The Harpers Bizarre may be of the most misunderstood and wrongfully ignored bands from the 60s. Well...they may not have been a band in the typical sense of the word to begin with. Autumn Records signed the Tikis in 66 or 67, who were then composed of Ted Templeman, Dick Scoppetone, Dick Yount, John Petersen and Eddie James. Apparently, Randy Newman was said to have been a member of the Tikis for a brief while. When Autumn Records was bought by Warner Bros. in 67, budding producer Lenny Waronker picked the Tikis to do a version of Paul Simon's 59th Street Bridge Song. Waronker's version featured an orchestral woodwind backing track and thick layers of choral harmonies sung almost entirely by Templeman and Scoppetone. One of the most breathtaking moments of 60s AM radio pop occurs when the instruments drop out at the one and a half minute mark of the song, leaving the only angelic, interweaving vocal harmonies. The band's name was changed to Harpers Bizarre and the single was released to very good commercial reception, peaking at #13 on the Billboard Hot 100. After the success of the single they recorded their debut album named after the hit single called Feelin' Groovy. The record featured songs by the likes of Van Dyke Parks and Randy Newman, as did the follow up LP issued later that year called Anything Goes, a pseudo-concept album centered around the motif of Cole Porter's classic ragtime-jazz tune of the same name. Few of Templeman and Scoppetone's fine original tunes would make the first few records and according to Scoppetone they had to fight tooth and nail with Waronker and WB to get their originals on the albums. However, the B-side to their rendition of Glen Miller's "Chattanooga Choo-Choo", which was a minor hit in late 1967, was a dazzling, horn and string laden cheery, broadway-type tune called "Hey, You in the Crowd" ,penned by Templeman, that did enjoy some chart success in a few markets across the country.
The sound the Harpers and Waronker were going for were far removed from what was considered "cool". This is not a rock 'n' roll band by any means. Drawing inspiration from the music of 1920s, particularly George Gershwin and the Tin Pan Alley sounds, they sought to meld those influences with the burgeoning sound of complex studio pop of the mid-1960s. Templeman and Scoppetone, often singing duel lead vocals on almost all of their songs, both sing in high tenor voices not unlike what some people might describe as "choir-boy" esque. As un-hip as they may have seemed in the public eye, they were surrounded by some of the most innovative and challenging talents that the LA music scene had to offer, most prominently the aforementioned Randy Newman and Van Dyke Parks. Templeman revealed in an interview in the late 1990s that Newman and Parks often played and sang on the Harper's records, but went uncredited. Harry Nilsson even wrote a song specifically for the Harpers called "Poly High" and was released as a single (that flopped, despite a fantastic vocal arrangement from the Harpers), a song that would eventually end up the soundtrack to Nilsson's made-for-TV animated special, 'The Point!' in 1971.
By 1968, the band's popularity had waned, but were still one of the bigger draws on Warner Bros. Waronker and the Harpers went on to release their third album entitled, 'The Secret Life of Harpers Bizarre', which many Harpers fans consider to be their finest album statement. Although they had already dabbled with the concept album on 'Anything Goes', 'the Secret Life...' was a full on concept album, with each song effortlessly flowing into the next (not unlike, say, Dark Side of the Moon). The concept you ask? Well, there may not have been one. The best way I can describe the feel of this record is that it's as if you're listening to the score of some dreamy, and mildly psychedelic, broadway musical that takes place in a dream. The song selection is obscure, but fantastic. It starts with a stirring rendition of "Look to the Rainbow", a song that was indeed originally from a successful broadway musical called 'Finian's Rainbow' that was first performed in 1947. The blissful opening passage of the album quickly takes a sharp detour into much different territory as the Harpers do a fine version of the country classic 'the Battle of New Orleans' made famous by Johnny Horton in 1959. Banjo and gunfire sound effects are used to great affect as it captures a feeling of early Americana. The next song, 'When I Was a Cowboy' is in a similar vein, but instead of the chaos of the war of 1812, we find the Harpers gently drifting across the western plains. The song is anchored by a rustic and delta-bluesy guitar riff, propelled by fantastic brush work on the drums, a baritone sax, and the Harpers typical soft, angelic vocal harmonies. What follows is an album highlight, a delicately soft and dream like version of the Doris Day standard 'Sentimental Journey'. The song's sparkling guitars and gorgeous harmonies float alongside the quiet lead vocal and subtle organ track. Just beautiful. It next segues into a Templeman-Scoppetone original, 'Las Mananitas'. A very nice tune that fits perfectly along side of the rest of the album's more standard oriented material. A short, peaceful song with marimba, accordian and mandolin and another great duel lead vocal from Dick and Ted. Another highlight. The first side of the record closes with a Newman composition, "Vine Street", that showed up as the lead off track on VDP's debut album 'Song Cycle' and "Me, Japanese Boy", a Burt Bacharach song, done much better here by the Harpers than by Bobby Goldsboro, who had first done this Bacharach tune in 1964. The record is spliced together with "interludes" which are mostly brief and heavily reverberated samples of earlier Harper's tunes, giving a feeling of the band faintly remembering the past as they roll through uncharted territory.
The second side begins with the Gershwin tune 'I'll Build a Stairway to Paradise', which features a terrific orchestral arrangement from producer Lenny Waronker and again, great, soft vocals from the band. Another great original tune from Dick and Ted follows called 'Green Apple Tree', very similar in mood to 'Las Mananitas'. The next song, 'Sit Down You're Rocking the Boat', a number from the Guys and Dolls musical may be the one weak link on the record. It's a nice arrangement but the gospel singers featured on the song dont contrast well with the vocals from the Harpers. But after another interlude, the album begins it's magnificent closing stretch with another home-spun song that captures that early Americana feeling, 'I Love You, Mama'. The song was written and arranged for the band by former Beau Brummel member Ron Elliot. Two tracks later, 'Mad', another standout of the album is a peppy little horn driven number written by Dick and Ted, once again proving that their originals were just as strong as the standards and classics they were covering.
Perhaps the albums finest moments come just one track later, as a reprise of 'Look to the Rainbow' segues into the albums majestic closing number, 'The Drifter', written by the brilliant Roger Nichols. The song is about the most appropriate finale to an album that has taken us all across the country, in different eras and regions from the Louisiana Bayou, the Midwestern Plains, sunny California and the Broadway stages of New York. 'The Drifter' lyrically is about the inner desire to keep on moving, despite his intentions to settle down. Lenny Waronker pulls out all the stops with the arrangement on this one, with fantastic brass and woodwind interplay that complements the ethereal harmonies of Templeman and Scoppetone. A perfect finish to a nearly perfect album.
The Harpers would go on to release one more album, 'Harpers Bizarre 4' (another very good record, with the most input from band members thus far) and then split up until a brief reunion in the mid seventies. Templeman claims he didn't enjoy the recording sessions of 'the Secret Life' as much as he did their other albums, but they were in good hands with their producer Lenny Waronker, who crafted much of the album's flow himself. To me, this is the Harper's finest album statement, which has been sadly forgotten by all but the truest sunshine and baroque pop enthusiasts. It's a must listen.
-Casey (
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