The Monkees: "More Of The Monkees" & "Headquarters" in MONO Vintage Vinyl Rips

It's been a while since I've done a podcast so I thought I'd share something in the meantime. I recently ripped to mp3 my vintage vinyl copies of the Monkees 2nd and 3rd albums More of The Monkees and Headquarters, respectively. Both albums here are presented in their original and superior mono mixes. More of The Monkees in particular sounds miles better than my remastered CD copy, Jeff Barry's crisp pop production really comes to life on these vintage vinyl pressings in ways CDs can't quite replicate . Chip Douglas's production on Headquarters was never that great to begin with but the sound of the original vinyl pressing is significantly less dulled down than the CD reissues. However, Douglas's production would improve tenfold on the Monkees next album, Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd., which is generally considered to be among the best Monkees LPs.

Ripped to HQ .mp3 @ 320vbr using EAC's .WAV editor and dbpoweramp w/ LAME 3.97. Flat transfers, no pop removal, surface noise reduction or EQ changes.

Get the More of the Monkees HERE

Get Headquarters HERE

Enjoy!

-Casey

The Way Podcast: Paul Revere & The Raiders "Revolution", The Rainy Daze "That Acapulco Gold"

On tonight's show, get your kicks from Bubblegum Proto-Punks Paul Revere & the Raiders. I played tracks from their excellent 1967 LP Revolution! where they were once again teamed up with producer Terry Melcher who gave the band a muscular but crystal clear sound. I also played songs from Denver Soulful/Psych Garage Rock outfit The Rainy Daze's one and only LP That Acapulco Gold. The link to stream the podcast is below the pics. Enjoy!

THE WAY 11/19/2012

The Way Podcast: 10/26/2012 Return To Form; Jangle, Bubblegum, Garage and Psych

Tonight's episode was a welcome return to the original format of the show, playing my favorite obscurities from the Psychedelic Pop era of the 1960s. Tonight's set leaned heavily on jangly bubblegum acts like the Monkees' Headquarters (presented here in mono sourced from original vinyl), Every Mother's Son and early Grass Roots, Chicago garage-popsters like New Colony Six and the Cryan' Shames, and more psych oriented stuff from the Five American's Progressions. Links to download and stream the podcast are below the pics. Enjoy!

Part 1

Part 2

The Way Podcast: 7/26 "One Hour Of Optimism": An Interview With Sandy Salisbury

On this weeks show, Sandy Salisbury of the legendary Psych-Pop super group the Millennium was nice enough to come on my show to do an in-studio interview. We discussed his early music career in LA, collaborating with Curt Boettcher and Gary Usher, his unreleased solo album, his book career and most importantly of all, we preview his new material which he is releasing under the name 'Little Johnny Coconut' based off of a character from his book series "Calvin Coconut". The new material is VERY good, and Sandy was about as nice a guy as you could meet. It was such a thrill. Big thanks to Sandy Salisbury! Listen to the interview below:

The Way Podcast: 6/28/2012; British Psychedelic Pop Sampler

On tonight's episode of my weekly one hour podcast The Way, I explored the catalogs of my 4 favorite British Psychedelic Pop artists, fairy-tale folk rockers Kaleidoscope, acid-popsters July, the Bill Wyman produced The End, and the soaring, orchestral prog of The Moody Blues. I love the whimsical nature of the Brit's take on psychedelia and wanted to create a nice showcase to display some of my favorite English-Psych tunes. The link to the stream is below, Enjoy!

https://s3.amazonaws.com/archive-complete/1340928001.mp3

Tommy Roe: Phantasy (1967) Original ABC Mono Vinyl

After the success of his early pop-rock singles like "Sweet Pea", "Sheila" and "Hooray For Hazel", Tommy Roe felt like doing some a bit more...adventurous, so he teamed up with the Our Productions crew and recorded two psychedelic bubblegum classics in 1967. Who were the Our Productions crew?  Simply put, they were wheeler -and-dealer Steve Clark's music production company, that could be hired by any record label to record an artist. This differed from the more typical approach to production, where labels would usually have an assemblage of staff producers under contract to record music specifically for that label. In '65/'66 Steve Clark, who really was more of a businessman than anything, tapped the then relatively unknown Curt Boettcher to be the "in house" producer for Our Productions. Rounding out the company were some of Curt's cohorts, including song-writer Sandy Salisbury and session musicians and Jim Bell, Ben Benay, Toxie French, Michele O'Malley, Dotti Holmberg and Lee Mallory, who all went on to record on Curt's other projects like the Ballroom, the Millennium and Sagittarius.

Curt was first teamed up with Tommy Roe on the chilly '67 psych-pop record It's Now Winter's Day, which was Roe's first foray in to more experimental territory, spearheaded mostly by Boettcher's wildy unorthodox production. The album's title track was a minor hit, but didn't quite compare chart wise to Roe's previous singles. Nevertheless, the album sold relatively well and ABC had to have been at least somewhat pleased with the performance of the single, so Our Productions were tapped once again to record the follow up LP. There were problems though, according to certain sources, there was something in Curt Boettcher's contract with OP that basically did not allow him to receive royalties and even credit for his work as producer (the production credit for It's Now Winters Day, while actually produced by Boettcher, was given to Steve Clark). Not surprisingly, Boettcher and Clark parted ways after the release of Winters Day and it was the last time Curt would record for Clark's company. 

So who would produce the follow up record? Steve Clark of course, presumably with more than a little help from some talented engineers (Gary Paxton maybe?). Luckily though, the session musicians Curt used on the Winters Day record came back to record on this album. And oddly enough, as strong an album as Winters Day was, Phantasy ended up being the best of the two albums. Curt's heavy emphasis on psychedelia and studio trickery employed on Winter's sounded very unique and often quite good, but at times clashed awkwardly with Roe's straight ahead bubblegum melodies and song structures.

On Phantasy, Clark gives Roe's crystal clear sugary melodies more room to breathe, unlike on Winter's Day, where they were often buried underneath Boettcher's relentless percussion and intense multi-layered and intricate harmony vocals. Most of the material here is written by Roe, the exception being the two extraordinarily sweet and bouncy bubblegum numbers "Goodbye Yesterday" and "These Are The Children", which were written by the aforementioned Sandy Salisbury. Roe's songs range from the sun-kissed and introspective on "Visions", to the flower-poppy and beatles-esque on songs like the leadoff track "Paisley Dreams" which comes complete with a full orchestral treatment, sitar runs and spacey harmonies. "Plastic World", a statement on the "phoniness" of modern society, strikes a perfect balance between the power-bubblegum Roe was soon to be known for and the arty experimentation that was in vogue at the time, showcasing found sounds and dramatic tempo changes between verse and chorus. Roe also delivers some material reminiscent of his early teeny-bopper rock 'n' roll with songs like "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Mystic Magic", albeit with a dash more of sugar and perhaps a bit of marijuana smoke thrown in for good measure. "The You I Need" may be the highlight of the record though, as Roe delivers one his most earnest vocals ever along with one of the most sublime melodies he ever penned on this uptempo baroque-bubblegum charmer.

Unfortunately, and somewhat suprisingly, this album tanked completely when it came to chart action, as no singles charted and the album itself went almost unnoticed by the public and music industry. Roe wasn't out of action for too long though, as two years later he would release the smash hit "Dizzy" that came to define him as one of bubblegum's most successful artists.

This record was given a bootleg treatment by Fallout Records a few years ago, their CD version is an obvious needle-drop that had the life sucked out of it in the mastering process. The songs here are also available on Rev-Ola's compilation called Paisley Dreams (which I recommend you purchase if you like my upload), which also includes tracks from the Winters Day album. But as far as I know this record has never been re-issued in it's original mono format. So, I present to you my personal vinyl rip, flat transferred from an original MONO vinyl copy with zero EQing and zero pop removal. I've never heard Rev-Ola's compilation so I'm not sure whether the sound on that is any good, but I can definitely say that my rip blows Fallout's out of water. This is the best way to listen to this record. Ripped using EAC's .WAV editor and converted into high quality 256 kb/s .mp3's. Download it here: http://www.mediafire.com/?0gi3ykzka8q236x

Enjoy.

-Casey

Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart: It's All Happening On the Inside (1969) Original A&M Records Vinyl Transfer

Conceptual bubblegum? Is there such a thing? Well, I guess Kasenetz and Katz tried to pull it off a couple times with mixed results but Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, hit makers for the Monkees and who had a hit record of their own a few years earlier with "I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite", give it a go here with good results. Boyce and Hart, while known for their single material were actually quite adept at assembling a cohesive album, as all three of their LPs have a distinct and quick flow, leaving very little space between tracks giving the impression that many of the songs flowed together, when in fact, much of the time they really didn't (the exception being this record, as this album has a real concept and theme). Their material was often a balancing act of bubblegum pop and trippy studio creations, and that is certainly the case on their last LP It's All Happening On the Inside, released in 1969 on A&M records.

The album starts off with "Prelude" some phased-out old timey carnival sounds and some carny announcing "Step right up! It's all happening on the inside!", when all of a sudden the album takes off on a rollicking ride of soul inflected bubblegum, complete with faux crowd noise and gospel singers. The albums quickly quiets down with the next two tracks "Change" and "Maybe Somebody Heard". These two sugary soul ballads flow seamlessly together, its tough to even distinguish when one track ends and another begins. At the end of "Maybe..." Bobby Hart goes on some LSD induced preacher rant, while the studio sound effects swirl around him he declares "If we could just all just hit the same cosmic chord!..." or some such nonsense. And then in a burst of even more studio effects the title track that was hinted at in the "Prelude" comes rushing out at full force, an extremely catchy slice of soulful, bubblegum with a delightful, fat piano track. The first side concludes with a Moby Grape-esque psych jam written by the backing band called "Abracadabra" which segues into a completely unnecessary but kinda cool version "Jumpin' Jack Flash" done in the same pseudo psychedelic-soul fashion as the rest of the tracks on the first side. The first side of this record is definitely something you could call a 'song suite', with the tracks all sharing lyrical and musical similarities and flowing together with impressive ease. Very fun listening experience.

Side 2 is less conceptual, with a lack of the soul accents that dominated the first side, instead focusing on headier psychedelic material. But the flow among songs still exsists on this side of the record. "We're All Going To the Same Place" is haunting harmony number, with lyrics ruminating on the inevitability of death. Pretty heavy for a supposed bubblegum act. "Strawberry Girl" is a fuzzed out acid-pop tune, with a searing guitar solo and big harmony vocals accompanying the hooky chorus. "Thanks for Sunday" is another great fuzzy bubblegum number, pretty reminiscent of the Strawberry Alarm Clock's trippier material. The record ends with another dose of bubblegum soul, an acidic take on the Holland-Dozier-Holland classic "Standing in the Shadows of Love", Boyce and Hart's version includes another blaring fuzz guitar solo and emphasizes the epic, haunting background vocals. The song abruptly segues into the closing number, "Alice Long", a return to the bouncy bubblegum that Boyce and Hart were known for, a relentlessy catchy vocal hook propelled by stomping drums, handclaps and a thick, punchy brass section.

Really cool album, better than their second album Test Patterns and definitely on par with their awesome debut I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite?. The production is crisp and interesting, utilizing studio trickery and psychedelic sound effects efficiently and concisely. Boyce and Hart's vocals are great, as are their harmony parts. This album has not been re-issued on CD in it's original format, but some of the songs have been included on various 'greatest hits packages'. So, I'm presenting here a complete vinyl rip of the entire album. I did not seperate the tracks individually, instead just ripping two tracks, side 1 and side 2, as this record is most definitely intended to be listened to from start to finish. The vinyl copy I used was not exactly perfect as there are some moments where surface noise is audible, but in terms of actual audio quality this is best sounding rip of these songs I've heard. Ripped by EAC .WAV editor and converted into 320vbr using dbpoweramp with LAME 3.97. Enjoy: http://www.mediafire.com/?551w1n837jq62tc


-Casey

P.S. Listen to my podcast @ http://kpsu.org/ at 5pm Pacific Standard time 17:00 GMT, tomorrow, Thursday the 15th for more Boyce & Hart on original vinyl!

Chamaeleon Church: S/T (1968) Original MGM Vinyl

A month or so ago I did a review on the Boston band Orpheus' final album and mentioned that they were part of a small collection of bands that were being signed and promoted by MGM Records as part of the "Bosstown Sound", a manufactured music "scene" based in Boston that would act as the east-coast version of the San Francisco psychedelic scene. In addition to pop oriented Orpheus, MGM had signed acid-rock bands the Ultimate Spinach and Beacon Street Union to help spearhead the movement. And then there was Chamaeleon Church. They were sort of the odd-man-out in some respect in regards to the Bosstown Sound. Not nearly as overtly psychedelic as the Spinach or Beacon St., but far more experimental than Orpheus. The one thing these bands had in common was their producer, Alan Lorber, who is mostly responsible for creating the Bosstown Sound promo campaign. Lorber's unorthodox production will not satisfy everyone, as his method of decorating his productions with effects, dense instrumentation and unusual stereo panning can detract a bit from the rhythm section and perhaps the "core" of the song. But personally, I'm a fan of his, because as a bit of an audio nerd, there are very few producers who sound like Lorber so he's often an interesting listen. But let's discuss the band and the album.

Chamaeleon Church were Bonstonians Ted Myers on lead vocal and guitar, multi-instrumentalist Tony Sheuren, bassist Kyle Garrahan and drummer/keyboardist Chevy Chase. Yes. That Chevy Chase. Any time you look up info on this band the focus of the writing is mostly on Chase's presence as this album came out long before he had any success as a comedian or actor. But I'm not going there. I want to review the music, so lets do that shall we?

Their lone, self-titled album is one of my personal favorites. Their sound and material stands apart from other American pysch-pop acts of the era, due to not only Lorber's production, but Ted Myers surrealistic, dark and dreamy songs, as the entirety of the album is made up of songs Myers wrote or co-wrote with Sheuren. The album starts out with "Come In To Your Life" a Left Bank-esque track complete with bustling oboes and majestic harmonies. Very good song and great way to start the album. Track 2, "Camillia Is Changing" was the single that was selected from the album and while it may not have been the best bet for a hit, its still one of the highlights of the record.

The track revolves around a droning and echo-drenched guitar, a sugary sweet lead vocal melody sung by Myers, gentle harmony vocals and Lorber's trademark production techniques, providing reverse-echo effects to the background vocals giving the song an extremely dreamy quality. "Spring This Year" starts out a simple, melancholy guitar picked folk melody, where Myers laments, "Sping, this year, has made me look kind of foolish, flowers may sprout now, but I'm still left out now" before the chorus abruptly erupts into a circus of sound with eerie group vocals, somber accordian and mandolin and background noises that resemble some sort of county fair on LSD. Another highlight comes a couple tracks later with "Flowers in the Field". This song has an English psych pop quality about it with its bouncy electric harpsichord, regal vocal melody and a triumphant trumpeting outro, dressed up with field recorded sounds of birds taking flight.

Side 2 of the record is a much quieter affair. The second side begins with the lone Chase vocal on the album, a song called "Here's A Song", a world weary, piano focused tune written by Myers. It's a good song and Chase delivers a nice, restrained vocal. "In A Kindly Way" and "Tompkins Square Park" are both hypnotic and serene folk pieces, drifting along mostly with gentle electric and acoustic guitar melodies and big arrangements of harmony vocals. A few tracks later the album comes to a close with the most psychedelic song on the album, the eastern influenced "Off With the Old". The song is basically a folk-pop tune that's given the full Lorber treament, complete with crashing, echoing drum fills, and very prominent sitar riffs. Great close to a great album.

Unfortunately, the band did not last long after their debut was released, as Myers and Sheuren went on to join a later incarnation of  the Ultimate Spinach and Chevy Chase went on to become a multi-millionaire. The failure of the single "Camillia is Changing" didn't help the band's fortune, and even Chase's celebrity hasn't drawn much attention to the band. It's a shame, because its really one of the best and most unique psychedelic pop albums from the late 60s, and it has probably aged the best out of any of it's Bosstown Sound counterparts.

This record has yet to be legitimately re-issued. Iris Music Group, Alan Lorber's personal label, came out with a reissue a few years ago but the sound is obviously digitally enhanced and comes off sounding muddled and dull in places. I also believe that Lorber's label does not offer any royalties to the band members when you purchase an album from Iris, which may have something to do with what was agreed upon in the original contracts of these Bosstown Sound bands. My hope is to be able to garner enough attention to the record and have it issued by a label that can provide the band portions of the sales revenue for their performance and writing credits. But in the meantime, I'm offering my high quality vinyl rip, which is from an original copy issued on MGM Records in 1968. Ripped by EAC .WAV editor and converted into 256 kb/s mp3 files. No EQing and no click removal, just straight from vinyl to the computer. Enjoy: http://www.mediafire.com/?4h7qa1ntuf58ih4

-Casey

The Smoke (US): S/T (1968)

After the talented songwriter/vocalist Michael Lloyd left the fabled psych-pop outfit the West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band in 1967, he soon formed another group called October Country. Mostly a solo project, they released a few singles and one LP on the Epic label in late '67/ early '68 to little fanfare. He continued on however, signing to Sidewalk records and forming a new "group" (still basically just a Lloyd solo project) called the Smoke. The Smoke released one very nice Soft-psychedelic LP in 1968 that went nowhere commercially and has since remained forgotten, and it still hasn't been given a proper reissue, which is a shame because its a nice album.

Most of the songs on this album are in the lite-psych/soft pop vein, baring a pretty strong Beatles influence at times and also shares some similar qualities to other then popular LA avant-pop acts like Harpers Bizarre and Van Dyke Parks. The production and arrangements are very well done, done by mostly Lloyd who at the time was only about 20 years old. Lloyd's vocals are pretty great throughout, a great breathy high tenor that cuts through the mix nicely. At times the album plays like an uptempo psych-pop/rocker with tracks like "Gold Is the Color Of Thought", "Fogbound" and "October Country", with plentiful vocal harmonies, sparkly guitars and blasts of hammond and farfisa organ. At other times the album can be sparse and introspective (Songs like "Self Analysis", "Umbrella" and "Looking Through the Mirror"). And also by employing the use of strings and interludes to divvy up some of the tracks in a very Van Dyke Parks-esque way, you can tell he's aiming for a Song Cycle type feel in certain places, especially in the opening track, "Cowboys and Indians", an episodic piece about the expansion of the American West, driven by a descending "Lucifer Sam"-esque guitar riff and crashing drums and "Odyssey", the closing track featuring heavy use of an electric harpsichord (probably a Roxichord) and a great brass arrangement. Although the results aren't quite up to the standards of Parks' monumental debut album, the results are still great throughout the record.

Unfortunately, the album didn't stand a chance, given that it was on a no-name label and there was zero promotion to speak of. The Original LP is very hard to track down, and it hasn't been legitimately re-issued on CD, although it has been bootlegged by several small collectors' labels. 

Highlights: Gold Is the Color of Thought, Odyssey, Umbrella, Cowboys and Indians. 

While we patiently await the release of this album in a legitimate re-issue format, you can listen to my copy of Acid Ray's CD bootleg copy that I tracked down at a record store a few years ago. Ripped in EAC at 320 vbr by yours truly: http://www.mediafire.com/?ainw0r55whzp5s5

-Casey (twitter.com/thewayKPSU)