Trummors-Dropout City

This Taos, New Mexico-based female-male duo attempt to do something just beyond their reach as they strive to make records as good as their country-rock-folk influences. In the process, they strike upon an overall simpatico sound that is bucolic and boundless as their adopted rugged and sweeping terrain. Deciphering the 21-century Southwest, built upon layers of natural and human history, and delivering it musically in private press style can be as treacherous as traversing the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It’s definitely easier for weekend cowpokes to simply offer fool’s gold replica rehash at the ol’ Bandcamp trading post. Bucking the trends, Trummors have been radiating their otherworldly Southwestern sound for the past decade, putting down roots and recording some hidden gem albums like Moorish Highway along the way. I actually recall David Lerner some 20 years removed in time and space as the bass player in the group Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. The night I saw him in Phoenix, he looked like Chris Bell from Big Star with Ted Leo playing the role of Alex Chilton. Dropping out "way out west" does make sense after endlessly touring the big country in a Dodge-y van as a road warrior Pharmacist for 5 years. Furthermore, New Mexico seemingly presents an alluring option to the quotidian patterns, the constant trackings of the digital age and the unceasing political turmoil of these times. The wraparound vast blue sky is indeed different in the Southwest where the wide open vistas can offer perspectives and possibilities for those who look up.

Harmonic Convergence
Dropout City starts boldly by exploring some unmarked trails on the opener “Late Arrival” which leads into some dissonance that is as jagged as Organ Mountains Desert Peaks National Monument. The partners proceed to circuitously find their way back to the main trail before returning "home sweet dome" to kerosene lamps, Navajo rugs, Michaelangelo and Taos records. The 3/4th waltzing “Oh Laura” is achingly reminiscent of the long forgotten Idaho Falls in presenting a loping, lilting and lamenting tale of a Western drifter set against the vast horizon. In other spots, they evoke the Ladybug Transistor tuned to the Honky Tonk Radio Girl on WFMU. Sometimes, their unhurried pace seems a little too removed from the onward rush of life on songs like “Rollin’ Boulders” and spurs one to mutter, “Giddy up Giddy Up” and reach for the nearest disc by the Dickies. The tempo picks up on “What You Had” and things start to fall in place on the back stretch of the album. This number rides the steel guitar rails and is straight down the pike with its sage wisdom of “No sense of returning...to where you've been.” “Silver City Blues” sounds like the BMX Bandits kicking up dust a la the Radio Sweethearts and incorporates the bass playing of Brent Rademaker from Beachwood Sparks. Another highlight is Anne Cunningham taking the lead vocals and reins on “Tulsa Country” that was written by Pam Polland of Gentle Soul and recorded by the Byrds-the bedrock band of this sound. “Peacock Angel” ventures deep into a hazy mirage and features their intertwined “harmonic convergence” vocals inspired by Gentle Soul, Chuck and Mary Perrin and the Everly Brothers records of yore. Their coinciding vocals mostly convey a good natured and welcomed optimistic outlook and are augmented with a host of proficient musicians from the West Coast Cosmic Country scene. Not to be missed are the pronounced and sweetly plaintive steel guitar lines which run fluidly throughout the record. Both pedal steel and slide guitars embellish their sound with lovely accents, while filling the spaces between the distant stars and the Western sun. Dropout City is branded with Trummors’ rustic yet dexterous Western borderlands twang that reminds listeners of adventures which still await in the Land of Enchantment.

The Lost Patrol: Between Blue Skies and Black Spaces

Sparkling with enchanting allure and interstellar chair lifting out of the computer speakers, a pop song filled the room with a glow like a lighted dial on a timeless clock.  With its endearing female vocals shimmering over a lunar terrain of cavernous craters and deeply submerged reverbed guitars, the sound flew high over the holding patterns below.  The song continued to climb above the jet stream, before reaching a cruising altitude somewhere out near the orbit of “Telstar” by the Tornados and the spacecraft magic of Joe Meek.

After being introduced to these suspending sounds through a WFMU archived internet edition of Joe Belock’s  “Three Chord Monte” radio program, I immediately had to find out more.  A song, which roamed between blue skies and black spaces like that 1962 #1 hit from my dad’s stack of 45s unearthed from my grandma’s moldy Southern Indiana basement so many years ago, demanded tracking down before it got away!  The playlist revealed that the vista-opening song was “Jukebox on the Moon” by the Lost Patrol.  The customary Google search pointed right back to WFMU’s web site and to Bob Brainen's program in particular.  I found his archives contained a live on-the-air performance and their other songs glimmered with the same darkness dispelling light created when the moon reflects the light of the sun.

Soon, a package arrived from over the mountains and across the paved over oceanic desert floor, which contained silver rings for the stereo.  The post-space age music revealed itself to be as atmospheric, sweeping and spacious as my present dusty locale of Arizona, yet thankfully corralled with a sense of classic pop structure synonymous with the New York return address on the maize package.  Further spins attested to the band’s ability to find the elusive space where the exotic meets the cosmic and consequently giving them the rare distinction of being favorites with both WFMU listeners and NASA researchers.

The most striking element of the Lost Patrol is their confluence of original sound.  Behind this large expanse is the contrasting duo consisting of Danielle Kimak Stauss and Stephen Masucci.  Both are multi-instrumentalists with Danielle mainly handling the keys and percussion and Stephen on electric, acoustic and lap steel slide guitars.  While the closest contemporary band in a similar sonic solar system might be Friends of Dean Martinez, each band sounds light years away from each other. The prominent electric leads played over blankets of acoustics recall the innovations of the Shadows, while the twang and lap steel give the songs a Western feel as heard on those historic Duane Eddy/Lee Hazlewood recordings.  Danielle’s voice summons the coolness of Siouxie Sioux roaming through a little long lost Grace Slick spaciness and brought back down to earth with a touch of Ronnie Spector’s splendor. Underneath the musical overlooks and sonic scenery is the integral schematic that keeps the sound sustained longer than an ephemeral shooting star. “My main guitar for live and recording is a sparkle blue 1966 Mosrite,” explains Stephen.  “I also use Kubicki Ex-Factor bass from time to time. My rig is pretty modest: A Fender Deluxe Reverb amp, Roland SE-70 effects unit along with a small pedal board with a Midi switcher, volume pedal, Boss Blue Box and a tuner. I tend not to stray too far from this set up in recording, so live we can sound pretty much like the CDs.” 

With Stauss’ dreamy lyrics shooting across the twang and strum like a meteor shower watched away from the glare of the city’s lights, the question arises which aspect is the first evening star to develop on the duo’s broad creative horizon.  “Usually the music comes first in that I set the atmosphere and Danielle runs with it,” answers Masucci.  “The inspiration can come from anywhere.” With the band’s ability to render the wide world and beyond, it comes as no surprise that projected images on the wide screen are its primary influence. “I've had a few songs in a couple of Hal Hartley films as well as a few things that didn't get released yet,” comments Stephen. “Film is our single biggest influence and we try to carry that out into our live shows.” If there is some lost drive-in movie theater, this band could provide the soundtrack to both the projected images of the screen stars and also to the flickering suns above. 

In the past year, the band has been venturing out, racking up Astrovan miles and gaining momentum on the live front.  Recent appearances at the renowned Maxwell’s in Hoboken, NY, in the country music city of Nashville and at the NASA Goddard Space Light Center in Maryland exemplify the venue variety pack approach of the band. “Although most of the recordings have been just Danielle and myself, until this spring, live we perform as a four piece. Danielle sings and does live percussion, I do all the electric guitars, Joe Pascarel does all the acoustic guitar stuff and Carrie Ingber plays bass. We use a drum machine for both recording and live shows, although we will be soon performing with live drums,” happily notes Masucci.  Stephen’s day job, which involves building custom recording studios and equipment, bought about a significant turn of events that lead to an unforeseen and paramount meeting of musicians.   “Dennis Diken (drummer for the Smithereens & superb music writer) started out as a client, but became a fan of the band,” enthuses Masucci.  “He's really championed our cause and will be doing some shows with us…remember the "live drummer" thing...we're honored, he's amazing to play with, one of the world’s truly gifted drummers.”  The live drums should act as a dome light in possibly placing this band on the map somewhere on the direct route connecting both the audiences of the regular planetarium presentations and the midnight laser show crowds.

In a world where satellited mainstream music has all the power of a dropped magnet, the Lost Patrol has quietly departed and arrived back with a release for each of the last three earth years. They launched their self-titled CD EP in 2000, which included “Voulez Vous,” a single that was also included on the 2001 Nashville New Music Conference sampler.  By 2001, the band had gelled enough to release “Creepy Cool” as their first full-length recording. “Creepy Cool” extends their explorations with their teeming formula of vocals and instrumentals with two sonic detours.  Stauss’ vocals project and roam against the Northern skies filled with dexterous Western twang and reverb--resulting in an alluring and overlapping sound that drives and drifts like the tide being pulled between the sun and moon.  The electronic adventuring  “All This Time” and  “Andre in the City” bends the disc into new territories away from their signature sound. “Danielle wrote and plays all the instruments on  “All This Time” and “Andre in the City” is a Moog piece that I did,” explains Stephen.

With its title lifted from a Tennessee Waffle House menu, the “Scattered, Smothered & Covered” EP landed in early 2002. Possibly their strongest release to date, overall the disc evokes a drive through a hushed desert with black cacti contours and mountain range silhouettes underneath a dome of sky filled with the indirect luminaries of white Christmas light-like stars.  The disc blasts off with three haunting vocals numbers before yielding to the driving instrumental “There and Back” which induces a desert mirage of a battery of bikers with Davie Allan pole-positioned on a chopper.  The Hale-Bopp pop of “Jukebox on the Moon,” originally rendered by Ginny Millay, concludes and shoots the proper EP to its zenith point.  “Jukebox on the Moon was discovered on a Dave The Spazz (DJ on WFMU) compilation tape,” recalls Stephen. “We were invited to play a show at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center and it seemed like a natural, so I came up with the arrangement. It fell together pretty naturally for us.” Living up to its “Scattered” title, a magnificent and unidentified instrumental brings the darkhorse duo back to earth with a triumphant sparkle.  With their linear time skipping momentum and T-Minus clock counting down, the band is recording constantly and will most likely release a payload of EPs--ready to be played on portable players, computers, car & home stereos and Waffle House’s jukeboxes all over the world!

The Lost Patrol’s out-of-this-world sound connects the space from the nearby stereo to the faraway reaches of the solar system. Like a glowing Texaco sign standing tall against a starlit Route 66 night, they find their center of balance somewhere between the expanse of the rustic frontier and the guitar-shaped constellations.

Favorite Recordings from 2020

 Long Players

   Hazy Sour Cherry-Tour De Tokyo

Melenas-Dias Raros

Young Fresh Fellows-Toxic Youth

The Resonars-Disappear

Vic Mars-Inner Roads and Outer Paths

Perry Dear & the Deerstalkers-Six-String Holiday

Singles

Habibi-Come My Habibi

Isobel Campbell-Never My Love 

The Knaves-90 Days

                                                          Reissues & Collections

                                                     Gregorio Paniagua-Batiscafo

Paraiso-El Corte Final

                               Paul Collins Beat-Another World: The Best of the Archives

Paul Collins with Chuck Nolan (book)
I Don't Fit In: My Wild Ride Through the Punk & Power Pop Trenches
 with The Nerves & The BEAT

Phil and the Frantics-Frantically Yours

"Look Out​!​" The San Diego Scene 1958​-​1973 

The Potatomen-Toytown: Outtakes and Rarities 

The Honeycombs-Have I The Right? Complete 60s Albums & Singles

The Last-Look Again

Wheels on Fire-Liar, Liar

Here is evidence that exciting rock ‘n’ roll can not only come from the most unlikely of places (Athens, Ohio), but also be recorded in this century (2010 to be exact). Perhaps it was the humdrum and indeterminate band name that prevented this group from ever crossing my radar. The four-piece not only had the Memphis sound down, namely Reigning Sound, but they accomplished it without a bass player.  While previous releases had them leaning in the direction of more rough & tumble rock ‘n’ roll in the realm of the Pagans, New Bomb Turks, and the swaggering seventies Stones, Liar, Liar presents them successfully expanding their sound out to the ‘70s melodic pop ‘n’ roll regions of the Real Kids and the Beat. With its prominent whirling keyboards, soulful vocal delivery and pop sensibilities, it was this third and final one on Germany’s Alien Snatch Records that proved to be the charm. Initial listens had me pulling a stockpile of expressions out of storage and Lyres records off the shelf. On “Bad Lie,” they proceed to burst out of the gate, quickly work up a storm and fire on all cylinders. The little vocal inflections at the end of “Sarah” and interspersed throughout “Looking at You” initially threw me for a loop as I could not quite place where I heard them before, then I recalled they were probably inspired by a David Byrne or David Johansen scat. The incendiary “Losin’” is testimony that they were well attuned to a long gone past which allowed them to skirt the transient hipster trappings of their time, while successfully bringing in street-level characters like “Long Tall Sally” into the darkened alleys of the 21st century.  The surging & shuffling minimalism of the Subsonics informs “Ambulance” which arrives on the scene "where the people were dancin’ in street/where the music never sounded so sweet.” The party rages on with “Looking At You” before heading back to the Reigning Sound of “Stick Around” that is unadulterated, straightforward and brimming as tomorrow morning’s black chicory coffee. “Chasin’ UFOs” has them exploring the murky smear of night through the brambles with keyboards that reach a boil like a bubbling cauldron.  Lastly, “I Wanna Know” unspools with the radio “ahn” somewhere between “Heart” by the Remains and Modern Lovers' “Roadrunner." Bucking the trends, they understood what they were good at and they worked feverishly within that framework. This rudimentary intuition is at the essence of rock ‘n’ roll and allowed the soulful quartet to connect the sound and spark of the past to the chain reaction of the present.

The Red Birds (Akai Tori)-Prayer (Inori)

                     

I first encountered the Red Birds when I came across their colorful picture sleeve 45 of “Kami Fusen” (Paper Balloon) in their native land at a flea market surrounding the Tō-ji temple in Kyoto. Although they appear on the vibrant cover of this 1973 release like the ultimate Japanese sunshine pop band, the song starts as a slow burner before turning an unforeseen corner of chugging guitar chords before their co-ed harmonies interlock and lift the song to the stratosphere. Akai Tori (the Red Birds) were pretty prolific in their short span that ran from 1969 to 1974. Of their 10 albums released in five years, Inori (Prayer) surfaced to be the most intriguing in spots, yet bewildering as a whole. In general, it’s not dependent on MOR covers of boring Western hits (e.g.”You’ve Got a Friend,” “Bridge Over Troubled Water”) or the more cloy trappings of early ‘70s soft rock that time stamp their other albums. The album starts especially strong with the versatile group quickly establishing a countervailing direction from their previous efforts. “The World of Nothingness-Birth” could be best described as an approximation of taiko in space before segueing into the curvilinear lushness of  “Awakening.” which sounds like Cold and Bouncy-era High Llamas warmed by “Sun Goddess” from Ramsey Lewis. Elsewhere, “Malibu” casts the vibe of prime Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66. “Niji Otaou” ("Sing a Rainbow") features Junko Yamamoto's pleasant female vocals which are reminiscent of those later heard on the Pen Friend Club albums. Despite the enchantment found in some of these individual songs, the album frequently goes off the tracks with missteps like the old-timey silliness of “Rakuda-chan.” In other moments, its momentum is thwarted by plodding and scorched out filler material like “Hoshi” and ”Ishi." “Kioku.” ("Memory") reprises the space-age waterbed sound of “Awakening” as a male voice recites a monologue that contains some sort of The World Without Us contemplative message by way of Rod McKuen. The lofty a cappella choral title track of “Inori” ("Prayer") fittingly concludes this stylistically incongruent album. This Handel composition is once again as unanticipated as all the preceding songs that are only held together by some loose conceptional ecological theme.

Gregorio Paniagua-Batiscafo

While there have been several proposals, including Japanese offers, to reissue this 1980 ahead-of-its-time recording, none have been accepted by its creator Gregoria Paniagua until this year of years. This baroque hoedown has been remastered and restored to its full glory by the always interesting Madrid-based independent Munster Records. The instrumental record immediately casts a folkloric atmosphere while further listens will reveal visionary approaches along with a playful sense of both voyage and discovery. On the whole, it sees around corners and flows along with a continuity like Van Dyke Parks’ Song Cycle, the 2011 reclamation of the Beach Boys’ Smile, Eiichi Ohtaki's A Long Vacation, or Khyber Mail by Sohail Rana. 

Kraut Folk & Celtic Disco

The term Kraut folk has been thrown around this record and the opening song “Dragon,” surging forward with a Motorik rhythm, comes into direct alignment with the neologism.  After an interlude of breakwater and seagulls, “Plancton'' washes ashore under a festive and fanciful atmosphere with its expansive employment of violas. The song is also adorned with everything and the kitchen sink including the actual musical use of a zucchini scraper! Cutting through the kitchen counter clutter, “Kyrie Nicolai” is playful, effervescent, and evokes prancing through a medieval village. The lavishly melodic “Ciao” features perfectly placed beats and unexpected accompaniments like an Egyptian sistrum which reinforce and enhance the composition.



“Spaghetti Alla Milanese'' with its insistent beat merges the record back on the imaginary musical Autobahn only to be sidetracked to regions ruled by the bombo. “Preludio Balsamico Y Chacona'' sounds closer to Brazilian Tropicália in that it's an aural equivalent of a Henri Rousseau painting than the unclassifiable Iberian sounds which predominate the record. The title track “Batiscafo” is dazzling Celtic disco reminiscence of the High Llamas. It would come as no surprise if Sean O'Hagan of the High Llamas has an original issue of "Batiscafo" in his extensive record collection.

 
Ambitious & Adventurous

With melodies so instantly captivating, it’s difficult to grasp how the individual instruments and found sound sources fit together so seamlessly to create the overall multidimensional sonic atmosphere. Each listen will reveal there is much beyond its curvilinear edges as striking details and intricacies emerge. At times, it even seems like the strong melodies are built on sands as they begin to shape shift like the amorphous clouds depending on the context, conditions and situations. “Batiscafo” is a welcomed and sweeping work of art and contrast to this vicious 2020 world. On another level, this vibrant record is an expression of Paniagua’s innate musicality and ability to intertwine disparate elements together into a comprehensive and unified whole. Connecting and expressing both subtle undercurrents and panoramic perspectives is always a challenging, but a worthwhile pursuit regardless of year.

Isobel Campbell-Never My Love & There is No Other

It was one of those musical moments where everything coalesced to make the world whole again.  It was a time when a song presented a moment of balance and an overall sense of tranquility-exactly when it was needed.  

At first and from a distance, I thought I was hearing Astrud Gilberto’s cover of “Never My Love” from her 1968 Windy album. To my surprise, it was Isobel Campbell’s interpretation of the Association’s 1967 hit record. I then recalled that Scottish singer-songwriter Isobel Campbell was slated to release an album here in upended 2020.  Further investigation revealed that her 5th solo album actually arrived way back in January and this cover was culled from Voices in the Sky, a bonus EP comprised mostly of covers. Surprisingly, “Never My Love” was never a hit in the UK and for some reason the Association’s layered harmonic sound never caught on in the UK like the Beach Boys. It could be postulated that Campbell’s move from Scotland to Los Angeles might have spurred this cover of a cover. Besides being tailor made for Campbell, the relatively lengthy glockenspiel solo on the outro makes her rendition truly distinctive.  

Even though it has been 14 years, you can depend on Campbell to deliver the finest in spare, hushed and understated 21-century sounds in the tradition of Marianne Faithfull and Claudine Longet recordings from the ‘60s. On one level, these are the unintentional sounds of a spring & summer that never happened-bypassing a cruel Southern California bummer that has seen a historic mission torched on the forefront and a city surrounded by raging wildfires.

Chris Szczech, the Los Angeles-based recording engineer and mixer at Sonora Recorders, supplies the studio, frame & canvas for Campbell to layer her trademark sound. The lite psychedelia of “Rainbow” leans in the adventurous direction of Rita Lee while incorporating a gamelan which makes this song stand out.  Overall, she delivers a smooth, breezy and atmospheric listen, however a deeper immersion will reveal some of the factors which have truly knocked the world out of balance. For instance, the loping “Heart of it All” seemingly captures the spirit of the open country in the chorus, but the verses disclose the obvious incompatibility of our ways with all the surrounding beauty. “Hey World” reminds me of “Hey, Love” by the Coronados and the shuffling eclecticism of Jonathan Richman before the backing gospel chorus kicks in. “There is No Other” is both a paean to the city and a sonic document of her physical and stylistic transition from UK pastoral folk to amorphous Californian adult contemporary.  Her attempts to reconcile the contrasting forces of dark and light elevate her music to merely being shelved as Whole Foods background sound. Los Angeles is imbued in the grooves with lyrical indentations which act as an assessment of city far from the optimism seen and heard in Jackie DeShannon's LA. Still, Campbell does taps right into its atmosphere of all things under the sun that make it unlike any place in the world.

Despite her noble attempts to raise needed awareness of the escalating numbers of those experiencing homelessness, “Boulevard” stretches on too long like one of those drab moments of late ‘90s R.E.M. album filler. In these lackluster moments, she could use a touch of the fluidity heard on albums like Kadhja Bonet’s 2018 album Childqueen. Still it’s good to hear these beguiling, relatively sparsely adorned, and smooth songs that generally succeed. Like those two albums from Those Pretty Wrongs, this album is also instilled with the hope, promise and costs of the golden dream.  During this summer of reckoning and wreckage “There is No Other” is a transitional release, while “Never My Love” is a transcendent moment finding a way towards a better world.  

The Hot Shots-Wise Up, Watch Out

In the grand tradition of the Japanese preserving and celebrating aspects of vanished Americana, the Hot Shots formed in 1995.  They were first embraced by the West Coast swing music scene which was still reelin’ in 1997 when the Hot Shots were ascending their first American stages in California.  After a few singles and the departure of co-founder Rockin' Enocky, they returned to the U.S. in late 1998 to record this debut album at Ecco-Fonic Studio in Los Angeles with Deke Dickerson. Released in 1999, “Wise Up, Watch Out” presents a sound that smartly avoids the trampled road of over-the-top rockabilly and ventures out to the rural routes of country-tinged rock ‘n’roll, honky tonk, rhythm & blues along with some Latin flair. The one and only Chie Kodama sets the tone on her acoustic guitar and her vocals makes each song shine brightly, while joyfully expressing her innate love and conviction for this music. “Pretend” co-written by Chie along with bass player Hiroshi Shishikura gets things rolling in a refreshing manner with a slightly bucking rhythm and twangy fills provided by Yuichiro Matsushita. “Tell Me Baby” is an understated lovely ‘50s pop number composed by Chie and capped off by her declarations of “I Wanna Know Right Now/”I Wanna Know Right Now” in sincere Joey Ramone style. Hank Cochran’s “A Little Bitty Tear” is delivered by way of Wanda Jackson with some impressive fretwork replacing the orchestrated strings originally applied by Capitol Records to Jackson’s single. The upbeat “A New Idea On Love” is such an obscure cover that the only background information I could find was that it was probably written by Mickey Baker of the renowned and much sampled ‘50s duo Mickey and Sylvia. Clinching the matter, is detecting a “Love is Strange” guitar quote in proceedings. Furthermore, its intertwined co-ed vocals shoots this one across the starlit Western skies like one of those dashing and delightful Judy & the Loadies songs. The album closes with “Guitar Battle” where Deke Dickerson and Yuichiro Matsushita trade off runs and riffs in classic Merle Travis & Joe Maphis fashion. Deke Dickerson plays a fitting and supporting role as producer, along with providing some backing vocals and accompaniment which brings forth further dimensions to the overall sound and presentation. You couldn’t ask for a better start for a combo that thankfully is still actively performing, recording and releasing records that are each distinctive in their own vintage sounding way, while overall expanding and expressing the vast possibilities of heydays to come. 

The Yellow Payges-Volume 1 & Crowd Pleasers

With its galvanizing wake up call of “We’re Completely the Same” Daniel Hortter delivers an opening salvo for the times on the driving “The Two of Us.” Hortter has mentioned that the song was derived from the intolerance that he and his black girlfriend faced for being in an interracial relationship at the time. Musically, this jolting and fierce song stops listeners in their tracks to be in the now with a sound similar to Rare Earth, Eric Burdon and Arthur Brown. Propelled by copious congas, “Little Woman” sweeps down like the cool Canadian air mass known as the Guess Who before spiraling into a guitar freakout.  The flared-out and heavy duty "Crowd Pleaser” enters the scene with its propulsive drumming and flashes of wah-wah slotting them somewhere between Blue Cheer, Black Pearl and Deep Purple. Being such an evocative and monster song, it's surprising that "Crowd Pleaser" has not yet been tapped to be featured in a television series and/or on movie soundtrack. After all this righteous ruckus, “Never Put Away My Love For You,” surprises listeners with its softness bordering on Bee Gees wispiness. This offset sound is actually not a stretch at all as the Yellow Payges were even known to have the smooth Herman's Hermits hit “There's a Kind of Hush” in their 1968 live repertoire. Given they first made their name as the house band at The Hullabaloo on the Sunset Strip in Hollywood, versatility was their calling card and this adeptness allowed them to span several '60s crosscurrents. In their current configuration, they were able to pull off impressive live covers of Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston’s “It Takes Two” and the epic "River Deep – Mountain High,” All roads lead to their showstopper “I’m a Man/Here ‘Tis” as it demonstrates their unwavering devotion to gritty rhythm & blues and the rough & tumble influences of Bo Diddley, Yardbirds and Eric Burdon and the Animals in particular. With its vocals through a megaphone effect, primal production and Daniel Hortter on harp, “I’m a Man/Here ‘Tis” sounds either like it's from 1966 or something from a garage punk band that Crypt Records would have unleashed in 1996.  This rave up builds and builds before being topped off by an incendiary drum solo pounded out by Danny Gorman. Volume 1 presents an overall hard-edged iteration of the band stamped with metallic tinges and some road wear so prevalent during the late hours of the '60s.  It's almost a blessing that the standout selections contained within never became national hits as they might now be cursed by classic rock radio redundancy. Nonetheless, they more than paid their dues during the upended late '60s with the results being songs that continue to endure with a message and delivery for the ages.

Volume 1 was actually the tip of the iceberg as the band had an extensive past that stretched back to 1965 and the surf music scene of Torrance and the Sunset Strip of Hollywood, The band went on to appear with the Byrds, the Leaves, the Seeds, the Doors, Love, Buffalo Springfield, Grateful Dead, Turtles and even toured 6-months with the Beach Boys. They were all set to tour Japan in 1968 with Eric Burdon and the Animals, but things fell through. Yet, it might have been fortuitous as the Animals encountered problems with visas and the Yakuza. On a side note, Volume 1 surprisingly appeared in the Japanese record store racks upon my visit to Osaka in 2019.  Upon inspection, this particular disc didn’t travel over the Pacific to reach Time Bomb Records as Big Pink Music of Korea remastered and reissued Volume 1 in 2015.

2013 L to R: Daniel Hortter, Danny Gorman (drums, the Palace Guard), Michael Rummans (bass, the Sloths), Dave Provost (guitar, Droogs, the Textones, Davie Allan & the Arrows) 

The music industry probably pressed them to be the next Grass Roots, while their true direction aligned them in the direction of the Rolling Stones, the Yardbirds and R&B. In that regard, the hard working band from Torrance were one of the most commercially successful mid-sixties acts of the Long Beach/San Pedro/South Bay scene that produced the Music Machine, the Merry-Go-Round  the Sons of Adam, Things to Come, Power and the adjacent Westside act the Sloths. Michael Rummans of the Sloths joined the Yellow Payges in 1967 and then again during their 2013 reformation. His topflight bass playing reminded me of Bruce Foxton of the Jam. Not settling in or on one particular style may have smudged the Yellow Payges in their and/or Uni Records’s attempts to make them a national household name. Their aptly named posthumous singles collection "Crowd Pleasers" presents a refreshing variety of songs that are stylistically diverse as AM radio's Top 40 of the time with occasional descents into the freeform FM underground.  Still, being all things to all people is exhausting and possibly led to their demise.

Their first single “Never See the Good In Me” features Daniel Hortter’s almost scat like singing accompanied by some coiling sitar runs which assert their presence and attests to their adventurous approach from the start. The sweeping showdown of "Jezebel" under its Southwestern shadings is my favorite rendition I have heard thus far of this oft-covered rockabilly/garage staple. With a stinging fuzz lead riding over the galloping rhythm guitars, harmony galore and all strapped together by a bending bass "Our Time is Running Out" is their most magnificent single ride and side in their 45 rack. The Jimmy Webb inscribed "Sweet Sunshine" makes for another highlight that rises and rises on the energy of its radiant, soulful and poppy chorus. "Judge Carter"is decent horn rock a la the Buckinghams with an especially noteworthy overlapping horn outro. If "Just What I was Looking For" resembles a languorous Monkees song, it’s not a coincidence as it was written by Goffin/King who regularly lavished the Monkees with their gifts of composition.  Featuring a jingle-jangle folk-pop sound and going back home theme, "Home Alone" is their great lost buried B-side. Decorated by a Hammond organ and complemented by early Cryan' Shames-ish chiming guitars, "Home Alone" (like the aforementioned “I’m a Man” on its top side) elusively avoids to sound like its release year of 1970-by five intense years! The Complete Yellow Payges Singles '67-'70 reveals so many additional sonic layers, facets and dimensions of this highly regarded and competent band, all while being extremely listenable. Their current live performances attest to their undeterred way of approaching the present moment with soul, wisdom and idealism of the mid-sixties and making the most of the opportunity to continue creating sounds that are needed and now.

Daniel Hortter in 2019 wearing the yellow blazer for the first time in 50 years.
Danny Gorman on drums.

The Exciters-Caviar and Chitlins

While the records of the Exciters continue to reign supreme in England’s Northern Soul scene, the Jamaica Queens-based quartet is reduced in their native country to one-hit wonder status and soundtrack appearances.  Pop music doesn’t get much more catchy and dynamic than their 1963 #4 smash hit “Tell Him” featuring the commanding and consummate voice of Brenda Reid. Her voice seemingly leaps off the 45 issued by United Artists.  The dashing song, written by Bert Berns, is one of the highest peaks of the Girl Group era and borders on punk rock with its propulsive drive.  Follow-ups like “He’s Got the Power” bubbled under the Top 40, but lack of chart action is by no way indicative of the quality of their enduring songs. They went on to open for the Beatles in 1964 and recorded for Roulette, Bang and Shout Records before landing on RCA Records and working with producer Larry Banks in 1969. With soul going into every direction at that time, I was curious about the approach and orientation of this record found behind an appealing front cover. “Turn Me On” and “I Don't Have To Worry (No More)” are immediately evocative of mid-sixties soul pop in their arrangements and provide a sense of continuity with their older material. Surprisingly, a few of their songs actually seem a few months to a few years ahead of their time as they are on the cusp of what would be big once the ‘60s flipped over to the ‘70s. For instance, “Fight that Feelin’” seems to prefigure 1972’s chartbuster and current TV commercial warhorse “I’ll Take You There” by the Staple Singers, while the fuzz-driven “You Don't Know What You're Missing ('Til It's Gone)” has a stutter and swing similar to what would later appear in “Mr. Big Stuff” by Jean Knight. “Always” frequently gets maligned as being too Middle of the Road and supper club schmaltzy, but its straightforward melodic beauty works for me and would sound just right flowing effortlessly along with “Precious and Few” by Climax and Heatwave’s “Always and Forever.” The highlight of the album is the kinetic “Movin’ Too Slow” as it works both as a dance floor filler and as an early anthem of women's empowerment. Granted, there are some lackluster songs (e.g., the two numbers where Herb Rooney takes lead vocals) which results in the album being uneven. However, there is enough surging energy delivered with a sense of finesse to make Caviar and Chitlins well worth exploring.

Phil and the Frantics-Frantically Yours

Prelude

The Nuggets compilations have featured a preponderance of bands from California, Texas, New York, Illinois, Michigan and Washington and rightly so as it comes down to largely a numbers game based on population and socio-economics in the mid-sixties. Breaking Nuggets down by state also reminds me that there has never been an appearance of an Arizona group on one of the many iterations of this series. However, the case could’ve been made for the inclusion of the Grodes or the Dearly Beloved from Tucson or Phoenix’s Phil & the Frantics. In the '80s, Greg Shaw astutely amassed these mid-sixties recordings and brought this previously deeply buried Arizona music history to the surface from the Bomp!/Voxx Records offices in Burbank, CA. Shaw proceeded to introduce these regional Arizona rock 'n' roll acts to a worldwide audience by including a few tracks on his Pebbles compilation series and even giving the Grodes, the Dearly Beloved and Phil & Frantics the full album anthology treatment in the mid-'80s as part of his Rough Diamonds:The History Of Garage Band Music series.

The Sound

They could be as rousing, feral and stomping as any Pacific Northwest armory band and also etch somber, reflective, but still resolute ballads that were usually the domain of earnest beat combos who operated under the dismal and overcast skies of New England. While the mid-sixties were a time of vast musical possibilities, it is still confounding that the Zombies would cast the largest shadow on a band from Valley of the Sun. The remastering of Frantically Yours presents a bold and upfront sound with the pronounced Vox Continental keyboards rightfully placed on the forefront. The keys played by Rick Rose in the original line-up of the Frantics and Ted Harpchek in the second version of the band provide the overall characteristic of their sound while casting a moody, flickering and otherworldly atmosphere. Phil Kelsey’s idiosyncratic voice is also a major distinguishing factor. While I have a hard time placing it somewhere on the nasally continuum between Gerry Marsden of Gerry and Pacemakers and Sammy Davis Jr., it’s well suited and fittingly works in the context of their layered sound. The band was truly at a transitional phase of the mid-sixties combining the elements/sounds of the early sixties while looking around the corner to the sounds of things to come-sometimes within the space of the song itself. The closest contemporaneous comparisons would be some sort of combination of the Gestures, Butch Engle and the Styx and with an undercurrent of the Summer Sounds if we wish to go truly obscure. 

The Songs

“Theme,” “I Must Run,” “Pain,” “Where Am I Running To,” and “I’ll Do It Again” all have an entrancing, transcendent and an almost liturgical quality to them. “Theme,” the backing track to “Where Am I Running To” is top notch with its descending melody, echoing drums, and ringing guitars recorded at the cavernous sounding Audio Recorders of Arizona. Their immortal "I Must Run” is a study in contrasts being in minor key, with lamenting poetic lyrics (written by Phil Kelsey and Jim Musil) that transforms the heartbreak into a crescendoing chorus before a modulation that elevates the profound song to another better realm. In addition, the organ break rates right up with the solo in “Kind of a Drag” by the Buckinghams in the pantheon of ‘60s roller rink greatness. “Pain” is their sideways approximation of “It’s Only Love” by the Beatles and comes close to the peak glory of “I Must Run” and subsequently would go on to directly inspire Jeff Conolly’s Lyres who covered it on their 1993 Happy Now...album. With guitar accents that anticipate Jefferson Airplane’s “Today” by over a year, “Till You Get What You Want” also incorporates an incessant and hypnotic Vox Continental keyboard riff that would later become the bedrock sound of ? and the Mysterians. There is also a clear emulation of Dave Clark Five’s Mike Smith vocals in Phil’s tone and phrasing.

1985-Rough Diamonds: The History Of Garage Band Music-Voxx Records

On 1985’s Rough Diamonds album, Greg Shaw devoted the majority of side 1 to their R&B-infused rock & roll which made them a top live draw.  Frantically Yours places these sides right in the heart of the collection and this positioning works in contrast to their more recognized British Invasion-inspired songs that start the collection in mono and later reappear in stereo to conclude the disc.  My particular favorite from the early era is their original “Give Up” as it’s sort of their slanted take on Len Berry’s “You Can’t Sit Down.”  “New Orleans”  most associated with Gary ”U.S.” Bonds is another standout of their earlier recordings.

 1999 Bacchus Archives collection
First Line-Up of Phil and the Frantics
Bill Powell (guitar), Joe Martinez Jr. (drums), Phil Kelsey (vocals/sax) Rick Rose (keys), John Lambert (bass)

The previously unreleased “Exclusively Yours” and the buried “Whenever I’m Alone” showcase Phil Kelsey’s ability to tap into his inner Peter Noone. These two tracks flow well in the context of the overall presentation. The finest rarity in my perspective is the instrumental  “I’ll Do It Again” as it has all the classic hallmarks of “I Must Run,” “Pain,” and “Theme” that set the group apart from their fierce competitors. While it might be only a backing track, it stands on its own mesmerizing merits and would be a great lead-off track on one of those Arf! Arf! compilations of psychedelic instrumentals.

John Lambert second from left, Bill Powell third from left. 

Exclusive to this deluxe edition are “Laugh at Me” and “Happy Man” by Beethoven Soul which are slightly oblique ‘60s pop songs without all the treacle later lavished on by Dot Records for their 1967 long player (shown above). The band featured Bill Powell (guitar) and John Lambert (bass) who exited Phil & the Frantics right after a Dec. 31, 1965 flood which temporarily closed JD’s nightclub as they were supporting families and needed to keep working a stage each night. On this 45, Beethoven Soul’s sound has a continuity with the overall Phil & Frantics aesthetic sans the unmistakable voice of Phil Kelsey. The flood and the departing band members sent Phil scrambling to reconstitute a new version of the Frantics.  Phil was sagacious as he selected two musicians from the Vibratos, Steve Dodge (guitar) and Ted Harpchek (keyboards), who had just broken up, in addition to adding Tommy Miller on bass. Before disbanding, the Vibratos were Phil & the Frantics’ major rivals and also the gold standard of Phoenix-area bands due to their vast proficiency playing and recording Beatles-esque pop.

 The Second Line-Up of Phil and the Frantics
Phil Kelsey (sax), Joe Martinez Jr. (drums), Steve Dodge (harp), Ted Harpchek (keyboards), Tommy Mller (bass)

Southwestern Frontier Sound

The floorboards of the double-decker JD’s nightclub literally connected the notes of  rock ‘n’ roll to country.  Country was featured on the main floor while rock & roll took place downstairs in the Riverbottom Room that experienced that aforementioned flood on New Year’s eve 1965. One can imagine the booming sounds of Waylon Jennings and the Waylors seeping down through the ceiling as they were the house band on the main level 7-nights a week. Phil and the Frantics absorbed these country inflections and captured moments of confluence between country and rock 'n' roll in their sound. By circumstances and proximity, they could be said to be on the vanguard of country rock ‘n’ roll-a few moons before Nashville West (featuring future Byrds Clarence White and Gene Parsons) over in El Monte, California. Their most overtly country number “What’s Happening” is a jagged barn burning hoedown which anticipates the ‘80s college rock cow-punk movement by 20 years! Their cover of Buck Owens’ “Act Naturally” by way of the Beatles captures an early 1965 reunification between country and rock ‘n’ roll. The fact that a majority of their songs were co-produced and co-arranged by Waylon Jennings (with Jim Musil) meant jack to me when the Bacchus Archives CD was released in 1999. (I would have then mixed up Merle Haggard with Waylon.) Now, I think of it as one of the remarkable and singular musical overlaps to occur in the Southwest during the mid-sixties! Waylon’s deft hand in shaping these songs into something mysterious and ahead of their time can also be found in the ambitious and inventive arrangements which approach those heard on the New Colony Six records. It is now a point of pride that I work in the same city, Chandler, that Waylon called home for years.

Panel featured in The Tempe Sound exhibit that ran at the Tempe History Museum during 2014 & 2015

Seismic Shifts

Phil & the Frantics were a quintessential regional band that could not quite break through to the national level due to several factors inside & outside of their control.  It could be said that Phil was seemingly mostly adept at navigating the twists, turns and exhilarating rapids of music during the mid-sixties Their backstory of near misses and lost opportunities, “could haves” and “would haves” is messy, but contains some of the common elements, music industry characters (e.g. Bob Keene of Del-Fi Records), radio stations and accelerated changes that played out on the Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas circuit during the mid-‘60s. In order to eradicate the myths and misinformation which have built up over the years, journalist Dan Nowicki turned over new sources and re-examined previous documentation on how everything went down. His detailed and comprehensive liner notes included in the 24-page booklet will get those up to speed who are familiar with a few of their songs, but not much of their captivating story which took place in the thriving and teeming Phoenix music scene with its epicenter being the unincorporated “county island” strip somewhere between Scottsdale and Tempe. 

Capturing the Vanished Past

In proverbial Arizona fashion, this lost era is now represented by a vacant strip mall structure as the former JD’s currently stands empty after years of being a mattress/furniture place. Phil & the Frantics were ultimately prevailing as their distinctive sound has stood the test of time and their best songs continue to make a considerable emotional impact.  Belated credit must be given to Greg Shaw for introducing the Arizona sound of the mid-sixties to an international audience in the ‘80s. In the late '90s “Arizona’s unofficial music historian,” John P. Dixon recaptured the lightning with his commendable and tireless efforts which resulted in a Phil & the Frantics retrospective CD released by Dionysus Records/Bacchus Archives. Dixon is the co-producer, along with Dan Nowicki, of this definitive anthology packed with 26 songs.

Front and Center

Sometimes in the midst of exploring unmarked trails in hopes of chasing down some of the most arcane (e.g.,Thirst) and elusive (e.g., 5d) Arizona bands, there is momentary inattention paid to the groundbreaking combos that initially plowed the low desert grounds and left a high stack of records which sound better with each passing year. Releases like Frantically Yours rectify this situation by bringing forth the mid-sixties sounds recorded by Phil & Frantics that are as evocative, overlapping, and expansive as the Sonoran Desert itself.     

The Aislers Set-live in Phoenix, AZ at Modified-Nov. 2000

After hearing their Spector-ish, Brian Wilson-esque wall of pop song "Hit the Snow," I starting searching around for more music and information about this current San Franciscan band.  While they may be a little too twee for some, they find Spector's place through the quiet neighborhood side streets.  Their first album, Terrible Things Happen is an introspective and ornate recording that seems (on the surface) far removed (and sometime sheltered) from the blunt & repetitious weekday world of work, congested freeways and forms. Their second and much stronger release, Last Match decides to "Don't Worry Baby" and go out to re-explore both the narrow & wide world. The album seems to be a restatement that beauty can be found and experienced (both from the past and now) with the acknowledgement that the dispiriting factors will always continue their tired cycles.

Their live show last night (Nov. 18, 2000) in Phoenix at the "art space venue" (Modified) was a bit incohesive, but it did contain some moments of illumination that make this band stand on the vista of Spector's vision over the "lower case" underground of indie-pop bands. The Aislers' show does not go "all out" or "break through the artificial facades" in the way that many of the riveting garage bands do, but they could get a whole room dancing (if others left their attitudes at the door). Their live sound, layering a happy Vox Contential organ, trebly and sprinting Fender guitar, beat-surf drumming, wrecking crew Fender bass and a chiming Guild 12 string, created both an atmosphere of hope and a smile. 

P.P. Arnold-The New Adventures of...P.P. Arnold

Sometimes when doing yard work, you hear a song streaming over the phone that stops you in your tracks and makes you put down the equipment to check the playlist.  “Baby Blue” by P.P. Arnold was recently one of those halting songs. While I have previously heard this strong album upon its 2019 release, re-encountering  the uplifting, sweeping and lush “Baby Blue” spurred me to revisit this release and further explore Arnold’s back catalog and storied career. "The First Lady of Mod" was at the epicenter of ‘60s Swingin’ London working in the overlapping musical circles of Immediate Records' Andrew Loog Oldham, Mick Jagger and Steve Marriott of the Small Faces. Being an Ikette and contributing backup vocals on the Small Faces’ “Itchycoo Park,” Ike & Tina Turner’s "River Deep, Mountain High" and Del Shannon’s Home & Away album are just a few highlights from that heightened time within a long and legendary musical career.  The New Adventures of...P.P. Arnold is her return to the forefront and first solo album in 51 years! It’s a fitting and appropriate title as these 15 songs express new stages in an already remarkable life. With the aforementioned “Baby Blue” setting the tone, her musical momentum continues with the horn-driven “The Magic Hour” featuring her heartfelt vocals which soar in the top-tier stratosphere of Ronnie Spector and Darlene Love. Her sublime reading of “Different Drum” continues her tradition of rendering some of the ‘60s' most endearing and enduring songs (e.g., “As Tears Go By,” “Angel of the Morning.”) “Daltry Street” presents a microcosmic window into a past scene fastened to a cinematic Bacharach-ian arrangement and delivered with calm, cool and collected vocals reminiscent of Dionne Warwick. The ballad “You Got Me” is the album’s sleeper.  Originally recorded by Jaibi (aka Joan Banks) in 1967 and two years later by the Exciters, “You Got Me,” showcases Arnold’s timeless and stately elegance along with her protean abilities. After its initial splash when it was released in the rushed world of 2019, this expansive comeback album has proven to have lasting reverberations. Not that you would expect anything less than eternal from P.P. Arnold.