THE WEST COAST POP ART EXPERIMENTAL BAND - VOL. 2, 1967

On to the next fascination: I'm a newcomer to The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band, and after reading a few bits and pieces recently I put their discography on my list.  I started with Vol. 2 due to listening to 'Smell Of Incense' a few times and being completely taken by it.  The drums, the bass line, the guitars, the lyrics... all stunning!  There's some really captivating stuff on this record, and it's taking all kinds of spins on the turntable.  You can read into their strange history plenty, but it's probably best just to listen.

It seems original copies of the West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band's albums are fetching for high prices in our current state of 2014, so in this case I rushed and went with this inexpensive and easily obtainable reissue (on translucent vinyl which I'm not the biggest fan of).  It has the usual flaws of a new 'high quality' pressing including uneven edges and cheapish looking labels.  The sound is acceptable.  On with the show!

SIDEWALK SKIPPER BAND - SEVENTEENTH SUMMER / (WOULD YOU BELIEVE) IT'S RAINING FLOWERS IN MY HOUSE, MAY 1968

This record by Milwaukee, Wisconsin natives The Sidewalk Skipper Band was released in May 1968, a few months after their first Capitol Single, the terrific 'Strawberry Tuesday' b/w 'Cynthia At The Garden'.  Although not as good as the aforementioned release it is still quite charming.  'Seventeenth Summer' is a tasteful psych-free vocal number complete with 'seagull and shore' sound effects.  Apparently The Lettermen were interested in recording the song, but the Sidewalk Skipper's refused and released the single themselves.  '(Would You Believe) It's Raining Flowers In My House' is as goofy as it sounds, and is quite the counterpart to the 'mature' sounding 'Seventeenth Summer'.  Goofy it may be, but it is quite a fun and catchy pop song.  Both of the Sidewalk Skipper band's Capitol singles can be found on the previously mentioned Book A Trip compilation (they used the previously unreleased stereo mixes of 'Seventeenth Summer' and 'It's Raining Flowers').

THE FOLKLORDS - FORTY SECOND RIVER / UNSPOKEN LOVE, 1968

Here's a cool one I finally got around to adding to my collection.  This obscure single was originally released in the summer of 1968 on the self-made COB Records label and got some local airplay in the Folklords native land of Ontario, Canada.  Shortly after this release the Folklords were signed to independent Canadian label Allied Records and recorded their sole album Release The Sunshine.  This wonderful record received an excellent reissue from Pacemaker / Lion Productions in 2007, complete with a beautiful THICK laminated gatefold sleeve which includes a detailed band history with original photos and lyrics provided by (bandleader) Tom Waschkowski.  Included in this package was a replica reissue of the above mentioned 45rpm single.  This wondrous pair of soft folk ballads are early, stripped down versions of their counterparts found on the Allied LP.  I find them every bit as captivating as the album versions especially 'Forty Second River', a free-spirited wandering tale, which features prominent bass guitar and haunting harmony vocals.  The sound and atmosphere created by the Folklords in their brief history is proving to be highly regarded in the ears of myself and many others.

SUMMER SNOW - FLYING ON THE GROUND / YOUR THOUGHTS HAVE WINGS, 1967

This promo single by short lived group Summer Snow is a pleasant, lite affair featuring a nice cover of the Neil Young penned Buffalo Springfield tune 'Flying On The Ground Is Wrong'.  A few years back it was compiled on the excellent Now Sounds CD Book A Trip: The Psych Pop Sounds Of Capitol Records.  I've been enjoying that disc recently and was pleasantly surprised to find a nice copy of this Summer Snow 45 (for $1) while perusing the other day.  It is noteworthy that 'Flying On The Ground' features backup vocals and instrumentation by members of the Peppermint Trolley Company, a current favorite of mine.  'Your Thoughts Have Wings' is a quick (somewhat forgettable) acoustic ballad with exchanging male/female vocals.

STRAWBERRY ALARM CLOCK - SIT WITH THE GURU / PRETTY SONG FROM PSYCH-OUT, MARCH 1968

Two of the most blissful, dreamy tunes the Strawberry Alarm Clock ever recorded in one nice little package!  By this point in time the SAC were tightening their harmonies with vocal coach Howard Davis and writing songs about meditation and spirituality which was a commonplace in early 1968.  The aptly titled 'Pretty Song From Psych-Out' is about as flowery as they get and has a really great bass part.  DIG IT.  As stated in the songs title it was prominently featured in the 1968 exploitation film Psych Out, starring Jack Nicholson in an early role as a frontman in a psychedelic rock band!  Both of these songs can be found on their second album, Wake Up... It's Tomorrow which will be featured here soon enough.

THE CALICO WALL - I'M A LIVING SICKNESS / FLIGHT REACTION, 1967

Here's proof of strange sounds coming from Minnesota in 1967.  From what I understand these elusive cuts were unissued at the time, but have since appeared on numerous garage comps, have been reissued as a 45 in the 80's and more recently by Get Hip with a picture sleeve.  I picked this up at a shop today with no prior knowledge, but a name like The Calico Wall and the titles 'Flight Reaction' and 'I'm A Living Sickness' made it a dead give away.  Gotta have it!  These recordings creep in like a dark cloud of fuzz looming over the horizon in a trippy horror flick.  Equal parts captivating and unsettling, no flowers present here...

THE TROGGS - WILD THING / FROM HOME, 1966

Here's another hit song with a stunning partner in crime.  Everyone knows 'Wild Thing',  the worldwide garage anthem that went to #1 on the billboard charts in July 1966, but how about the buzz-saw on the B-side?  'From Home' is a primitive-fuzzy-garage-punk-monster which makes it seem plausible that the Troggs crawled out of a cave and traded in their clubs for electric guitars and drums.  Listening to it brings to mind The Stooges and particularly 'Now I Wanna Be Your Dog' from their debut 1969 album which was clearly influenced by this record.

Lead vocalist Reg Presley passed away in early February last year from lung cancer.  Sad to hear, but the music lives on...

THE DOORS - LIGHT MY FIRE / THE CRYSTAL SHIP, 1967

(Of course) Jim Morrison and The Doors are one of the most popular acts of the 60's and naturally one of the first groups of the era I started listening to.  These two cuts make for the ultimate Doors double-sider and took them to the top of the charts in the summer of '67.  Rightly so!  There's really no point in going into detail, but it gets me stoked that Jim and Co. can still light my fire in 2014.

SYNDICATE OF SOUND - LITTLE GIRL / YOU, 1966

The Syndicate Of Sound had a top ten hit in 1966 with the upbeat garage sound of 'Little Girl', but this post is highlighting 'You', the stunning little gem on the flipside.  This downtrodden garage ballad is quite the counterpart to the manic 'Little Girl', and features minor key moodiness perfectly accented with harmony vocals and a killer flute break.  I am very happy to report that I rescued this great sounding copy from the floor bins today for $1 and have united it with my turntable where it is once again 1966!

ORANGE COLORED SKY - THE SHADOW OF SUMMER / ORANGE COLORED SKY, 1968

Another flop from the UNI roster; The Orange Colored Sky. 'The Shadow Of Summer' has some cool bits of organ and strings (mellotron?), and a thumping bass, but is otherwise on par with Frankie Valli singing 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You'.  'Orange Colored Sky' is an even lighter affair, but nonetheless pleasing to this ear.  Nice reflective harmony pop, I can feel the summer fading away already...

THE AVANT-GARDE - NATURALLY STONED / HONEY AND GALL, JULY 1968

The Avant-Garde was a psychsploitation project put together in late 1967 by Chuck Woolery and Elkin "Bubba" Fowler.  They put out three singles on Columbia in a years time, and had a minor hit with 'Naturally Stoned'.  It's most definitely a period piece that a lot of folks would label as cheese, but charming nonetheless if you're into to this sort of thing.  You can't deny the excellent production and the lyrics are entertaining to say the least.

'Honey And Gall' on the flip once again features some great production only this time we are dealing with a 'heavy' spiritual theme.

Fowler went on to pursue a career in folk music while Woolery went on to become a successful game show host...

THE JULY FOUR - FRIGHTENED LITTLE GIRL / MR. MIFF, 1967

Here's a fabulous lone record cut by The July Four in mid 1967.  Both sides can be found on Fading Yellow Vol. 2 which lists 'Mr. Miff' mysteriously as the 'bonus track'.  'Frightened Little Girl' is a real charmer, but the flipside, 'Mr. Miff' is a brain melter that became one of my favorites last summer.  'Mr. Miff' is an instrumental version of 'Frightened Little Girl' which replaces the vocals and horns with a lead guitar that really numbs the synapses.  Tunes like this are a good reason why I don't have to take drugs.  Info on this record is sparse, but I have seen a comment or two comparing the instrumental cut to some of the early tracks of the 1980's band Felt.  This comparison is fairly just, and I can mention my favorite Felt track 'Evergreen Dazed' as being a worthy companion to 'Mr. Miff'.

note: mastered by Frankford/Wayne in Philadelphia, PA.

THE MOODY BLUES - IN SEARCH OF THE LOST CHORD, JULY 1968

I haven't bothered to explore much of the Moody Blues' back catalogue, but naturally I was drawn to check out their offerings from the '67-'68 period.  Most notably the album In Search Of The Lost Chord, released in July 1968 and found here.  A very pleasant album it is, incorporating many of the psychedelic implements I enjoy including flutes, mellotron, harpsichord, sitar and tablas.  It is duly noted on the liner notes of the album that all of the instrumentation was provided by the Moodies themselves after their previous album that was heavy on the orchestration interludes.  Some of the lyrics could be considered 'nonsensical' or 'dated', (one of the lamest and most irrelevant terms in my opinion) but I could care less.  It all sounds great to my ears.  I may even prefer 'The Actor' over 'Nights In White Satin'.  The Moody Blues were not quite as hip looking as some of their contemporaries, and this is addressed by viewing the included photos from the sleeve.  The bare midriff was probably not the best look for Justin Hayward...

THE ROLLING STONES - BETWEEN THE BUTTONS, FEBRUARY 1967

Even though I'm unfamiliar with some of the early Stones records I'm going to go ahead and say Between The Buttons is my favorite LP of theirs.  Very British sounding, but still embracing their bluesy roots with a touch of the happening sound of the upcoming year.  As with (most) everything else posted on this blog I really love playing this record from front to back.  The American release left off 'Please Go Home' and 'Back Street Girl' in favor of 'Ruby Tuesday' and 'Let's Spend The Night Together' which were released as a double A sided single a month prior to the album release.  All four of these tracks are great, but I have to mention 'Back Street Girl' as one of my all time favorites.  The mood evoking accordion and lyrical content are absolutely sublime and deserve much attention.  With that being said I must also say I was disappointed to find out it was not Brian Jones behind the accordion..

THE DOVERS - WE'RE NOT JUST ANYBODY (SIDE 1), 1965

I'm kicking off the new year with one of the crown jewels in my collection; The Dovers singles collection issued by Misty Lane Records in 2001.  These recordings have proven to be a most influential part of my musical upbringing and one of my greatest discoveries.  I've easily listened to this set hundreds of times over the ensuing years and continue to get fully wrapped up in the excellence of each track.  This post will focus on side 1 which compiles the two singles released in the latter half 1965.  I'll leave it to the experts to provide the details.

Here's part one of the article/interview insert conducted by Mike Markesich with original band member Bruce Clawson:

Bruce Clawson can recall the exact time frame for when the rock & roll bug flew in his ear...

"I was a freshman in high school.  A rock & roll combo performed during an assembly, and I was blown away!  I thought right then that looked like the cool thing to do."

So, circa 1960, Bruce began entering the world of rock & roll via various groups, all of which lasted seconds, if not minutes, the typical norm of the day.  His first "real" band saw Bruce on lead guitar, along with his pal Alex Nova on keyboards, accompanied by other members, names eroded by time.  This grouping found regular gigging opportunities at the two high schools in their home town of Santa Barbara, California, namely Santa Barbara High and San Marcos High.  By the time Bruce graduated in 1963, he became a co-founder of a combo dubbed the Van Dels, which included Tony Rivas, a big, burly teen affectionately christened "Goosey" by friends.  Performing what is now dubbed "frat-rock" by the garage cognoscenti, along with the instrumental sounds so in vogue for the day, the Van Dels became a popular combo for parties, dances, and record hops.  A year later, the Van Dels acquired Rick Morinini to man the drum seat for the group..  "He was just a baby," recalled Bruce.  "A freshman in high school.  Rick came by the garage where we rehearsed, sat in, and impressed us.  My friend from school, Randy Busby, who I wanted to get into the group had joined the Orosco Brothers, who became the town's most popular combo, Ernie & The Emperors."

A change was on the horizon, thanks to a chain of events which typify the times... Tony Rivas introduced the group to a local Hispanic tough (as Bruce described him) named Tim Granada, who brought along his well-to-do pal Robbie Ladewig.  In turn, Robbie knew a local hipster with cash and connections named Tony Cary.  "Tony wanted to be the next Phil Spector, or Andrew Loog Oldham.  He financed his own record label, made friends with some session guys in Los Angeles, and recorded a single on his own which bombed.  He couldn't play a musical instrument, so Tony decided to check us out."  The 'us' in question was now the grouping of Bruce on lead guitar, Tim on lead vocals/rhythm guitar, Robbie on bass, Tony Rivas providing harmony vocals as well as saxophone, and the youngster Rick on drums.  Cary came by, liked what he heard, and agreed to manage the group, renamed by Cary as the Dovers.  "I hated that name, we all thought it sucked," lamented Bruce.  "Tony Cary told us to adopt a name that sounded British.  I think we were all to lazy to bother coming up with a name ourselves."

It is interesting to note that all of the guys in the group had graduated from high school at this juncture; only Rick was still yet to graduate (class of 1966).  Bruce himself had gotten a job (a map maker), and was already married, his wife expecting a child.  Tim and Goosey also held down day jobs, while Robbie, the son of affluent parents, hung out with Cary, and began experimenting with (egad!) drugs.  rehearsals where often interrupted for a "break" which sometimes included smoking grass.  Bruce reflected: "I was a newbie to drugs at that point.  I was always a curious sort, I'd try anything once.  Goosey and Rick, they were clean cut guys.  I tried to get the others to cool it while they were around."  Neverless, the beginnings of a faction within the Dovers began to take hold, and the group hadn't even begun to record as of yet.  The Dovers relied on Cary to get them gigs, but according to Bruce, all Tony was interested in was "...driving around LA in his Continental and going to parties." 

Whenever Cary did attend a group rehearsal, he strove to get the guys to perform sould and R&B sounds: "We played, at that point, a lot of Beatles, some of the bluesy Rolling Stones tunes, any of the British Invasion type stuff.  Then here comes Cary, always critical of our selections and playing anyway, and he pressures us to go in another direction.  We in turn kept telling him what we really needed was to make a record."  Cary finally acquiesced, and told the guys to come up with some original material.  Tim came up with the sublime "What Am I Going To Do," which utilized Goosey's high harmony vocal range.  The Dovers worked on the song at rehearsals, which became established at the mansion of Robbie's parents.  Bruce remembers: "Robbie's parents had BUCKS!  He lived in this estate, a mansion which all of us 'poor boys' couldn't relate to.  really swank.  We had one whole wing of the place to keep our equipment and rehearse."

With "What Am I Going To Do" taking shape, Bruce struggled to pen his first 'real composition, titled "She's Gone" :  "I really had a hard time with that one.  I had the music, it needed a little something, which the guys helped out with (the bridge part).  Then I came up with simplistic words."  Cary then booked some studio time down in Los Angeles at the famed Gold Star Studios in the summer of 1965.  The guys recorded both of their originals, along with possibly 4 or 5 other tunes.  Bruce seems to recall other tunes cut at this session, but isn't sure.  He does remember watching Jim Messina work the board, engineering the session, then during a break, playing some of his own stuff for them.  Cary noted upon playback that "What Am I Going To Do" needed some keyboards to fill it out, but since he wasn't good enough to play, the talents of a jazz session player named David Wilson were tapped.  Satisfied with the results, Cary sent the master tape off to Monarch pressing, while Bruce got his mom, a professional graphic artist, to design the cool-looking updated Miramar record label logo.  (Note: The first record to display the new logo was the Road Runners "I'll Make It Up To You", on Miramar 116 released in August).

In mid September, the records arrived back from Monarch, and Cary immediately fired off his copies to his buddies in radio, namely on Johnny Fairchid, a disc jockey at KTMS in Santa Barbara.  On the local level, "She's Gone" sold well, and battled the other local guys, Ernie and The Emperors, who had a regional hit breaking with the Gerry and The Pacemakers inspired "Meet Me At The Corner".  But "She's Gone" failed to break out of Los Angeles despite some success there.  The Dovers began to feature both songs at live shows, which according to Bruce, "were few and far in between  ...especially for somebody that needed the money.  We all wanted to make the band more than just a fun thing, but Cary wasn't a good influence there.  Seems Cary and his buddy Robbie were hanging out on the strip quite a bit, and getting more immersed in the drug scene."

On the upbeat side, since Ernie and company's disc did so well for the Reprise label, albeit at a regional level, the Dovers found their next release picked up by the big label a couple of weeks after it appeared on Miramar.  Again at Goldstar, the two tunes recorded were the jangly, ebullient "I Could Be Happy" countered with the haunting, downtrodden "People Ask Me Why", both tunes again courtesy of the neighborhood tough guy, Tim Granada.  Rick recalls overdubbing the drum parts on "People" to give the tune added dynamic tension.  The guys were elated with the results, and the disc came out on Cary's Miramar label in November.  But none of them even knew the record was picked up by Reprise, at least in the beginning; "We never met anybody from the Reprise label.  We took no promo pictures or anything," said Bruce.  Regarding photos, it seems any surviving pictures of the Dovers are as rare as those of Robert Johnson!  Bruce does recall that Robbies older brother did take quite a few pictures of the group, but none of them can be found.