THE GIANT JELLYBEAN COPOUT - AWAKE IN A DREAM / LOOK AT THE GIRLS, APRIL 1968

This one-off record from studio project Giant Jellybean Copout is a critical example of the late 60's harmony laden pop nugget.  They don't make them like this anymore folks.  In fact, I would go as far as to say that even with all of the current resources and convenience NO ONE in this day and age is capable of pulling off harmonies like this, but back to the story..

Plug side 'Awake In A Dream' takes Beach Boys imitation to the extreme and sounds like the best song that Brian Wilson and Co. never recorded.  Those harmonies really are exceptional and apparently were executed by one man, Mr. Robert Dileo.  This song was later used on The Critters Touch And Go album using the same backing track and new vocals.  A common misconception seems to be that this record was a side project of the Critters, though it turns out it was solely the brainchild of Bob Dileo.

Flipside 'Look At The Girls' is just as good, if not better than 'Awake In A Dream' and features more sugar coated heavenly harmonies and some nice loungey production.  This side was included on Fading Yellow Vol. 3.

JENNIFER'S FRIENDS - IN THE LAND OF MAKE BELIEVE / VISIONS, JUNE 1968

I unexpectedly picked up this single today for cheap and thus was quite pleased.  I've had this record on my wantlist for some time now, and wasn't expecting to find it down the street in a local shop.

Jennifer's Friends are mysterious unknowns who cut this lone single for Buddah Records in 1968.
On the topside you have 'In The Land Of Make Believe', an Easybeats cover which is somewhat similar to that version, though it does add some looseness and spontaneity to the mix making it standout.  It's a great orchestrated pop song that you might file next to your later period Left Banke singles.

The flipside 'Visions' is my pick, a real mind trip which slows the tempo down quite a bit.  Swirling organ, deep bass, vocal harmonies and even a bit of harmonica illustrate this slow burner with dreamlike effervescence.  There's even a killer fuzztone guitar outro which fades the song into oblivion.  Great stuff..

BILL SODEN - SOAKIN' UP SUNSHINE / OLD TIME MOVIES, JULY 1968

I picked up this Bill Soden single based on the strength of his earlier releases, namely the way cool sitar laced pop sike gem 'My Mermaid And Me' and the stunning orchestrated folk ballad and personal favorite 'Rainy Day'.  Both of these tracks were released on the Compass label in 1967 and can be found on Fading Yellow comps respectively..  Adding to the curiosity was the absence of any info regarding this single on the net, not even a Youtube clip which is pretty impressive in 2016!  It's one of those records that's neither common nor a collectors item..

After obtaining and listening to this 45 I'm left with slight disappointment, but only on account of the greatness found on his earlier singles.  Bill Soden seems to have taken a heavy Lovin' Spoonful/John Sebastian approach on this record.  In fact, 'Soakin' Up Sunshine' basically comes off as a direct ripoff of 'Daydream'.  The resemblance is uncanny and while 'Daydream' was a smash hit for The Lovin' Spoonful in 1966, 'Soakin' Up Sunshine' sunk without a trace 2 years after the fact.   Absolutely no disrespect to Bill Soden as this record gets lodged into your ears just as any great pop song does.  'Old Time Movies' is executed in similar fashion giving off a slight Nashville influence.   Bill Soden would go on to record a fourth and final single on yet another label, Cotillion, later in 1968.

THE MARMALADE - MAN IN A SHOP / CRY (THE SHOOB DOROORIE SONG), JANUARY 1968

Although unsuccessful at release (late 1967 in the UK) this pair of originals from the Marmalade has much to offer.  Both sides are very much in the pop song vein full of strings, horns and sugar coated harmonies, but 'Man A The Shop' is given a distinct edge by the inclusion of what is presumably a backwards fuzz guitar riff that is featured throughout the song.  This is psych at it's lightest, but extremely pleasing nonetheless.

THE APPLETREE THEATRE - WHAT A WAY TO GO / LOTUS FLOWER, MARCH 1968

No need for any sweet talking, 'What A Way To Go' by The Appletree Theatre is a gorgeous tune with gorgeous lyrics, and I'm quite thrilled to know it.  It's a perfect fit for those of us who are 'world weary' and prefer to 'get lost in the soundscape' so to speak.  Brother Terrance Boylan was the primary writer of the song and was most assuredly going for a 'Day In The Life' feel.  He succeeded in doing so as this song closes out the Appletree Theatre's Playback album perfectly.  Zal Yanovsky of the Lovin' Spoonful was also featured on this record.

The flipside 'Lotus Flower' is a more upbeat instrumental number featuring some killer backwards tape effects.

SAN FRANCISCO EARTHQUAKE - FAIRY TALES CAN COME TRUE (HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT LUCY) / SU SU, JUNE 1968

Here we have another delightful single from Kenny Young's 'tinkertoying' San Francisco Earthquake.  'Fairytales Can Come True' is a lightweight bouncy pop ditty which is worthy enough to have had a compilation named after it.  The lyrics are fairly disposable, but it's a nicely arranged tune with multiple parts and variety of instrumentation to keep things interesting.

The flip 'Su Su' evokes a sort of spoken word dictation from Mr. Young concerning a fascination with one Su Su.  Once again the lyrics can be less than impressive, but another nicely arranged backing track with some nice bits of lead flute and other assorted implements make this one a keeper.

I especially enjoy the odd pink promo label on my copy which compliments the music quite nicely...  Both tunes will be featured in an upcoming Drifting Radio Broadcast.

ETERNITY'S CHILDREN - MRS. BLUEBIRD / LITTLE BOY, MAY 1968

Put it in the books, 'Mrs. Bluebird' by Eternity's Children is an absolutely flawless piece of psychedelic sunshine pop.  This record was co-produced by Curt Boettcher which is enough to make it a curiosity, but just listening to the opening few seconds is all that's needed for approval.  Indeed, something special is about to happen.  After the mysterious intro come the organ bursts, 'ba ba ba' harmonies and pounding bass, and just when you thought things couldn't get any better your ears get blasted with a blistering hot guitar break.  When those harmonies kick back in is when I start weeping.

'Mrs. Bluebird' is credited to 'Karl Marion' though a simple search tells me the song was actually written by Bruce Blackman who was an original member of Eternity's Children.  This group like many others suffered from poor management which at least partially explains why they didn't have a smash hit here.

The more laid back flip 'Little Boy' is another great tune also featuring prominent organ work and some nice bits of flute for added touch.  Both of these cuts were included on the self-titled album, Eternity's Children released on Tower Records in 1968.

SAN FRANCISCO EARTHQUAKE - MARCH OF THE JINGLE JANGLE PEOPLE / BRING ME BACK A LITTLE WATER, AUGUST 1968

Yesterday marked the beginning of August, and things started off rather splendid for me with an extremely fruitful trip to the record shop.  I picked up a handful of gems for a nice price, among them was this 45 by the San Francisco Earthquake.

The San Francisco Earthquake released several 45's on Smash from late 1967 and into '69 that don't seem to get much attention.  Apparently songwriter Kenny Young was the band, and it's assumed he was backed with some session musicians while crafting these pop-psych delights.  Kenny Young is a man with a vast musical career and can be most easily recognized as co-writer of 'Under The Boardwalk' .  Check out a brief interview with him here.

As for the record at hand, 'March Of The Jingle Jangle People' is one of those tunes where it only takes 5 seconds into the song to realize you've got a winner.  The flute and sitar intro leads into an eastern flavored guitar line and lyrics describing a 'happy finger cymbal snappin' day'.  Fan-fuckin'-tastic.  The song is a 'two-thirty punchbowl' filled to the brim with what seems to be every damn thing they had laying around in the studio.  It's the sound of all of the coolest pop song implements leftover from '67 that's for sure.  I can't believe this tune isn't more well known.

The flip side, 'Bring Me Back A Little Water', is an acoustic guitar based song that is not quite as happening, but it's still a nice listen with some interesting percussion and a slight country vibe.

THE HIGHER ELEVATION - SUMMER SKIES / COUNTRY CLUB AFFAIR, APRIL 1968

The Higher Elevation can be traced back to Colorado band The Monocles.  After some local success they changed their name and signed a recording deal with Liberty Records out of Los Angeles.  This would be one of three releases on the label.  All the information you could ever need about the Higher Elevation can be found here in an interview with band member Rick Hull.  You can also find some nice bits about the West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band on the webpage courtesy of Bob Yeazel who was a member of that band for a brief period.   Back to the record at hand...

'Summer Skies' is an excellent piece of folk-pop with subtle 'Byrdsian' jangle.  It features some breezy sunshine lyrics with a nice bridge and guitar break while clocking in at just over two minutes.  A finely crafted tune produced by Frank Slay who also worked with The Strawberry Alarm Clock and The Rainy Daze.  This track can be found on Fading Yellow Vol. 2 albeit the sound is a bit harsh...  I was lucky enough to find a nice playing copy recently for $2 while digging through several boxes of 45's.

'Country Club Affair' is somewhat forgettable, but features a nice pop melody and a prominent organ sound.  Both tunes were written by songwriting duo Tim Gilbert and John Carter (mispelled Carver on this release) who have been on this blog a few times.

THE TEA COMPANY - FLOWERS / COME AND HAVE SOME TEA WITH ME, AUGUST 1968

The Tea Company's origins begin with Queens, New York garage band The Naturals.  After cutting a pair of 45's in 1967 with local label Jowar Records they underwent a line up/name change and were signed to Smash Records.  The bands exploration of heavy psychedelic sounds was displayed on their LP released on Smash in 1968.

'Flowers' was pitched as a single which is interesting to say the least.  The album was basically lacking any kind of commercial appeal with its extended pieces and freaky sounds.  The single version of 'Flowers' is much edited in form omitting six-odd minutes of lysergic freakout which is featured on the end of the LP version.  Stealing the show is the ever-present shrill, reverb-drenched guitar, a unique pairing of sorts combined with Frankie Carr's loose vocal delivery.

'Come And Have Some Tea With Me' might be better than 'Flowers' and features more reverb soaked madness with echoed vocals and sound effects throughout.  Not a very inviting sound to the average human ear, but I find it to be quite pleasing.

Billboard Magazine May 6, 1967

THE LEFT BANKE - THE LEFT BANKE TOO (Sundazed reissue), NOVEMBER 1968

The Left Banke Too often seems to be passed off as a secondary work to its predecessor, but such is not the case.  It's simply brilliant.  Absent is the prominent harpsichord and key work of Michael Brown, but nonetheless the album is packed to the brim with wonderful harmonies, tighter playing and heavier 'baroque' production than their debut.  There are so many fantastic moments on this record, from the dramatic and gloomy 'Dark Is the Bark' to the perfectly orchestrated pop psych of 'Nice To See You' and most everything in between.  Band member Tom Finn who had no writing credits and limited contributions on the first Left Banke record seemed to really come through in this outing and provided some excellent songwriting and playing.  His McCartneyesque bass work is prominent throughout the majority of the record along with bits of tasteful 12-string guitar as highlighted in the delicate ballad 'Sing Little Bird Sing'.  This album was not rushed by any means which probably helps it in the long run, but was hurtful to it's immediate success as the sound it projects was fading out of the spotlight by the time of its release in late '68.

Original copies of this record are not very economical these days, but thankfully we have Sundazed who continues to please...

OCTOBER COUNTRY - COWBOYS AND INDIANS / I WISH I WAS A FIRE, AUGUST 1968

The latest 45 to enter my clutches is this beautiful gem from October Country, a Los Angeles group under the heavy guidance of teenage pop genius Michael Lloyd.  Lloyd wrote all the groups material and ended up playing and singing most of it himself.  Released in August 1968 this would be the third and final single from October Country.  Their records didn't have any commercial success which led to a fairly quick demise.

The plug side 'Cowboys And Indians' is rather upbeat and dramatic with a driving organ sound throughout.  According to Michael Lloyd the tune perhaps draws influence from the Brian Wilson/Van Dyke Parks composition 'Heroes And Villains'.  Although the songs have their apparent differences the influence is present.  I quite enjoy the vocals on 'Cowboys And Indians' which features the unique dynamic of female member Caryle De Franca and Lloyd himself.  It was re-recorded in a similar fashion by Lloyd and exists as the opening track on The Smoke album which is a more recent favorite of mine.

'I Wish I Was A Fire' is a bouncing sing along with some terrific lyrics that I am quite fond of.  The bass tone is sharp and upfront, and Caryle's vocals are wonderful.  There's a lot of ground covered in less than two minutes, and it begs for repeated plays.  This one was most definitely under the influence of 'Penny Lane', the horn outro almost sounds like a direct homage to it.  A truly magical pop tune!

MOORPARK INTERSECTION - I THINK I'LL JUST GO AND FIND ME A FLOWER / YESTERDAY HOLDS ON, FEBRUARY 1968

Moorpark Intersection's 'I Think I'll Just Go And Find Me A Flower' is such a delightful song, it's almost unfair.  Everytime I hear the opening acoustic riff it's an instant improvement to my day.  The west coast flower folk harmonies are catchy as hell and the flute seals the deal.  Not to mention the overtly direct title of the song which should be enough to put a smile on your face.

The flipside 'Yesterday Holds On' is also enjoyable, but it's a much darker tune with more of a studio presence.  It's as if the flowers of '67 were fading away...

Flower Bomb Songs has the GOODS on Moorpark Intersection's brief history and recording details.  Check that here.

CHILDE HAROLD - BRINK OF DEATH, 1968

'Brink Of Death' is a trippy orchestrated flower pop delight which I discovered on the Heavy Dose Of Lyte Psych comp some years back.  I am naturally drawn to it's strange mysterious sounds, and I find myself coming back to it regularly.  The song was written by Bert Sommer, who is noted (among other things) for his brief involvement with the Left Banke.  Sommer's more straightforward harpsichord led version of 'Brink Of Death' can be found on his debut solo album recorded for Capitol in late 1968.

The stark lyrics and imagery of the song are further aided in the Childe Harold version.  Walter Carlos provides a slightly disturbing arrangement featuring sound effects and treated vocals.  The promo version which I have is a stereo/mono flip, but the actual release had a b-side entitled 'Anne, With Love'.  The photo on the back of the picture sleeve indicates there was an actual band involved, but I am unaware of the origins or personnel.  This is the only release under the name Childe Harold.

PAUL PARRISH - THE FOREST OF MY MIND, 1968

Although it seems to be appreciated by a large enough audience this Paul Parrish debut has never seen a CD release or reissue, and the original LP is somewhat scarce.  There are copies to be found however, and I was able to come up with a beautiful DJ mono promo copy for fairly cheap after a few weeks of searching early in the year.

I'll admit I had pretty high expectations for this record after a few things I had seen and read about it, and I was left slightly disappointed upon the first few listens.  I suppose I was anticipating a heavier psych leaning, but aside from the title track all of these tunes are of the light folkie orchestrated pop style.  Within that vein it's a very nice album with great production, and all of the original compositions have something pleasant to offer.  Themes of nature and introspection dominate Parrish's song writing which can be summed up in plain sight within the albums title 'The Forest Of My Mind'.  His gentle vocal delivery combined with flute accents and acoustic guitar can easily draw comparisons to Donovan's '67 period.

Each side of the record closes with a cover song, both of which are respectable renditions, but the album wouldn't have been affected much if they had been left off completely.  With all this being said I present a warning; after repeated listens of this record one might find themselves fully 'stached and contemplating life out in the woods!

THE HELLO PEOPLE - (AS, I WENT DOWN TO) JERUSALEM / IT'S A MONDAY KIND OF TUESDAY, APRIL 1968

These two exceptional cuts appear on the debut Hello People album as seen on my previous post.  'Jerusalem' features some wild raucous guitar action and a punky vocal delivery.  It was written by band member W.S. "Sonny" Tongue Jr. who was the primary songwriter of the groups early compositions.  

'It's A Monday Kind Of Tuesday' is a mellow groover with ample flute.  A personal favorite of mine for sure.  It was written by Nancy Reiner who is known for doing cover illustrations of Jimi Hendrix and Eric Burdon among others.  This was the third 45 released by the Hello People.

THE HELLO PEOPLE, 1968

The Hello People were a New York group formed in late 1967 by record producer Lew Futterman.  They had stage names and wore mime makeup during their performances, but if look past the gimmick you will find a talented group of musicians with respectable tunes.  They managed to release numerous LP's and singles during the late 60's and early 70's, but there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of folks writing about them.  I am only familiar with this, their debut LP on Philips which is pleasing throughout.  It's mostly comprised of lyte pop songs with pleasant melodies and plenty of flute to boot.  There are a few heavier moments on the album, one being my pick of the bunch, the LP track 'Sunrise Meadow'.  It's a five minute plus multi-part jam with 2 minutes of flute blasting in the middle, and I love every second of it.

Some nice info regarding the origins of the Hello People can be found here.

NEIGHB'RHOOD CHILDR'N, 1968

The Neighb'rhood Childr'n were a group of youngsters from small town Oregon, who along with countless others traveled to San Francisco during the summer of 1967 to soak up the happening vibes.  Their extended stay proved to be fruitful as they put together this burner originally released on Acta records in 1968.  The vocals of female member Dyan Hoffman seem to lead the casual listener to comparisons with The Jefferson Airplane or The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, but closer inspection uncovers an entirely different animal.  There's all sorts of ground being covered on this record, from the freakout of 'Chocolate Angel' to the goofy and somehow incredibly fitting rendition of 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow'.  The strange and eerie sound of 'Long Years In Space' is a definite standout for me along with the show stealing 'Patterns', both of which feature a strong lead vocal from Dyan Hoffman.
The rest of the record is filled with enough driving fuzz, 12 string guitar, carnival organ bursts, and hazy mind bending textures to earn it a rave on this blog and a permanent space on the record shelf.  Original copies of the LP are becoming increasingly rare and expensive so of course we turn to Sundazed who provide an absolutely fabulous reissue...

SOUTHWEST F.O.B. - SMELL OF INCENSE / GREEN SKIES, 1968

Dallas, Texas group Southwest F.O.B. recorded a version of The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band's 'Smell Of Incense' which was released in September of 1968 and achieved moderate success on the charts.  This was a particularly nice move on their part as the WCPAEB hadn't released the track as a single (they did shortly after the Southwest F.O.B. release, a much edited version of the near six minute album cut).  It doesn't achieve the explosiveness and atmosphere of the original, but it is a noteworthy recording made interesting by a prominent organ sound throughout.

The flipside 'Green Skies' is another groovy tune relying heavily on the organ and also bringing in some horns.  It's a bit of a mishmash with an interesting structure, shifting moods a few times over it's brief two minutes.  There's a specific moment in the tune where one can't help but recall 'We Can Work It Out', a more than likely influence of the recording.

SIDEWALK SKIPPER BAND - STRAWBERRY TUESDAY / CYNTHIA AT THE GARDEN, MARCH 1968

Here are two slices of top shelf pop-psych that I'm very happy to have in my record stash.  As previously mentioned the Sidewalk Skipper Band hailed from Milwaukee, Wisconsin and cut two 45's for capitol in early 1968, this being the first released in March of that year.  The hard driving 'Strawberry Tuesday' is absolutely killer and has been featured in a few compilations over the years.  I have to mention the explosive drumming in the song as being standout for me among the rest of the extremely well crafted arrangement.  'Cynthia At The Garden' is another terrific piece of pop song craft with more fantastic drumming, great vocals and a nice touch of harpsichord.  The image below was taken from the liner notes of the Now Sounds Book A Trip CD, a resumé of sorts for the SSB.  Pure gold!