Happy Together Tour 2015

On July 22nd, my college buddy (music major too!) and I enjoyed a groovy night of The Happy Together Concert at a fantastic outdoor venue, Humphrey's-By-The-Bay, in San Diego. Back by popular demand, this year's tour featured regulars like Flo & Eddie of The Turtles and The Grass Roots, as well as The Buckinghams, The Association, Mark Lindsay (former lead singer of Paul Revere & The Raiders), and first-timers, The Cowsills. While I've had the opportunity to see The Turtles and The Grass Roots perform together three years ago, it was a real treat hearing these other great artists as well! The backing band was made up of stellar musicians who helped lock in the sound of the original recordings we all know and love. No doubt the crowd at this sold-out event was really diggin' the perfect weather and classic tunes!

 Our view from the back of the relatively intimate venue. Loved the location right next to the harbor in Point Loma (photo during The Association's set).

The first act of the evening was The Buckinghams, and not only did they sound great, they looked pretty good too! Featuring original members Carl Giammarese and Nick Fortuna, I loved hearing all their hits from "Kind of a Drag," "Susan," "Mercy Mercy Mercy," "Don't You Care," and "Hey Baby (They're Playing Our Song)." It was a crack-up when lead singer Carl brought out an old, retro jacket he wore in concerts in the '60s; he claimed he had to buy it back on eBay! Did I mention his voice sounded superb?! Love this Sunshine pop from Chicago! Here's The Buckinghams' #1 hit from 1967, "Kind of a Drag."

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On their debut year with The Happy Together Tour, the next act featured the wonderful Cowsill siblings, Susan, Paul and Bob, whose hits include "The Rain, the Park and the Other Things," "Hair," and "Indian Lakes," to name a few. They even performed "Love American Style," which was the theme they recorded for the 1970s show of the same name. The Cowsills proved they can still harmonize beautifully and were fantastic addition to the Tour. Since the other songs mentioned have already been featured on this blog, here's a classic promo video of The Cowsills' "We Can Fly," a #21 hit in 1967.

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Before intermission, we rocked out to Mark Dawson and Dusty Hanvey who have returned to carry on the music of the The Grass Roots. As mentioned in my concert recap from three years ago (here), these guys never disappoint and covered all the great ones including "Let's Live For Today," "Temptation Eyes," "Wait a Million Years," and "Midnight Confessions." I love their moving a cappella tribute to Vietnam vets, particularly to the ones who did not return home. Although it's been featured a few times before on this blog, here's rare footage of The Grass Roots performing their #5 hit "Midnight Confessions" from 1968 (Rob and Warren are enjoying themselves way too much, ha). Love this tune!

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Kicking off the second half of the show, The Association continued with the talents of Del Ramos (brother of the late Larry Ramos), Jim Yester, and Jules Alexander (although a 4th member joined them this particular night and I can't remember who! Maybe Russ Giguere? Feel free to chime in if you were there too!). Performing their four big hits like "Windy," "Along Comes Mary," "Cherish," and "Never My Love," the whole crowd was singing along, no matter that the vocal group didn't have the tightest of harmonies as they did in the '60s. It was a lot of fun and the guys looked cute in their matching white suits.
Because you've got to check out this clever and classic opening from this live performance, here's The Association playing "Along Comes Mary" at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

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For the next set, you could feel the crowd's love for Mark Lindsay, original lead singer for Paul Revere & The Raiders. While this guy not only sounds pretty good, he had incredible energy and can still kick higher than a Radio City Rockette. This Raider covered the hits like "Kicks," "Hungry," and "Good Thing," as well as "Arizona" from his solo career in the early '70s. I couldn't
help but laugh at the ecstatic audience when he performed "Indian Reservation." I get this was a #1 hit in 1971, but I have never liked that song for some reason. Sorry, guys! Still a well-done performance for a happy crowd. Considering how much these guys were on TV, it's surprisingly hard to find good quality footage, but here's Mark Lindsay performing the #6 US hit "Hungry" with Paul Revere & The Raiders in 1966.

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The night concluded with the entertaining Flo & Eddie (Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan) of The Turtles, who are responsible for keeping this Happy Together Tour together each year. After beginning their set by poking fun at the "lousy" music of today (in this case, Flo wearing a snowman suit and lip-syncing a bit to a certain popular Disney song), the guys jumped into their early folk rock hits like "You Baby" and "It Ain't Me Babe," followed by "Elenore" from the late '60s. They also condensed snippets from their solo show including nods to Frank Zappa and Bruce Springsteen (which I likely would have missed if I hadn't seen their show 3 years ago). Of course, this wouldn't be the Happy Together Tour without their quintessential '60s hit of the same name. Finally, the concert was recapped when each group hopped back onstage and performed a quick segment from one of their top songs, concluding with an all-hands "Happy Together" singalong (The Turtles' #1 hit in 1967). Also a great cover version by Johnny Cash, here's The Turtles performing the Bob Dylan-penned "It Ain't Me Babe" on Shindig! in 1965 (#8 in the US).

 What a fun night hearing all the classics! Thanks to Humphrey's for hosting these great groups! 

And thanks to my buddy, Jenny, for being a good sport as my concert buddy. :)

On a side night, this night holds the record for the most comments about my white go-go boots. I even had someone ask me if these were my original boots that I had kept all these years. Why, yes, thank you. I do look pretty good for 65!

A Double Farewell

This past December, the music world lost two more talented (and quite contrasting) performers of the 1960s. The day after Christmas, St. Louis R&B singer Fontella Bass passed away after complications of a heart attack at the age of 72. She was best known for her 1965 hit single, "Rescue Me," which reached #1 on the R&B chart, #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #11 in the UK. Although songwriter credit is given to Raynard Miner and Carl William Smith at Chess Studios in Chicago, many sources also credit Bass herself as a co-writer. Recorded in just three takes, the call-and-response sounds of "umm, umm" were unintentional and were in place of forgotten lyrics during the taping. This song also included Maurice White, later of Earth, Wind & Fire, on drums. With her fantastic vocals on this soul/pop tune, here's the late Fontella Bass performing on Shindig! in 1965.

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Earlier in the month on December 11th, the best-known contemporary Indian musician Ravi Shankar passed away at the age of 92. In the mid-'50s and '60s, Shankar toured Europe and America playing classical Indian music on the sitar, and recorded albums with World Pacific Records. The Byrds also recorded at the same studio and heard Shankar's music, which led them to incorporate some of its elements in theirs, introducing the genre to their friend George Harrison of The Beatles. Harrison became interested in Indian classical music, bought a sitar, and used it to record the song "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)". This led to Indian music being used by other musicians, thus creating the raga rock trend and impacting psychedelic music. In 1966, Harrison went to India for six weeks to study the sitar with Shankar, an association which greatly increased Shankar's popularity, making him "the most famous Indian musician in the world." In 1967, he won a Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance for West Meets East, and performed at the Monterey Pop Festival where he was introduced to new generation of music fans. Here's an excerpt from his four-hour performance (whow!) at the Pop Festival, as captured for the historic D. A. Pennebaker documentary (Shankar appears at about 7:00 into the clip).

Farewell to these talented performers, and thanks for the music!

A Farewell

On Saturday, August 18th, we lost another beautiful voice as American singer Scott McKenzie passed away at the age of 73. He is remembered for his 1967 hit "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)," which reached #1 in the US, as well as in most of Europe, and sold over 7 million records. Written by John Phillips of The Mamas & The Papas (McKenzie's childhood friend and former bandmate in the early '60s), this psychedelic pop tune was intended to promote the Monterey Pop Festival in '67 and went on to become a generational anthem. Later in the 1980s, McKenzie joined a new version of The Mamas & The Papas and toured with John Phillips, Phillips' daughter MacKenzie, and Spanky McFarlane (of Spanky & Our Gang). In 1988, he co-wrote another hit song, "Kokomo," with Phillips, Beach Boy Mike Love, and Terry Melcher, which became a #1 single for The Beach Boys. Although featured last year here during the Flower Power Series, here's different footage of Scott McKenzie in his live performance at the Monterey Pop Festival.  

Farewell, Scott McKenzie. Your beautiful, smooth voice will always be remembered as the sound of a generation.

Soul Men

Soul Music: Part 1
We're back and ready to talk about Soul music! Arising out of the black experience in America in the late '50s and early '60s, 'soul' music was deeply rooted in gospel music (using secular lyrics), as well as in rhythm and blues (R&B). Important features of soul included catchy rhythms (accented by hand claps and improvised body moves), call and responses between soloist and chorus, and a tense vocal sound.
From 1961 through 1981, probably the most successful soul duo was Sam & Dave, featuring the tenor vocals of Sam Moore and baritone/lower tenor vocals of Dave Prater. During the mid-1960s, they were not only one of the greatest live acts, but they were one of the most consistent in their R&B charts successes that included 10 consecutive Top 20 singles and 3 consecutive Top 10 albums. Not only did their crossover chart-appeal aid in the acceptance of soul music by white pop audiences, but their song "Soul Man" helped define the genre, being one of the first songs by a black group to top the charts using the word 'soul.' Released in August of 1967, "Soul Man" is Sam & Dave's biggest and most remembered hit, reaching #1 on the R&B charts, #1 on the Cashbox charts, and #2 on the Billboard chart. Written and produced by Issac Hayes and David Porter, and inspired by the turmoil of the Africa-American Civil Rights Movement, here's the song that earned Sam & Dave the 1968 Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Group Performance.

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One popular soul song of 1966 was "When a Man Loves a Woman," recorded by American R&B/soul performer Percy Sledge. A soulful ballad that is still heard at weddings today, this classic made it to #1 on both Billboard and R&B charts, and has been listed among the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Actually written by Sledge himself, he gave the songwriting credit to Calvin Lewis and Andrew Wright, who played bass and keyboards on the recording. During the recording session, the song had no title or lyrics, and Sledge improvised the lyrics with minimal pre-planning. His performance was so convincing that the studio musicians assumed that he had the words written down. This soulful anthem has been re-recorded by dozens of the other artists, yet remains Sledge's signature song today.

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American soul singer-songwriter/record producer Otis Redding was a major figure in soul/R&B during the 1960s. His open-throated vocals and powerful style of rhythm and blues created the foundation of the Stax Sound (a renowned record label for its Southern soul and Memphis soul music styles; included Sam & Dave), and has been given the honorific name "King of Soul." One of his last big concerts was at the Monterey Pop Festival in June of 1967, where he performed before a primarily white audience. Following the festival, Redding wrote and produced "(Sittin' On) the Dock of the Bay" just three days before his death in a plane crash in December '67. That single was released in January 1968 and became the #1 record on both the pop and R&B charts, as well as the first posthumous #1 single in U.S. chart history. He was only 26 but he is still considered one of the greatest singers of all time. From earlier in '67 while on the Stax Tour in Europe, here's Redding giving a live performance of the classic "Try a Little Tenderness," another considered among the greatest songs of all time.

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We'll conclude today's post with the "Godfather of Soul," American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist James Brown, also known as "The Hardest-Working Man in Show Business." With an extensive career from the late 1950s until his death in 2006, Brown was the originator of the musical style funk, and was a major figure in 20th century pop music for both his vocal and dancing styles. In 1965, he released two signature hits, "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" and "I Got You (I Feel Good)," both of which became his first Top 10 hits, as well as major #1 R&B hits. The following year, "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" won the Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues recording. Here's a high-energy performance with fancy footwork by James Brown, live on the Ed Sullivan Show.

San Francisco

Flower Power: Part 1
Alright, ready or not, we're taking the next month to explore the many sounds of Flower Power! The slogan "flower power" was used by the American counterculture movement during the late 1960s as a symbol of passive peace and non-violence philosophy. Embracing the symbolism, hippies wore colorful clothing with flowers in their hair and passed out flowers to the public. In later years, Flower Power has become a modern reference to the hippie culture including psychedelic music and art. In the late '60s, the Haight Ashbury district in San Francisco, California, was the iconic center of the Flower Power movement, and was the focal point for psychedelic rock music (Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, and Janis Joplin all lived nearby this famous intersection). So today's post will feature Flower Power songs about the historic city of San Francisco.

During the 1967 Summer of Love, the song that brought literally thousands of young people to San Francisco was "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)" by American singer Scott McKenzie. As McKenzie was childhood friends with John Phillips of The Mamas & the Papas, Phillips wrote and co-produced "San Francisco" for McKenzie, and it was released in May of 1967 to promote the Monterey Pop Festival. This psychedelic pop song became an instant hit, reaching #4 on the U.S. charts and #1 throughout most of Europe, selling over 7 million copies worldwide. Here's that infamous San Franciscan song that became an anthem of freedom during this time.

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So up next, we have the British pop group, the Flower Pot Men, who were created as a result of the successful single "Let's Go to San Francisco" in 1967. Written and recorded by songwriters John Carter and Ken Lewis, they had no actual group to promote the song after it became a big hit, and since they had no interest in going on the road themselves, the duo created the group by hand-picking session musicians and vocalists. Sometimes mistaken for The Beach Boys, the group's sound was characterized by their rich, three-part vocal harmony. Their name was partly derived from the BBC children's show also titled Flower Pot Men, and had obvious psychedelic-era puns on Flower Power and, well, "pot." The only Top-10 single for this group, here's the light-hearted, psychedelic pop song "Let's Go to San Francisco."

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Originating in Houston, Texas, Fever Tree was a psychedelic rock band that formed in 1966, and are mainly remembered for their 1968 hit, "San Francisco Girls (Return of the Native)." Written and produced by couple Scott and Vivian Holtzman, this psychedelic rock song was only a minor hit (reaching #91 on the U.S. charts), but it captured the essence of the group's trademark sounds including the searing, fuzz guitar by Michael Knust. Unfortunately, there's no live footage available, but here's a slideshow presentation of Fever Tree's "San Francisco Girls." (Thanks, Uncle Bill, for reminding me about these guys.)

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For the final San Francisco song of the day, we'll conclude with these guys: remember the British Invasion rock band The Animals (with their signature hit here)? Well, after undergoing several personnel changes as well as suffering poor business management, the group disbanded in 1966 and lead singer Eric Burdon formed a new incarnation called Eric Burdon & the Animals (sometimes "the New Animals"). Relocating to San Francisco as a psychedelic band characterized by a heavier, more experimental sound, this new group had its biggest hit with "San Franciscan Nights" released in 1967. Written by Burdon and his bandmates, this tribute to San Francisco reached #1 in Canada, #7 in the UK, and #9 in the U.S., and was a stand against the Vietnam War. Beginning with a brief parody of the Dragnet theme, this psychedelic/progressive rock song seems to pull in as many 1960s themes as possible.

More Californian Sounds

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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

The Association and Other Peeps

American Response: Part 6
In 1961, The Cyrkle was a pop band formed by lead singers Don Dannemann and Tom Dawes while studying at college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Originally a garage rock group called The Rondells, they were later discovered and managed by Brian Epstein (The Beatles' manager) in 1965, renaming them The Cyrkle (John Lennon suggested the unique spelling). In the summer of 1966, the group joined The Beatles on their U.S. tour and performed as one of the opening acts, including The Beatles final concert at Candlestick Park. Earlier that year in April 1966, they had released their biggest hit, "Red Rubber Ball," co-written by Paul Simon (who offered this song to the group while they were on tour with Simon and Garfunkel) and Bruce Woodley (of The Seekers). Reaching #2 on the charts, this classic still receives lots of airplay on the 'oldies' station today, leading listeners to mistake them for another one-hit wonder, although they did have another Top-40 hit. After The Cyrkle disbanded, both Dannemann and Dawes went on to be professional jingle writers, with Dawes writing the famous "plop plop fizz fizz" Alka-Seltzer jingle and Dannemann penning the original 7Up Uncola song.

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Speaking of Simon & Garfunkel, this great American pop/folk duo is no stranger to The '60 Beat. Known for their vocal harmonies, singer-songwriter Paul Simon and singer Art Garfunkel released some of the most popular music in the 1960s and are ranked #40 of the 100 greatest artists of all time by Rolling Stone magazine. Rising to fame with the folk rock movement that grew out of the British Invasion, the group gained further popularity in 1967 when their music was featured in the landmark film The Graduate. An early version of "Mrs. Robinson" appeared several times throughout the movie, while the complete song was recorded and released in 1968 on the album Bookends. The film's producer asked Simon to write three songs for the movie, but by the time it was nearly edited, the group had been too busy touring and Simon had only written one new song. The producer begged for more, so Simon just played him a different song he had been writing that had nothing to do with the movie, "about past times, Mrs. Roosevelt, Joe DiMaggio, and stuff." The director advised Simon, "It's now about Mrs. Robinson, not Mrs. Roosevelt." Here's a live performance of the song that earned the duo a Grammy Award for Record of the Year.

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In 1965, The Association formed in Los Angeles and went on to have several big hits, eventually becoming the lead-off band at the Monterey Pop Festival of 1967. With their music in the sunshine pop genre , they started out playing many gigs all over L.A., but had difficulty getting a record label contract due to their unique sound. After signing with Valiant Records, the group got their national break with the release of "Along Comes Mary" in 1966, followed by a string of hits, however, my absolute favorite song by these guys is "Never My Love," a great tune that hit #1 on the Cashbox chart in 1967. With dual vocals by Terry Kirkman and Larry Ramos, this baroque pop/sunshine pop classic is "laid-back and dreamy, [yet] sleek and sophisticated," and according to BMI (Broadcast Music Incorporated) in 1999, it was the second most-played song on American radio and television of the 20th century. After this song's release, the group become a top concert act in high demand by TV variety shows, specials, and talk shows, eventually performing this hit on about thirteen shows, including The Ed Sullivan Show (shown below). I have yet to tire of this beauty.

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From Union City, Indiana, The McCoys were a rock band that first formed in 1962 by guitarist Richard Zehringer (known as Rick Derringer) and his brother 'Randy Z' on drums. After adding a bassist, saxophonist, and keyboardist to their line-up, The McCoys scored a #1 hit with "Hang On, Sloopy" in October of 1965. It has since become the official rock song of the state of Ohio, the MLB team the Cleveland Indians, and Ohio State University, which carries on the Saturday tradition of playing this song at football games ever since the university marching band blasted this tune in 1965. Penned by songwriters Wes Farrell and Bert Russell, it was named for singer Dorothy Sloop, who used the name "Sloopy" on stage. Originally titled "My Girl Sloopy," this song was first recorded by The Vibrations in 1964, followed by several other groups including The Ventures, The Supremes, The Kingsmen, The Yardbirds, and Jan & Dean, however, The McCoys, with their 16-year-old leader, will always be remembered for making this tune a fun success.

The Heavy Second Wave

British Invasion: Part 9 (Second Wave, 1967-1970)

By 1967, the term 'roll' was generally dropped and the rock style of the 1960s emerged, also marking the end of the Invasion. However, from 1967-1970, the Brits did send off a much smaller 'second wave' of this newer rock sound (however, the official Second Invasion wouldn't take place until the 1980s). As the decade progressed, you can not only hear how much 'heavier' the music gets, but can also see a distinctive change in appearance, and boy, did hair get long! So hang on, we've got a whopping seven groups in this post!

First up, Cream was a British rock supergroup with bassist Jack Bruce on lead vocals, the bluesy guitarist/vocalist Eric Clapton (of The Yardbirds), and jazz-influenced drummer Ginger Baker, who created a hybrid of blues rock, hard rock, and psychedelic rock. They were the world's first notable and successful supergroup, selling over 35 million records in just the short two years that they were together. From their third album Wheels on Fire (the world's first platinum-selling double album), "White Room" was released as a single in September 1968, reaching #6 on the US charts and later becoming another among the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Recorded using an eight-track tape recorder (rare at the time), Clapton makes great use of the wah -wah pedal guitar effect on this classic psychedelic tune, a style he learned from fellow guitarist Jimi Hendrix. Here's live footage from their Farewell Performance in 1968.

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Joe Cocker was an English rock/blues musician known for his gritty voice and is ranked among the 100 greatest singers of all time. In 1968, he gained his biggest success with a radical re-arranged version of The Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends," which features a longer introduction, is in a slower, 6/8 meter, and uses different chords in the middle section. Reaching #1 on the British singles charts, this songs is considered one of the greatest music covers of all time, and is sometimes referred to as "The Wonder Years" song as it was the theme for that American TV series from the late 1980s. The Beatles were so impressed with this version that they gave Cocker permission to sing some of their other songs including "She Came in Through the Bathroom Window" and "Something." In the recording, Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin played the guitar lines.

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Speaking of Led Zeppelin, they were another English rock group that formed in 1968 and are considered as influential to rock music of the 1970s as The Beatles were to the '60s. With a heavy, bluesy guitar-driven sound, they are founding fathers of heavy metal and hard rock, however, about a third of their music is acoustic and they drew from several other styles including Celtic, Eastern Indian, and folk music. Some sources say they have sold over 300 million records, making them one of the world's best-selling artists of all time. Consisting of guitarist Jimmy Page (of The Yardbirds), singer Robert Plant, drummer John Bonham, and bassist John Paul Jones, they were probably the biggest band of the 1970s. However, here they are early in their career in the late 1960s performing "How Many More Times." Definitely no "Stairway to Heaven" (1971), but interesting to see their beginnings.

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In 1967, the English rock group Traffic was formed by Steve Winwood (from The Spencer Davis Group), Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood, and Dave Mason, whose first singles were influenced by The Beatles. Initially starting out as a psychedelic rock group, they expanded their sound with the use of keyboards like the Mellotron, reed instruments, and included jazz and improv techniques in their music. Released in August 1967, the psychedelic pop classic "Hole in My Shoe" was written by guitarist Dave Mason (one of the chief songwriters with Winwood) and with its "Beatles-esque" sound, reached #2 on the UK charts. The little monologue in the middle was spoken by the stepdaughter of the boss of their record label, a simple effect, along with the sitar, that were typically traits of psychedelic music.

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Like Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple was another English rock group from 1968 that are also considered pioneers of modern hard rock and heavy metal. Once listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for being "the loudest pop group," these guys are ranked among the greatest artists of hard rock and have sold over 100 million records worldwide. They have had many different personnel line-ups over the years and are still touring to this day. Their breakout success started with their first hit single "Hush," released in June 1968, reaching #4 on the US charts (though was overlooked in the UK). This song was originally performed by Billy Joe Royal (known for "Down in the Boondocks"), however, Deep Purple's hard rock version became better known and is still remembered today. Definitely a classic, however, I'm not a fan of the band's attire here.

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One of the most commercially successful and influential rock bands of all time was Pink Floyd, selling over 200 million albums worldwide. With their progressive and psychedelic rock music, they were known for their philosophical lyrics, audio experimentation, innovative album art, and their ornate live shows. Founded in 1965 by college students Roger Waters, Nick Mason, Richard Wright, and Syd Barrett, they got their start playing in London's underground club scene, and released their first single, "Arnold Layne," in spring of 1967. This psychedelic pop song was written by original frontman Syd Barrett, however, due to his unstable mental health, he was soon replaced by guitarist David Gilmour who was a part of the lineup when the band achieved worldwide critical success with albums in the 1970s such The Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall. Once again, it's interesting to hear the early sound of these mega groups-to-be in the 1960s.

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At last, we've reached the final group of the day: The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Okay, I know we're talked a little about guitar-wizard Jimi Hendrix before and we all clearly know that he was American, however, this "power trio" included Brits, bassist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell, and originally formed in London. Not only influential to the development of hard rock and heavy metal, The Experience will always be known for the skill, style, and charisma of one of the greatest guitarists of all time as their frontman. The group came to prominence in the US after the infamous performance at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 where Hendrix set his guitar on fire. After seeing the Festival, The Monkees actually asked The Experience to go on tour with them as their opening act (definitely a mismatch!), but Hendrix and the guys only lasted a few concerts before they couldn't stand the 'boos' from the unappreciative teenage audience. Released as their first single in December 1966 (in the UK), the band's blues-rock version of "Hey Joe" failed to chart in the US, however has since become one of those 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and remains the most well-known version of this song.

For What It's Worth

Folk Rock Week: Part 2
Deeper into the roots and legacy of folk rock, the amount of subgenres that have formed out of the initial genre of the 1960's is impressive. Some of these subgenres include Celtic rock, electric folk, folk metal, folk punk, Medieval folk rock, psychedelic folk, Indie folk, and so on. Realizing that going into any further detail about these could take all day, I'm just going to jump back into the classic folk rock of the 1960's.

Released as a single in January 1967, "For What It's Worth" is a great folk rock song by the American group Buffalo Springfield, and is another classic tune listed in Rolling Stones' 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Although the band only lasted for about two years, Buffalo Springfield was the springboard for the future careers of its members, Neil Young and Stephen Stills (both in Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young), and Richie Furay and Jim Messina (in Poco). During the turbulent times of the Vietnam War, this song quickly became known as a protest-song, however, its writer, Stephen Stills, wrote it as a reaction to the riots of the young club-goers on Hollywood's Sunset Strip at that time (the same inspiration for The Monkees' "Daily Nightly"), e.i. "Stop, children, what's that sound?" As introduced by Peter Tork (Stills' roommate!), this is Buffalo Springfield's live performance at the Monterey Pop Festival in May 1967. EDITED 1/23/12: Rats, this video has been removed from YouTube, yet again! Here's a different performance from the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in 1967:


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Known as the "quintessential folk rock release," the American folk duo, Simon and Garfunkel, was propelled into 1960's popularity with "The Sound of Silence" from September 1965. Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were close childhood friends from Queens, New York, and first found their success as a singing duo in the Greenwich Village folk music scene (along with musicians Stephen Stills and Peter Tork). Written by Paul Simon in the aftermath of President Kennedy's assassination, it was originally recorded in 1964 with just the acoustic guitar and the haunting vocal harmonies of Simon and Garfunkel, but it wasn't until months later, after hearing the release of Bob Dylan's "Like A Rolling Stone," an electric rock band was overdubbed to create the song's new folk rock sound. Also included in that list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, here's another wonderful live performance "The Sound of Silence" from that same Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

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Next up is yet another group that has their founding roots in New York's Greenwich Village folk music scene as well before moving to L.A. (definitely the place to be for the folkies in the 1960's!). Written by John and Michelle Phillips of The Mamas and The Papas, their 1967 autobiographical, folk rock hit, "Creeque Alley," describes the story of how the group formed. The song's lyrics directly mentions several musicians who were at the music scene with them, including the group's own Cass Elliot and lead singer Denny Doherty (formerly of The Mugwumps), plus John Sebastian and Zal Yanovsky (of The Lovin' Spoonful), Jim McGuinn (of The Byrds), and Barry McGuire (known for the song "Eve of Destruction"). Now hearing this song with these musicians' names in mind will make a lot more sense! Although the group had generally "left the folk music behind" by the mid-60's, this is a fun homage to the roots of the beloved vocal group.

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In the late 1960's, Scottish folk singer-songwriter Donovan (Leitch) was influential in the development of Celtic rock, one of those subgenres of folk rock that combines traditional Celtic instruments, as well as traditional vocal styles, in a rock band setting. In about 1968, the initially folk rock Donovan stripped his sound back from his pop and psychedelic explorations, dubbing this new sound Celtic rock. Based on a poem by author Lewis Caroll (Alice in Wonderland), "Jabberwocky" comes from his children's album HMS Donovan, and it is a wonderful, haunting gem from this genre.



Alright, so I've branched out a bit with a subgenre of folk rock, but more classic folk rock tunes are already queued up for the next post!