In Dan’s Garage…#84

Hello again everybody. As winter here in the northern hemisphere winds down, we look forward to springtime and the warmer weather that comes with it, but I can’t really say that this winter was horrible, although it did have it’s moments. Last week it was that kind of cold that cuts right through you and I have had about enough thank you, and guess what?? It’s still snowing! But be patient my friends, spring is right around the corner and all will be well and right again and I can go ahead and wear sandals outdoors (no socks please). Enough blabber, lets get on with it. This is a rather eclectic batch with a myriad of styles represented including one that may date from as late as 1985, so as the late great Jackie Gleason would say...”and awaaaay we go!”.

Carroll Bros. – Bo Diddley / Slippin’ And Slidin’ (1962) These songs were taken from their “College Twist Party” LP from 1962 which featured a whole bunch of frat rock goodies (except “Louie Louie”). From Philadelphia, PA.

Avengers – The Kiss I Never Had / Your Picture (1964) Another group from Philly that had one other 45. A side is a mid-tempo guy/girl thing, and the B side is typical teen rock & roll with a garage backing.

Outsiders – What Makes You So Bad You Weren’t Brought Up That Way (1966) Wow. That’s a mouthful. You figure these guys would shorten the title of this song to save some ink, but I think it might have been a gag to piss off Capitol Records execs for making them put the schmaltzy “Girl In Love” on the A side. This on the other hand is a cool, tough sounding rocker with a thumping bass line and some kooky lyrics like, “don’t talk to me like that, I’ll hit you in the head”. You can’t get away with stuff like that nowadays…..

Five Americans – Don’t Blame Me / Evol, Not Love (1966) I had to feature the B side of this record first because it’s so much better than “Evol, Not Love”. A great sinister sounding punker with neat stabs of guitar and a scary, sputtering Farfisa organ. Way cool.

No-Mads – Liverpool Lover / Breaking Free (196?) Supposedly from Braintree, MA but I really can’t confirm that. Frantic garage/punk with organ and piano.

Michael & The Medallions – I Wanna Talk To You / Better Forget Her (1966) An obscure group that had this same 45 released on the Apollo label as “Al” Michael & The Medallions. I’m not sure where these guys are from. They may be from Louisiana, because Apollo was a label based there, or from somewhere down south near Nashville` where Bragg records was located. In any case, this 45 is an extremely cool two sider with some excellent jangly 12 string guitar throughout.

Cops ‘N Robbers – There’s Got To Be A Reason / St. James Infirmary (1966) I love this 45! Classic mid 60s British R&B, slow and menacing. I remember in the early days when I would raid Fat Chuck’s stockpile of 45s, I was there with a couple of friends and we came upon a box that had about a DOZEN of these 45s! I picked only one because at that time my dollars had to be budgeted out for “better” records, but I wish I could turn back the hands of time because I would have grabbed a fist-full of these. Everyone I know has a copy of this courtesy of Chuck. Ahhhhhh….those good old days of record finds!

J.J. Cale – Outside Lookin’ In / In Our Time (1966) OK. Most of you know J.J. Cale as the guy who wrote “Cocaine” and is revered amongst lovers of “Americana”. Back in the mid sixties though, he was a struggling songwriter/performer from Oklahoma who travelled west and laid down a few tracks including this one from ‘66. Not exactly garage or psyche, but a very good song nonetheless.

Last Word – Mo’reen / Runnin’ And Hidin’ (1968) A NYC area group (I think) that had a few 45s and an LP most pretty good. A decent Paul Revere & The Raiders cover is on the A side here, and the flip is a fuzzy hard psyche number.

Beeds – Run To Her / You Don’t Have To (1968) Not exactly a typical Kasenetz-Katz Bubblegum affair in my opinion. The A side is a finely crafted pop/psyche tune that’s actually head and shoulders above the rest of K&K’s “bubblegummy” output.

Equals – My Life Ain’t Easy / You Got Too Many Boyfriends (1967) A really nice freakbeat number with a groove that won’t quit from the same guys who had a big hit with “Baby Come Back”.

Jerms – Not At All / Who’s (1968) A Topeka, Kansas group that covered many bases from the raw garage of “Since You Went Away” (available on the “Monsters Of The Midwest series if you can find a copy) to the mod soul of “Nobody”. This one from 1968 falls somewhere in between the two styles.

Tommy & The True Blue Facts – I’m Back / Who’s Got The Right (1968) Tommy Faia was a singer guitarist from LA who released this interesting “anti drug” song in ‘68, and although it’s predominantly “acoustic”, it does have a nice hard driving sound to it so I think it merits inclusion here. You can read more about Tommy HERE.

Z.Z. Top – Salt Lick / Miller’s Farm (1969) Whoa!!!! What the hell is ZZ Top doing in this blog?????? To be perfectly honest, I like ZZ Top, especially their early material before they descended into bearded MTV buffoonery, and you gotta admit they have remained consistent delivering their formula of blues and boogie over 40+ years, but this 45 was recorded before Dusty Hill and Frank Beard joined when it was Billy Gibbons, Lanier Grieg on keyboards, and Dan Mitchell on drums. According to Grieg, he played bass parts on a B-3 organ and Gibbons overdubbed electric bass over it. The results are quite extraordinary as you hear the genesis of their boogie vibe, but the eerie organ gives it a spacey, almost psychedelic feel to it. It was initially released on the local Scat label out of Houston, and later they managed to cut a deal with London after Hill and Beard joined, so I’d assume that this was all they had for recordings at the time they signed their contract. They came out with the “1st Album” a short time later and the rest is history.

Wethead Band – Clean Water (1985) I threw this one on here because I always thought it was a late sixties or at least early seventies effort, given the sound of it and the cheesy looking label and all. Apparently they were from the Hudson Valley area of NY and released it in 1985. Go figure………

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