THE TURTLES - SHE'S MY GIRL / CHICKEN LITTLE WAS RIGHT, NOVEMBER 1967

In a post Sgt. Pepper world The Turtles found themselves recording another piece of Bonner & Gordon gold.  'She's My Girl' is a musical triumph of the highest order within the pop music spectrum.  The tune was further accompanied with a killer picture sleeve and a nice promo film which was becoming increasingly popular.  DIG IT.

'Chicken Little Was Right' on the flip is no disappointment.  This psychedelic hoedown is a bit different than the tamer version which appeared on the Battle Of The Bands LP the following year..

LAST FRIDAY'S FIRE - I CAN'T HELP THE WAY I FEEL / WHAT IS SHE THINKING OF, MARCH 1967

Last Friday's Fire was the moniker of the talented Mike Condello's Arizona based group who had been around for a few years in various incarnations.  In 1967 this group would cut two 45's on Lee Hazlewood's LHI label, and also serve as the backing band on the Lynn Castle single.

'I Can't Help The Way I Feel' written by Lee Hazlewood features a cool 'Eastern inspired' melody and a nice bass line from Ray Trainer who played and wrote a number of songs on Condello's excellent Phase 1 album released the following year.

The psychedelic undertones are dropped on the Condello penned flipside 'What Is She Thinking Of' in favor of a more basic rock sound.  These sounds would be further explored on the Phase 1 LP.

BAKER KNIGHT AND THE KNIGHTMARES - HALLUCINATIONS / I FEEL SICK ABOUT THE WHOLE THING, FEBRUARY 1967

I had a 'top score of the year' recently in the form of a minty promo copy of 'Hallucinations', a single released by Baker Knight in early 1967.  By that time Thomas Baker Knight had already racked up ten plus years in the music business, but this would be his first and only psychedelic single.  He sure made it count!  It's one hell of an outing with guitars a buzzing and sound effects that cascade around an absolutely killer vocal delivery.  You can go ahead an file it next to your singles from the Electric Prunes who were label mates of Knight at the time.

On the flip 'I Feel Sick About The Whole Thing' is mostly a return to form for Knight who is known more for his rockabilly/country/pop vocal sounds.  A decent tune it is, but 'Hallucinations' is enough for the price of admission alone...

THE TURTLES - GRIM REAPER OF LOVE / COME BACK, MAY 1966

Simply put I can't get enough Turtles at the moment.  Their entire output from '65 to '69 is littered with gems aplenty, and today I will highlight a current favorite which is the excellent 'Grim Reaper Of Love' originally released as a non LP single in Mid 1966.  Co-written by original Turtles bassist Chuck Portz and guitarist Al Nichol, 'Grim Reaper' is quite a departure from their previous single 'You Baby' which saw the Turtles taking on the commercial pop sound that they are most recognized for.

All commerciality is set aside on this outing as heard in the opening harmonies which hauntingly set the dark mood of the music and lyrics.  'Grim Reaper' sits more comfortably next to an Electric Prunes burner than any P.F. Sloan penned material.  It's even been labeled 'raga rock' which I will neither agree nor disagree with.  This must have been a bit confusing for the DJ's at the time, and the single was a flop overall.  It still managed to reach no. 81 on the pop charts, although it was predicted to reach the top 60 by Billboard.

On the flip is 'Come Back', a Howard Kaylan original which is decent enough, but forgettable in comparison.  The sound sits somewhere in between folk rock and sunshine pop which is exactly where they were in 1966.  SPOILER ALERT: You can expect to hear some Turtles on the next Drifting Radio Broadcast.

Billboard Pop Spotlight May 28, 1966

DINO, DESI & BILLY - LOOK OUT GIRLS (HERE WE COME) / SHE'S SO FAR OUT SHE'S IN, JULY 1966

Dino, Desi & Billy may not be the most credible group from the 60's, but you can't deny the charm of this pair of upbeat tunes from the summer of 1966.  Both of these songs were written by Baker Knight, an established songwriter who was first brought to my attention by a pair of songs he wrote for the West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band.  Other members involved in this expedition were Jimmy Bowen, Shorty Rogers, Lee Hazlewood and Billy Strange.

'Look Out Girls (Here We Come)' has a fuzz riff that brings to mind the Stones' classic, '(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction' while 'She's So Far Out She's In' features a thumping backbeat with killer bass and a super infectious set of lyrics.

You can hear both sides in their full glory on Drifting Radio Broadcast No. 1

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 STANDELLS "MEDICATION"

In late 1965 the Standells hooked up with producer Ed Cobb and struck a deal with Tower Records.  At this point they had already been a band for a few years, released several singles, a live album, and made some television/film appearances, but they were still a few months away from having a big hit with 'Dirty Water'.  That track is OK, but the commercial appeal doesn't really do anything for me.  I need to dig in a little deeper to get my fix if you know what I mean.

The Standells debut studio album on Tower showed up in the summer of 1966 as the 'Dirty Water' single saw a slow but steady rise in the pop charts.  You don't have to dig in very far to find 'Medication', one of my all time fave garage numbers.  It's the lead off track on the LP!  This choice cut receives seldom mention so all the better to highlight it here.

The song starts off abruptly with a cool-as-fuck hazy vibrato fuzz guitar accompanied by droning organ notes and a killer bass riff.  Enter some laid back vocals from Dick Dodd and you have THEE sound.  The songwriting credits go to Minette Alton and Ben DiTosti whose origins are unknown to me.

The other notable rendition of 'Medication' was recorded by The Chocolate Watchband for their 1968 LP The Inner Mystique.  The backing track is alright, but I find Don Bennetts vocals to be cringeworthy at best.  Standells all the way...

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 KINKS - SEE MY FRIENDS / NEVER MET A GIRL LIKE YOU BEFORE, JULY 1965

I'm excited to bring my first Kinks post to the blog, and it comes at quite a fitting time as this record was first released around this time in July nearly 50 years ago!

See My Friends' first hit the streets in the UK during the summer of '65 and though it was not a smash hit it received considerable recognition on the charts.  The tune is often labeled as an early example of 'raga rock' with it's subtle eastern like guitar drone.  Some even go as far as to say it was the first rock song to integrate indian raga sounds.  I won't make any arguments, but I will say it's a damn fine song and worthy of discussion.  The song is often titled 'See My Friend' due to a misprint on the original UK label.  The record wouldn't see release in the US until late September where it essentially flopped.

On the flip side we have 'Never Met A Girl Like You Before', a simple uptempo rocker with that early Kinks charm.

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