In Dan's Garage...#127

Greetings Music lovers!!!! I hope everyone out there had a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday season this year! The new year is creeping on us and I wanted to get a post in before the end of 2017, and since I had some spare time, I figured I'd let 'er rip. Not much to say today except that all is well, and it looks like after two or three years of being out of the loop, The True Believers are going to start working and playing out again after a rather spirited show we played on the 22nd of December in honor of Jerry's (our bass player) 60th birthday. YIKES!!! Are we that old??? Nah. I don't feel a day over 57. Seriously though, we had a good time and it inspired me to start getting back in the mix. As far as this post goes, I'm featuring a bunch of stuff I've acquired recently, and some of it is pretty beat up, so bear with the pops and crackles. Happy New Year everyone!!!!

Premiers - Farmer John / Duffy's Blues (1964)

A bona fide classic! Unlike the more famous Warner Bros. version with the "Kosher Pickle Harry" intro (which wasn't real by the way...), this one has no intro but still has the canned live crowd noise. 

Tejuns - Girl / Nobody Knows (1964)

Heres a real obscure one by a group out of Baltimore, MD. Although it's from '64, the band is still firmly stuck in greaser territory with the song style and the vocals, but you can't help but dig the rough and tumble lo-fi delivery of the band. Great guitar work on both sides of this, and by the way, what's cooler than having your band put a record out on "100-Proof" records????? 

Toronados - Hey! Baby / Next Stop, Kansas City (1966)

Speaking of greasers, these guys do a sort of garage/do-wop take on the old Bruce Channel nugget and do a fairly decent job at it. The B side is a cool instro.

Chariots - Tiger In The Tank / Open House (1964)

Here's an instrumental two sider by what I'm pretyy sure is a studio group. It seems that P. Greco and R. Salazar did other work for R.S.V.P. records, so they most likely got in the studio and slapped together this 45 which is a cool mix of surf, hot rod, and tiger noises.

Gamblers - Cry Me A River / Who Will Buy (1967)

These Gamblers were from the U.K. and were Billy Fury's backing group on a number of his 45s. They released this terrific mod/soul version of the Julie London classic in '67 backed with a great moody minor-key flip.

Shillings - Yesterday's Dawn / Just Like A Girl (1966)

Not to be confused with the Shillings of Allentown, PA, this group from Dayton, OH released two 45s on this label. I haven't heard the other one, but this here is a REAL  moody lo-fi affair that's kinda tough to listen to through all the pops and crackles.

Shapes Of Things - So Mystifying (1966)

Ace cover of The Kinks' "So Mystifying" performed by a studio group led by Warren Schatz who was a prolific producer, arranger and songwriter. He also went by the name Richie Dean, The Whispers, The Warmest Spring, plus several others. 

Zephyrs - Wonder What I'm Gonna Do / Let Me Love You Baby (1965)

The Zephyrs were a pretty good beat group from the U.K. that released two 45s in the U.S. and six in Britain. They weren't overly flashy sounding or as intense as say Them or The Animals, but decent nonetheless. The most notable thing about this 45 is that it was produced by Shel Talmy right around the same time he was working with The Who and The Kinks. Interesting.....

Johnny Winter - Gone For Bad / I Won't Believe It (1965)

One of a slew of 45s Johnny Winter would release before he became a big time guitar hero in the late sixties on onward. He obviously was talented even at this early stage in his career, although his songs were definitely geared more towards the teener crowd than hardcore blues enthusiasts. 

GT's - Farewell Faithless Farewell / Bad Girl (1966)

Here's one of those kinds of 45s that you really wish you knew more about, but getting info from google is like pulling teeth from an alligator, although to be fair, there probably isn't much info out there anyway. What I little info I did get places these guys somewhere in Ohio, just exactly where is anyone's guess. This is another real lo-fi affair, but fortunately not quite as scratchy. Yay.

Tony's Tigers - Little By Little / Days And Nights (1968)

Very "nice" pop two sider from a group out of Wisconsin. This was originally released locally on Teen Town records and became a good sized regional hit, and was then picked up by A&M records for national distribution.

Status Cymbal - Takin' My Time / Blang Dang (Yesterday And Tomorrow) (1967)

More "nice" sunshiny pop music from a vocal trio who from what I can gather, were from either Florida or Georgia. In any case, they were produced by Felton Jarvis who was a country whiz for RCA as well as producing a whole bunch of other pop and rock 45s that were recorded in Nashville. Note the heavy use of fake sitar on this record presumably to make it sound "extra groovy"!

Solid Soul - I've Been Hurt / The Price Of Loving You (1969)

A lot of 45s from the 60's that came out of the south and mid west were straight up blue eyed soul recordings and this one's a perfect example. The Solid Soul were, for lack of better words, a solid soul band. This defining characteristic of these types of groups was their penchant for mixing deep soul music with a garage band type delivery.

Bodine - Keep Looking Through My Window / Easy To See (1969)

A late sixties release by a Pacific Northwest quartet that was formed by former members of The Daily Flash, The Kingsmen, And The Fantastic Zoo. Not exactly "psychedelic" but a good mix of rock and funky soul.

Ricki & The Alternates - Buy A Dog / Oh My Dearest Heart (1974)

In the universe of of the record collecting "hobby", there are all kinds of records. Rock, Jazz, Soul, Country, and all of the sub-genres associated with those styles of music. I myself have hitched my wagon to what has been  described loosely as the "garage/psyche" sub-genre. I'm sure a lot of you out there have looked up this blog thinking you'll get my take on the latest KILLER FIND IN SERIOUS GARAGE RECORD COLLECTING AND I MEAN IT'S GONNA BE WORTH AT LEAST FOUR FIGURES AND THERES ONLY 1 COPY KNOWN TO EXIST IN THE ENTIRE SOLAR SYSTEM AND IT'S GONNA BE WORTH AT LEAST FOUR FIGURES (in U.S.dollar amounts) AND EVERYONE WILL BOW DOWN TO ME AS BEING THE GREATEST CRATE DIGGER IN THE KNOWN WORLD! Only to find that I'm just posting what's in my rather modest collection of records, and I do say with all my heart, that it is modest to say the least. I just like finding stuff, and there's a lot of stuff out there yet to be found. In my recent experience as a "garage/psyche" collector I've come across lots of records that were falsely advertised as "garage" 45s only to be extremely disappointed when the package came in the mail, opened it up and plopped the needle on the turntable, only to discover it's some band that sounds like Chicago or Blood, Sweat & Tears. Some of these I've actually have grown to like mainly because they're quirky or outside of the defined "sub-genre". Lately I've come across quite a few records that were recorded and released well into the seventies by local acts that ventured into a studio thinking they may be the next big thing only to lay down what we records collectors define as a "garage band record". Well...this happens to be one of them. I actually paid over $10.00 for this thing as I got sucked into the bidding process thinking I might miss something here. I'm glad I got it because this has got to be one of the more bizarre 45s in my collection. I'm not sure if this is a "song poem" 45 or what, I mean, it's on a pretty obscure label out of Ohio (It was pressed by Rite Records in Cincinnati) so there's probably no organization behind it, but I could be wrong. It's perhaps one of the most lo-fi things I've ever heard, in an era when recording studios and the groups that recorded in them were looking for cutting edge sounds, and songs to go with the advanced technology. I don't know what studio this was recorded in but it probably was someones basement, or maybe garage????  But just revel in the whacked out kookyness of this record. Hey, if you need a friend, just "buy a dog" right?????

HERE

In Dan's Garage...#126

Greetings music lovers!!! It's great to be here again with another offering for all of you. The last three months have been pretty hectic with a big wedding and a nice little getaway to Jamaica at the beginning of this month. All went well, and having some much needed r&r was a big bonus.  Another big bonus is the euphoria I'm feeling right now as my beloved New York Giants finally won their second game of the season after looking positively atrocious the last four or five games (or maybe it was six I really lost count). In any case their season is lost but a win is a win, I guess.

I hope all of you are checking out the "Dan's Garage" radio show which airs every Wednesday & Sunday.  It airs at 10:00 PM EDT on Wednesday @ Radio Free Phoenix and at 2:00 PM EDT on Sundays @ Deep Oldies.

Records are really piling up over here at Dan's Garage Central, so if anyone is wondering whether I'll run out of steam here, I ain't gonna happen in the foreseeable future because 

my turntable is fired up, my needles are sharp and we are loaded for bear!! YEEEHAAA!!!! Seriously though, I've noticed the price of decent stuff on Ebay has ballooned in the last year and I think there are a handful of relatively wealthy collectors out there snatching up anything they can and bidding top dollar for what used to be, or at least what I thought used to be somewhat cheap items. Things that usually sold in the under $10 range are fetching upwards of $30. I won't get specific because there are so many examples but these are the hazards of collecting vinyl. I do get lucky here and there and I pick my spots, but I think it's time to start heading for record shows again and stopping at every garage sale next spring and summer. (Hey! You got any records or musical instruments???)

Some random thoughts.....

I've been listening to a lot of Country music lately. Not the garbage that you hear on the radio these days like Florida/Georgia Line, or Kenny Chesney, or Jason Aldean, or whatever. But the real stuff. Buck Owens, Hank Snow, Hank Williams, Kitty Wells, Connie Smith, Merle Haggard, Red Sovine, and my personal favorite of late, Porter Waggoner. There's a cable station we get called "Rural TV", and they show real farmer type stuff like the weather for growing corn and wheat with one of those ticker things at the bottom of the screen showing what hogs and cows are going for on the commodity markets and things like that. They show Hee Haw once I week, but my DVR is firmly set to record "The Porter Waggoner Show" which airs every Friday night. I remember this program when I was much younger as it aired every Saturday somewhere around 7PM probably just opposite of The Lawrence Welk show,and I distinctly remember Porter's big slicked back hair, and those cool Nudie suits that he and "The Wagon Masters" used to wear. I tell you what, those are some of the finest pickers ever to grace yer TV set, and let's not ferget ol' Dolly Parton in her younger days, with that bouffant hair-do and the gold boots. Yeah, she was a real looker back then and she could sing her ass off. YEEEE HAAA!!!! Speaking of TV, since there's so much garbage polluting our air waves these days, it's real hard to find something good to watch. I have two of the more popular streaming TV services (I won't name them because I don't want to give them any free advertising) and they have some cool stuff available, but I consistently find myself clicking the remote to MeTV, a station out of Chicago that shows really decent retro TV programs every day. Among the great shows are re-runs of Leave It To Beaver, Batman, Star Trek, Petticoat Junction, The Honeymooners, The Untouchables, The Wild Wild West (one of my personal faves), Svengoolie, a kooky horror movie host that shows a good flick every Saturday night, and one of my new obsessions "Highway Patrol". 

Highway Patrol was a half hour show from the late 50's that was similar to "Dragnet", that starred Broderick Crawford as "Dan Matthews" the curmudgeoney head of the highway patrol that we'd assume to be California, but they never really say what state they're the highway patrol of. Unlike Dragnet, where you always kind of root for Joe Friday and Bill Gannon to get their "man", usually some sad sack or drugged out hippie, in Highway Patrol I find myself rooting for the bad guy mainly because Mathews is such a dick. I constantly find myself rewinding the show because Broderick Crawford talks so fast and slurs his speech so much, that I can't understand what he's saying half the time. He reportedly was drunk most of the time to the point where they wouldn't let the guy drive on the set. If you get a chance to see this show, please do. It's a hoot. I'm pretty sure episodes are available on You Tube.

OK, now that I got that off my chest, we can go on to this post which, as usual, is a veritable cornucopia of cool sounds from the early sixties through the early seventies. I wanted to get this one out before the Thanksgiving holiday and I hope to have another one on the way before Christmas. So on behalf of me and all the staff here at Dan's Garage...HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! See you soon!

Paul Stefan & The Royal Lancers - I Fought The Law / Say Mama (1963)

This group from Milwaukee was one the first to cover this Crickets tune, about a year or so before Bobby Fuller released his version on Exeter records, and a good 2+ years before The Bobby Fuller Four had a huge hit wit it in 1965. This apparently was somewhat of a minor hit in the region. It's a decent version with some cool guitar work, but lacks the punch of Fuller's hit.

Shindogs - Who Do You Think You Are / Yes, I'm Going Home (1966)

The Shindogs were the house band for the show "Shindig!" which aired on ABC from 1964 to 1966. This 45 features a young Delaney Bramlett on vocals (I presume) as well as the cream of the "Wrecking Crew" crop like Glen Campbell, James Burton, Larry Knechtel, and of course Leon Russel producing the whole shindig. No pun intended........

Strangeloves - Quarter To Three / Just The Way You Are (1967)

Their last release on Bang, this is a good two sider and a pretty spirited version of "Quarter To Three" (which is actually the 'B' side). The flip is basically a rework of "I Want Candy".

Ian & The Zodiacs - Why Can't It Be Me / Leave It To Me (1965)

Here I go again featuring the 'B' side again, but in this case, "Why Can't It Be Me" is clearly the superior song, and definitely their best IMHO. They would release a couple more 45s into 1966 and then call it quits.

Frugal Sound - Norwegian Wood / Cruel To Be Kind (1966)

Basically a folk group much like The Seekers and The Silke, The Frugal Sound released five 45's in the UK but managed to only get this one released in the US, a folky rendition of The Beatles' classic.

Raftsmen - Hands I Love / Haunted House (1966)

Another folk group, this time from Canada. This is a somewhat poppy affair where they cover a Gordon Lightfoot song on the 'A' side. Not bad.

Central Nervous System - It Takes All Kinds / I'm Still Hung Up On You (1967)

Trying to get some concrete info on this group turned up a dead end on the web, but this is a really good garage/psych two sider with some nifty organ work.

Belfast Gipsies - People, Lets Freak Out / Portland Town (1966)

The second of two 45's they would release in the US. I'll avoid the rather complicated history of this group and their ties to"Them", by just saying that both of their records are really freaking good and should be sought out. "People" is a frenzied take on the "Bo Diddley" beat and "Portland Town" is a great melancholy folk rocker. A+ all the way.

Id - The Rake / Wild Times (1967)

The follow up to the classic "Boil The Kettle Mother" and it does not disappoint. "The Rake" has some great guitars with a cool start/stop tempo and the flip is very good as well. This group's guitarist was Jerry Cole who was also in The Champs. From San Diego, CA.

Heywoods - My Days Are Numbered / Season Of The Witch (1968)

The 'A' side of this 45 is a good cover of an Al Kooper song and the 'B' side is a very good version of Donovan's "Season Of The Witch". The Heywoods were a very popular act in Cincinnati, OH where they released several 45's locally, then they got picked up by ABC records, changed their name to "Bo Donaldson & The Heywoods", and had a huge AM radio hit in 1974 with "Billy Don't Be A Hero". I was in 8th grade at the time and remember it well......

Brian - The Girl Who Plays The Bass Guitar / Half Hearted (1969)

I'm not exactly sure who "Brian" was, but apparently he was pretty popular in Belgium because he released about nine different 45's and from what I gather (because I've never heard the others), they were in mostly beat/pop style. This is clearly a pop record, but it's not too shabby and the jacket is kinda cool as well as it also included sheet music for both songs!

Fugi - Mary, Don't Take Me On No Bad Trip / Mary-Trip Two (1969)

Fugi was actually singer songwriter Ellington Jordan, a guy who co-wrote Etta James' "Id Rather Go Blind". He teamed up with Detroit funk group Black Merda for this 45, a really cool blend of funk, soul, and psychedelia.

Bubble Puppy - What Do You See / Hurry Sundown (1970)

The last 45 released by these Texas legends before they changed their name to "Demian" and released an LP and one 45 on ABC records.

Brimstone - Visions Of Autumn / Home Coming (1973)

Here's a 45 that definitely ventures into "prog rock" territory with a predominant synth in the foreground, BUT, I really like the melodies and vocal harmonies on both sides of this 45 and if you eliminate the somewhat annoying synthesizer part, it's a very good if not excellent pop/psych record. These guys were from Canton, OH and had one other 45 but I've never heard it.

HERE

In Dan's Garage...#125

   Holy Moly. You know how long I've been working on this post???? All summer. It's not that I'm lazy mind you, it's simply because I have such little spare time on my hands. I'm not complaining here, I mean, I prefer being busy, but as I approach my "golden years" (I turned 57 on August 27th), I'm contemplating retirement which would mean that every day would be a Saturday. That's as great a concept as Gary U.S. Bonds singing about a "Seven Day Weekend". I'm actually blowing off installing venetian blinds in my GARAGE to write this post. That may not go very well with my lovely wife "Red", but since I'm blowing off work for a couple of days I figure I'd finish this post and scratch it off my "to do" list. Besides, a bunch of guys are showing up in less than a half hour to re-seal my driveway which makes all outdoor work impossible, for today anyway. Home ownership is the BEST! (FYI Installed them while taking a breather from writing this! WOO HOO!!)

    Someone left a comment several weeks back wondering if I "ran out of records". Well it's quite the opposite. Here's a picture I took about that time when I was searching for an incredibly valuable 45 that I misplaced....

    This is just a small example of what I'm dealing with over here at Dan's Garage central. What you're looking at are all my boxes of "old" records. I went to an establishment here in downtown Rochester called "Bags Unlimited" (they specialize in materials for collectors) last week and bought ten more boxes and quickly filled them up with what I consider "new" stock. That's a LOT of records and I figure at this slow pace, I'll be writing this blog for the next thirty years. That doesn't include all the L.P.'s that I have, but since this blog is solely dedicated to the 45 RPM record, we'll disregard them. For now....

Which brings me to the subject of a format change. Because time is so precious these days, and because it literally takes me 8+ hours to make a post from start to finish, I was thinking of posting a 45 or two at a time with down-loadable links. This would make these posts more frequent, and they also would be more free-form as far as genres are concerned (I've obtained a lot of oddball shit that defies categorization over the past few years). Let me know what you think. In the meantime I'm trying to re-up all dead links and this will take LOTS of time so be patient.

    As usual I grabbed a fistful of 45's, ripped 'em, and now I'm passing them off to you, my friends and followers. If you've listened to the "Dan's Garage" radio show, you undoubtedly heard these tracks already, but if you haven't, I'm sure you'll enjoy these as much as I do!

Dee & The Yeomen - You Should Know It / Say Baby (Who Am I) (1963)

Dee & The Yeomen were fronted by Graham "Dee" Dunnet who was an Englishman who played alongside acts like The Beatles and Gerry & The Pacemakers when they were doing time in Hamburg. Fast forward to 1963 where Dee settled in Canada to become one of that country's most beloved acts in the early 60's. This is their first 45 a nice piece of beat/pop with a definite British Invasion flair to it.

2 Of Clubs - Heart / My First Heartbreak (1966)

The 2 of Clubs were from Cincinnati, OH and had a big regional hit with "Walk Tall Like A Man" in '66. This was actually their first 45, a great re-work of Petula Clark's "Heart", which actually rivals the Remains' version.

Blues Project - Back Door Man / Violets Of Dawn (1965)

 The Blues Project's first 45 finds them doing what they do best. A little bit of blues, and a little bit of folk-rock. Tommy Flanders sang lead on these tracks (I believe) and left the band soon thereafter.

Five Sounds - Loadin' Coal / Baby Please Don't Cry (1965)

All I can gather from investigating this bunch is that they were from Nova Scotia up in Canada and released two 45s on Epic, both outstanding garage rockers with excellent production.

Sheppards - Poor Man's Thing / When Johnny Comes Marching Home (1966)

Certainly one of the best girl "put down" songs of all time. The Sheppards were from Detroit and released this one killer snotty 45. Even their version of "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" kicks serious ass.

TR-4 - Never Too Young / Let It Be Known (1966)

The A side of this here 45 is a pretty routine frat/surf/teen/garage tune, not bad, but nothing that stands out either. These guys must've listened to a lot of Stones records before they hit the studio because the flip is an ace snotty slo-tempo garage punker heavily influenced by "Time Is On My Side".

Tropics - You Better Move / It's You I Miss (1966)

You all know that I generally don't deal with re-issues or boots on this blog. Not that I'm against them at all, it's just that they're too freakin' expensive (IMHO) and I prefer to search out originals if possible and when they fit my ever so tight budget, which these days is pretty rare given the scratch that's being thrown around for originals like this heavy hitter. Even though it came out on a major label, an original like this fetches well into three figures.

Steve Blood - The New Young American / I'm Off To See The World (1965) 

An interesting 45 by a studio group that mixes a bunch of social commentary with some pop culture thrown in for good measure.

Ballantraes - Action (Speaks Louder Than Words) / Baby Jane (1967)

Here's a band from the Tennessee area that released two different 45s, this one twice on different labels. Good blue eyed soul mixed with some garagey vocals make for a good mover.

Floyd & Jerry - Dusty / If You Want Me (1967)

The second last 45 this duo from Phoenix, AZ would release on Presta records. They had two more on Double Shot and then these two brothers went their separate ways before releasing one more 45 in 1981, but I'm not too sure what that one sounds like....

Peter's Pipers - Groovy Weekend / Helping You Out (1968)

Great garage/pop two sider from Pittsburgh, PA.

Jigsaw Band - I Need Your Love / I've Got To Get Me Some (1968)

I'm not sure if this is the same British group that simply called themselves "Jigsaw" that had some success in the late 60s into the 70s. The A side was written by Manfred Mann drummer Mike Hugg and was featured in the film "Up The Junction" although the version from the film is quite different than this one. It sounds like these guys were heavily influenced by The Beatles' "All You Need Is Love" and "Penny Lane" as the arrangement of the song bears this out. It is a very nice piece of psych/pop nonetheless.

Cycles Of Sound - Questions (On My Mind) / The Black And The Blues (19??)

This is one of those 45s that I get that is clearly from the 70s (although I have no way of verifying that), yet sounds like a bunch of guys stuck in the sixties. The great cheezy organ really makes this 45 stand out even though the songs are somewhat weak.

Spektr'm - For You / What Do I Do (What Do I Say) (19??)

Here's another one just like the above 45. You know it's from the 70s (although I can't verify that) but it certainly has quite a bit of "garage mojo" going on with it.


HERE

In Dan's Garage...#124

Greetings music lovers!!! I'm so glad to be here writing this post today, as it is great therapy for me, spinning 45's, and making astute comments about each of them. It's great to be back. The past three months have been somewhat crazy dealing with several personal problems, and some truly whacked out weather, thats been plaguing this area of New York as of late. The personal issues I can iron out and they go away (mostly), but there isn't a damn thing I can do about mother nature but deal with it. I must admit, I don't live in the worst climate, I mean, people that have to deal with hurricanes and tornadoes, mudslides, and earthquakes have it much worse, but I gotta tell ya, this late winter/early spring has been a doozy. What was a rather mild winter was capped off with a bizarre "wind storm" in the first week of March. The difference between a "wind storm" and a hurricane is that we didn't get any rain or surges from the lake. In fact the day that this thing hit, it was sunny and well into the 60s and that's tropical for these parts at the beginning of March. What transpired was a six hour 80 MPH wind gust that knocked down trees, and hundreds of power lines across the county, so naturally we were left without any power. For five days. That compounded by the fact that the temperature by the end of the week dipped into the single digits, made this a minor crisis for us. Luckily we got a hold of a couple of generators to keep the fridge, the freezer, and the sump pump working. The next week was great as well. We finally got a huge snowstorm and it dumped a nice fresh 28 inches on us in two days. Now were dealing with constant rainfall and the poor people up by the lake are losing everything because the lake levels are so high and their property is just being eroded away, and it's not getting any better for them. Fortunately all I suffered was some seepage in my basement that messed up some of the paneling. Such is life in beautiful suburban Rochester, NY!

Enough of that stuff though. I've been trying to re-up all the dead links on the blog but this is a long process mind you, because I have well over a hundred links that need to be taken care of. I'm going to try to fix as many as possible as soon as possible. Right now vols. 1 - 5 are up and running and I'm working on the rest. 

I literally have gobs of new records here to post and I really don't even know what I've got stashed away, but I can assure you I have enough to keep this thing up and running for several more years (at this pace it might be 50). So thank you for your patience, enjoy the springtime weather, and please enjoy this new offering.   

Mid-Knighters - Charlena/Flower Of Love (1963)

We kick off this post with a 45 out of Milwaukee, WI, or at least I believe it's from there. Things get somewhat confused as I thought this was the same band as Richie Knight & The Mid-Knighters from Toronto Canada who released the same song on the Arc label. It appears that this is a completely different act as each version is completely different. The Wisconsin Mid Knighters deliver a nice uptempo frat rock rendition of this song with a decent teener/do-wop flip.

George Darvo - Candy Man / All Through With You (1958)

Here's an early one from Minnesota by a guy named Geroge Darvo although some copies has him listed as George "Davo". Both sides are pretty good up-tempo rockers.

Princeton Five - Summertime Blues / Sure Know A Lot About Love (1965)

 These guys were known as The Princetons Five, The Princeton Five, and simply The Princetons. They released five 45s on two different labels, and all are good frat-rock songs. On this one they tackle the Eddie Cochran favorite with "Sure Know A Lot About Love" on the flip courtesy of The Hollywood Argyles and The Searchers.

Blue Things - Mary Lou / Your Turn To Cry (1965)

The first 45 released by this legendary band out of Hays, KS. Both sides are great.

Danny Hutton - Roses And Rainbows / Monster Shindig (1965)

Here's some nice west coast mid-sixties pop from by Danny Hutton. Hutton released a 45 previous to this one as "The Bats" (IDG #72) which was a folk type affair, but it sounds like he hooked up with The Wrecking Crew and recorded this nice slice of sunshiny pop. Hutton would later join Cory Wells in The Enemys, and both of them teamed up with Chuck Negron to form Three Dog Night, a band that I really like. I know that they were sort of "manufactured", but at least the backup musicians were top notch (in my opinion) and the did sing some pretty good pop songs.

T.C. Atlantic - Once Upon A Melody / I Love You So, Little Girl (1965)

The first 45 by this group out of Minneapolis. Unlike their R&B and psychedelic stuff, this one is very pop-ish.

Jordan Bros. - Gimme Some Lovin' / When I'm With Her (1966)

The Jordan Bros.(who were actually brothers) from Frackville, PA have the distinction of releasing The Spencer Davis song and having hit with it before Steve Winwood & Co. scored big with it here in the U.S. Although the Jordan's version wasn't as huge as The Spencer Davis one, they did make a nice dent in the charts on the east cost. The Jordan Bros. had a long career that spanned three decades from the 50's to the 70's.

Ocean Monarch - One More Time / Some Other Guy (1964)

Not much is known about this one, although it's been speculated that this group was the house band on "The Ocean Monarch" a cruise ship that sailed the seas back in the fifties and sixties and quite possibly beyond that.. One thing I can say for sure, this record was definitely NOT recorded in London, or anywhere near Great Britain. These guys sound like typical suburban teenagers from the USA, but who knows???? This is a very crude recording with some pretty sloppy playing from "The House Band". A real hoot!

Sound Of The Seventh Son - I Told A Lie / I'll Be On My Way (1965)

Here's another lo-fi 45 for your listening pleasure. The Sound Of The Seventh Son also released 45s on Philips and Warner Brothers as "The East Side Kids" and supposedly the house band at The Crescendo on Sunset Strip. This ones another fairly inept two sider with some off-key vocals. The band included a young keyboard player named Jimmy Greenspoon who would later Join the previously mentioned Danny Hutton in Three Dog Night. You can read more about these guys here.

Roy Orbison - Twinkle Toes (1966)

Most of you don't need a history lesson on Roy Orbison. It's known that in his mid-sixties stint with MGM records his popularity in the US had waned considerably and it sounds like he was trying to "get hip" with the times by releasing some "with it" records like 1969's "Southbound Jericho Parkway" and this fuzz filled effort from 1966 called "Twinkle Toes". Even though the backing group sounds like theyre with the times, Roy delivers a typical vocal performance as only he can do. One of rock and roll's unique talents.

Steve Walker & The Bold - Train Kept-A Rollin' / Found What I Was Looking For (1967)

This crew was from Springfield, MA and had one other classic 45 on Cameo as simply "The Bold" a year before they released this gem. This is one of the best versions ever in my opinion. The band would drop Steve Walker from their name once again, hook up with ABC records and release an LP in 1969 that was pretty good and worth seeking out.

Seagulls - Twiggs / Charlie No One (1967)

I sometimes wonder why I include stuff like this in the blog, but I guess I just can't help myself. I don't really hate this record, in fact I think it's OK, but it's so freaking goofy as many songs were  during this time period. The Seagulls actually recorded a decent cover of  Dave Davies' "Death Of A Clown" which I featured in IDG #102.

Spiders - No No Boy / How Could I Fall In Love (1966)

One of the most popular Japanese groups from the sixties, The Spiders managed to release this one 45 in the US. When I got it I was somewhat dissappointed because both sides are slow mid-sixties pop, but not real bad. I wish it was as crazy as their classic "Furi Furi".

Stillroven - Little Picture Playhouse / Cast Thy Burden Upon The Stone (1967)

One of Minneapolis' best groups, The Stillroven cut about a half dozen 45's from 1966 to 1968 of which this is one of the best. Unlike their hard driving version of "Hey Joe", this one dips into psychedelic territory as the cover a song originally recorded by Simon Dupree & The Big Sound.

Them - We've All Agreed To Help / Waltz Of The Flies (1969)

As we all know after Van Morrison left Them they became a totally different sounding group, not simply because of Morrison's vocals, but their shift from an R&B based band, to a psychedelic one. This was the last 45 they would release on Tower records and is one of their best.

HERE