The Brigands - (Would I Still Be) Her Big Man (1966)

Named after highway thieves, this band is shrouded in mystery and the subject of controversy. Possibly from Forest Hills, New York, some people argue that the band was made up entirely of studio musicians for the purpose of releasing their one and only single. Other sources claim certain individuals to have been members of the band, but with little or no proof. The only thing that can be made clear about this band is that they released two songs via one single on Epic Records in 1966 and disappeared entirely afterward. It might be assumed that they were studio musicians based on the quality of the recording and the lack of dance fliers promoting them, as a garage band would most likely have.

This song was the B-Side to the band’s only released single, featuring "I'm a Patient Man" on the A-Side. Both sides went entirely unnoticed, never charting, and were written and produced by the popular married writing team of Arthur "Artie" and Kris Resnick. The Resnick's also appeared in a band known as The Third Rail.



The Brigands - (Would I Still Be) Her Big Man (1966)

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Lyrics:

If she could see me workin’ at the factory
Hopin’ that the bosses don’t announces me
Sweating there from nine to five
To get the payments for the car I drive

I wonder
I wonder
Would I still be her big man?
Would I still be her big man?

She never saw me wearin’ greasy working clothes
My dark black suit is all she knows
I don’t carry less than a twenty
If she found out I can’t spend that money

I wonder
I wonder
Would I still be her big man?
Would I still be her big man?

Baby likes to eat in fancy restaurants
Well, she’s always had the things she wants
I’m afraid she’ll say goodbye
When she finds out I’m just a poor guy

I wonder
I wonder
Would I still be her big man?
Would I still be her big man?

Road - I'm Trying (1972)

Noel Redding started the band Fat Mattress while still enrolled as the bassist of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Although he would often play in both bands in the same night, he played his last concert with the Experience in June 1969. He quit Fat Mattress later that same year. Living in Los Angeles and deciding what to do next, he was contacted by Hendrix’s manager, Michael Jeffery, a few months after Woodstock (August 1969) about getting back together with Jimi Hendrix and Mitch Mitchell to reform the Experience. All three members got together for an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, but no concerts or recordings ever came about. Instead, Redding got together with ex-Rare Earth member Rod Richards and drummer Les Sampson to form this semi-supergroup in the beginning of 1970. Together, the new band only recorded one album, self-titled Road and released in 1972, sharing lead vocals throughout the album. The LP was criticized as being a “watered-down, post-Experience” attempt at hard rock and was quickly forgotten. A short time after the release of the album, the band called it quits and Redding and Sampson went on together forming The Noel Redding Band, while Richards attempted a solo career and had stints with various bands in the ‘80s and ‘90s.

The opening track on their only album, this song was written and sung by Rod Richards. Although Redding had been a guitarist originally, he switched to the bass when joining The Jimi Hendrix Experience. He switched back to the guitar for his band Fat Mattress; and found himself back on bass for this band.



Road - I'm Trying (1972)

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Lyrics:

I’m trying
To forget the past
I’m trying
How long will it last?

Hope I can do something
What I want you for

Well, maybe
Someday, somewhere
You’ll remember things you said
We should finish them
As you said hi to me
That was love to me

I’m trying
To forget the past
Hope you won’t be long
Feelings coming strong

I’m trying
Oh, I’m trying
I’m try…

State of Mind - Goin' Away (1967)

This band was created in 1965 in Wilmington, Delaware by four sophomores attending William Penn High School in New Castle, Delaware. The following year, one of its members was swapped out, thus creating the line-up which played on both of their released singles. There was Paul Murtagh (rhythm guitar, keyboards, and vocals), Jim Booth (lead guitar and vocals), Bill Smallbrook (drums), and Bill Sayers (lead singer and bass guitar).

The group’s first release was a single featuring “Move” (written by the entire group) b/w “If He Comes Back” (written by Paul Murtagh). It was recorded at Virtue Studios in Philadelphia and released by the local Chavis Records. The single topped out at number ten on the local charts, generating enough popularity to garner radio play in Philadelphia.

The song heard below was the B-Side on the group’s follow-up single, released in the fall of 1967 and featuring the A-Side “Make You Cry.” Both sides of this single were written by Jim Booth and featured more complex harmonies than their initial release. Although the band had high hopes for its release, the single unfortunately failed to achieve the same success as its predecessor.

With the majority of its members intending to go off to college after high school, Bill Sayers decided to leave the band and join another local group, the Phabulous Pharaohs, in an effort to more seriously pursue a musical career. Although the group attempted to fill Sayers’ void, the magic had gone. The band splintered apart before its members graduated high school and they never reunited.



State of Mind - Goin' Away (1967)

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Lyrics:

I’m goin’ away
I may be back another day
Gone like the wind
I’m like a drifter looking in

I’m going away come tomorrow
Ain’t no reason for me to stay
So goodbye, I have no sorrow
I’ll be gone, goin’ away
I’ll be gone, goin’ away

Hey, you just can’t see
What this freedom means to me
Oh, I’m sorry I put you on
Girl, tomorrow I’ll be gone

I’m going away come tomorrow
Ain’t no reason for me to stay
So goodbye, I have no sorrow
I’ll be gone, goin’ away
I’ll be gone, goin’ away

I’m going away come tomorrow
Ain’t no reason for me to stay
So goodbye, I have no sorrow
I’ll be gone, goin’ away
I’ll be gone, goin’ away

J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers - Last Kiss (1964)

Created around San Angelo, Texas in 1955, this band is primarily remembered as a one-hit wonder. Originally, the band consisted of of Alton Baird on lead vocals, Sid Holmes on lead guitar, Lewis Elliott on bass, Rob Zeller on the sax, and Ray Smith on the drums. The band found themselves in a bit of a rut in 1962 when Baird was drafted, but luckily they were able to recruit the singing talents of J. Frank Wilson, who had just recently been discharged from the local Air Force base. Although their first hit, heard below, was their biggest, it caused J. Frank Wilson to become a superstar in his own mind. After only a handful of shows together, he was exiled by his bandmates for excessive drinking, drugs, and irresponsibility. Both Wilson and his former band continued using the "Cavaliers" name separately. Wilson and his Cavaliers were able to grasp the charts once more with the song “Hey, Little One” peaking at number eighty-five, but Wilson eventually went solo and continued to record, unsuccessfully, through the '70s, eventually having to settle for a day job. As for the other Cavaliers, by late 1964, the only remaining original member was their bassist Lewis Elliott, who assumed the leadership position. He and his new lineup of Cavaliers, featuring James Thomas on vocals, attempted to keep the band going and performed together up through 1987 on various "oldies" tours.

Written by Wayne Cochran, Joe Carpenter, Randall Hoyal, and Bobby McGlon, this song was first released by Wayne Cochran himself in 1961. Not only was it a commercial flop upon its initial release, but the song flopped again when Cochran attempted to re-release it in 1963. The first successful version of the song was when it was released by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers in 1964. Unavailable for recording, the band’s drummer Ray Smith was replaced with Cochran’s drummer Denny Jewell. The recording of the song also resulted in lead guitarist Sid Holmes, who already had been alienating himself from the band, to having a mental breakdown and quitting the band after the recording session. Selling over a million copies, reaching number two on the charts, and being certified gold, the song was quite an accomplishment considering that The Beatles and the British Invasion were in full swing.

As one of the many “teen tragedy” songs that were popular in years past, the song had lyrics narrating a car crash and subsequent death of a teen boy’s sweetheart. Ironically, when Wilson was touring through Ohio with his manager Sonley Roush just a few months later, Roush fell asleep at the wheel with Wilson in the passenger seat. Their vehicle swerved into oncoming traffic, collided with a truck, and resulted in Roush’s death. Wilson survived, but needed crutches for a period of time. It wasn’t until October 4, 1991 that J. Frank Wilson died at the age of forty-nine, just a few months shy of his fiftieth birthday. His death, a result of alcoholism and drug addiction, was reported with the information that he had been a bit of a recluse in his last remaining years, having been married eight times and never fully coping with his loss of stardom.



J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers - Last Kiss (1964)

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Lyrics:

Well, where- oh, where can my baby be?
The Lord took her away from me
She’s gone to heaven
So I got to be good
So I can see my baby
When I leave this world

We were out on a date in my daddy’s car
We hadn’t driven very far
There in the road, straight ahead
The car was stalled, the engine was dead
I couldn’t stop, so I swerved to the right
I’ll never forget the sound that night
The crying tires, the bustin’ glass
The painful scream that I heard last

Well, where- oh, where can my baby be?
The Lord took her away from me
She’s gone to heaven
So I got to be good
So I can see my baby
When I leave this world

Well, when I woke up
The rain was pourin’ down
There were people standing all around
Something warm a’running in my eyes
But I found my baby somehow that night
I raised her head and when she smiled and said
“Hold me darling for a little while”
I held her close
I kissed her- our last kiss
I found the love that I knew I would miss
But now she’s gone, even though I hold her tight
I lost my love, my life, that night

Well, where- oh, where can my baby be?
The Lord took her away from me
She’s gone to heaven
So I got to be good
So I can see my baby
When I leave this world

The Graham Bond Organisation - Wade in the Water (1965)

Formed in the early ‘60s, this band was originally known as the Graham Bond Quartet. Mixing jazz with elements of rhythm & blues, the group was centered around frontman Graham Bond, a classically trained pianist who “dabbled” with the saxophone (he played it in a very avant-garde way). Not being entirely pleased with a deal they had received to sign with EMI, the band decided to sign with Decca Records in 1964. They opened for Marvin Gaye and toured the UK backing Chuck Berry, but were constantly in turmoil because of the clashing between drummer Ginger Baker and bassist Jack Bruce. Eventually, Graham Bond told Baker that he should ask Bruce to leave the band. When Bruce was asked to leave, he hadn’t been informed it was actually Bond’s request and thought it was merely Baker telling him to leave. Bruce felt he had just as much claim to the band as Baker did, so he kept showing up to perform at their concerts until Baker finally convinced him to quit for good at knifepoint backstage before a show in August 1965. Ironically, it was less than a year later in July 1966 when Ginger Baker quit the band and he and Bruce were reunited in the supergroup Cream with Eric Clapton. In late-1966, Graham Bond attempted to reform his band as a trio consisting of himself, original member Dick Heckstall-Smith, and newcomer Jon Hiseman; but, their commercial success was severely lacking. Although the band officially broke up in 1967, Bond would again unite with his original bandmates when he briefly played in Ginger Baker’s Air Force and toured with Jack Bruce in the 1970s. After years of substance abuse, it was reported that Bond had apparently been clean by this period, but also had a growing obsession with black magic and the occult. On May 8, 1974, Graham Bond died of an apparent suicide after lying down (or falling) in front of a train.

Released on the band’s first album, The Sound of ’65, this song is a traditional track that, for the sake of this band, was arranged by John Group and Paul Getty. Regarding the history of the song, it’s author is unknown, but it was first published in New Jubliee Songs as Sung by the Fisk Jubilee Singers by brothers John Wesley Work, Jr. and Frederick J. Work in 1901. The song, which originally contained lyrics referencing the Bible, was a spiritual song for enslaved African Americans in the United States.



The Graham Bond Organisation - Wade in the Water (1965)

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Lyrics:

(instrumental)

The Everly Brothers - Bye Bye Love (1957)

Born Isaac “Don” Everly (b. 1937) and Phillip “Phil” Everly (b. 1939), these American brothers were in the top two of the charts by the time they were twenty and eighteen years old, respectively. Born in Kentucky, the Everly brothers close vocal harmonies inspired artists of the 1960s such as The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Simon & Garfunkel, and many others. In 1956, family friend Chet Atkins had the brothers signed at Columbia records, but the release of their first single, “Keep A’ Lovin’ Me,” flopped and they were dropped from the label. Not to be discouraged, the duo signed with Cadence and released their first million-copy seller in March 1957, also heard below. Through 1957 and ’58, the brothers toured a rugged schedule with Buddy Holly, supporting their hit songs “Wake Up Little Susie,” “All I Have to Do is Dream,” “Bird Dog,” and many others. The 1960s saw a slight decline in popularity, as the brothers had a falling out with their manager and were consequently cut off from their usual songwriting team. Sales were especially low after the Everly’s stopped working for six months to report to boot camp in November 1961, having enlisted in the Marines as reserves to avoid getting drafted. Their last top ten hit, “That’s Old Fasioned,” was in 1962. Between drug addiction, a falling out between the brothers, and working with The Hollies, there’s a lot more to the story than what’s been briefly touched upon here.

Written by the aforementioned songwriting team of Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, this song was rejected by more than thirty artists before being accepted by The Everly Brothers as their first single for Cadence Records. Reaching number one on the country charts, it only reached number two on the pop charts, being kept off the top spot by Elvis Presley’s “(Let Me be Your) Teddy Bear.” Notable cover versions of the song include a live rendition by Simon & Gafunkel for their Bridge Over Troubled Water album in 1970 and a particularly bitter version by George Harrison in 1974 that altered some of the lyrics to address his ex-wife, Pattie Boyd, leaving him for his best friend Eric Clapton. The version heard below is the first release of the song.



The Everly Brothers - Bye Bye Love (1957)

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Lyrics:

Bye bye love
Bye bye happiness
Hello loneliness
I think I'm gonna cry

Bye bye love
Bye bye sweet caress
Hello emptiness
I feel like I could die
Bye bye, my love, goodbye

There goes my baby
With someone new
She sure looks happy
I sure am blue
She was my baby
‘til he stepped in
Goodbye to romance
That might have been

Bye bye love
Bye bye happiness
Hello loneliness
I think I'm gonna cry

Bye bye love
Bye bye sweet caress
Hello emptiness
I feel like I could die
Bye bye, my love, goodbye

I'm through with romance
I'm through with love
I'm through with countin’
The stars above
And here’s the reason
That I'm so free
My lovin’ baby
Is through with me

Bye bye love
Bye bye happiness
Hello loneliness
I think I'm gonna cry

Bye bye love
Bye bye sweet caress
Hello emptiness
I feel like I could die
Bye bye, my love, goodbye
Bye bye, my love, goodbye
Bye bye, my love, goodbye
Bye bye, my…

Scott McKenzie - San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair) (1967)

As mentioned in our previous post featuring this artist, Scott McKenzie grew up in New York where he frequently collaborated with John Phillips. One of their later groups, The Journeymen, was a folk trio along with Dick Weissman that performed around the Greenwich Village area of New York during the folk revival and craze. After The Beatles became popular in 1964 and kicked off The British Invasion, The Journeymen broke up. McKenzie then became a solo artist, hoping to make it on his own, but not before he had turned down an invitation to join Phillip’s newest endeavor: The Mamas and The Papas. Phillips and his band moved out to California in 1964 and McKenzie followed two years later. Once in California, Phillips wrote McKenzie’s biggest hit song, heard below, and co-produced it for him.

Released on May 13th, 1967, this song has become one of the most recognizable and iconic songs from the 1960s. The song inspired thousands of youths to move to San Francisco in the late 1960s, effectively making San Francisco a “hippie haven” and mecca for drugs, free love, and various movements. The song was actually written with the intentions to promote the Monterey Pop Festival taking place June 16-18, 1967 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in San Francisco, California. Although it only reached number four in the United States, the song went to number one in the UK, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, and others. Since, the song has gone hand-in-hand with ‘60s themed movies and television shows, perhaps most notably heard in Forrest Gump in 1994.



Scott McKenzie - San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair) (1967)

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Lyrics:

If you're going to San Francisco
Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair
If you're going to San Francisco
You're gonna meet some gentle people there

For those who come to San Francisco
Summertime will be a love-in there
In the streets of San Francisco
Gentle people with flowers in their hair

All across the nation
Such a strange vibration
People in motion
There's a whole generation
With a new explanation
People in motion
People in motion

For those who come to San Francisco
Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair
If you come to San Francisco
Summertime will be a love-in there

If you come to San Francisco
Summertime will be a love-in there

Captain Beyond - Sufficiently Breathless (1973)

When Iron Butterfly split up in 1971, two of its members got together with ex-musicians of other popular groups of the era and formed this band. Arguably considered a supergroup, the talent found on the band’s first lineup consisted of Rod Evans from Deep Purple, Bobby Caldwell from Johnny Winter’s band, and Larry “Rhino” Reinhardt and Lee Dorman still paired up from Iron Butterfly. This initial lineup created the band’s debut album, Captain Beyond, in 1972. After its release, personnel began to shift with a particular revolving door for drummers. By the time they were ready to record their next album (Sufficiently Breathless in 1973), they were a six-piece band. The abridged version is that they lost Bobby Caldwell and ultimately gained Guille Garcia and Marty Roriguez. Unfortunately for fans, that lineup, too, disintegrated before the album they worked on together was released. A brief reunion of the four original members in the latter-half of '73 toured to support the album, but the group again ended on December 31st, 1973 when lead singer Rod Evans announced that he'd be leaving the group for good. As a last hurrah, the three remaining members of the band released an album in 1977, titled Dawn Explosion, featuring Willy Daffern to replace Evans on lead vocals. The album had a lukewarm response and the band folded permanently in 1978.

The band’s second album, Sufficiently Breathless, features the eponymous title track heard below. Written by Lee Dorman, the song is the opening track on the album and features the vocal talents of Rod Evans. The album was produced by Phil Walden (Otis Redding’s manager up until Otis’ death) and released on Capricorn Records (the home of Southern Rock bands such as The Allman Brothers Band and The Marshall Tucker Band).



Captain Beyond - Sufficiently Breathless (1973)

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Lyrics:

Sitting on the door stoop
Watching multiples of people pass me by
Look through the windows, through the houses
Oh, they're made of sky

Gargoyle watching the bouncing ball
Strangers mystified by all
All the goings on
Sufficiently breathless
Sufficiently breathless

Hey, Mr. Policeman, can you point the way
Oh, with your handgun?
The Earth above me and the space below
Don't you understand ‘em?

Gargoyle watching the bouncing ball
Strangers mystified by all
All the goings on
Sufficiently breathless
Sufficiently breathless
Sufficiently breathless
Sufficiently breathless

Hearing and watching all the city sounds
On the street where we live
No one to care about us
Seems it’s falling down around us
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless on the street)
(Where we live)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless on the street)
(Where we live)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless on the street)
(Where we live)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless on the street)
(Where we live)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless on the street)
(Where we live)
Nothing left to live for
(Sufficiently breathless)
Nothing left to live for…

The Episode Six - Love, Hate, Revenge (1967)

In July 1964, this band was put together from two local London bands: The Lightnings and The Madisons. All of the original members of the band had known one another from high school and practiced together at a pair of siblings/bandmembers’, Sheila and Graham Carter-Dimmock’s, home. By 1965, the band had signed up with the original and ex-manager of what would later become The Who and made a living by playing a nightclub in Germany eight hours each night. It paid off; by the end of the year they had signed with Pye Records and began releasing records as early as the first quarter of 1966. Unfortunately, they had trouble charting. From their signing through mid-1968, the band continued to release singles, none of which charted, while opening tours for names such as David Bowie and Dusty Springfield. In May of ’68, the band was briefly renamed to simply “The Episode” for one single after signing a new deal with MGM Records. Although the name change and change back didn’t have any effect on the band’s bad luck in the charts, two members of the band, Ian Gillian (lead vocals) and Roger Glover (bass), did receive a stroke of luck. In June 1969, Ritchie Blackmore and Jon Lord of the band Deep Purple caught The Episode Six in concert and soon recruited Gillian and Glover to join. Remaining members carried on in one form or another until finally calling it quits in 1974, having never charted.

The only two consistent members of the band from its beginning until its end were sibling Sheila Carter-Dimmock (keyboard and vocals) and Tony Lander (guitar). Although in most releases the band was known as The Episode Six, for this particular song’s single release, they were known as Sheila Carter and Episode Six. The song was written by “Adams and Levin,” was backed with the B-Side "Baby, Baby, Baby" on a January 1967 single, and would later be considered one of the many songs marketed as exemplifying “The Roots of Deep Purple.” The version heard below is the UK version, which features the hymn-like vocals in the middle of the song. The version released in the US had the vocals replaced with an "electric drone" noise. Like all of the other songs released by this group, the song made no impact on the charts.



The Episode Six - Love, Hate, Revenge (1967)

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Lyrics:

I bought a doll from an old bearded lady
I named it Tania and it looks just like you
And though I know that it sounds a little crazy
I can make you feel anything I want you to

If I want you to cry, bet your life you're gonna cry
When I put two drops of water in this little doll's eye
So if I want to get even for what you did to me
All I gotta do is break and swab and you'll feel misery

Yes, now the shoe is upon the other foot, girl
I'm in control of your subconscious mind
You're at my mercy the way I was at yours, girl
But my compassion is twice yours, you'll find

If I want you to cry, bet your life you're gonna cry
When I put two drops of water in this little doll's eye
So if I want to get even for what you did to me
All I gotta do is break and swab and you'll feel misery

If I want you to cry, bet your life you're gonna cry
When I put two drops of water in this little doll's eye
So if I want to get even for what you did to me
All I gotta do is break and swab and you'll feel misery

If I want you to cry, bet your life you're gonna cry
When I put two drops of water in this little doll's eye
So if I want to get even for what you did to me
All I gotta do is break and swab and you'll feel misery

If I want you to cry, bet your life you're gonna cry
When I put two drops of water in this little doll's eye...

The Onyx - Tamaris Khan (1968)

Formed in 1965, this band was put together by the remaining members of Rick & The Hayseeds, which had recently broken up, in Wadebridge, Cornwall, England in the United Kingdom. Originally known as The Onyx Set, the band named themselves after an onyx ring owned by one of the band’s original members, Mike Black-Borow. As with most bands of the era, they began their career by covering a variety of beat bands and R&B bands and then gradually shifted toward their own psychedelic style. Particularly known for their five-part harmonies, the members of the band enjoyed calling one another by their middle names. They never toured in the United States, focusing primarily on the UK and Germany. They were frequently heard on BBC Radio and around Europe, but received virtually no airplay in the US. They released a total of eleven singles, one of which was under the band name “Salamander,” to try and trade in their radio popularity for record sales by using a pseudonym. It didn’t work out as well as they hoped and the band’s lead guitarist, Al Hodge, quit the band in 1970 to get married. Although the remaining members would carry on with a new guitarist, the only released one more (unsuccessful) single before changing their name to Vineyard. This final incarnation of the band permanently broke up in 1975.

Originally released in 1968, this song was written by a writing duo who penned most of the band’s A-Sides: Guy Fletcher and Doug Flett. It was backed by the B-Side “So Sad Inside” and released on Pye Records.



The Onyx - Tamaris Khan (1968)

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Lyrics:

Stories are told
Of a kingdom of old
And Tamaris Khan
Was its great Overlord

Strong as a horse
He wrote all the laws
He kept them by fire and
He kept them by sword

But then in the evening
He’d find recreation
He’d lay with the fairest
Of maids in the land
Gathered together
And blind in their pleasure
With drinking and laughter
All his to command

Ah, far beyond Samarkand
Rode his warrior band
With Tamaris leading
They plundered and tamed

Treasures they stole
An incredible horde
To his palace and coffers
The caravans came

But then in the evening
He’d find recreation
He’d lay with the fairest
Of maids in the land
Gathered together
And blind in their pleasure
With drinking and laughter
All his to command

Ah, the news was soon told
Of the plunder and gold
That Tamaris Khan
Was bringing to share
Kindly unjust
To the poor and the old
They waited for him and
The gifts he would bare

But then in the evening
He’d find recreation
He’d lay with the fairest
Of maids in the land
Gathered together
And blind in their pleasure
With drinking and laughter
All his to command

The Flying Machine - Smile A Little Smile For Me (1969)

This band was originally formed in Ruby, Warwickshire, England as The Liberators in the early 1960s. In 1965, the band renamed themselves Pinkerton’s Assorted Colours and released a total of twelve songs on six singles through 1968. They reached the charts twice: number nine with “Mirror Mirror” b/w “She Don’t Care” and number fifty with “Don’t Stop Loving Me Baby” b/w “Will Ya.” This minimal success labeled them as a UK “one hit wonder,” so they decided to change their name to the one seen above in 1969. This transition saw the parting of six members and the addition of three new ones (with four remaining unchanged). Under this “new” persona, the band released five singles and two full-length albums, charting (again) only once with the song heard below. After its success, the band released two more singles which failed to achieve any commercial success and the band split up in 1970. The group’s bassist, Stuart Colman, went on to be a successful session musician as well as a record producer and BBC radio DJ.

Written by the songwriting team of Tony Macaulay and Geoff Stephens, this song was the band’s one and only major success. Released in 1969 in the UK, it virtually went nowhere on the charts. However, when released in the US, the song went to number five and sold over one million copies, certifying it gold. Unfortunately, their follow-up song in the US, a cover of Marmalade’s “Baby Make It Soon” charted relatively low and the group grew tired of doing pop songs.

Interestingly, Tony Macaulay, who co-wrote this song, also co-wrote the song “Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes),” as made famous by one-hit wonders Edison Lighthouse. In the song heard below, the lyrics reference a “Rosemarie,” just like in the Edison Lighthouse song. Having co-written both of these tracks, one is led to assume that the lady in both songs must have been based on somebody real in Macaulay’s life.



The Flying Machine - Smile A Little Smile For Me (1969)

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Lyrics:

You really should accept
This time he's gone for good
He'll never come back now
Even though he said he would
So darling, dry your eyes
So many other guys
Would give the world, I'm sure
To wear the shoes he wore

Oh, c'mon
Smile a little smile for me
Rosemarie
What's the use in cryin'?
In a little while you'll see
Rosemarie
You must keep on tryin'

I know that he hurt you bad
I know, darling, don't be sad and
Smile a little smile for me
Rosemarie
Rosemarie

I guess you're lonely now
Love's comin' to an end
But, darling, only now
Are you free to start again
Lift up your pretty chin
Don't let those tears begin
You're a big girl now
And you'll pull through somehow

Oh, c'mon
Smile a little smile for me
Rosemarie
What's the use in cryin'?
In a little while you'll see
Rosemarie
You must keep on tryin'

I know that he hurt you bad
I know, darling, don't be sad and
Smile a little smile for me
Rosemarie
Rosemarie

Smile a little smile for me
Rosemarie
Rosemarie

Cannibal & the Headhunters - Land of 1000 Dances (1965)

Founded in 1963, this East Los Angeles, California group was one of the first Mexican-American groups in the United States to have a hit record (heard below). Originally known as Bobby and the Classics, the band was formed by Richard “Scar” Lopez and Robert “Rabbit” Jaramillo. According to an interview with Lopez, everyone in East L.A. had nicknames. Eventually joining the group were Robert’s brother, Joe “Yo Yo” Jaramillo and Frankie “Cannibal” Garcia. Frankie had been given his nickname by the neighborhood after having been in a few neighborhood fights and biting his opponent. He was actually known by friends as “Little Cannibal,” whereas his older brother was “Big Cannibal.” After Garcia joined the band, they began to call themselves Cannibal and the Headhunters. 1965 saw the band release their one and only hit, heard below, which led to the band opening for The Beatles on their 1965 (last ever) tour that ended at Shea Stadium. Although the band had an opportunity to tour Europe with Motown Records, they chose to tour with the fab four and spent quite a lot of time with them on the plane. By 1967, with no other hits to their name, the band called it quits. “Cannibal” Garcia, who happened to be a homosexual, died of AIDS in 1996 at the age of 49. “Yo Yo” Jaramillio passed away in 2000 after his liver shutdown from a lifetime of too much drinking. Most, “Scar” Lopez passed away on July 30, 2010 from lung cancer.

Written by Chris Kenner, this song was first released by Kenner himself in 1962 as a slow blues song. To bring the song into the spotlight, Fats Domino was approached to record the song in 1963; and, he agreed under the stipulation that he would be given half of the writing credits (he didn’t actually write any of it). The song didn’t really take off, though, until the band above decided to record it in 1965. Lead singer Cannibal forgot some of the words and the very catchy “na, na na na na…” hook was inserted in their place. The version heard below was then covered in 1966 by Wilson Pickett, who decided to fashion his version of the song on Cannibal’s. Pickett’s version became the most successful version of the song, reaching number one on the R&B charts and number six on the pop charts. The version heard below reached number thirty in early 1965.



Cannibal & the Headhunters - Land of 1000 Dances (1965)

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Lyrics:

I said, “Na, na na na na, na na na na, na na na, na na na”
“Na na na na”

You gotta know how to Pony
Like Bony Moronie
You gotta know how to Twist
I said, “It goes like this”

I said, “Mashed Potato”
Do The Alligator
I said, “Billy, get your yo-yo”
Come on and let's go

And then clap your hands
(Come on)
Just clap your hands
(Come on)
And then move your feet
(Come on)
Get into that beat
(Come on)

I said, “Na, na na na na, na na na na, na na na, na na na”
“Na na na na”

Everybody, come on now
(Na, na na na na, na na na na, na na na, na na na)
(Na na na na)

Yes, and one more time
(Na, na na na na, na na na na, na na na, na na na)
(Na na na na)

You gotta know how to Jerk
(Oh, yeah)
Come on, baby, work
You gotta know how to Jangle
Make you do The Tango

I said, “Do The Watusi”
Come on and do The Watusi

I said, “Goodbye Lucy”
I said, “Goodbye child”
I said, “Wa-Watusi”…

The U.F.O.'s - Hello World (1967)

This band, formed in 1966, was one of the first all-female rock groups in rock history. Although often overlooked because of the lack of access to their material, they can be heard performing their song “Hello World” in the 1967 movie The Love-Ins. With at least one member from Buffalo, New York (lead singer and guitarist Lisa Kindred), the band called California their home. They were almost signed by Capitol Records, but Vanguard Records didn’t want to release Kindred from her contract (she had been signed as a solo folk artist.) Members of the band included: Lisa Kindred (guitar, vocals); Ann Sternberg (bass); Diane/Helena Tribuno (guitar); and Laurie Stanton (drums). Out of the four, Sternberg, Tribuno, and Kindred can also be seen talking about "love in 'modern' music" in the rock documentary Inside Pop: The Rock Revolution, hosted by Leonard Bernstein and released in 1967.

Other than this song appearing in the 1967 movie The Love-Ins, I know very little else about this band or their song heard below. If you have any information, please leave a comment or send an email.



The U.F.O.'s - Hello World (1967)

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Lyrics:

Hello world
I think I’m loving you
Open my eyes
What else could I do?

Stained glass sunlight
Shining on heads of gold
Long haired children
Flowers to hold in their-
Love to unfold from their hands

Sandalwood and jasmine
Driftin' through the air
My mind is smiling
Whisperin' a silent prayer

Let the peaceful feeling
That we have shared today
Come on, sunrise
Bring it on here to stay
Never to fade away

Colored flowers, smiles all surround
Beauty of sight, the fullness of the sound

Vaulting rhythms plotting inside of me
Loving, trusting, this is the way to be-
This is the way to be free

Blind Faith - Can't Find My Way Home (1969)

As you may remember from our post a while back, Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce of Cream did not get along ever since their days playing together in The Graham Bond Organisation. While in Cream, the bickering between the two was usually mediated by their bandmate Eric Clapton; but, it eventually took its toll on the band, causing them to split up in1968. In the subsequent months, Clapton found himself frequently playing with Steve Winwood, who had just recently, in January 1969, parted ways with Traffic due to differences in opinion about the band’s musical direction. While jamming on one particular day in early 1969, Ginger Baker sat in to play the drums. Impressed with the chemistry the three of them had together, Winwood presented Clapton with the idea of asking Baker to form a new band with them. At first, Clapton had whole-heartedly decided against it, as he had promised Jack Bruce that if any new projects had been started he’d invite him. But given that Ginger Baker was a part of this new project, Clapton felt it would basically be restarting Cream nine weeks after breaking it up. Winwood eventually persuaded Clapton to ask Baker to join without approaching Jack Bruce at all. In May 1969, the newly formed trio then persuaded bass player Ric Grech to leave his current band, Family, mid-tour and join them in their collaboration. Word of mouth quickly spread to the public about a new “Super Cream” that was being formed. Before the band had even released any material, although they had been recording their first album, they were touring and playing to crowds of up to 20,000 people. Not having penned enough material of their own yet, they found themselves playing a lot of Cream’s and Traffic’s songs. This is exactly what Clapton wanted to avoid. After the release of their one and only album in 1969, the band finished their tour and returned to the UK, where they soon decided it best to split up. Ginger Baker went on to form Ginger Baker’s Air Force; Steve Winwood reformed Traffic with Ric Grech; and Eric Clapton passionately escaped the limelight by playing as a guest of the Plastic Ono Band and Delaney & Bonnie and Friends.

Written by Steve Winwood, this song appeared as the second track on the band’s one and only album, Blind Faith, released in 1969. The album was met with a stark criticism, as it artistically featured an underage nude female model. Although the girl and her parents both consented to her appearance on the album art, rumors circulated that it was Ginger Baker’s daughter or a groupie held hostage by the band. In the United States, an alternate album cover, seen below, was released.



Blind Faith - Can't Find My Way Home (1969)

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Lyrics:

Come down off your throne
And leave your body alone
Somebody must change
You are the reason I’ve been waiting so long
Somebody holds the key

But I’m near the end and
I just ain’t got the time
And I’m wasted and I
Can’t find my way home

Come down on your own
And leave your body alone
Somebody must change
You are the reason I’ve been waiting all these years
Somebody holds the key

But I’m near the end
I just ain’t got the time
Oh, I’m wasted and I
Can’t find my way home

But I can’t find my way home
But I can’t find my way home
But I can’t find my way home
But I can’t find my way home
But I can’t find my way home
And I ain’t done nothing wrong
But I can’t find my way home

The Sentinals - Latin'ia (1962)

Halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco in the city of San Luis Obispo, this group (sometimes misspelled as The Sentinels) was formed in 1961. Although not one of the original surfing groups (like Dick Dale & the Del-Tones or The Ventures), this band had one big hit which sent them on a nationwide tour. Although they never managed to achieve a second success, each of the band’s members went on to varying degrees of success in other musical outfits, the biggest of which was drummer Johny Barbata, who would play in The Turtles; Crosby, Stills & Nash; and Jefferson Starship. After they were through recording together for the last time, but before the band officially broke up in 1965, they had picked up keyboard player Michael Olsen. Olsen would later change his name to Lee Michaels and have the 1971 hit song “Do You Know What I Mean.”

Written by band members Tommy Nunes and Mark Hilder, this instrumental surf song was inspired after band members had heard “Walk, Don’t Run” by The Ventures. In those early years of the 1960s, “surf” music had not yet been labeled “surf.” It was referred to by many different names, one of them being “twist music for surfers” by the local Tribune newspaper. The release of this song, pronounced "La•teen•ya," was met with a very positive local feedback, enough of which to take the song to number one locally and lead the band on a nationwide tour with The Coasters and The Righteous Brothers. That tour took the band all the way to Buffalo, New York.



The Sentinals - Latin'ia (1962)

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Lyrics:

(instrumental)

The Barbarians - Moulty (1966)

Formed in Cape Cod, Massachusetts in 1964, this band was originally composed of band members Victor “Moulty” Moulton (drums), Bruce Benson (rhythm guitar), Ronnie Enos (lead guitar), and Jerry Causi (bass). They had three relatively successful songs: “Hey Little Bird” which they played in the concert film The T.A.M.I. Show alongside numerous famous acts of the time (The Beach Boys, The Rolling Stones, Chuck Berry etc.); “Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?” which reached number fifty-five in 1965; and the song featured below. The group decided to make their stage outfits resembles those of pirates/beach bums, as their drummer “Moulty” Moulton had a hook for a hand. The band worse baggy, long-sleeve blouses, had longer than usual hair, and wore leather sandals. In 1965, guitarist Geoffrey Morris replaced Ronnie Enos on lead guitar and brought the song “Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?” with him. After their third hit, heard below, began to take off, the band wanted to tour around in Boulder, Colorado. Moulty refused. Morris, Benson, and Causi went anyway with “B.B.” Fieldings (vocals), Oak O’Connor (drums), and Tom Mulcahy (guitar) as replacements. After their stint in Boulder, the new members took their act to San Francisco and renamed themselves Black Pearl.

Released as the A-Side of the group’s fourth single, this song was written by Doug Morris, Eliot Greenberg, Barbara Baer, and Robert Schwartz. Morris would later go on to be the head of Universal Music Group. The song is sung by band’s drummer, Moulty, and tells the autobiography of his life and how he overcame losing his hand when a homemade pipe bomb went off in his face in 1959 when he was fourteen. Quite interestingly, Moulty didn’t record the song with his usual bandmates and released it without their approval. He instead recorded the vocals while being backed by Levon & The Hawks, featuring Levon Helm: the band that was backing Bob Dylan at the time and would later go on to be known as The Band. The song reached number ninety on the Billboard charts, ninety-seven on the Cash Box charts, and was backed by the B-Side “I’ll Keep on Seeing You.”

---

A Special Edition post with Victor "Moulty" Moulton of The Barbarians!
And here again is another great interview! This time we had the honor to talk with The Barbarian’s legendary drummer Moulty!

It was already running through my mind as I left a voicemail for Moulty that I’d need to leave a pretty convincing voicemail to get a call back. But just as I was a sentence or two in, a thick Bostonian accent interrupts me and says hello. It’s Moulty! Success! I make my pitch to him about scheduling an interview and I was lucky that he just so happened to have a few minutes at that very moment. He shuts his door for some privacy and I start peppering him with questions.

A Bit Like You And Me: How did The Barbarians start? What’s their origin?

Victor “Moulty” Moulton:Well it started at the end of the Cape [Cod] in Provincetown, Massachusetts, my hometown. I was a drummer with my new drums. I was working in Boston and I would come back to Ptown for the summer. Talkin’ to a cousin of mine who worked at this place called The Rumpus Room- at one time it was an old jazz club where people danced and they’d play music there and it was abandoned for many years. And it was just left with a long bar and the fishermen would sit in there and drink beers, ya know? In the front area, there was a bigger place called The Old Colony that was part of the same building. And that kept goin’ on for years- it’s still goin’ on. But, my cousin asked me to, uh- I told him I was a drummer. He said, “Hey, great. You gotta band?” I said, “Oh, sure,” lyin’, of course. I didn’t have a band. And he says, “Well okay, great. You oughta work- play- you ought’a come down here and play. “Set your drums up and just play over there,” ya know? I said, “Oh sure, no problem.” I mean, there was no money involved. It was just to play. I thought if I ever played in front of anyone- that would be my dream. “Oh, boy! I played for someone!” and that would be it. (laughter) I could show off in front of someone. So, lo and behold, a couple of days later, he called me and said, “Hey, Moulty.” I said, “What?!” He says, “Guess what! You’re playin’ here Saturday night!” (laughter) I said, (shocked) “You gotta be kiddin’ me!”

(laughter)

I didn’t even have a band, ya know? I said, “Oh, no! …okay.” Well of course there wasn’t any money involved. We just set out in the car and had fun playin’ in front of whoever walked in there, you know? Well, I got a few guys together and we showed up Saturday night and, all of a sudden, the place was (slight pause) jammed. It was summertime in Cod town; it was like a carnival, anyway! And it was crazy. It was jammed. People were walkin’ up the aisles in the streets and we were a big success, ya know? They all thought we were great, of course, but there wasn’t much to compare us to. I mean, The Beatles had just came out. The [Rolling] Stones had just came out. Nobody to compare anybody to in those days, ya know? They just saw a bunch of wild guys with long hair makin’ a bunch a’ noise; a guy [Moulty] on a set a’ drums, spittin’, and he had a hook instead of a hand playin’ the drums. And I must’a looked like I was from Mars, you know? So, hey, you know, all of a sudden the record companies came and, before the end of the summer, we were signin’ up with companies and goin’ off to New York. They took us away and started our career.

ABLYAM: And speaking of The Stones, you appeared with them on that concert film, The T.A.M.I. Show, right?

Moulty: Oh, yeah. (recalling) They were on The T.A.M.I. Show, yep. They were young guys, too.

ABLYAM: Unfortunately, I never saw it, but did you actually appear alongside them or right after them or was it a bunch of clips that they kind of just put together?

Moulty: It was- all the bands together were there for a week. It was one movie. We were all there, all the time. We hung around, played around, and then, the last three days of the movie production- it was just a rock ‘n’ roll show, it was an actual movie with a rock ‘n’ roll show. The last three days were three live shows. Because they had the camera crew, the whole movie crew- you know, they have to do all their stuff, plan all their stuff- and sound crews, recording crews. And this was 1964, of course.

So, the first show was a show without an audience, other than the movie crews and all the people involved in the show. The last two shows were full, live shows with full, live audiences. All jammed with crazy and wild kids, you know? And they picked the best of the last two and that was the movie.

ABLYAM: Did you guys get to spend any time, socially, with the other bands that were there?

Moulty: All the time. We were there for a whole week, yeah.

ABLYAM: You’ve got to have some type of stories or something interesting that happened in that week. I know something crazy must have happened.

Moulty: Oh, a lot of things happened every day. In the music scene, whether you’re makin’ a movie or doin’ a show or on tour, you know. But, yeah, that was a great film because it was like the starting point of a brand new era in the music industry. The old was goin’ and the new was coming through. The British Invasion was just coming through, so The Stones and Gerry & the Pacemakers were in the movie. Guys like us were in there probably to represent the United States. And they had The Supremes and James Brown and Chuck Berry and then Lesley Gore. That was the old generation. And what happened was, they took that movie, because of its influence and the complete change of the industry- it’s in the Library of Congress now.

ABLYAM: Oh, wow. I did not know that. That’s great.

Moulty: Yeah, yeah. I didn’t know that at first, either.

ABLYAM: I’m gonna have to find and watch that because that sounds really interesting.

Moulty: Oh, well, you’ll see The Supremes, ya know, they’re young girls there. Fantastic, ya know? They were great. Anybody that’s great was great no matter how old they were. You don’t get great, you’re born great, ya know? They were always great. The Stones were great. Young guys, ya know. And James Brown- that was the first time he ever played to a white audience. If it wasn’t for The T.A.M.I. Show, you wouldn’t know James Brown, really. And you may not have known The Rolling Stones too much, ‘cause that’s basically how they broke out and conquered the United States.. by startin’ out on The T.A.M.I. Show.

ABLYAM: Very interesting.

Moulty: Yes, just like The Beatles had to conquer the United States before they took over the world. So there were a lot of people there you might not know if it wasn’t for that show.

ABLYAM: And talkin’ about being the American representatives of that show, I was rea-

Moulty: I’m not sure if I was the American representative. I just assume I kinda was, ya know.

ABLYAM: Right, well, I was just going to take that in the direction of people calling you guys America’s Rolling Stones. Had you ever heard that before?

Moulty: Hmm, not in that way, no. I’ve heard, “an answer to The British Invasion” and whatever, but I wouldn’t put myself in that category. I couldn’t compete against anyone, really, ya know? I mean, they’re all so wonderful. I loved The Beatles and The Stones- I loved them all. Ya know, we’re all so different. And that’s what I would think, ya know? Whatever. Whatever people say, people say. I don’t mind.

ABLYAM: Yeah. (laughter) I’d say there’s nothing wrong with being compared to them, right?

Moulty: I don’t care what they say. (laughter)

ABLYAM: Well, I know towards the end of the first incarnation of The Barbarians, three of the guys split off and went into [the band] Black Pearl because of a trip to Boulder, Colorado. What was it about this trip to Boulder, Colorado? I read that you didn’t want to go.

Moulty: No, we were between hits at the time. We had left our record company. We didn’t like some of the things they were doing with us and so we, foolishly, left the company. So we were without a company, really, ya know? The only way to stay in the business was to get another hit. We only had two with “Boy/Girl” [Note: “Are You A Boy Or Are You A Girl?”] and “Moulty” and then we didn’t hit with another one. We tried. So we had to get another single out. And at the time, the guys wanted to change and do some “soul rock” kinda stuff. And I didn’t. I wanted to continue it The Barbarians’ way. So we had a split there in ideas of what we wanted to do. I didn’t wanna go to California and become an “acid” rock/blues/soul band, ya know? But they did. They wanted to do their thing they went their way and I stayed my way. So they went out there and they made a bunch’a noise out there. They never hit anything- never charted any songs. But they were good. I’m glad they were good, I mean Geoffrey Morris, who was my lead guitar player, no matter what he does or who he’s with, he’s gonna shine everyone, ya know? He’s just a tremendous guy, ya know. So that’s when they started The Black Pearl.

ABLYAM: You’ve probably told this story a bunch of times, but for anybody who doesn’t know, would you mind sharing what your fourteen-year-old self was doing with a homemade pipe bomb and how things went horribly wrong?

Moulty: Well, I was a fourteen year old kid, but I wasn’t the average fourteen year old kid. I grew up in Ptown [Note: Pronvincetown, Cape Cod, Massachusetts], one of the craziest places there is. And I was probably one of the craziest of the craziest. (laughter) And I grew up in the sand dunes and beaches of Ptown. I had long hair when I was a teenager; not because of the rock ‘n’ roll business- this was before that. It was because my idol was Johnny Weismuller, who played Tarzan.

ABLYAM: Yeah! Alright.

Moulty: He had that big, cool, long hair and I wanted to be cool under any condition, you know? So I grew my hair long, regardless of how I shamed my parents and everything; but, that’s why I grew my long hair. So when the music scene came along, I didn’t have to change my hairstyle. So that’s how I got long hair and, um- was that the question you asked?

ABLYAM: Oh, no. I mean, it’s only if you wanna talk about it, but I was curious- I mean, I read that you had accidentally lost your hand with an accident involving a pipebomb.

Moulty: Oh, yeah! Yeah! Well, I was wild. I used to make a lot of bombs in the backyard with my friends and blow ‘em off and, this time, I was makin’ a pretty good-sized one. And it blew me to smithereens. It went off when I was makin’ it. I lost my left hand, ya know- I was a guitarist, ya know. And I was a kick-ass little guitarist. I was, at a very young age, I was playin’ the guitar. My family were guitarist themselves. And then by the time I was fourteen I was pretty darn good, ya know? And then I, uh (laughter) I blew myself up! I couldn’t play the guitar anymore. So I got my prosthesis on my hook. I learned to play the drums with my hook.

ABLYAM: And it’s a good thing you did!

Moulty: Yeah! (laughter) Yeah, I know. Yeah, I couldn’t play the guitar anymore.

ABLYAM: Oh, yeah. And there’d be no Barbarians! And, The Barbarians- I mean I know you guys only had a couple hits, but they’re awesome songs. They’re great.

Moulty: Oh, thank you. Okay, alright. Well, anyway, yeah, I wouldn’t be a drummer- I may have been a guitarist, but I wouldn’t have been a drummer at all if I didn’t deal a way to play with my hook, ya know? But anyway, my drumsticks are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame now and I’m proud of that. It’s like an honor, you know?

ABLYAM: Of course! Definitely.

Moulty: You know, they don’t pay you for that. But you gotta fill out forms and stuff. I like that.

ABLYAM: You still fool around with the sticks today? Or did you put the drumsticks down?

Moulty: Oh, no! Those sticks don’t go down. When a musician is born- not someone who plays music, I’m talking about when a real musician is born and he dies that way, just like a golfer or somebody who loves golf, you ask ‘em, “When are you gonna quit?” “When I die.” I think someone asked Keith Richards, “Geez, you guys aged. What are you doin’ this for?” It’s really a stupid question because somethin’ you love so much- whaddya mean “Why are you doin’ it?” You were doin’ it for nothin’ when you started and you would have still done it for nothin’ even if you didn’t make the millions, ya know?

ABLYAM: Yeah, that’s a great point.

Moulty: And on top of all that, they make a million bucks every time they sing a note! So there’s enough reasons there to choke a horse, isn’t there?

(laughter)

Moulty: (laughter) I don’t know, did that answer the question?

ABLYAM: I would say so! Do you have any other hobbies? You doin’ anything else these days that you enjoy?

Moulty: Well I do a lot of playin’. We jam a lot. My son and I do a lot of recordin’s. Studios. I’m always playin’- doin’ somethin’, you know? I’ll probably bring a lot of stuff out on a future website: unreleased stuff from The Barbarians, new stuff that I do now. I have a lot of unreleased material: things partially recorded, live stuff that was really lousily done. You know, people like those things, you know?

ABLYAM: Definitely!

Moulty: Yeah, pictures of- very rare pictures of me playin’ the guitar with two hands. That’s very rare. That’s very rare.

ABLYAM: Speaking about unreleased stuff, the only thing I’ve come across that’s unreleased is the song called “Three Strange Men.” It was unreleased for “personal reasons”? Could you give us any hint as to the content of the song or maybe the reason-

Moulty: It’s about UFOs. (singing) ”Hey, three strange men in the sky…” with things flyin’, you know? And, you know, it was just not sensible at all or anything. Just the rage at the time.

ABLYAM: Like with The Byrds’ “Mr. Spaceman.”

Moulty: Oh, that’s right. They came out with that, too. When did they come out with that? A little later, I think. [Note: It was released September 6, 1966.] That was before I did this, yeah- a long time before, yeah.

And with that, our conversation began to wrap up. I asked Moulty to do a little audio promo for the site and he joked, “Well what if I can’t remember what to say?” He was incredibly pleasant and more than willing to share everything I asked about. We said our farewells and that was that. A real honor!

Naturally, I’d like to give a huge “thank you” for Moulty for taking some spontaneous time out of his day for a big fan. He couldn’t have been any nicer or willing to share his tales. I’m very thankful!

And now that you've enjoyed this exclusive story, why not check out what other exclusive stories we've received?

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The Barbarians - Moulty (1966)

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Lyrics:

I remember the days when things were real bad for me. It was right after my accident when I lost my hand. It seemed like I was all alone with nobody to help me. You know, I almost gave up all my hopes and dreams. But then- then- then something inside me kept telling me- way down inside me, over and over again, to keep going on- yeah, on.

Moulty!

(Don't turn away)
You're gonna make it, baby
(Don't turn away)
Ah, try to make it, baby
(Don't turn away)

Things are better for me now ‘cause I found that I love music. So I learned to play the drums and got myself a band and now we're starting to make it. And if you can make it at something you love, wow, you got it all.

So I'm saying this to all of you- all of you who think you'll never make it. All you guys and girls ‘cause you’re “so bad off.” Or maybe you think you're a little different or strange. So listen to me now ‘cause I've lived through it all.

Moulty!

(Don't turn away)
You gotta keep on trying
(Don't turn away)
Well, don't you give up, baby
(Don't turn away)

Now there's just one thing that I need. Not sympathy and I don't want no pity, but a girl- a real girl. One that really loves me. And then I'll be the complete man. So I'm gonna tell ya right now. Listen.

(Don't turn away)
You're gonna- come on, come on, baby
(Don't turn away)
You’ve gotta keep on trying
(Don't turn away)
(Don't turn away)

Half Pint and The Fifths - Orphan Boy (1966)

Bo Blider was born in 1950 and began playing guitar by the age of ten. After a trip to New York City when he was twelve years old, he came back to his hometown of Chicago with a new-found determination to start a band. In 1964, he joined this band, which at that time was known under its original name, Artie and the Night Trippers. Composed of young teenage boys, the band put out one single before breaking up in 1967. I’m not entirely sure how the band’s demise came about, but Bo Blider went on to perform in numerous tribute bands honoring The Beatles and John Lennon.

Written by L. Nestor, this song was released locally by Chicago-based Orlyn Records in 1966. It was actually the B-Side of the band’s one and only single. The A-Side, a cover of “Lovin’ on Borrowed Time,” wasn’t as popular as they had hoped and it became overshadowed by the track heard below.



Half Pint and The Fifths - Orphan Boy (1966)

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Lyrics:

All my life I’ve been alone
Never had nothing just to call my own
Wake up each morning very forlorn and
There ain’t even a record of my being born

(Orphan boy)
“Come shine my shoes”
(Orphan boy)
“Come make ‘em look like new”
(Orphan boy)
"Well if you make a noise, we’re gonna
Send you back to the orphan, boy"

Walkin’ barefoot through the snow
Look for shelter with no place to go
Beggin’ for meals and ridin’ the rail
Maybe I’d be better off in jail

(Orphan boy)
“Come shine my shoe”
(Orphan boy)
“Come make ‘em look like new”
(Orphan boy)
"Well if you make a noise, we’re gonna
Send you back to the orphan, boy"

Livin’ out of lockers sure ain’t boss
So I’ll sell my pint of blood to the old Red Cross
Wreckin’ pool balls for a nickel a game
And everybody calls me by my first name

(Orphan boy)
“Come shine my shoes”
(Orphan boy)
“Come make ‘em look like new”
(Orphan boy)
"Well if you make a noise, we’re gonna
Send you back to the orphan, boy"

Herman's Hermits - East West (1966)

Originally known as Herman & The Hermits, this band out of Manchester, England originally found the majority of their success in the United States where teenage girls yearned for lead singer Peter Noone and his intentionally exaggerated his Mancunian accent. In 1965 alone, the band had three Top 3 songs in the United States: “Can’t You Hear My Heartbeat” (January), “Mrs. Brown, You’ve Got a Lovely Daughter” (March), and “I’m Henry VIII, I Am” (June). The group continued to be successful in the United States all throughout 1966 and shortly into 1967 with their last big US hit “There’s a Kind of Hush.” After that song’s release in February 1967, the band’s popularity in the US began to sink as it simultaneously rose in the United Kingdom. They had seven songs in the Top 15 on the UK charts from January 1968 through November 1970, but they knew things were dwindling down. Noone split from the band in 1970 and the rest of the Hermits continued on until 1973, failing to have any success. These days, Peter Noone continues to tour and make guest appearances on both sides of the pond.

After releasing “No Milk Today” in October 1966 to the UK, Herman’s Hermits was looking for their next big single. Although they wouldn’t really shine again until 1967’s “There’s a Kind of Hush” in February, they released the song heard below in the interim. Written by Graham Gouldman (a future member of 10cc), this song was released in December 1966 and reached number twenty-seven in the US, thirty-three in the UK, and number five in New Zealand. It was backed by the B-Side “What Is Wrong-What Is Right.”



Herman's Hermits - East West (1966)

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Lyrics:

East, west over the ocean
Perpetual motion, traveling around
No rest, singing and playing
Night-out and day-in, doing the rounds
What a great life it must seem
(What a great life it must seem)

Swell joints, everything classy
Nothing that's passé, only the best
Lush girls ogling and eyeing
Crying and sighing, this is success
What a great life it must seem
(What a great life it must seem)

But when I hear young voices singing out
The bells at home come ringing out
When I feel all alone
Then I think of my home

Mom, dad all ‘round the fire
In festive attire, keeping the day
Aunts, kids, all the relations
Congratulations, this is success
What a great life it must seem
(What a great life it must seem)

But when I hear young voices singing out
Then the bells at home start ringing out
When I feel all alone
Then I long for my home

Janis Ian - Society's Child (1965)

Born Janis Eddy Fink on April 7, 1951 in New York, New York, this singer, songwriter, musician, and author first found success as a teenager when she released her hit song heard below. Raised in New Jersey by left-wing parents during the Cold War era, Janis and her family were frequently watched by the government when she was growing up. In 1964, at the age of thirteen or fourteen, she legally had her named changed to Janis Ian, using her brother’s middle name as her new surname. After the popularity of her first hit song, heard below, in 1967, Ian waited another eight years before again finding success. Shattering her one-hit wonder label, she released in the 1975 song “At Seventeen,” which reached number one on the US A/C Chart, number one on the Cash Box charts, and number three on the Billboard Hot 100. Although numerous albums and songs have been released since, their popularity has not reached that of her two songs mentioned above. One of the many venerable traits exemplified by Ian is her criticism of the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America). She frequently makes mention of the RIAA destroying the music industry and places herself on the side of the musicians and consumers. She frequently releases her music free of charge on her website, which she claims has resulted in numerous hard sales, “contrary to the claims of the RIAA.” Her song “At Seventeen” is claimed to have sold over two million copies yet has never been certified by the RIAA. Ian continues to record and tour to this day, having an especially large cult following in Europe and Japan.

Growing up in a predominately African-American neighborhood, Ian began to write this song in 1964 when she was only thirteen years old. By the time it was finished in 1965, she was fourteen. It deals with a first-person account of the difficulties she had with an interracial relationship while living in East Orange, New Jersey in 1964. The song, dealing with an interracial relationship, was considered extremely taboo at the time and was turned down for release by Atlantic Records, who had returned the master copy to Ian after having already paid for her recording session. When it was finally released by Verve Records, many radio stations refused to play it. One radio station in Atlanta was burned to the ground after airing it. Ian herself received numerous death threats in the mail. Determined to bring the song to the public, it was released three times: 1965, 1966, and 1967. Its last release came after Ian had been featured performing the song on Inside Pop: The Rock Revolution, a television special on pop music hosted by Leonard Bernstein in 1967. Although the song reached number one on many local markets, its boycotting in many other cities prevented it from getting any higher on the national charts than number thirteen.



Janis Ian - Society's Child (1965)

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Lyrics:

Come to my door, baby
Face is clean and shining black as night
My mother went to answer, you know
That you looked so fine
Now I could understand your tears and your shame
She called you “boy” instead of your name
When she wouldn't let you inside
When she turned and said
“But honey, he's not our kind”

She says, I can't see you anymore, baby
Can't see you anymore

Walk me down to school, baby
Everybody’s acting deaf and blind
Until they turn and say
“Why don't you stick to your own kind?”

My teachers all laugh, their smirking stares
Cutting deep down in our affairs
Preachers of equality think they believe it
Then why won't they just let us be?

They say I can't see you anymore, baby
Can't see you anymore

One of these days I'm gonna stop my listening
Gonna raise my head up high
One of these days I'm gonna raise my glistening
Wings and fly
But that day will have to wait for a while
Baby, I'm only society’s child
When we’re older things may change
But for now this is the way they must remain

I say, “I can't see you anymore, baby”
“Can't see you anymore”
“No, I don't wanna see you anymore, baby”