Whoa, barely two months into 2016 and the world has lost an incredible amount of musical talent. While you may not know of all these names, here are five more noteworthy artists who have recently passed away.
On January 28th, Jefferson Airplane's lead guitarist and songwriter, Paul Kantner, died at the age of 74 (pictured second from left with glasses). Jefferson Airplane's psychedelic sound and free-spirited mindset helped define the '60s counterculture in San Francisco. Kantner was a co-founder of the
group in 1965 with Marty Balin and the guiding spirit of its successor,
Jefferson Starship. With
hits like "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit" (both featured here), Jefferson Airplane
wrote anthems for the hippie movement and the memorable Summer of Love in 1967. While vocalists Grace Slick and Balin were the public faces of Jefferson
Airplane, Kantner was often the creative force
of the band, bringing a freshness from his folk music scene background. From their historic album Surrealistic Pillow in 1967, listen for Kantner's vocal at 1:08 in "How Do You Feel?"
And what are the odds two members of Jefferson Airplane would pass away on the same day and at the same age? Also on January 28th, the band's original female vocalist, Signe Anderson, died at 74 (also pictured in the top photo). Initially a jazz and folk singer in Portland, OR, she joined Jefferson Airplane after a trip to San Francisco in 1965, and sang on their first album Jefferson Airplane Takes Off. Married to one of the Merry Pranksters, Jerry Anderson, and pregnant with her first child, Signe left the group in late 1966, and was replaced by rock 'n roll diva Grace Slick. Check out this footage of the band performing "It's No Secret" at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco in 1966; look for Signe at the 1:34 mark.
On January 16th, American singer and guitarist Gary Loizzo, best-known as the lead singer of The American Breed, passed away at the age of 70. From the greater Chicago area, The American Breed had several hit records, including the million-selling single
"Bend Me, Shape Me" in 1967/'68.
In the early '70s, Loizzo went on to start his own recording studio called 'Pumpkin Studios,' and became a two-time Grammy-nominated recording engineer. He worked with REO Speedwagon, Styx, Bad Company, Slash, Survivor, Liza Minnelli, Tenacious D, and many others. Since "Bend Me, Shape Me" was previously featured here, here's their first Top-40 hit in 1967, "Step Out of Your Mind" (gotta love that "trumpet-playing" drummer).
On February 6th, American singer-songwriter Dan Hicks passed away, also at the end of 74. Combining cowboy folk, jazz, country, swing, bluegrass, pop, and gypsy music in his sound, Hicks first became part of the San Francisco folk
music scene in 1959, performing at local coffeehouses. Later, he joined the San Francisco band The Charlatans in 1965 as drummer, and in 1967, formed Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks, contemporaries of Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. From his first albumreleased in 1969, "How Can I Miss You When You Won't Go Away?" features Hick's humor, frequently infused into his tunes.
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Finally, American musician, songwriter, screenwriter, and voice actor Bill Martin passed away on January 27th at the age of 64. A friend of Monkee Michael Nesmith, Martin's first contribution to The Monkees came in the form of "All of Your Toys,"
recorded during the very first studio sessions that featured the group
supporting themselves instrumentally. Because of a publishing dispute
with Screen Gems, the song never saw the light of day until it was released
on the Missing Links compilation in 1987. He also composed "The Door Into Summer," which did see release on 1967's Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. album. Martin later collaborated with other artists, including Harry Nilsson ("Rainmaker," covered by Nesmith on his third solo effort, Nevada Fighter). Martin later co-starred with Nesmith in his Grammy-winning Elephant Parts in 1981, and in addition to screenwriting credits (1987's Harry and the Hendersons), his voice skills earned him roles in numerous animated series. Unfortunately, I could not find any photos of him! But these two songs are true gems and needed to be included. Here's the Bill Martin-penned could-have-been-a-hit Monkees' tune, "All of Your Toys," recorded in 1967.
From The Monkees' fourth studio album, here's "The Door Into Summer," officially written by Bill Martin and the Monkees' producer Chip Douglas (although Douglas denies any writing contribution). Another fantastic tune.
Flower Power: Part 5
Today, all the groups featured have a female lead vocalist. This next group could definitely have been included during "Out-of-Towner" Week here at The '60s Beat. From the Hague, Netherlands, Shocking Blue was a Dutch rock band that first formed in 1967. With Mariska Veres on lead vocals, the group released the worldwide hit "Venus" in late 1969, taking them to the #1 spot on the U.S. charts in February 1970 and earning them a gold record. With global sales reaching over 5 million copies, "Venus" became the Netherland's first American #1 hit. Based on "The Banjo Song" by The Big Three in 1963 here (with Cass Elliot before she was a "Mama"), this song was written by Robbie van Leeuwen, who also played guitar and sitar in the band.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ One of the first female singer-songwriters of the rock 'n' roll era, Kentucky-born Jackie DeShannon first began her music career by singing country tunes on the radio at age 6. Recording minor hits in the early '60s, she gained attention when she joined The Beatles on their first U.S. tour, while composing songs for groups like The Byrds, and even forming a songwriting partnership with Jimmy Page (later of Led Zeppelin) (oh and she dated Elvis). In March 1965, DeShannon released her biggest hit, "What the World Needs Now Is Love" (written by Burt Bacharach), and by May, reached #7 on the charts. Although its release predates the Flower Power era, its message rang true throughout the rest of the '60s. In June 1968, right after the shooting of Robert Kennedy, this song was played continuously on L.A. radio stations as an audio vigil. This anthem for love has been performed by over 100 other artists and has been featured in several films.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ One creative group that seems to remain in the shadows is The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, a psychedelic pop/rock band from Los Angeles. Formed in August 1966 out of a folk rock group called The Ashes, this quintet was known for their unique blend of folk rock and psychedelia while incorporating strong male-female vocal harmonies, interesting chord progressions, and multiple time signature changes. Featuring the powerful vocals of Barbara "Sandi" Robinson, their only tune to actually chart was the groovy "It's a Happening Thing," released in 1967. Although it only reached #93 in the U.S., it was a lively flower pop anthem of the time.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And of course we can't forget one of the first black acts to achieve complete and sustained crossover success (with audiences of all races), the international stars Diana Ross & the Supremes. At the height of the Summer of Love in '67, this top Motown act released their first single that embraced the sounds of psychedelic pop, influenced by the psychedelic sounds by bands like The Beatles and The Beach Boys. Representing a shift in the Motown pop sound in the late '60s, "Reflections" reached #2 on the Billboard charts by late summer, only verging on being the group's 11th American #1 single. Featuring one of the first early uses of a synthesizer on a pop record, this was also the last 45 released with Florence Ballad and Mary Wilson singing background vocals together. Written by the Motown production team Holland-Dozier-Holland, here's one of the group's first TV performances featuring Cindy Birdsong as Ballad's replacement (once again, apologies for the video 'obstruction.').
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Be sure to revisit posts including these female icons of the Flower Power era, singers Janis Joplin with Big Brother & the Holding Company, and Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane ("Piece of My Heart" and "White Rabbit"/"Somebody to Love" featured here).
American Response to the British Invasion: Part 8 (Final)
First gaining popularity in the late 1960s, the music of the rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival remains an airplay essential on American and worldwide radio. Although they originated in the San Francisco Bay area, CCR are considered Southern rock stylists with genres ranging from country rock to swamp rock (isn't that a great term?!). Initially forming in junior high, the band had a few setbacks at first due to the military draft, but eventually settled with primary songwriter John Fogerty as lead vocalist/lead guitarist, with his brother and rhythm guitarist, Tom Fogerty, bassist Stu Cook, and drummer Doug Clifford. Released as a single for their second album in January 1969, "Proud Mary" was a Bayou-influenced rock song that became an international hit, peaking at #2 on the charts (the first of five consecutive singles to hit #2 for the the group). Written by John Fogerty about his high spirits after being discharged from the Army Reserve, this swamp rock song is among the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and has become the group's most covered song with over 100 cover versions by other artists.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Coming into prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company, American singer Janis Joplin was known during the height of her popularity as “The Queen of Rock and Roll,” as well as “The Queen of Psychedelic Rock.” Originally from Texas, her bluesy vocal style (albeit uniquely raspy) attracted the attention of Big Brother, a psychedelic rock group among the bursting San Francisco music scene, and after their breakout performance at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, the group gained national attention. Eventually going solo in 1969, Joplin’s success was a breakthrough for women in the male-dominated world of rock music and is ranked #28 on the list of the 500 Greatest Singers of All Time. Performing “Try (Just a Little Bit Harder)” on The Dick Cavett Show with her backing band The Kozmic Blues Band in 1969, Joplin’s shows her passion and intense devotion to her craft.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ One of the first San Franciscan groups to achieve mainstream critical and commercial success was Jefferson Airplane, a founding band of the psychedelic rock movement. Inspired by the emerging folk rock scene in 1965, lead singer Marty Balin formed this hybrid group, and with the addition of co-lead vocalist Grace Slick the following year, they gained international popularity with a string of hit albums. Their 1967 album was a key recording of the "Summer of Love" with huge hits like "Somebody To Love" and "White Rabbit" (see Psychedelic Rock Week). Like Janis Joplin, Grace Slick was influential as a prominent woman in the rock music scene of '60s. Released in September of 1969, "Volunteers" is a psychedelic rock/acid rock song written by band members Marty Balin and Paul Kantner, as performed live at the Woodstock Festival that same year.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ An extremely influential folk rock supergroup of the 1960s was Crosby, Stills, & Nash (and sometimes Young), initially formed by the trio David Crosby (of The Byrds), Stephen Stills (of Buffalo Springfield), and Graham Nash (of The Hollies). All three musicians had left/disbanded from their previous groups due to friction and personal issues, and while having a jam session at an informal gathering (possibly at "Mama" Cass Elliot's house), they discovered their intricate vocal harmonies gelled really well together. Releasing their self-titled debut album in May 1969, they were in demand for touring, thus bringing on Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young to play guitar. The group's second live performance was at Woodstock where they performed their first single "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes." Written by Stephen Stills about his former girlfriend, folk singer Judy Collins, this folk rock reached #21 on the charts, and has since been named one of the 500 Greastest Songs of All Time. Definitely a treat to hear this masterpiece live at Woodstock.
Psychedelic Week: Part 1 After my last post about "Good Vibrations," I think it's a good week to look further into the genre of Psychedelic music. Well, as you could probably guess by the name, psychedelic rock is style of music that was influenced by the psychedelic culture of the mid-1960s, and even tries to imitate the experience of mind-altering drugs (which of course wasn't without its causalities). Other fusions of the genre include psychedelic folk, psychedelic pop, and psychedelic soul. Here are some of this genre's characteristics (from helpful Wikipedia):
- electric guitars, often used with feedback, wah wah and fuzzboxes;
- elaborate studio effects, such as backwards tapes, panning, phasing, long delay loops, and extreme reverb;
-exotic instrumentation, with a particular fondness for the sitar and tabla;
-a strong keyboard presence, especially organs, harpsichords, or the Mellotron (an early tape-driven 'sampler');
-a strong emphasis on extended instrumental solos or jams;
-more complex song structures, key and time signature changes, modal melodies and drones;
-surreal, whimsical, esoterically or literary-inspired, lyrics.
In 1965, when The Beatles began experimenting more with their music in the studio (as well as with "other things"), they were one of the first to use guitar feedback in "I Feel Fine" and the first to use a sitar in "Norwegian Wood" (although actually a folk song, it greatly influenced the further use of Eastern music in rock). However, one of the defining works of psychedelic rock music is "Strawberry Fields Forever." Inspired by The Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations" (see my last post), The Beatles released this double A-side single (with "Penny Lane") in February 1967.
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A new favorite of mine that makes great use of the trademark psychedelicwah-wah guitar sound and the phasing audio effect is "Pictures of Matchstick Men" by the English group Status Quo. Sometimes considered as an example of bubblegum psychedelia, this song was released in January of '68 and was a hit single. This performance was from England's "Top of The Pops" TV show, on which Status Quo performed over 100 times throughout their career.
When I think of the psychedelic '60s, one of the first band that comes to mind is the San Francisco group Jefferson Airplane, and particularly their breakout successes, "White Rabbit" and "Somebody To Love." And just your luck, I found a video that includes both performances, as featured on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. From the album Surrealistic Pillow released in February 1967, "White Rabbit," a psychedelic/acid rock song, was written by the group's lead female singer Grace Slick, and her husband, Darby Slick, wrote "Somebody To Love;" both are classic songs of the counterculture movement, included in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Alright, so here come some of the "heavies."
A significant 1960's "power trio" (besides Cream with Eric Clapton) was the psychedelic rock group The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Written and originally recorded by folk rocker Bob Dylan, this cover of "All Along The Watchtower" was released in September 1968 and since has been voted the #5 song in Guitar World"s 100 Greatest Guitar Solos, as well as #48 on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. One of the greatest electric guitarists in music history, Jimi Hendrix unfortunately died an early death two year later in 1970, but he remains one of the most influential musicians that made use of guitar feedback and wah-wah pedal like never before.
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Another sad causality of the psychedelic era was Jim Morrison, lead singer of the American rock band The Doors, who died in 1971. Released in April 1967, one of The Door's first #1 single was the psychedelic/acid rock "Light My Fire," another song on the Rolling Stone's “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list. Here's the infamous Ed Sullivan Show performance, after which the group was banned from further appearances on the show because they did not change the word "higher," as requested by the producers.
And finally, my last featured group today is Janis Joplin with the San Francisco-based, psychedelic/blues-rock group Big Brother and the Holding Company, giving a great live performance of "A Piece of My Heart." Although originally recorded by Erma Franklin in 1967, the song gained greater mainstream attention after Janis and the gang released their cover on the summer of '68 album Cheap Thrills, reaching #12 on the U.S. pop chart, and it is another song on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list. Just a few weeks after Jimi Hendrix's death in 1970, Janis was also found dead at the age of 27, the same ages as Jimi and Jim Morrison (as well as Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones; see 27 Club).
Since this is probably only a third of the songs I've picked out for this week, I should probably end this post (finally, right?). Hopefully you're not in psychedelic overload because there's still some great tunes to come!
On January 28th, Jefferson Airplane's lead guitarist and songwriter, Paul Kantner, died at the age of 74 (pictured second from left with glasses). Jefferson Airplane's psychedelic sound and free-spirited mindset helped define the '60s counterculture in San Francisco. Kantner was a co-founder of the
group in 1965 with Marty Balin and the guiding spirit of its successor,
Jefferson Starship. With
hits like "Somebody to Love" and "White Rabbit" (both featured here), Jefferson Airplane
wrote anthems for the hippie movement and the memorable Summer of Love in 1967. While vocalists Grace Slick and Balin were the public faces of Jefferson
Airplane, Kantner was often the creative force
of the band, bringing a freshness from his folk music scene background. From their historic album Surrealistic Pillow in 1967, listen for Kantner's vocal at 1:08 in "How Do You Feel?" 
