantry (see #494), a singer and songwriter for the ages, is a wonderful love song, a “marvellous popsike creation[]”. (David Wells, liner notes to the CD comp The Upside Down World of John Pantry) Jason tells us that “Pantry took advantage of free studio time and recorded a slew of demos. . . . [and that] the power of popsike gems like . . . ‘Pitsea Pub’ . . . cannot be denied.” (https://therisingstorm.net/year/1968/page/5/) Steve Elliott proclaims that the demo “seem[s] . . . suited on an album by Emitt Rhode’s old band, the Merry-Go-Round” [see #50, 156]. (https://somethingelsereviews.com/2013/08/02/forgotten-series-the-factory-peter-and-the-wolves-others-upside-down-world-of-john-pantry-1999/)

That is high praise, but oh God, does John Pantry (see #494) deserve it. Literally, since Pantry began a quite successful career in Christian music and broadcasting after the ’60’s came to a close.

And “Pitsea Pub” features the best use of the phrase “you know what I mean” since “I Saw Her Standing There”!

Jason gives us a sense of Pantry’s B.C. history:

John Pantry is one of those artists that deserves to be heard by more people, especially those who value melodic British pop. . . . [He was] a talented studio engineer for IBC Studios (working with Eddie Tre-Vett), producing for the likes of Donovan, The Small Faces, The Bee Gees, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, and Cream. He was also a member of Peter & The Wolves, an accomplished mid 60s pop group from Leigh-on-Sea/Southend and had a major hand with many other IBC studio projects of the time: the Factory, Sounds Around, Wolfe, The Bunch and Norman Conquest. . . . Besides being a savvy studio technician, Pantry was a gifted songwriter and vocalist and an accomplished musician (. . . keyboards). . . . [O]ne of Pantry’s first groups, Sounds Around. . . . played straight pop with slight soul and psych influences – they released two singles in 1966-1967. Peter & The Wolves came shortly after Sounds Around’s demise (they were essentially the same group). This is the group with which Pantry is most associated, along with The Factory. . . . [Peter & The Wolves’] most productive period was probably the years of 1967-1969, where they released a string of pop gems [see #983]. . . . It was around this time that John Pantry was asked to write two tracks for The Factory, a legendary psychedelic group who had previously released the classic “Path Through The Forest” 45 [see #5]. Pantry wrote and sang lead on the two Factory standouts, “Try A Little Sunshine” [see #460] and the more folk-like “Red Chalk Hill [see #761]” . . . .

https://therisingstorm.net/year/1968/page/5/

We are lucky enough to be able to hear John Pantry’s original demo for “Pitsea Pub” because, as David Wells informs us, “songwriter demos . . . are taken from a thirteen-track acetate album that mysteriously turned up at a Lancashire car boot fair in late 2008”. (liner notes to the The Upside Down World of John Pantry) Book me a trip to Lancashire, I’m goin’ to the car boot fair.*

* Wikipedia lets us Yanks know that “Car boot sales or boot fairs are a form of market in which private individuals come together to sell household and garden goods. They are popular in the United Kingdom, where they are often referred to simply as ‘car boots’.” Oh, fleamarkets — I think “car boots” have a whole other connotation in the U.S.!

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,241) The Artwoods — “Keep Lookin’”

The Artwoods (see #58, 845) — yes, founded by Art Wood (Ronnie Wood’s older brother) — were a top touring UK R&B band, but their success never translated to record. Here is “one of the many highlights” on their sole LP (liner notes to the CD comp Keep Lookin’: 80 More Mod, Soul & Freakbeat Nuggets), a cover of Solomon Burke’s “Keep Looking” (which earlier in ’66 had reached #109 (#38 R&B) for Burke) that “explod[es] into driving rhythms, drum-breaks and ‘badaboomlam-samalam’ high-energy. But beneath its styling, it’s still another Solomon Burke Rock ‘n’ Soul cover”. (Andrew Darlington, http://andrewdarlington.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-art-of-artwoods-story-of-cult-mod.html)

As if that’s a bad thing! Well, it is in the sense that, as Andrew Darlington writes: “Every sixties name-group started out with covers-based sets, from the Beatles and Rolling Stones through the Kinks and the Who. But by 1966 they’d all evolved to a predominant reliance on original material. Despite the odd ‘B’-side, the Artwoods found themselves stranded on the wrong side of the culture-shift.” (http://andrewdarlington.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-art-of-artwoods-story-of-cult-mod.html) And Len writes that “[i]n contrast to the commercially-successful but artistically-bankrupt pop sensations of the UK’s 1960s beat era there was a small hardcore of bands in the UK who couldn’t get arrested record-sales-wise but whom other musicians would cross continents to catch playing live.” https://therisingstorm.net/the-artwoods-art-gallery/

Bruce Eder tells us more of the Artwoods:

The Artwoods[‘] . . . . following was confined to the clubs they played, despite releasing a half-dozen singles and an LP during their four years together. Art Woods . . . had been involved with the London blues scene almost from the beginning, as an original member of Blues Incorporated . . . . He was the backup rhythm singer in the band’s early lineup . . . [and] he also had a group of his own that he fronted on the side, called the Art Woods Combo. They later became the Artwoods in 1963 and Jon Lord later joined along . . . . [T]hey joined Decca Records’ roster in 1964. The Artwoods’ early records are some of the most fondly remembered British R&B singles . . . . Their sound was as steeped in soul and funk as it was in blues, which set them apart from many of their rivals. . . . [T]hey had a virtuoso lineup . . . . [and] a top stage attraction. Club audiences always knew they were good for a great show and the band loved playing live. Ultimately, in fact, the group’s success in touring and their love of playing live may have hurt them. They had no problem playing hundreds of gigs a year at venues like Klooks Kleek in Hampstead and dozens of lesser clubs for the sheer enjoyment of it, but they earned relatively little money doing it. At the same time, their singles never seemed to connect . . . . Their failure as a recording outfit is inexplicable upon hearing the singles — they weren’t strong songwriters, to be sure, but when covering American-style R&B, their records were soulful, funky, and played not only well but inventively; close your eyes and it seems like they were the U.K. answer to Booker T. & the MG’s. And the vocals . . . were attractive and memorable and sounded authentically American. And, in contrast to a lot of other British bands of that period, they did manage to capture something of their live sound on those records, which made them very potent. . . . A series of label switches in 1967 to Parlophone and then Fontana gave them some furtive success on the continent (in Denmark, of all places) and after four years of hard work, the Artwoods called it quits after a brief foray under the name the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. . . .

https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-artwoods-mn0000033079/biography

Oh, and Darlington reminds us that Deep Purple’s Jon Lord cut his teeth with the Artwoods:

[A]lthough focused on R&B and Soul, [John Lord’s] virtuoso organ-flourishes were already nudging towards the beginnings of more ambitious prog-Rock projects. . . .

Lord was their strongest writer, but he still saw himself primarily as their keyboard-player. . . . After the demise of the Artwoods Jon admits “I had nothing to go to and for eight or nine months I did not work apart from a few sessions to pay the bills.” He was even touring-MD for the Flowerpot Men . . . . [who] hit no.4 on the chart with “Let’s Go To San Francisco[“] . . . . Bassist Nick Simper was also with the Flowerpot Men, and through him, around the end of 1967, Jon met Ritchie Blackmore, the core of the first Deep Purple . . . .

http://andrewdarlington.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-art-of-artwoods-story-of-cult-mod.html

Live ’67:

Solomon Burke:

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THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

1,240) The Orange Machine — “Real Live Permanent Dream”

Welcome to the machine. The Irish band’s ‘68 single reached #14 in Ireland by taking on two of Tomorrow’s (see #72) pop psych classics and outclassing the originals. Not just my opinion. Big Tom says “IMO the Orange Machine version [of “Real Life”] is far better than the original by the band Tomorrow. . . . With the exception of The Movement[‘]s “Tell Her” the Orange Machine singles were the best records to come out of Ireland during the 60s.” (bigtom, https://www.45cat.com/record/7n17559)

And David Wells writes:

[The Machine] were evidently heavily influenced by Tomorrow. In addition to playing “My White Bicycle” during live gigs, their debut single comprised covers of “Real Life Permanent Dream” and the Disney-on-acid aural cartoon “Three Jolly Little Dwarfs” . . . . both of which had recently appeared on Tomorrow’s debut album. Impressively, the Orange Machine’s vigorous, guitar-led treatment of both songs improved upon the originals, and the coupling gave them a Top 20 hit in their native land.

liner notes to the CD comp Real Life Permanent Dreams

As to the Machine, Irish Showbands says:

Their single “Three Jolly Little Dwarfs” was one of the best Irish “psychedelic” singles and reached No.14 in the Irish charts. It and its follow-up “You Can All Join In” are keenly sought by collectors worldwide. Ernie Durkin later joined Gentry, Tommy Kinsella joined the Cotton Mill Boys and drummer Jimmy Greally became a successful radio broadcaster. Lead guitarist was Robin Crowley.

[Ernie Durkin]: I think the Orange Machine was a great group. We had some original songs that did not get recorded because of the break-up of the group, we were all very young and did not know what we really had. What we needed was a good manager to keep us on the right track and give us some direction – then maybe the group could have stayed together and made some more recordings. We could have been one of Irelands top original groups. We had a really original sound, and everyone complemented each other.”

https://www.irishshowbands.net/bgorangemachine.htm

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