Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! / Off the Charts: 60s Rock Revelations😊

Billy Nicholls — “Being Happy”Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 19, 2024

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

1,085) Billy Nicholls — “Being Happy”

Billy Nicholls gave us one of, if not the, greatest “lost” albums of the ’60’s — Would You Believe (see #2, 64, 144, 428, 757, 964). As David Wells says, “lost classic is a much abused term amongst pop historians, but it’s difficult to know how else to describe Would You Believe.” (Record Collector: 100 Greatest Psychedelic Records: High Times and Strange Tales from Rock’s Most Mind-Blowing Era) As to “Being Happy”, Wells says that Nicholls’ “gently spiralling vocals, coupled with Nicky Hopkins’ evocative harpsichord contributions, gave several tracks a Kinks-ish sheen – certainly . . . ‘Being Happy’ foreshadowed the sound that Ray Davies would achieve a few months later on ‘Village Green Preservation Society’.” (liner notes to the CD “re”-issue of Would You Believe)

All I know is that 1) I am a charter member of the Billy Nicholls Preservation Society, 2) Billy Nicholls bears an uncanny resemblance to Tom Hulce’s Mozart (in Amadeus), 3) I will never forgive Andrew Loog Oldham for letting Would You Believe sink (apparently literally) to the bottom of the sea, and 4) I don’t know who was responsible for the orchestration/arrangment on “Being Happy”, but whoever it was was a genius.

Euphorik6 is spot on in observing that Would You Believe “is a distillation of a time – whatever made swinging London swing is captured in these tracks” (https://johnkatsmc5.tumblr.com/post/180490928324/billy-nicholls-would-you-believe-1968-mega-rare/amp), as is Rising Storm in observing that “the album is still the epitome of sixties Britsike, a bunch of fine acid-pop songs rendered with glorious harmonies and superb lysergic arrangements that wouldn’t have disgraced George Martin.” (https://johnkatsmc5.tumblr.com/post/180490928324/billy-nicholls-would-you-believe-1968-mega-rare/amp). As Graham Reid notes, “[t]he album . . . reminds again of how much British psychedelic music was driven by different traditions (brass bands, pastoral classical music, music hall singalongs, strings . . .) than electric guitars which were so prominent in America at the time.” (https://www.elsewhere.co.nz/weneedtotalkabout/8107/we-need-to-talk-about-billy-nicholls-would-you-believe-care-for-pet-sounds-inna-english-accent-g). And as MusicStack says. “this soundtrack to a Swinging London that never was contains songs so great . . . you’ll swear you’ve heard them before.” (https://www.musicstack.com/album/billy+nicholls/would+you+believe)

Rising Storm explains that:

When [Andrew Loog] Oldham fell out with the Stones in 1967 he redirected all his resources into making the youthful Nicholls a star of the psychedelic pop scene. The results were the single “Would You Believe”, which hitthe racks in January 1968, and the like-titled album that followed in short order. The single has been described as “the most over-produced record of the sixties”, and with reason; a modest psych-pop love song, it’s swathed in overblown orchestration including baroque strings, harpsichord, banjo (!), tuba (!!), and demented answer-back vocals from Steve Marriott. A trifle late for the high tide of UK psych, it failed to trouble the charts. Unfazed, Oldham and Nicholls pressed on with the album, Nicholls providing a steady stream of similarly well-crafted ditties and a bevy of top-rated London sessionmen providing the backings . . . . The album was ready for pressing just as the revelation of Oldham’s reckless financial overstretch brought about Immediate’s overnight demise, and only about a hundred copies ever made it to wax . . . .
https://johnkatsmc5.tumblr.com/post/180490928324/billy-nicholls-would-you-believe-1968-mega-rare/amp

In words that I could have written myself, John Katsmc5 notes that “[i]t’s an absolute tragedy that this never got released, as it would DEFINITELY be hailed now as a solid gold true 60’s classic right up there with Pet Sounds, Blonde On Blonde . . . .”

It all come back to Pet Sounds. Oldham himself explains:

Pet Sounds changed my life for the better. It enhanced the drugs I was taking and made life eloquent and bearable during those times I set down in London and realised I was barely on speaking terms with those who lived in my home and understood them even less when they spoke – that’s when Brian Wilson spoke for me. My internal weather had been made better for the costs of two sides of vinyl.
2 Stoned

David Wells explains that:

[Oldham] was desperate to create a British corollary to the American harmony pop sound of the Beach Boys and the Mamas & Papas, and his nurturing of many Immediate acts only makes sense when considered from this perspective. But many of the label’s early signings . . . were merely pale imitations of the American model, copycat acts rather than originators who were further hamstrung by a lack of songwriting talent. And then along comes Billy Nicholls — a superb singer, gifted songwriter and as green as the Mendip hills. Oldham . . . quickly latched onto the manipulative possibilities. [H]e could turn his back on cutting unconvincing facsimiles of Brian Wilson tunes in order to mastermind his own three-minute pocket symphonies. Fired up by this grand conceit, Oldham commandeered the Nicholls sessions, recreating the American harmony pop sound in a resolutely English setting courtesy of a string of virtuosos production techniques, multi-layered harmonies and plenty of Wilsonesque baroque instrumentation. . . . [The album] can be see both as a magnificent achievement and an outrageous folly — how . . . Oldham thought he could recoup the budget that he’d bestown on the album is anyone’s guess.
liner notes to the CD “re”-issue of Would You Believe

Nicholls himself observed that “Andrew had a great belief in the songs I was writing . . . and fortunately we had Andrew’s money to spend fortunes on the orchestration.” (liner notes to the CD reissue)

Oh, if you would like to have the original vinyl, I found a copy online — for $15,000!(https://www.rockaway.com/nicholls-billy/billy-nicholls-would-you-believe-immediate-lp-32801)

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Willie Cobbs — “You Don’t Love Me”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 18, 2024

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

1,084) Willie Cobbs — “You Don’t Love Me”

There have been some pretty celebrated covers of this R&B classic — Gary Walker & the Rain (#26 in the UK), the Allman Brothers live, Dawn Penn (#3 in the UK, #58 in the U.S. (#42 R&B)). But in my mind, none surpass the original by Willie Cobbs. “In 1960, Willie Cobbs cut a tune with a melody so catchy and memorable that it eventually sounded just like a cash register ring.” (Blue Heaven Studios, http://www.blueheavenstudios.com/BMC9Lineup.cfm). “Holy sh*t! This is fantastic!” (purple stuff, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsJMfYDUNCE. “Heard the covers none in my opinion touches Willie Cobbs!” (stripe9b, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UY4n-2I9PcU). “Total acid blues. Dig that guitar tone and wailing’ vocals. Fantastic tune.” (matthewbernard4427, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UY4n-2I9PcU)

Or was it the original by Bo Diddley?!

Secondhand Songs unravels the lineage:

Tracing the maze of recycling, reissuing and reassigning of Willie Cobb’s songs and masters is an endless task, but here’s what Willie said about “You Don’t Love Me”: he was living in Hughes, Arkansas, at the time, and went to Memphis to audition the song for Reuben Cherry at Home of the Blues. Cherry turned him down but Billy Lee Riley was there and asked Cobbs to record it, so Cobbs recorded it in Memphis for Riley and Stan Kesler’s Mojo label. . . . Mojo issued “You Don’t Love Me” and then sold it to Cherry, who put it out on HOTB after all, then it went to Vee-Jay and also appeared on various other labels. Cobbs claimed the song came to him as a vision and claimed no knowledge of the Bo Diddley song. But the case went to court several years ago and he said that 20% of the song was assigned to Bo Diddley. Willie has basically been living off the royalties from the many cover versions of the song and financing his own records in hopes of another hit. But he claims that he was never able to get royalties for Dawn Penn’s hit version (“No, No, No”).
https://secondhandsongs.com/work/58716/all

Blue Heaven Studios adds:

Born in Monroe, Arkansas in 1932, Cobbs was turned off by the prospect of rice farming and migrated to Chicago in 1947. He learned the harmonica, and soon began an association with noted piano player Eddie Boyd. The two of them returned to Arkansas together and took up gigs around the town of Hughes. It’s there that Cobbs wrote and began performing “You Don’t Love Me.” The local audiences went wild. ”Every time we played it, the people would come back around and say, ‘Play that again! Play that again!’,” Cobbs recalled. ”They’d say, ‘Y’all need to record that.'” And so Cobbs set off for Memphis in 1960 to do just that. He went to the city’s biggest record store, The Home of the Blues, and performed the song for the storeowner, who also had a record label. ”He said, ‘It’s a damn good song, but you can’t sing.’,” Cobbs said, laughing now at the memory. ”He said, ‘I can probably get Howlin’ Wolf to sing it, but you can’t sing it.” Cobbs walked out the door disappointed. But Billy Lee Riley and Stan Kessler, two local musicians and producers, happened to be in the store and had heard the performance. They followed Cobbs out of the store struck an agreement on the spot to record the song. Just a couple days later, Cobbs and Boyd, along with a saxophonist, guitarist and bassist cut the song for Riley’s Mojo label. It instantly became a smash, quickly rising to Number One in Memphis. Kessler and Riley sold the master to Reuben Cherry, the same Home of the Blues storeowner who originally rejected Cobbs. Cherry leased it to Vee-Jay out of Chicago. But at the same time, Riley took the tune to a group in Louisiana called the Megatons and cut an instrumental version titled “Shimmy Shimmy Walk, Pt. 1.” Riley credited himself as composer. ”Shimmy Shimmy Walk, Pt. 1” started to climb the charts on the Checker label, but Cobbs sued Riley. Vee-Jay, scared off by the lawsuit, ceased pushing “You Don’t Love Me.”
http://www.blueheavenstudios.com/BMC9Lineup.cfm

As to Willie Cobbs, Bill Dahl writes:

Cobbs decided the prospect of rice farming didn’t appeal to him enough to stick around his native Arkansas, so he migrated to Chicago in 1947. . . . honing his harp chops on Maxwell Street. But Cobbs’ recording career didn’t fully blossom until 1960, when . . . “You Don’t Love Me” …. made him something of a regional star . . . . [It] was eventually leased to Vee-Jay — no doubt warming Cobbs’ heart, since Vee-Jay boss Jimmy Bracken had once turned down Cobbs’ audition, explaining that he sounded too much like Vee-Jay breadwinner Jimmy Reed. Throughout the ’60s,’70s, and ’80s, Cobbs recorded a slew of obscure singles, often for his own labels . . . and operated nightclubs in Arkansas and Mississippi . . . .
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/willie-cobbs-mn0000962499#biography

Here is Bo Diddley (‘55):

Here are the Starlets (‘65):

Here are the Pretty Things (‘65):

Here are Gary Walker and the Rain (‘67):

Here is John Mayall (‘66):

Here is Dawn Penn (‘67):

Here are Mike Bloomfield, Al Kooper, and Steven Stills (‘68):

Here are the Allman Brothers (‘71):

Here is Dawn Penn (‘94):

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Chris Farlowe — “Dawn”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 17, 2024

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

1,082) Chris Farlowe & the Thunderbirds — “Dawn”

Who else can sing like Chris Farlowe (see #473), “widely regarded as Britain’s finest ever blues and soul singer”? (Merseysider Magazine, https://vancouversignaturesounds.com/hits/time-chris-farlowe/). Don’t know? You’re out of time! The answer is absolutely no one! Say it again, y’all! Witness this amazing, yearning 68 A-side by Farlowe & the Thunderbirds.

He is, of course, best known for his iconic cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Out of Time”. Mike Davies writes that “Farlowe produced a stunning collection of soulful pop releases, the chart failure of which remains inexplicable to this day. . . . [T]he throaty-voiced Islington born r&b singer would warrant iconic status for his blistering version of Mike D’Abo’s Handbags and Gladrags alone, but . . . every time he opened his mouth he rarely failed to produce something to either shiver or bend your spine.” (https://www.thefreelibrary.com/cd+reviews%3a+REISSUE+OF+THE+WEEK%3b+Chris+Farlowe+vs+Long+John+Baldry…-a076134710)

Bruce Eder gives us some history:

Born John Henry Deighton . . . [Farlowe] reached his early teens just as the skiffle boom was breaking in England, and was inspired by Lonnie Donegan to enter music. His first band was his own John Henry Skiffle Group, where he played guitar as well as sang, but he gave up playing to concentrate on his voice, as he made the switch to rock & roll. He eventually took the name Chris Farlowe, the surname appropriated from American jazz guitarist Tal Farlow, and was fronting a group called the Thunderbirds . . . . They built their reputation as a live act in England and Germany, and slowly switched from rock & roll to R&B during the early years of the ’60s. . . . [T]hey issued a series of five singles thru 1966, all of which got enthusiastic critical receptions while generating poor sales. In 1966, with his EMI contract up, Farlowe was snatched up by Andrew Oldham . . . . [H]e saw a Top 40 chart placement with his introduction of the Jagger/Richards song “Think[]” . . . . That summer, he had the biggest hit of his career with his rendition of the Stones’ “Out of Time,” . . . which reached number one on the British charts.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/chris-farlowe-mn0000109437#biography

Farlowe had a lucky connection with the Flamingo Club in London. First, it got him noticed by Oldham:

Hanging out at London’s famous Flamingo Club . . . meant that Chris came to the attention of . . . Andrew Loog Oldham. Originally employed at the club to collect bottles, cook hotdogs and wash up, Andrew had plans to start a new record label and club owner, Rik Gunnel, saw enough potential in him to provide the financial backing. Andrew was a huge fan of Chris’s voice and was keen to sign him to the new Immediate label.
https://www.temple-music.com/chris-farlowe/

Second, it got him noticed by Otis Redding:

“I was playing a show at the Flamingo club in London and someone told me [Redding] was in the audience watching me sing. I thought they were having me on but afterwards I was in the dressing room, the door opened and he walked in. He said, ‘Man, you’re a great singer, you’re a soul brother’. He told me he was doing a TV show on Friday and asked me to appear on it with him.” That show was one of the most celebrated episodes of the classic TV series Ready Steady Go . . . . Otis performed several songs, Chris had his own spot and the two – accompanied by Eric Burdon of the Animals – join forces for a rousing finale. Chris remembers, “After that we did some more concerts together and became good friends, so it was a terrible shock when he died.”
http://www.merseysidermagazine.com/site/features/chris-farlowe-interview/ (no longer available)

Live on the BBC:

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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. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

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

Kindred Spirit — “Peaceful Man”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 16, 2024

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

1,081) Kindred Spirit — “Peaceful Man”

Talk about the Johnstown flood! This dam-bursting ‘70 A-side from Johnstown, PA, is a “driving psych fuzz rocker with added brass blasts.” (happening45, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PRLphPTacw).

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“The Silent Boatman” Special Edition: Parliament — “The Silent Boatman”, Ruth Copeland — “The Silent Boatman”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 15, 2024

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

1,080) Parliament — “The Silent Boatman”

This “beautiful dirge” (Mark Montgomery French, https://www.uppitymusic.com/2005/06/parliament-osmium-1970.html) at the end of Parliament’s (see #249, 308, 723) first album is one of the uber funk band’s most atyptical and heartfelt songs. It originated as a Gaelic folk song hundreds of years ago that was rewritten by Ruth Copeland, George Clinton’s white British folk/funk singer/songwriter collaborator as a protest against racism and inequality. Grace Birnstengel writes that “if there’s more weight than usual in the closing one-two of spiritual-minded sincerity — the Jesus-invoking environmentalism of “Livin’ The Life” and the afterlife reflections of “The Silent Boatman” (the only P-Funk cut to feature bagpipes!) — they’re strong early indicators that Clinton and company had more to them than just party jams and psychedelic freakouts.” (https://www.stereogum.com/1822964/p-funk-albums-from-worst-to-best/lists/attachment/osmium/)

“I’m waiting for the silent boatman, To ferry me across the unknown waters, I wonder if in death, man at last can love man … there’s no money, power or fame, No third or second class, the fare is all the same”

goldta70schick24 says:

I just cant listen to this song without crying my eyes out. So deeply touching and I swear i can picture the sun streaming through the misty clouds over the waters…with a plain old boat…taking the soul onward to Jesus. Just so beautiful and it really makes you stop and think about whats really important and makes you pull away from all the evil and corruption of this fallen world. Sorry to sound overdramatic…this song just really moves me deeply.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CK8KPh167g

Algenonprice: “Almost 50 years on from when I first heard this, it has remains one of my favourite records of all time. It is so[ c]ompletely different with a gorgeous melody, amazing lyrics and a weird ethereal production/arrangement.” (https://www.45cat.com/record/inv513)

Bob Stanley explains that:

“The Silent Boatman”, a haunted, mesmerising rewrite of The Skye Boat Song*, was all Ruth’s. [She recalls that] “I was watching an old movie about the Roman Empire. One of the characters said “I’m waiting for the silent boatman to carry me across the unknown waters”, meaning death of course. So I wrote down the line. Later I wrote a poem to go with it. I was affected by the racism in Detroit and what black people had to go through just to have the same rights as whites in their own country. The house I rented with a friend was on the border of the black neighbourhood and the white and we had to dodge bullets from both sides! I could relate to the unfairness of the class system coming from a family of coal and steel workers. When I wrote, “all men descend into earth at the very same depth” – six feet that is – I was trying in my naïve way to write a protest song with the message that death is the great leveller. When we came up one song short for the album, I played The Silent Boatman on guitar for Brian and Eddie Holland and they liked it – much to my surprise and delight, because it was the first song I wrote by myself.”
https://recordcollectormag.com/articles/music-visit-ruth-copeland-diana-ross-poetess

Buckley Mayfield adds:

Parliament saved the best for last with “The Silent Boatman.” Another Ruth Copeland composition (she also co-produced the LP, by the way), “The Silent Boatman” is one of the most beautiful and moving songs in all creation. A slowly building, majestic ballad aswirl in Bernie Worrell’s organ and glockenspiel, it’s a poignant tale lamenting inequality and strife on Earth and redemption in the afterlife. When the bagpipes come in, you feel as if you’re being swept up in a highly improbable dream in which Parliament become the most persuasive religious sect ever to enter a studio. Going way against type, “The Silent Boatman” might be the closest Clinton & company ever got to godliness. Ruth Copeland was their secret weapon, although she never again recorded another proper album with the group.
https://jivetimerecords.com/2016/08/parliament-osmium-invictus-1970/

As to Parliament, Mark Montgomery French writes that:

According to George Clinton, the five-man ex-doo-wop group Parliament performed polite music you could play for your mother, while their five-man backing band Funkadelic was the group that would scare your mother into cardiac arrest. The fact that all ten people were in the same band was simply a matter of convenience. In 1970, even though Funkadelic was already signed to the Detroit-based Westbound label, Clinton signed Parliament to the Detroit-based Invictus label and delivered Osmium. Parliament had released several smoothed-out hit singles in the previous years, so the raw and roughneck Osmium had the effect of discovering that your seemingly normal parents were actually two-headed Martian warlords. . . .
https://www.uppitymusic.com/2005/06/parliament-osmium-1970.html

Derek See gives some history:

George Clinton began his group of slick doo wop vocalists as the Parliaments in the late ’50’s, eventually morphing into an incredible Detroit soul band that hit big with “Testify” in 1967, and released some other incredible singles along the way . . . . Around 1968, Clinton somehow lost rights to the the name “Parliaments”, just around the time things were getting very FREAKY and hence the birth of Funkadelic (the same singers and more or less the same musicians who played in the latter day Parliaments). In 1970, George somehow got the rights to the name back, and released an LP (Osmium) [see #249, 308] as Parliament (no “s” this time) and a few singles. . . . The single and album didn’t sell, and the Parliament name was retired until 1974, where George used the Parliament moniker to explore a more commercial (but never boring) brand of sci-fi funk.
http://dereksdaily45.blogspot.com/2009/05/parliament-red-hot-mama.html?m=1

1,081) Ruth Copeland — “The Silent Boatman”

Who was Ruth Copeland? Amy Hanson tells us:

A blues folksinger born in Durham, England, Ruth Copeland first came to attention after marrying Jeffrey Bowen, a staff producer at Motown. When Bowen followed songwriters Holland-Dozier-Holland over to their own Invictus label in 1970, Copeland was one of his first signings as she joined the fledgling vocal group New Play to become the label’s first white performer. Collaborating with Edith Wayne and future P-Funk producer Ron Dunbar, Copeland wrote “Music Box,” New Play’s debut single, and the second ever Invictus release. However, the group broke up soon after its release and Copeland began planning for a solo career. She also struck up an unlikely partnership with George Clinton and became a massively influential force on Parliament’s debut album, 1971’s Osmium. Not only did she co-produce the sessions, she also wrote what remain two of the most bizarre (and decidedly unfunky) songs in that band’s entire repertoire, the haunting “Little Old Country Boy” and “The Silent Boatman.” Two further songs, “Come In Out of the Rain” (co-written with Clinton) and “Breakdown” (with Clinton and Clyde Wilson) appeared as Parliament singles in 1971 and 1972. Copeland’s partnership with Clinton naturally flowed into her solo career. Viewed today as a virtual twin of Osmium, her Self Portrait debut featured contributions from Eddie Hazel, Lucius Ross, Bernie Worrell, Billy “Bass” Nelson, Tiki Fulwood, and Clinton himself, while the co-writes included a new version of the epic “The Silent Boatman. Late 1971 brought the release of Copeland’s second album . . . recorded with many of the same musicians as its predecessor, only now they were her own band. In an odd twist, Hazell, Worrell, Fulwood, and Nelson had all quit Parliament/Funkadelic, but remained together to back Copeland, first in the studio and then on tour as she promoted the album. The tour was a success; the shows were solid and the audiences receptive. . . . Touring as support to Sly Stone, she took to introducing her band as Funkadelic — much to the headliner’s annoyance. The last straw came when she allowed the band to take one of her encores. Stone insisted she either leave the tour or lose the band. She lost the band. Following her solo success in 1971 and 1972, Copeland faded from the spotlight.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/ruth-copeland-mn0000173522

Bob Stanley adds:

[Ruth] was taken to Invictus by her boyfriend, Motown producer Jeffrey Bowen, where she was entrusted with the potentially life-changing job of writing the lyric for the as-yet untitled “Band Of Gold” – Ruth wrote a chorus about missing her dog back in County Durham, Invictus frowned, and Holland-Dozier-Holland finished the job themselves. . . . [S]he grew up in the steel town of Consett, where “there was a dance every Saturday night at the Co-op Hall. They brought in real good bands. That’s where I went most weekends, until I joined a band called Eddie & The Intruders. . . . We played all the social clubs in the area, as well as pubs. I was 17 at the time.” Ruth’s sister had already moved to the States . . . . “I left for the US at 18 and started sitting in at clubs in Detroit as soon as I got there.[“] . . . She signed a deal with Invictus in 1969. “Their plan was to create another Diana Ross – only white this time.
https://recordcollectormag.com/articles/music-visit-ruth-copeland-diana-ross-poetess

* Wikipedia tells us that:

“The Skye Boat Song” is a late 19th-century Scottish song adaptation of a Gaelic song composed c.1782 by William Ross entitled Cuachag nan Craobh (“Cuckoo of the Tree”). In the original song, the composer laments to a cuckoo that his unrequited love, Lady Marion Ross, is rejecting him. The 19th century English lyrics instead evoked the journey of Prince Charles Edward Stuart (“Bonnie Prince Charlie”) from Benbecula to the Isle of Skye as he evaded capture by government soldiers after his defeat at the Battle of Culloden in 1746.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Skye_Boat_Song

Here is Paul Robeson’s version:

Here is Roger Whittaker:

And here is Tom Jones! —

Sir Harold Boulton, 2nd Baronet composed the new lyrics to Ross’s song which had been heard by Anne Campbell MacLeod in the 1870s, and the line “Over the Sea to Skye” is now a cornerstone of the tourism industry on the Isle of Skye.

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The Buckinghams — “Can’t Find the Words”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 14, 2024

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

1,079) The Buckinghams — “Can’t Find the Words”

(see #409, 413, 632, 730)

This great unstoppable ’68 album track and ’69 B-side sees the Buckinghams “flex [their] muscles creatively” (RoyFIve, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjyqKPrazlM) with “a good sing-along chorus”. (https://jhendrix110.tripod.com/Buckinghams.html) It was self-written by lead singer Dennis Tufano and keyboardist Marty Grebb (formerly of the Exceptions (soon to be Aorta (see #1,076) and would later join H.P. Lovecraft (see #829, 1,073)).

Richie Unterberger says of In One Ear and Gone Tomorrow, from which today’s song is taken, that “the band wrote most of the songs . . . and proved that they simply weren’t up to making memorable album-oriented rock. It’s obvious at points that they’re straining to be heavier and more relevant in the psychedelic rock scene of 1968.” (https://www.allmusic.com/album/in-one-ear-gone-tomorrow-mw0000241431) I think the LP is terribly underrated. I especially love “Can’t Find the Words” and “Song of the Breeze” [#409].

As to the Buckinghams, Bill Dahl writes that:

Backing Dennis Tufano’s buoyant lead vocals with prominent harmonies and punchy soul-styled brass, the group came across the wistful “Kind of a Drag,” and in short order, [they] had a million-selling pop chart-topper on their hands. They quickly graduated to recording for Columbia. . . .
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-buckinghams-mn0000628981

Rick Simmons adds that:

In 1967, Billboard magazine declared the Buckinghams to be “the most listened to band in America[.]” . . . As 1967 began, their first release, “Kind of a Drag,” was racing up the charts and would reach the #1 position by February . . . . [T]he group would have one, two, and sometimes three songs in the Top 100 almost every week that year as they passed each other on the way up and down the charts . . . .
http://www.rebeatmag.com/dennis-tufano-the-buckinghams-and-rocks-greatest-disappearing-act-part-1/

As Tufano recalls:

[T]he Pulsations . . . was a good name considering how often we played at drag strips and car shows and things like that. We got on a “Battle of the Bands” competition on a Chicago television station and won, and so we became the house band on a TV show called All Time Hits. They asked us to change our name to something more English because the British Invasion was in full swing at the time, and we were fine with that . . . . A security guard at the station heard the request and he gave us a list with eight or 10 names on it, and the Buckinghams stood out not only because it sounded British, but also because there’s a beautiful fountain in Chicago called Buckingham Fountain. This way, we didn’t feel like we were selling out Chicago to take a British-sounding name.
http://www.rebeatmag.com/dennis-tufano-the-buckinghams-and-rocks-greatest-disappearing-act-part-1/

But, then came ’68. Per Rick Simmons:

[T]he subsequent year would hold nothing but disappointment: in 1968 they had just one release that charted, and it wouldn’t even break into the Top 40. Then they were done. It was one of the most perplexing falls in rock ‘n’ roll history.
http://www.rebeatmag.com/dennis-tufano-the-buckinghams-and-rocks-greatest-disappearing-act-part-1/

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“Woodpecker, Yes I Would”! Special Edition: Calum Bryce — “Love-Maker”, Barbara Ruskin — “Pawnbroker, Pawnbroker”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 13, 2024

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

Two delightful “slightlydelic” ‘68 UK pop rock songs — the first of which started out as a jingle for a cider commerical, the second (bearing more than a slight resemblance) written about a friend who wanted to get enough from a pawnbroker to be able to visit her far away boyfriend. Both should have been hits. Of course, neither were. On the bright side, the cider was really groovy — based on the old clips up on Youtube!

1,077) Calum Bryce — “Love-Maker”

23 Daves explains:

One of the great music business myths is “If there’s a catchy pop song on a television advert, it’s sure to get re-released and become a hit”. Sadly, while adverts may give some completely mediocre tracks unfair advantages in the charts, there are other good ones which seemed to have no fair wind or music industry interest behind them at all. ”Love-Maker”, for example, is a track which positively itches with hooks. From the creeping bassline to the whistling upper melody, right down to the “Lovemaker, love maker, yeah yeah yes I would” chorus, it snakes, grooves, and seduces you into its charms. With an adapted chorus of “Woodpecker, yes I would” it soundtracked cinema adverts for the popular cider drink . . . . [As a single,] it flopped in 1968 . . . . Calum Bryce consisted of Dave Mumford on guitar and vocals, Tim Posford on bass, Mel Wayne on sax, Derick Horn on keyboards and Geoff Coxon on drums. Further work of theirs was recorded but apparently never released – however, they continued to tour for a number of years after this single’s release and appeared live on the Radio One Roadshow on a number of occasions.
http://left-and-to-the-back.blogspot.com/2015/04/calum-bryce-love-maker-im-glad.html

Rocking in the Norselands pours some more info:

Back in the 60s, Bulmers were creating adverts for their Woodpecker cider yearly (sometimes twice a year), which always featured catchy bespoke music that fit the current fashions to make the advert cool and relevant. The adverts would frequently use the tagline “Woodpecker, yes I would. “By 1968, new music was needed for yet another cider cinema advert. Record producer Howard Conder got involved, secured the musicians he needed, and they all ended up co-writing the song by coming up with as many hooks and catchy elements as they could. Bulmers wanted the music to be built around the “Woodpecker, yes I would” slogan yet again, and the result was a very contemporary-sounding and groovy rock track. The advert featuring that music got very heavy rotation in cinemas (and even some TV, I believe). It turned out to be extremely popular, and “everybody” started humming the music and the Woodpecker slogan. Sometimes you manage to catch lightning in a bottle when you least expect it. . . . Conder felt it would be a shame not to explore its potential as a full-fledged pop song. He encouraged the musicians to continue working together, and advised them to start by making the music from the advert into a proper pop song and release it. He would of course produce. The band didn’t really need much persuading – they all felt that the music was too good to just end up as a jingle. They decided to become a proper band and have a go. First of all, they would obviously need to remove the cider references and write new lyrics. . . . As with the commercial, the track is positively bursting at the seams with amazing hooks. The drums start out with a slinky rhythm pattern. The bass line that comes in is very catchy and percussive. The keyboard motif will engrave itself into your brain and is one of those melodies you will find yourself whistling or humming. The voices that come in singing “Love-maker, love-maker, yeah yeah yes I would” are harmonising beautifully. So many hooks, and all of this happens just within the first twenty seconds! . . . The song grabs you from the get-go and makes you swoon with delight. . . . There was high hope that Love Maker would do well. . . . [It] was a total flop.
https://norselandsrock.com/love-maker-calum-bryce/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sn5erv7yO-c

1,078) Barbara Ruskin — “Pawnbroker, Pawnbroker”

“The lilting, psychedelically-inclined [song] became Barbara’s debut President single in October 1968. . . . [but] the charmingly compelling [song] wasn’t a hit.” (Kieron Tyler, liner notes to the CD comp Dreambabes Volume Six: Sassy and Stonefree) Of thr self-written song, David Wells tells us that:

[“Pawnbroker” bore] a slight resemblance to the Woodpecker cider jingle of the era . . . [Barbara recalled] “I don’t recall the cider jingle, but it is possible that I’d heard it and it was somewhere in the back of my mind. The lyrics were inspired by a friend of mine who was a struggling actress. Her boyfriend was living abroad, and she was desperate to see him, so she was frantically trying to think of things she owned that she could sell to the pawnbroker and thus raise enough money to visit her boyfriend!”
liner notes to the CD comp Sometimes I Wonder: The Psychedelic Pop Sound of President

Of Barbara Ruskin, Nostalgia Central says:

Barbara Rosemary Ruskin[‘s] . . . . father died when she was still young and her mother – who worked for music publisher Lawrence Wright in Denmark Street – encouraged her young daughter to pursue her love of music, buying her first guitar. Barbara taught herself to play it, began composing her own songs and, before long, was spending her spare time performing at weddings and youth clubs. In 1964, she was offered a contract with Piccadilly Records and released her first single, a version of Billy Fury’s Halfway To Paradise, in February 1965. Barbara’s second single was one of her own compositions, You Can’t Blame A Girl For Trying (1965) – which she had written with Sandie Shaw in mind – while her third single – Well, How Does It Feel? (1965) – was recorded in the style of Sonny and Cher. In 1966, Barbara released the stomping single Song Without End but once again, the single failed to chart. Light of Love (1966) was her final single for Piccadilly before Barbara moved to Parlophone. Sun Showers (February 1967) became her first 45 for the new label, followed by Euston Station just two months later. . . . She followed it up with one of her finest singles, Come Into My Arms Again (1967), a song she wrote on the bus on the way to the studio. Barbara was then offered a role co-hosting the radio programme, Cool Britannia, on the BBC’s World Service. Pawnbroker, Pawnbroker was released in October 1968 . . . . Barbara continued releasing singles throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s . . . .
https://nostalgiacentral.com/music/artists-a-to-k/artists-b/barbara-ruskin/

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Aorta — “Strange”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 12, 2024

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

1,076) Aorta — “Strange”

I don’t know whether to think of Aorta as a Chicago or Rockford band, but its members later stocked many notable Chicago bands (including, yes, Chicago). The song is a propulsive psych rocker — “You’re acting oh so strange!”– from an LP that is “[a] stunning song cycle of top-level playing, innovative production, and insightful lyrics”. (Kevin Cowl, https://www.furious.com/perfect/aorta.html) A long version of strange (above) was a ’68 B-side and a shorter version was a ’69 A-side (below). Kevin Cowl calls “Strange”:

A good angular boogie with a descending refrain, it’s the end of love. His girl is “strange, you act like this before, seems you don’t love me no more.” The middle part has a guitar solo that mimics a frenzied conversation between two people over proggy organ arpeggios, and eventually cutting back into a wild descent toward the end. A bummer? What can he do to “prove that he’s a man?”
https://www.furious.com/perfect/aorta.html

As to their first LP (which included “Strange”), Cowl says:

[It] appeared out of nowhere in 1969, a fully formed and exquisitely realized vision of American angst, hope, and imagination. . . . [Bill] Traut’s production does a damn good job of capturing the style of George Martin’s work on Sgt. Pepper and Magical Mystery Tour. Horns, strings, circus music, vaudeville, sound effects – all used liberally and thematically to add a story quality to each song. He understands the music and brings out its theatricality. . . . and makes it more than I think the band ever could have imagined it being. . . . [The album] achieves near seamless perfection in its writing and production. The performances are inspired and passionate. The playing is pro but not slick. The production elevates the material and never overshadows it. The mood perfectly bridges the gap between the giddy, fun psychedelia of prosperous ’60’s America and the dawn of the darker ’70’s. But this is not the San Francisco sound of the Dead and the Airplane, nor is it dusty Laurel Canyon country-rock. This is Midwestern suburban kids seeing the dark side of the thrill ride, the rot at the center, the comedown from the dream, and reflecting it here in this taut cycle of brilliant chamber rock.
https://www.furious.com/perfect/aorta.html

Jason adds that:

In 1969 Columbia released this startling record which was a mix of psychedelia, soul, jazz, folk, and rock. The album was housed in a beautiful, graphic sleeve that has always overshadowed the great music from within. Musically speaking, Aorta’s sound comes close to Boston band Listening or even the more psychedelic aspects of early Blood, Sweat and Tears [see #765] during its Al Kooper phase. . . . Aorta is solid throughout though, featuring strong musicianship, inventive studio wizardry, superb songs with a healthy dose of fuzz guitar and wonderful string and horn arrangements. . . . Aorta may seem grandiose and even downright indulgent at times but make no mistake this really is a great lost record. . . . some far out, wild psychedelia with a hint of early progressive rock.
http://therisingstorm.net/aorta-aorta/

As to Aorta, Jason tells us:

Aorta was a highly talented rock band from Rockford, IL that released two albums throughout 1969 and 1970. The band was originally known as the Exceptions, a popular soul rock group that played around the Chicago area and released a handful of singles. It’s interesting to note that the Exceptions had at one time included future members of H.P. Lovecraft [see #829, 1,073], the New Colony Six [see #410, 1,071], Chicago, The Buckinghams [see #409, 413, 632, 730], and Illinois Speed Press. The Exceptions eventually morphed into Aorta when band members felt a more progressive direction was needed.
http://therisingstorm.net/aorta-aorta/

JazzRockSoul adds:

Aorta had its roots in the Rockford, Illinois, pop combo Kal David and the Exceptions, formed in 1962 by singer/guitarist Kal David, bassist/singer Peter Cetera, drummer Denny Ebert, and saxist/keyboardist Marty Grebb. In 1965, David jumped ship to The Rovin’ Kind and later split with its other guitarist, Paul Cotton (later Poco), to form the blues-rock Illinois Speed Press . . . . He was replaced by singer/guitarist Jim Donlinger . . . . As The Exceptions, they released three 1965/66 singles and the EP Rock and Roll Mass . . . . Grebb moved on to The Buckinghams, replaced by Jim Nyeholt. After bassist Billy Herman stepped in for a departed Ebert, The Exceptions cut two 1967/68 soul-pop singles . . . . When Donlinger, Herman, and Nyeholt expressed a collective interest in psychedelic rock, Cetera departed for The Big Thing, which soon became Chicago Transit Authority . . . . With Bobby Jones on bass, the band changed its name to Aorta. They briefly included saxophonist Dan Hoagland, later associated with fellow Chicago-area band The Flock. Their first release was a cover of the Nuggets staple “The Shape of Things to Come[.]” . . . It was backed with “Strange,” a Hoagland original with lengthy, oblique jam sections. Aorta signed with Dunwich Productions (Shadows of Knight [see #184, 1,075], American Breed, HP Lovecraft). Under the management of Dunwich founder Bill Traut, they signed to Columbia Records, which issued their self-titled debut album in early 1969. Columbia issued Aorta simultaneously with Chicago Transit Authority and the debut albums by The Flock and the Illinois Speed Press, all in an effort to market a “Chicago Sound,” analogous to the San Francisco Sound . . . and the manufactured Bosstown Sound . . . . Aorta toured the album as an opening act for Led Zeppelin and the Mothers of Invention. Soon thereafter, Herman left for the New Colony Six and Jones departed to the Space Choir in Joe Cocker’s backing band. Donlinger and Nyeholt, along with Donlinger’s drummer brother Tom, briefly joined soul-psychsters the Rotary Connection (with singer Minnie Riperton).
https://jazzrocksoul.com/artists/aorta/

Here is the album track:

Here is the ’69 A-side:

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The Shadows of Knight — “I’m Gonna Make You Mine”Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 11, 2024

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

1,075) The Shadows of Knight — “I’m Gonna Make You Mine”

Enshrined in the Nuggets CD collection, this Chicago garage classic by the Shadows of Knight (see #184) is “devastating”, “60’s punk at its sexually charged, aggressive best” with a “searing guitar break”, which was “[r]ecorded totally live in the studio, with the amps cranked beyond distortion”. (Mike Stax, liner notes to the CD comp Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era 1965-1968) ”Like no other song, this has got the true snotty, arrogant swagger” (TheGrandmasterMan, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWc-IKQM3Rs) — “[t]he heaviest song of 1966!!” (impalaman9707, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66wg6nEEunc) that “should be in the textbook on How To Be a Garage Band”. (allan0318, https://www.45cat.com/record/45141us3) ”Make You Mine” was co-writen by Carole Bayer Sager (along with William Carr and Carl D’Errico)! It got up to #90, #25 on WLS radio in Chicago.

The liner notes to WLS Rarities & Chicago Hits tell us that:

The Shadows of Knight liked to cultivate a nasty reputation, and songs like this one certainly helped them do just that. Lyrics like, “I believe in me, that’s how I live; I’m gonna take, girl, and you’re gonna give” were an eye-opener in 1966 (and would probably be considered abusive behavior today in our oh-so-offended society). Add to that the grating fuzz guitar/heavy bass backdrop, and it becomes an early version of the type of heavy metal music we would hear in the 1970s. Surprisingly for a Bill Traut production, the lyrics were largely buried in the mix. One can only guess that it was mixed that way in hopes it wouldn’t get banned right off the radio. WLS and WCFL both played it, but outside of the Chicago area, few other stations would even touch it.
https://www.45cat.com/record/45141us3

Of SOK, Mark Deming says:

[T]he Shadows of Knight were at once one of the most popular and among the toughest acts on the Windy City’s teen scene; they were also one of the few who achieved genuine stardom nationwide. . . . [W]hile plenty of American bands learned about the blues from the Rolling Stones and other U.K. acts, the Shadows of Knight were one of the first, and their best music was a swaggering fusion of urban blues and the raw, muscular sound of the harder British Invasion acts. . . . [F]ormed in 1964 . . . . [t]he band’s initial lineup [was led by] lead singer Jim Sohns . . . [and] most . . . attended Prospect High School in Mount Prospect, Illinois. . . . [T]he band started to make a name for themselves playing parties and school dances in suburban communities like Mount Prospect and Arlington Heights. . . . [I]n 1965 when Jerry McGeorge took over on rhythm guitar . . . . [T]he band had learned [of the] British . . . Shadows so they changed the name to the Shadows of Knight, in part because Prospect’s athletic teams were known as the Knights. In 1965, the[y] landed a steady gig as the house band at the Cellar, a teen club in Arlington Heights. . . . [T]hey attracted the attention of Bill Traut and George Badonski, Chicago-based producers who ran Dunwich Records. . . . [who] signed the[m] . . . . [I]n the spring of 1966, they released their first single, a cover of Van Morrison’s “Gloria” that captured the swagger of Them’s original recording while slightly bowdlerizing the lyrics (“She come into my room” was changed to “She call out my name,” which made a big difference in radio airplay). ”Gloria” became a Top Ten smash, and while their second release, “Oh Yeah,” didn’t fare as well, it still cracked the Top 40 . . . . [But] singles like “Bad Little Woman” and “I’m Going to Make You Mine” barely cracked the Hot 100. In 1967, the Shadows of Knight began to crumble, as [Jerry] McGeorge, [Joe] Kelley, and [David] Wolinski all left the band, and soon Sohn fired the remaining members and took control of the band’s name. . . . [T]he single “Shake” . . . rose to number 46 . . . . [but] the Shadows never scored another hit, and . . . the band quietly broke up in the mid-’70s. . . . In 1967, Jerry McGeorge helped form the offbeat psychedelic band H.P. Lovecraft [see #829, 1073].
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/shadows-of-knight-mn0000791247#biography

Bill Traut recalls that “[w]e used to have to form a double line of police from the dressing room to the stage to prevent the group from getting mauled by the girls.” (liner notes to If You’re Ready!: The Best of Dunwich Records… Volume 2).

Here is the American Breed:

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James Brown — “Out of the Blue”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 10, 2024

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

1,074) James Brown — “Out of the Blue”

Well, this June 1964 Smash B-side (https://www.45cat.com/record/s1908) came out of the blue — it’s not your typical James Brown. The “twisting original . . . backtracked on the evolutionary steps Brown’s music had been making”. (Zeth Lundy, https://www.popmatters.com/james-brown-the-singles-volume-3-1964-1965-2496216266.html) Yeah, but oh how finger snapping cool this deevolution was!

William Ruhlmann tells us that:

At the end of 1963, Brown entered into a contract dispute with his record label, King Records. He stopped recording for King and even signed a contract with another label, Smash Records (a subsidiary of Mercury Records). But King went right on putting out Brown singles by delving into its catalog of LP tracks and altering other previously released recordings without Brown’s knowledge, much less permission. For example, Brown’s Live at the Apollo album had been a big success in 1963, so King overdubbed screams and applause onto Brown’s 1956 recording “Please, Please, Please” to make it sound like a live performance and re-released it as a single in January 1964 . . . . Meanwhile, Brown was uncertain of his direction, and his first recordings for Smash included forays into covers of jump blues (Louis Jordan’s “Caldonia”) and straight blues (Guitar Slim’s “The Things That I Used to Do”) to which his fans did not respond. . . . Eventually, Brown found his feet and came to an accommodation with King in time to cut such classics as “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag, Pt. 1” and “I Got You (I Feel Good)[.]”
https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-singles-vol-3-1964-1965-mw0000483493

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H.P. Lovecraft — “That’s How Much I Love You, Baby (More or Less)”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 9, 2024

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

1,073) H.P. Lovecraft — “That’s How Much I Love You, Baby (More or Less)”

This Chicago band (see #829) truly put the LSD in Lake Shore Drive. As to the song, it is “Dean Martin on acid lounge” (Prog Sothoth, https://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2273), “[a] jazzy thing full of blues on which the band plays an excellent vocal performance”. (octopus-4, https://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2273) Progfan97402 says that “I really love the lounge jazz” (https://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2273) and Richie Unterberger says that the band “put their lounge jazz chops to good use on the suave but moody” song. (liner notes to the CD reissues of HP Lovecraft I and HP Lovecraft II) Jhendrix110 hates all but two of the songs on the album: “This album receives the lowest rating I have ever given for one very simple reason: it is the only album I have turned off in the middle out of sheer disgust and boredom.” (https://jhendrix110.tripod.com/Lovecraft.html) But “How Much I Love You” escapes his wrath!*

Singer and songwriter George Edwards (real name: Charles Ethan Kenning) tells us that the song “came from something [band member] Tony Cavallari said one day…it stuck with me, and I wrote a song around it.” (https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2011/07/hp-lovecraft-interview-with-ethan.html)

As to the first album, from which I take “How Much I Love You”, hieronymous says “the sound is folk rock meets psychedelia[, t]he vocal sound reminds me of Jefferson Airplane – some of the vocals seem melodramatic at first, but stick with it . . . the combination of [singer Dave] Michaels and George Edwards is actually pretty magical.” (http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2340776)

As to the band, William Ruhlmann says that H.P. Lovecraft was “a potentially important psychedelic act of the ‘60s that couldn’t hold together.” (https://therockasteria.blogspot.com/2019/10/hp-lovecraft-dreams-in-witch-house-1967.html) Richie Unterberger says that:

Like the stories of the author after whom they were named, H.P. Lovecraft’s music was spooky and mysterious, a vibe well-suited for the psychedelic times . . . . Their remarkably eclectic balance of folk, jazz, orchestrated pop, and even bits of garage rock and classical music, was too fragile and ethereal to keep afloat for any longer than that, perhaps. It lasted long enough, however, for the group to gift us with two uneven, occasionally brilliant albums that are among the most intriguing obscure relics of the psychedelic age.
http://www.richieunterberger.com/hplove.html

Unterberger again:

Featuring two strong singers (who often sang dual leads), hauntingly hazy arrangements, and imaginative songwriting that drew from pop and folk influences, H.P. Lovecraft was one of the better psychedelic groups of the late ’60s. The band was formed by ex-folky George Edwards in Chicago in 1967. [He] and keyboardist Dave Michaels, a classically trained singer with a four-octave range, handled the vocals, which echoed Jefferson Airplane’s in their depth and blend of high and low parts. Their self-titled 1967 LP was an impressive debut, featuring strong originals and covers of early compositions by Randy Newman and Fred Neil, as well as one of the first underground FM radio favorites, “White Ship.”

With the exception of a couple of badly dated tracks, th[e first album] is one of the best second-division psychedelic albums, with strong material that shows the immediately identifiable Edwards-Michaels vocal tandem at its best. According to the LP notes, the songs were largely inspired by novelist H.P. Lovecraft’s “macabre tales and poems of Earth populated by another race.” It’s more haunting than gloomy, though, with deft touches of folk, jazz, and horns.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/hp-lovecraft-mn0000948429/biography, https://www.allmusic.com/album/h-p-lovecraft-i-mw0000461464

George Edwards tells us:

I played Folk Music in high school, then in Chicago area clubs, and later toured the country playing most of the many Folk venues that had become popular in the early 60’s. . . . In the mid sixties, I began my association with Dunwich, working with them as a writer and session singer, eventually recording a series of singles for them. We recorded some of my original songs, and the Lennon/McCartney composition “Norwegian Wood” among others. . . .

In addition to my solo career, I was also working as a backup singer with a trio, playing supper clubs in the midwest. David Michaels was also part of this group. I was still pursuing a recording career, and had just recorded a Chip Taylor tune “Anyway That You Want Me” for my next Dunwich single. After listening to the finished record, I decided to invite David to come in and add a harmony vocal. We had been singing together in the above mentioned group for a couple of years, and had developed a very good musical rapport, and a tight vocal blend. . . .
https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2011/07/hp-lovecraft-interview-with-ethan.html

Of note, the band played some early shows at The Cellar in Chicago. Edwards recalls that:

“The Cellar” was in a Chicago suburb. The only thing I remember about gigging there was a very hot and humid summer gig with “The Who”. The place was packed, and the temperature was close to 120 degrees. It was probably the most uncomfortable gig I ever played.
https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2011/07/hp-lovecraft-interview-with-ethan.html#google_vignette

* Ivan Melgar M truly hates the whole album: “I can just describe [it] as boring, predictable and years behind what they should be doing, the vocal work reminds me of backup singers for crooners, had to press the skip button to maintain my mental sanity.” (https://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2273) Every party has a party pooper, and the party pooper is you, Ivan Melgar M!

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The Pride and Joy (The Del-Vetts) — “If You’re Ready”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 8, 2024

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

1,072) The Pride and Joy (The Del-Vetts) — “If You’re Ready”

This ’67 B-side is the band’s “crowning moment” (Office Naps, http://officenaps.com/?p=32), “Incendiary guitar rock. Chicago fire. Smokin” psych.” (thomassmith8721, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLlFktZ0JAY), “the Fuzzed Guitar work is downright awesome”. (joegongora2200, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLlFktZ0JAY) The song has “the same bite, the same Yardbirds-inspired soaring guitar solos” as their earlier Chicagoland hit ‘Last Time Around’ (see #250), but “[i]t’s just denser and heavier, doing everything but invent what thunderstruck Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath fans would several years later know as riffage.” (Office Naps, http://officenaps.com/?p=32) It is “almost as fine [as ‘Last Time’], and has a similar fusion of tough guitar snarl and good pop hooks”, “fine garage rock raunch”. (Richie Unterberger, https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-del-vetts-mw0000493277, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/pride-and-joy-mn0000895246)

On the Flip-Side says:

The song “starts with [Jimmy] Lauer’s familiar sounding fuzz guitar and then it rolls into his plea to a no good woman to let him be free. Lauer’s lead guitar skills get a nice little moment before the song rolls into a double time, harmonica driven close. The Yardbirds would be proud.”
http://ontheflip-side.blogspot.com/2013/06/dunwich-records-pride-and-joy-if-youre.html

“Though not as successful as “Last Time Around,” [it] (or rather its A-side, “Girl,” a polished pop number reminiscent of the Hollies) did perform well on the regional charts.” (Office Naps, http://officenaps.com/?p=32)

I don’t honor the Pride and Joy* because they hail from my hometown of Highland Park, Illinois, a Chicago suburb on the shores of Lake Michigan (unfortunately in the news recently for a terrible tragedy) and went to my high school**. OK, it doesn’t hurt. And had they been from Winnetka, it would be a cold day in hell. . . But enough about my methodology.

Jason Ankeny tells us about the Pride and Joy, and their earlier incarnation as the Del-Vetts:

Chicago garage band the Del-Vetts formed on the city’s north shore in 1963. Originally comprising singer/guitarist Jim Lauer, guitarist Lester Goldboss (soon replaced by Jeff Weinstein), bassist Bob Good, and drummer Paul Wade, the group started out playing Chuck Berry and surf rock covers, building a loyal following in the Chicago suburbs. In 1965, the Del-Vetts teamed with producer Bill Traut to record a cover of the Righteous Brothers hit “Little Latin Lupe Lu” for the tiny Seeburg imprint — the single merited little notice, but Traut nevertheless signed the band to his Dunwich label. After a series of lineup changes, the Del-Vetts now consisted of Lauer, Good on guitar, Jack Burchall on bass, and Roger Deatherage — this iteration of the group entered the studio in early 1966 to record “Last Time Around,” an original penned by so-called “fifth Del-Vett” Dennis Dahlquist. . . . ”Last Time Around” topped local radio play lists throughout the summer and cracked the national Top 30, but the follow-up, “I Call My Baby STP,” was a flop. At that point the Del-Vetts rechristened themselves the Pride and Joy, adopting a softer, more melodic sound for the 1967 single “Girl” — the record was another local radio blockbuster, but with a corporate shakeup at Dunwich jeopardizing the group’s long-range success, they moved to the Dot Records subsidiary Acta and even signed to star in a feature film . . . . Hitmakers Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil wrote the follow-up, “We Got a Long Way to Go” — industry buzz on the single was strong, but it failed on radio . . . .

Office Naps adds that:

[“If You’re Ready”‘s] release . . . coincided with the group’s extended visit to Los Angeles, where they’d record their final 45 . . . “We Got a Long Way to Go.” There they’d film for the movie Somebody Help Me as well, a low-budget Dick Clark Production that featured them playing live. It would mostly be for naught. “We Got a Long Way to Go” was released on the Los Angeles-based Acta label, sounding fairly unremarkable and doing the same on the pop charts. The movie itself was never released. This would be the end of the Del-Vetts/Pride and Joy story.
http://officenaps.com/?p=32

* “The band is going by the god-awful name The Pride and Joy. But in reality this is The Del-Vetts (just as bad a name). They must have realized just how un-mod the name Del-Vetts was in ’66 and tried, poorly, to rechristen themselves with the more ‘now’ sounding name of Pride and Joy.” (On the Flip-Side, http://ontheflip-side.blogspot.com/2013/06/dunwich-records-pride-and-joy-if-youre.html) Hey, didn’t Robert Plant get his start in the Band of Joy?

** They “were all very popular at school, they had all the girls and they had all the fun.” (Bill Traut, as told to Jeff Jarema, liner notes to the CD comp If You’re Ready!: The Best of Dunwich Records . . . Volume 2) Just like me!

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New Colony Six — “Can’t You See Me Cry”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 7, 2024

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5635EeKy92U

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

1,071) New Colony Six — “Can’t You See Me Cry”

“A soulful and emotionally charged ballad, “Can’t You See Me Cry” showcases [Chicago’s own’s] The New Colony Six’s (see #410) ability to convey heartache and vulnerability through their music. The haunting melodies and powerful vocals make it a standout track in their discography.” (Randy Harvey, https://oldtimemusic.com/most-popular-the-new-colony-six-songs/) It reached #52 in the summer of ’68. ”Nationally it would have been a #1 hit if Mercury only had had its act together and promoted it properly. T he NC6 catalogue is full of hits that should have reached the Top 10 across the country except Mercury inexplicably fumbled each one.” (garytheroux9526, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2NbmFcEB90)

Question #1: But who were the New Colony Six?

In 1964, a sextet of teenagers [from St. Patrick High School] set out to bring the British Invasion to Chicago, establishing their own “Colony” on the northwest side . . . . After a year of relentless gigging through the suburbs, the NC6 released their first single, “I Confess,” on their own Centa[u]r imprint which was collectively funded by the bandmates’ parents. The up-and-coming group caught the attention of Peter Wright, a Chicago music industry titan . . . . Wright stepped in to manage the group and pushed “I Confess,” on the airwaves earning it a spot on the Billboard Hot 100.
https://numerogroup.com/products/new-colony-six-breakthrough

Richie Unterberger adds:

Chicago’s New Colony Six originally emerged as a tough, British Invasion-styled outfit prominently featuring Farfisa organ and a novel (at the time) Leslie guitar. Scoring a huge local hit with “I Confess,” their early recordings . . . featured first-class original material that gave the sound of Them and the Yardbirds a more commercial, American garage-based, vocal harmony approach. The rest of the ’60s saw the band gradually abandoning its roots for middle-of-the-road pop with horns and strings[ and they c]ontinu[ed] to rack up major local hits and minor national ones . . . .
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/new-colony-six-mn0000388416/biography

Question #2: Why did they dress in colonial costumes? When asked “[w]ere you aware at the time that on the West coast a group called Paul Revere And The Raiders were doing the same thing?”, band member Bruce Mattey answered:

Originally, no. It was kind of an odd thing that early on when the Colony was trying to make it and get a record contract, we went to California. At the same time there was a group in the same complex staying there unbeknownst to us called Paul Revere And The Raiders. We were trying out for Where The Action Is to get a spot on the show . . . . Here we come in, in colonial outfits and naturally coming in the opposite direction is Paul Revere almost dressed in an identical get-up. Just because the name itself I suppose, naturally Paul Revere, well there you go. So, they were colonial and New Colony actually picked up that name being the answer to the British Invasion, thus the New Colony. So, there was a purpose behind the name. But at the time we didn’t realize that The Raiders and Colony were very similar from that look.
http://www.classicbands.com/NewColonySixInterview.html

Question #3: Why are these Chicago boys in the Iowa Rock ‘n’ Roll Music Association Hall of Fame?

Bruce Mattey explains: “You know something? That’s a good question. . . . We did a lot of jobs in Iowa, Ohio, Indiana. I have a feeling they kind of took us on as their own. Quite a few of the Colony songs were really big hits there.” (http://www.classicbands.com/NewColonySixInterview.html)

Question #4: What was the Chicago music scene like in the 60’s?

When asked “How would you describe the scene in Chicago for music in the 60s?”, band member Ray Graffia, Jr., responded:

Unbelievably supportive and enthusiastic for their “home team” groups. Those “Midwest farmers’ daughters” Brian Wilson wrote about became rabid supporters of all music that got blessed with airplay from either or both WLS +/or WCFL, which were the two killer AM stations that all of us listened to during that entire decade. Once we hit the airwaves and they could go see us and the other bands who followed us for pennies – no point pursuing outsiders in expensive concerts when you had NC6, followed 9 weeks later by The Shadows of Knight, then in no particular order, The Cryan’ Shames, The Ides of March, American Breed, The Buckinghams and countless others who garnered airplay on our two 50,000 watt AM stations, essentially right in their own back yards!
https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2023/07/the-new-colony-six-interview.html

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The Ides of March — “You Wouldn’t Listen”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 6, 2024

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

1,070) The Ides of March — “You Wouldn’t Listen”

Warning: Do not read any further if you are from Chicago — this lovely and surprisingly sophisticated song launched the Ides of March’s (see #431) career and reached #7 in Chicagoland! It was the first hit by the band, reaching #42 nationally. Kent Kotal tells us that:

[“You Wouldn’t Listen” is] as good as ANY song on the charts in 1966. (They certainly came a long, long way in a very brief period of time … not only as songwriters but as musicians and singers as well. This is a VERY sophisticated piece of material for some 15 and 16 year old kids still in High School!!!) . . . . Jim Peterik has told the story many times over the years of how they blended the soulful, gospel sounds of Curtis Mayfield and The Impressions with the latest trends coming out of The British Invasion. Listen to the opening riff on “You Wouldn’t Listen” and you’ll feel an immediate connection to “Tired Of Waiting For You” by The Kinks. But it was the merger of BOTH of these distinct sounds that allowed them to come up with their very own, original sound, making “You Wouldn’t Listen” a track that still holds up incredibly well today.
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-ides-of-march-part-2.html?m=1

They had the eye of the tiger, alright! Kotal continues:

[It] was originally released as by Batt Mann and the Boy Wonders on a local Ginny Records label. Thankfully, the band changed their name to the Ides of March and were sometimes promoted to be an English band. “You Wouldn’t Listen” was first released on the local label Harlequin Records and then, nationally on Parrot Records in early 1966. . . [I]t quickly climbed Chicago’s radio station charts and then the national charts . . . . Dick Clark featured it on his American Bandstand weekly dance show . . . .
http://forgottenhits60s.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-ides-of-march-part-2.html?m=1

As to IOM’s origins, Mark Deming explains:

The [band is] best-known for the tough, “hard rock with horns” sound of their 1970 hit “Vehicle,” but that’s just one facet of the group’s body of work. In the mid-’60s, they played British Invasion-influenced garage rock with a dash of folk on a handful of singles . . . . The story of the Ides of March began in 1964, when four friends who went to school together in the Chicago suburb of Berwyn, Illinois decided to form a band. With Jim Peterik [yes, of Survivor] on vocals and guitar . . . the group adopted the name the Shon Dels . . . . and in 1966, they changed their name to the Ides of March, after [a band member] had read Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar in English class.
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-ides-of-march-mn0000768010/biography

Richie Unterberger adds:

Although they recorded a number of singles throughout the rest of the 1960s . . . and had another sizable local hit with “Roller Coaster,” the Ides never did break nationally at this stage, or manage to get an LP out. They continued to work as a popular regional live act, however, in the process expanding into harder, heavier, more soulful sounds from their original British Invasion-inspired style. They . . . add[ed] a horn section along the way and ke[pt] their multi-part vocal harmonies. “We started as a British Invasion wanna-be band, really, kind of Curtis Mayfield-meets-the-Hollies,” remarks . . . Peterik . . . . “We loved that sound, but as the band wore on, we started wanting to do songs with brass, like the James Brown stuff and Arthur Conley’s ‘Sweet Soul Music.’ We got a trumpet, and that was seductive; then we got another. It was kind of a gradual process .[“] . . .
http://www.richieunterberger.com/vehicle.html

Here are kids dancing to the song on American Bandstand:

Here is a French version from Quebec by les Phénomènes —

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Katch-22 — “Don’t Listen”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 5, 2024

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

1,069) Katch-22 — “Don’t Listen”

Here is an exquisite, ebullient and endearing early British Invasion number. What’s the catch? It was a ‘68 album track by Katch-22! It coulda been a huge hit — four years earlier!

Who were Katch-22? Well, let’s have the band’s website explain:

Mike Eastman and Paul Bonner were pupils at the same school, in Wallington, Surrey, England, and formed a band together in 1964. They were joined by brothers Martin and Robert Godbold to complete the band’s first line-up. Whilst playing at the 100 Club in . . . London in 1966, they were spotted by record producer and songwriter, Tokenam Aw, who was born in Hawaii and later became their manager. They were signed to the Fontana Records label, and released their first single, “Major Catastrophe” . . . . written by Aw . . . . In June 1967 Robert Godbold left the band and was replaced by Paul Clifton. With this new line-up, the band recorded their second single on the Fontana Records Label, “Makin’ My Mind Up” . . . . During this period they were regular support artists to many bands of the era, including The Small Faces, the Alan Price Set, The Animals, and more. In November 1967 they turned full time professional, and went on their first Continental Tour with . . . a package show supporting . . . Keith West and Tomorrow, Cat Stevens, Zoot Money and Dantalions Chariot, Spencer Davis Group, and The Soft Machine. On return . . . They made their first B.B.C Radio One recording . . . for the ”David Symonds Show” in December 1967. . . . They became regular performers on sessions for BBC Radio One . . . . Their . . . first [LP was] on the Budget Label Saga Records . . . Soft Rock and Allsorts, It’s Katch 22 . . . for the first time featur[ing] some songs written by the band [including “Don’t Listen”] . . . Released in May 1968, [it] went on to sell somewhere in the region of 75000 copies, and became the BBC Radio One ‘ LP of the Week’, on the ”David Symonds Show”, leading to the band becoming one of the most regular ‘session bands’ on many programmes from the time. During 1968, ‘Katch 22’ continued to play as support . . . to [bands] including, ‘The Kinks’, ‘Bay City Rollers’, ‘Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders’, etc., but were gradually gaining main band status in their own right . . . . [and they] also became session singers for other artistes in the Fontana stable, the first of which was backing vocals for ‘Wayne Fontana’, on his record “Never An Everyday Thing” . . . . Due to the Radio popularity of the LP, ‘Katch 22’ were approached to play themselves in a discotheque scene in the Michael Klinger, film‘Baby Love’ . . . . They continued to record many BBC Radio One Sessions . . . . [and] were also further in demand as session players . . . . January – February 1969, ‘Katch 22’ were resident at the famous Star Club in Hamburg . . . . At the end of March 1969 Paul Clifton . . . left to join ‘Cliff Bennet and the Rebel Rousers’, and later that year . . . Martin Godbold . . . left also to form a progressive rock band calling themselves ‘Nimbus’. . . . [Katch-22] played their last show as ‘Katch 22’ on February 5th 1972. The three remaining members went on to work with Harry Vanda and George Young, (ex ‘The Easybeats’ ), and later formed a new band called ‘Paintbox’.
https://katch-22-band.jimdosite.com/about-the-band/

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Fresh Air — “Stop Look Listen”: (Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 4, 2024

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

1,068) Fresh Air — “Stop Look Listen”

A captivating and upbeat UK pop rock confection with a bouncy Al Kooper-like organ accompaniment. ”No problems facing us that we cannot work out”

Who were Fresh Air? ”Nothing is known of this four-piece group” (Vernon Joynson, The Tapestry of Delights Revisited) other than that “it has often been surmised the band was a group of session musicians at Pye”. (Can Bayramcavus, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADiU919Sg7o) ”[A]nyone got a clue who was in the band[?] Details of members are rather elusive!” (jjf1963, https://www.45cat.com/record/7n17736) I guess the band disappeared into the ether!

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The Fairytale — “Listen to Mary Cry”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 3, 2024

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

1,067) The Fairytale — “Listen to Mary Cry”

“Superb [’67 UK] popsike” (MushroomMachineClub, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGTe7hwO4LI) from a “short-lived Lancastrian outfit who formed in . . . in March 1967 and tended to blend pop psychedelia with a taint of punk-rock on their two 45s”. (Vernon Joynson, The Tapestry of Delights Revisited) The band “was signed to English Decca’s psychedelic/progressive Deram label in 1967, and managed to grace us with a pair of singles, “Guess I Was Dreaming” b/w “Run And Hide” and “Lovely People” b/w “Listen To Mary Cry”, in June and September of that year.” (Bruce Eder, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/fairytale-mn0000632040#biography)

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Sands — “Listen to the Sky”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 2, 2024

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

1,066) Sands — “Listen to the Sky”

’67 Brit psych B-side is the band’s “finest moment”, “[m]indblowing stuff” (Vernon Joynson, The Tapestry of Delights Revisited), “a pretty far-out creation, starting as a nice Carnaby Street pop sike excursion before distorting into sirens, explosions, [and] dive bombers . . . . [q]uite a trip” (happening45, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhdmcqTtrs0&t=1s), “a remarkable recording that conclude[s] with air raid sirens and an unnerving arrangement of the Mars section of Holst’s Planets Suite played on a distorted electric guitar”. (David Wells, liner notes to the CD comp Let’s Go Down and Blow Our Minds: The British Psychedelic Sounds of 1967).

The song “begins innocently enough as a cheerful ditty about ‘ordinary guy’ Buddy Baker going to war as a fighter pilot, but soon shifts gear into an extraordinary recreation of the Battle of Brittain – complete with sirens and dive bombing guitars”. (liner notes to the CD comp MOJO Presents: Acid Drops, Spacedust & Flying Saucers: Psychedelic Confectionery from the UK Underground 1965-1969) ”It’s one of those songs that sounds happy, but then you realize it’s about a kid being drafted to war and dying in a plain crash. I imagine the happy music represents people being distracted from reality.” (zachperkins688, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzoBrw44ypo)

As to Sands, the Middlesex band was “[o]riginally known as the Tridents . . . [and] first recorded as The Others”. (Vernon Joynson, The Tapestry of Delights Revisited) David Wells tells us that:

[B]y April 1966, [they] were regulars at the Marquee Club, often on a double bill with The Move. After being spotted at the Cromwellian by Brian Epstein, they signed to his NEMS management company, which in turn led to Robert Stigwood taking an avuncular interest in them. A single for Stigwood’s label reaction coupled Bee Gees song Mrs. Gillespie’s Refrigerator’ with band original “Listen to the Sky”. . . . Sadly Epstein’s death a week before the release of the single saw it disappear without a trace.
liner notes to Let’s Go Down and Blow Our Minds: The British Psychedelic Sounds of 1967

“Sands split after this single with members Rob Freeman and Ian McLintock becoming Sun Dragon”. (twerptwo, https://www.45cat.com/record/591017)

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The Bee Gees — “If I Only Had My Mind on Something Else”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — January 1, 2024

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

1,065) The Bee Gees — “If I Only Had My Mind on Something Else”

A gorgeous ballad by Barry and Maurice when the two brothers briefly were the Bee Gees (see #291, 353, 354, 439, 466, 484, 497, 570, 594, 717, 861, 962) ”The lyrics. The melody. Wow … you’re a GENIUS BARRY GIBB!” (@coffeeonthedeck6258, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i5dmj_sdhnU&pp=ygUxYmVlIGdlZXMgaWYgaSBvbmx5IGhhZCBteSBtaW5kIG9uIHNvbWV0aGluZyBlbHNlIA%3D%3D) Yes, he is! Cash Box called the song a “[s]plendid ballad” and a “stunning performance, both vocal and instrumental, and a less obscure lyric” that “should take the team back into the good graces of the teens with explosive sales results”, and Billboard said it was a “strong rhythm ballad loaded with commercial appeal” with a “top vocal performance and string arrangement.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/If_Only_I_Had_My_Mind_on_Something_Else) Alas, the song only reached #91 in the U.S.

Bruce Eder notes that in “1969, the trio split up in a dispute involving the Odessa album [and an inability] to agree on which song would be the single[. ] Robin walked out [and] Barry and Maurice held on to the Bee Gees name for one LP, Cucumber Castle . . . . [which] generated several successful singles in England and Germany”. (https://www.allmusic.com/artist/bee-gees-mn0000043714#biography) Michael Ofjord adds:

An overlooked work in the Brothers Gibb catalog, Cucumber Castle is an excellent album that plays to the Bee Gees’ strengths of melody, arrangement, and craftsmanship. . . . Barry and Maurice carry on with 12 cuts that continue in the tradition of their distinctive pop sound. Orchestral arrangements and Mellotrons abound, and the sound tends toward full productions . . . . Barry’s vocals are particularly strong and heartfelt. . . . [A s]uperb eye for detail in the arrangements of the songs give them added life. . . . [T]his is a fine album that cements the Brothers Gibb’s reputation as superior pop songwriters and craftsmen.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/cucumber-castle-mw0000203147

Oh, and Cucumber Castle was also a Christmas ’70 BBC TV movie. As what-it-says-on-the-screen describes:

The plot revolves around two heirs, Prince Frederick (Barry Gibb) and his brother Prince Marmaduke (Maurice Gibb), and their dying father (Frankie Howerd). On his death bed, The King orders his kingdom divided into two halves, the Kingdom of Jelly and the Kingdom of Cucumbers. Before the king even dies, Prince Frederick declares himself “King of Cucumbers” and Prince Marmaduke becomes the “King of Jelly”. The film intersperses comedy sketches with Bee Gees songs plus performances by Lulu and Blind Faith with cameo appearances.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0301143/

Here is the song in the movie:

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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. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.

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Donovan — “New Year’s Resovolution”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — December 31, 2023

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

1,064) Donovan — “New Year’s Resovolution”*

This is Donovan’s “Hey Jude”, written not to comfort Julian during John and Cynthia’s divorce, but to comfort Paul during the Beatles’ divorce. “Thought to be inspired by Paul McCartney (who apparently loaned a guitar for the sessions) the closing track on Open Road is one of those anthemic, rolling tunes Donovan did so well.” (Stuart Penney, https://andnowitsallthis.blogspot.com/2020/04/donovans-50-greatest-songs-ranked.html?m=1) ”[I]t’s a lovely . . . song, made especially lovely by the fact that it was written for his good friend paul mccartney around 1969/1970 when the beatles broke up and he was feeling miserable about it.” (lisa4782, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkri858BKvE) “[T]he ballad[] . . . [is an] absolutely knockdown dragout victor[y] because [it] use[s Donovan’s] beautiful melody for the soft parts and then rock[s] out in other moments.” (William Wes, https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/why-did-donovan-decline-so-sharply-commercially-after-1970.1088990/page-8)

“Do what you’ve never done before, See what you’ve never seen, Feel what you’ve never felt before, Go where you’ve never been”

Of the album, Jason tells us:

Open Road was Donovan’s first album of the 1970’s. Here he was backed by a sympathetic group of the same name (Open Road) and this change made all the difference. Gone are the psychedelic trappings of previous years and in their place are a collection of sharp Celtic influenced folk-rock tracks. The lyrics and backing band are straight forward and direct, giving this album a back to the basics feel (there are no sitars, horns, harpsichords or elaborate studio productions) – so in the case of Open Road, less is more. While there are no huge hits in the order of “Mellow Yellow” or “Sunshine Superman”, Open Road rates as one of Donovan’s most consistently enjoyable sets.
https://therisingstorm.net/donovan-open-road/

And Alan Price says:

Donovan is a fucking beacon. This record smashes. John Carr’s drumming is very reminiscent of another famous drummer named John . . . . Mike Thomson’s bass playing is psychotic and rambling in the best possible ways, which brings us to the man himself. This is by far Donovan’s most lucid dream and most complete expression. After leaving the U.S. to return to England and assemble the Open Road band, Donovan found the freedom of working in a post-Mickie Most world. This, and his next record (HMS Donovan) show an artist who still eats granola, but no longer believes it is all he has to talk about. Donovan haters …. go die.
http://acefrehleyforpresident.blogspot.com/2010/09/donovan-open-road-1970.html?m=1

Donovan told Goldmine Magazine that:

“I made it after the disillusionment of all the ’60s things that were going on, and at one point I said, ‘I’ve had enough. I’m going into the studio with a three-piece, back to the roots.’ But I created the term `Celtic rock’ on there . . . to try and fuse this traditional music with this power guitar and power ethnic drums. So, on the album, I was almost like turning my back on the record industry . . . even Mickie Most. . . . I kind of liked the way the three-piece sounded, it was so raw and emotional and in a way rather punky[.]” . . . The band was intended to undertake a tour to promote the album . . . . But the tour never materialized. . . . “I just didn’t feel like it anymore . . . . I think I’d done enough . . . . I’d achieved more than any young musician could possibly want. . . . A lot of us were worn down by the end of the ’60s. . . . The three-piece was to go on the road and promote it all over America, and I think I just didn’t have the energy or I was bored, and I was happy with the album, anyway. It came out, and it was received quite well, but I don’t believe there was any serious promotion from the label.”
GOLDMINE #321; November 13, 1992; pp. 10-22 (Dippy the Hippy, https://groups.google.com/g/rec.music.folk/c/uCzryz_yesM)

* ”The title is a clever combination of “Resolution” and “Revolution”. Too clever for some, it seems, as in later years most sources (CD covers, Spotify etc) renamed it, simply, ‘New Year’s Resolution’.” (Stuart Penney, https://andnowitsallthis.blogspot.com/2020/04/donovans-50-greatest-songs-ranked.html?m=1)

Here is Helen Reddy:

I have added a Facebook page for Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock! If you like what you read and hear and feel so inclined, please visit and “like” my Facebook page by clicking here.

Pay to Play! The Off the Charts Spotify Playlist! + Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock Merchandise

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

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

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