Salt Water Taffy (1968) Sunshine Bubblegum @320

This New York-based bubblegum group -- led by songwriter/producer Rod McBrien -- recorded their lone album for Buddah Records in 1968. Titled after their local New York hit "Finders Keepers" (which bubbled under Billboard's Hot 100 nationally at number 105 in May 1968), the album featured a vocal harmony sound that was supposed to be similar to what a white version of the 5th Dimension would sound like, according to McBrien. Several of the tracks were penned by McBrien and his songwriting partner, former Valrays saxophonist Johnny Giametta, while others included covers from the Anders & Poncia catalog ("Whence I Make Thee Mine") and one tune by the Mann/Weil team ("You Baby"). Lead vocals on the title track were actually handled by Tommy West (whose real name is Tommy Piccardo), who sang the one-off minor hit as a favor (West later penned hits for the Partridge Family, produced Jim Croce, and partnered with Terry Cashmen as the Buchanan Brothers). The song featured a chirpy chorus of taunting children and a vocal arrangement in the Jay & the Techniques vein. Additional songs featured Janie Brannan (whose husband penned the goofy liner notes) and Kathy Weisberg, recent transplants to New York who fell into the gig as Salt Water Taffy girls. A follow-up single with similar playground children chanting, "Sticks and Stones," failed to catch on, as did two additional singles pulled from the album. In 1970, the group transferred over to United for one single -- another Anders & Poncia cover, "Summertime Girl" -- which failed to chart, and shortly thereafter the Salt Water Taffy broke up.

 This record is a real gem in sixties pop music. And if you are a lover of sixties pop you can't resist these songs. Related to the 5th Dimension it is far more of a bubblegum pop feel here in the songs. The edition is full of 22 songs and i haven't found anything about a 22 track edition
(but i haven't search a lot because i was a little bit lazy). Track 13 and 14 are bonus tracks on the Rev-Ola CD from 2009. They are here, too. All in all a wonderful pop album and it had deserved
more attention than a no. 105 on Billboard charts. So, genug geschwätzt ! Enough said! I hope you like it like i do.

Three cheers
                    Frank

mp3@320

The Baroques - Purple Day 1967/68 @320 (CD)

A minor psychedelic band with a mixture of interesting and generic material, the Baroques recorded one LP for Chess in 1967, when the blues/R&B/soul-oriented label was considering breaking into the rock market. Popular only on a regional level, the Milwaukee group (originally called "The Complete Unknowns," until someone probably realized how dangerously self-fulfilling it could be) was dominated by the morose compositions and low, odd vocal range of singer-lead guitarist Jay Berkenhagen who also played keyboards; the other members were Rick Bieniewski on bass, Jacques Hutchinson on guitar and vocals, and Dean Nimmer on drums. With a slight garage feel, their unusual, occasionally oddball material was built around electric (sometimes "baroque") keyboards and fuzz guitar riffs, which occasional detours into uplifting folk-rock and freak-out jamming. They lucked out in 1966 with the Berkenhagen-authored single "Mary Jane," which engendered considerable local controversy over whether it was or wasn't a drug song: it wasn't, but the dispute over the lyrics got them labeled as a psychedelic act, and boosted their live popularity. The album never sold, however, and the group disbanded in 1968. They won't appeal to many listeners besides psychedelic specialists, but they recorded some idiosyncratically worthwhile stuff, most of which has been reissued on small collector labels.(R. Unterberger allmusic.com)

Fine psychedelic garage pop. It's a pity that the band don't got more attention then in the sixties.
But like a famous man once said: ..at the right time at the right place...or forget it.

Enjoy
         Frank

@320

The Liverpool Echo - The Liverpool Echo 1973(2005)CD Flac

Power pop has never sounded so powerful! When former Mandrake Paddlesteamer mainstays Brian Engel and Martin Briley convened as Liverpool Echo in 1973, the Beatles had been in the grave for just three years, and the world still desperately wanted them back -- so desperately that, with a band name borrowed bodily from an old Merseybeat-era newspaper, what could any record company do, but lift a "Fabs"-headlined copy of the paper for an album cover? But "Beatles Come Home So Quietly" really wasn't the most appropriate banner for an LP jacket, all the more so since, once you hit the vinyl, the spirit of the "Moptops" hung so heavily over the music that it screamed out for attention. Of course, it was true that any early-'70s band that was capable of melding melody with studio-borne creativity would inevitably be tarred "the new Beatles" (as Badfinger and 10cc would readily testify); it is also true that all such comparisons were then hopelessly devalued by the arrival of the Rutles.

But still Liverpool Echo have an uncanny grasp of the Merseybeat sound circa 1963 and 64, spliced with a healthy hint of the Hollies, and that was more than enough to raise high hopes for the album. Unfortunately, hope was all that the record label (Spark) could do. They certainly had no promotion or distribution muscle to speak of, and both band and LP sank within seconds, to lie forgotten until Revola revived it (with excellent Mark A Johnston liner notes) in 2005.

This is the remastered CD of 2005 published from Rev-Ola. I hope you give it a try because it's an album full of fine pop songs.
Cheers
           Frank

ps: i try this for the first time and want to see if it works...
Flac

Billy Nicholls - Forever's No Time At All - The Anthology 1967-2004 (FLAC)

The collected works of Billy Nicholls may well prove essential listening, not just for fans of the 1960 cult favorite -- whose entire Would You Believe album, complete with outtakes, is present on the first half of the first disc -- but also for admirers of Pete Townshend, who produced and recorded Nicholls during the 1970s. That work is also here, and if it isn't quite as ornate and flowery as Nicholls' '60s work, it also compares favorably with the music that the Who was putting out circa 1974. That's all augmented by tracks off of the previously released compilation Penumbra Moon, which is gorgeous in its own right as singer/songwriter-style material. The latest tracks here, dating from the 21st century, are not quite as pretty as some of what's come before, but the music is still valid, enjoyable rock in a somewhat heavier (or, more heavily produced) vein, more self-conscious in its approach but not without interest. He still writes great lyrics and melodies that if they're not wholly dazzling, dress up nicely. Anyone who owns Would You Believe
will find a lot here to keep himself busy and happy.

 Imho Billy Nicholls was one of the greatest Songwriters for pop/rock, british psychedelia/sunshine pop songs of the sixties in Great Britain after the fab four. He is for sure a little bit underrated from the audience but the musicians who worked with Nicholls always estimated him as great artist.
The collection is in FLAC and there are 43 tracks on two discs. Enjoy

Frank



Flac

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2017!!!

Happy New Year 2017, Folks! I wish all of you a wonderful new year with health, success, a lot of love or all the things that means happiness and contendment to you.
I hope some things will take a better way in the new year than in 2016, for me personally and for the
world as well.

I want to start the new year with ''The Association - The Complete Warner Bros. & Valiant Singles Collection (2012)''

While there are plenty of amazing moments on the Association's albums that never came anywhere near a single, the group was first and foremost a singles-oriented act, just as L.A. sunshine pop contemporaries like the Beach Boys (Pet Sounds notwithstanding) and the Mamas & the Papas were. That's part of what makes this anthology such an effective encapsulation of the group's gestalt. The last major Association anthology, Rhino's 2002 double-disc release Just the Right Sound, took a more expansive approach to organizing its retrospective. But by presenting the A- and B-sides of each Association single from 1965's Bob Dylan cover "One Too Many Mornings" to 1971's "That's Racin'" in chronological order, the Now Sounds collection allows listeners to experience the group's evolution in exactly the same way a fan of 45s would have done during the Association's heyday. And while assembled A-sides like "Along Comes Mary," "Cherish," "Windy," and "Never My Love" lend this two-CD offering a definitive greatest-hits aspect, the B-sides are often non-LP cuts, adding some serious heft to the archival side of the project.

Stylistically speaking, it's fascinating to hear the growth the Association experienced over the course of just a few years. While the succulent vocal harmonies remained a signature throughout the group's career, the arrangements and songwriting underwent some major changes. The band began in a folk-rock mode with tracks like the aforementioned Dylan tune before settling into a lush, heavenly pop paradise all their own on circa 1968 masterpieces like "Everything That Touches You." At the same time, the fuzzed-out guitar lines of another 1968 single, "Six Man Band," showed the Association to be entirely comfortable with psychedelia. By 1969, the hits pretty much stopped coming, but the group didn't hit the pause button on its evolutionary process. 1970 B-sides "I Am Up for Europe" and "Look at Me, Look at You" show that the Association was capable of convincingly shifting toward heavy, blues-based rock and country-rock, respectively, while it's easy to envision "It's Gotta Be Real" hitting the early-‘70s R&B charts if only it had come from an act with a bit less of a squeaky-clean straight pop image. If you let it, The Complete Warner Bros. & Valiant Singles can simultaneously underline the Association's commercial peak and deepen your understanding of the group's true musical personality.

This anthology is a fine thing and i hope you will have fun with the songs.
Here we come, 2017!
Cheers
            Frank

link in the comments

Michele O'Malley - Saturn Rings (1969) FLAC

Saturn Rings by Michele O'Malley, issued on ABC in 1969, is truly one of the lost psychedelic pop masterpieces. O'Malley was a member of the Ballroom, and was a session vocalist in Los Angeles, singing backup on Tommy Roe's It's Now Winters Day and Sagittarius' Present Tense. West Coast popster and legendary crazy man Curt Boettcher (leader of the Ballroom) was heavily involved, with arrangements by Michael Melvoin and session players including Lowell George (pre-Little Feat), Bobby Notkoff (pre-Rockets), Elliot Ingber, Gordon Alexander, and Bobby Jameson (aka songwriter Chris Lucey). Boettcher either wrote or co-wrote seven of the album's 11 cuts, and sings backup on the sessions as well. To say the album bombed is an understatement. It disappeared almost upon release, and O'Malley never made another one. While the sound here is dated, there are some truly amazing moments such as "Fallen Angel," with its beautiful sawing electric violin floating through the mix above the acoustic guitars, tabla drums, and electric bass. O'Malley's voice just soars and glides between Western melody and Eastern modalism effortlessly. Some of the psychedelic pop arrangements have the feeling of some stranger than strange nostalgia -- like a sound that is familiar, but its textures are strange and alien, such as on "Spinning, Spinning, Spinning," with a harpsichord and either an oboe or soprano saxophone and strings. O'Malley wrote "Song to a Magic Frog" for Sagittarius, and the arrangement on this version is lush, full of elegant textures and richly layered instrumentation. Her voice is where the real "magic" lies, however. She moves through the melody with a meld of passion and restraint and creates hooks where there are none. The truth of the matter is,

if Saturn Rings were released today it would be regarded as a quirky masterpiece. Its production and arrangement excesses for the time -- which made it inaccessible to the masses -- would now be heard as the work of genius. Three cheers for Fallout for making this little-known classic available again. (allmusic.com)

Like most of the productions where Curt Boettcher was involved, so i love this effort also. It's a pity that O'Malley only recorded this album as a solo artist. Anyway hope you have fun.
Cheers
            SB1

link is in the comments

The Romantics - The Romantics & National Breakout (1979, 1980) (FLAC)

Such power pop founders as the Raspberries and Big Star may have been woefully underappreciated during their initial run in the early '70s, but by the end of the decade, several of their offspring had taken the style to the upper reaches of the charts -- including Cheap Trick, the Knack, and the Romantics. But what set the group apart from their similarly styled peers was their inheritance of the high-energy attack of their Detroit forefathers, as well as their affinity for bouffant hairstyles and matching retro outfits. Formed on the east side of Detroit during 1977, the Romantics' original lineup consisted of singer/guitarist Wally Palmar, singer/drummer Jimmy Marinos, guitarist Mike Skill, and bassist Richie Cole.

 The band's self-titled full-length debut surfaced in 1980 (recorded in just three weeks) and is often considered to be the quartet's best due to the inclusion of such gems as "When I Look in Your Eyes," a cover of Ray Davies' "She's Got Everything," and one of the Romantics' best-known tracks: the power pop gem "That's What I Like About You." Although the latter track peaked at only number 49 when originally released as a single, it later became an early MTV favorite and classic rock radio standard and in the '90s, was used in several commercials.

 At its best, the Romantics' self-titled debut album sounds like the greatest album Shel Talmy never produced. The Detroit band's British Invasion-style power pop may not have been an especially original creation, but it was good enough that no one with a taste for high-voltage hooks would ever dream of complaining, and as a meeting of mid-'60s style and late-'70s volume and passion, it's all but flawless. Wally Palmar and Mike Skill and drummer Jimmy Marinos, are a glorious pastiche of period pop styles (think the Kinks and the Easybeats with a bit of the Hollies thrown in for melodic appeal) played with a hard-stomping energy and a genuine love for the vintage style that doesn't reek of nostalgia. The production by Peter Solley is simple but smart enough to put both the hooks at the energy up front where they belong, and the Romantics never had a set of tunes this strong again; "What I Like About You" richly deserved its status as a hit single, and "When I Look in Your Eyes," "Tell It to Carrie" and "Girl Next Door" would have followed it up the charts in a just world. The Romantics didn't exactly reinvent the wheel with this album, but they sure knew how to make it roll, and for sheer party enhancing energy, this album is hard to beat.

 A sophomore effort was issued the same year, National Breakout, which saw the band expand their sound to include such other styles as surf and classic Motown and was supported by an extensive world tour (including the Romantics' inaugural visits to both Europe and Australia).
 Mike Skill left the band after the release of the second album and was replaced by lead guitarist Coz Canler. Rich Cole left the band in '82 and was replaced by a returning Skill, who then became the band's bassist.

 In the late 1980s, the Romantics discovered that their managers had been misappropriating the profits earned by the band from its records and live performances. Additionally, one of their releases (the aforementioned "What I Like About You") had been licensed for use in television commercials without the band's knowledge or approval. Consequently, the Romantics filed a lawsuit against their management in 1987, and the legalities involved prevented the band from recording new music until the mid-1990s.
 The Romantics' fortunes began to rise again in the middle of the 1990s, as the band's success in its lawsuit against its former management freed the band to record again (and ensured that future earnings from the licensing of Romantics songs would go to the band).
 Rich Cole returned to the band after a long absence in 2010. Longtime lead guitarist Coz Canler left the band in 2011, allowing Skill to return to the original lead guitarist role he held in the band.

Yep, that's the reduced history of the Romantics (I used excerpts from Wiki and allmusic.com) . Hope you have fun with the music and i'll
see you later, Alligators.
Cheers
           SB1

links in ...bla...bla...

A Fragile Tomorrow - Be Nice Be Careful (2013)

The band's fourth studio album, titled Be Nice Be Careful and produced by Mitch Easter and Ted Comerford, was released on January 8, 2013 via the band's Piewillie Records. The album was also released in Japan on the same day as its US release via Powerpop Academy/Thistime Records. Initially, the album garned much critical acclaim, with Audiophile Reviews saying that "be nice be careful redefines powerpop for the 21st century"  and Musoscribe claiming "If this is the state of powerpop in early 2013, things look good for the future".

That's what the press said about the album. A lot of heavyweights are involved here. Names like Susan Cowsill, Don Dixon, Deb and Vicki Peterson, Shaun Rhoades speaks for itself not to forget
Mr Easter and Mr Comerford.
And yes this is a fine album. Give it a try and listen to it! Sorry but it's only VBR around 220 -
230. If anybody want come up with a better copy feel free and send me an email. dtbm63@gmail.com

See you next time
                              SB1



link in the comments

Lasst die Sonne rein...here comes the Attic Lights - Super De Luxe (2013)

Attic Lights are a Scottish indie rock band from Glasgow, Scotland, formed in 2005 by Kev Sherry (vocals, guitar), Colin McArdle (vocals, bass) and Jamie Houston (guitar, keyboard, vocals), later joined by Tim Davidson (guitar, pedal steel) and Noel O'Donnell (drums, glockenspiel, vocals). The four-part harmonies in a number of their songs have led to critical comparisons with Teenage Fanclub and The Beach Boys. Their guitar heavy powerpop has been compared to alternative rock bands such as Weezer, R.E.M. and The Lemonheads.
A series of independent releases and live performances led to a bidding war between major labels. The band signed with Island Records, and released their debut album, Friday Night Lights, in October 2008. In 2013 followed the second album ''Super De Luxe.(excerpts from Wiki)


In 2012, the band signed with Elefant Records. On 1 April 2013, Attic Lights released new single, "Say You Love Me" on Elefant Records. This was followed in May 2013 by the release of the band's second album, Super De Luxe.

 Attic Lights' second full-length album, 2013's Super De Luxe, expands upon the melodic pop of their 2008 debut, Friday Night Lights, with a bigger, more robust production style. Working once again with producer and Teenage Fanclub drummer Francis MacDonald, Attic Lights have crafted an album that is as infectiously melodic as anything they've done before, but feels more mainstream -- in the best possible way. The album finds the band showcasing its love of Scottish pop bands like Pilot and Teenage Fanclub, while also delving into some more dance-oriented, disco-influenced sounds that bring to mind the work of their similarly inclined contemporaries Phoenix and MGMT. Kicking off with the gargantuan glitter rock-sounding anthem "Say You Love Me," the band lays out a bombastic rebuke of scene-weary naysayers -- the kind who hyper-focus on everything they don't like rather than championing what they do. Singer Kev Sherry croons "Your likes are all defined by all the things you hate/All you can talk about is what they are wrong about and all of their mistakes." With the band's triumphant lead guitar lines laid down thick as pub smoke and a chorus that jubilantly cries "Just saaayyy you LOVE ME," the song is a celebratory command to simply let go and give in to the positive pop vibes about to come your way. And boy, do they come! Bassist Colin McArdle takes the vocal spotlight on a few tracks, like "Future Bound" and "Stay Before You Leave," lending them a particular '70s bubblegum pop vibe. Elsewhere, Sherry's songs, like the romantic "Breathe for Me" and the equally passionate "Mona Lisa," with its cinematic keyboard swells, are so sweeping and grand, you immediately want to hear them again as soon as they end. As Sherry pleads on the opening cut, "I just want to hear you say you love me," with Super De Luxe, you're likely to give Attic Lights exactly what they want.allmusic.com

Ich kann mich noch genau daran erinnern, als ich das erste Mal die Platte hörte...und nicht mehr ruhig sitzen bleiben konnte, praktisch durchs Zimmer ''flog''. Glitter Band- mäßiger Beat zu Beginn von ''Say you love me'' und dann die komplette Scheibe durch sowas von allerfeinsten Zuckerwattegitarren und Hooks, gleich pfundweise mit jugendlichem Drive vorgetragen, machten ''Super De Luxe'' für mich zur Scheibe des Jahres. Und genau in die Richtung geht es immer noch wenn ich das Album heute höre. Für mich ist die Platte alles, was das Wort ''Pop'' in meinem Kosmos bedeutet.
Okidoki
            SB1                                                                mp3mp3mp3@320320320

Der link ist wie immer in den Kommentaren

Ken Stringfellow - Touched (2001) mp3

Though his name might be unfamiliar to all but the most dedicated indie rock geeks, Ken Stringfellow has been flirting with stardom for over a decade, first as one-half of the Posies, then as a member of Big Star, a sideman with R.E.M., and a producer for indie upstarts like Damien Jurado. With the Posies on temporary hiatus, Stringfellow went into the studio in the summer of 2000 with legendary producer Mitch Easter, and the result is an indie pop album with classic sound that falls somewhere between Matthew Sweet and Elliott Smith. The first thing you notice about Touch is that the devil lies in the details: Whether it's the pedal steel guitar that wails below the Eagles-style country-rock of "Down Like Me" or the retro organ that lends a Doors-like trippiness to "Spanish Waltz," Stringfellow makes all the little things count. Of course, the polished pop songcraft of songs like "This One's On You" and "Sparrow" proves that the singer/songwriter's sound would likely pack just as much punch even if he were rockin' it folkie style, with just an acoustic guitar and his elastic voice. But with Easter's nimble touch behind the boards, you'll be glad he didn't. allmusic.com
                                          
This guy is on the way to a legend! ''What ?'' i hear some people say and they shake her heads in disbelief. But imho all the musical things where Stringfellow was involved as the leading head had a great extraordinary quality. Basically in Indiepop, Power pop, alternative pop at home in all of his efforts you can hear his influences which often are not american. Nevertheless he always sounds like an american artist. And i think that is the real reward of his work.
Okay, enough blabbed. Enjoy the music and later more but before i have a date wih my doctor.
Cheers
           SB1


link in the comments

The Chevelles - Rollerball Candy 1995 (Flac)

Rollerball Candy was released by Running Circle in early 1995. The album was more varied than Gigantic, displaying a punk sound in "Delirium" and including a melodic ballad called "Fall". Its 15 tracks made it a long album for a pop group but in essence it was tailor-made for Spanish rock and roll fans.
Initial sales of the record in Spain and Portugal were encouraging. Response from Spanish press and radio was excellent. The record received strong reviews in established Spanish rock zines like Ruta 66, Beaten Generation and La Musica, in which the band were compared to DM3 and The Dubrovniks.

The Chevelles are a great Power Pop band from Australia. If you like melodies like candy with rockin guitars and a real rock attitude you are right here.

“It’s the Who meets the Ramones meets the Easybeats meets Beach Blanket Bingo! It’s the criminals Australia wants to ship back to England and call it even! It’s the High Priests of the Barbarella Girl God Love Cult!
It’s The Chevelles!”

- Little Steven Van Zandt 

Nothing more to say...have fun
                                                SB1


link...ahh you know eeh?!