Ron Dante

I've always dug this guy's voice. Not a major album by any stretch, but a pleasant one nonetheless.

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Toni Wine

Once again, this is not an actual album but a compilation I made from various sources featuring songs and demos by the great Toni Wine and her group, Dusk. If anyone has additional tunes by her and would like to add them, please post a link in the comments.

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The First Edition

One of the last editions of the First Edition.

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Pat Shannon

Nice soft, sunshiny LP. Some background: In dealing with Pat Shannon and his career, it's important to remember that sometimes nepotism isn't a matter of undue favoritism — Pat Shannon's real name was Pat Glasser, and he was the brother of Warner Bros. staff producer Dick Glasser. That obviously gave him an edge in getting recorded, but he did have the talent to justify the effort. His career began in the late '50s with the single "Maybelle" b/w "Knock Knock (Who's There)" at Decca, and he cut a total of four singles for the label through the end of 1959. These records were mostly in a country-pop vein, with several sides featuring the Anita Kerr Singers and Owen Bradley producing several of them. Shannon was a charismatic singer with a gentle folk tenor that had an enticing dark edge, and he might have found success as part of the early-'60s folk revival. Instead, he emerged again — produced by his brother — on the far side of the psychedelic era with "Candy Apple, Cotton Candy," released in the final week of May 1968. The single retained the gentle trippiness appropriate to 1966-1967, and had a great beat plus some powerful bass work amid the tasteful brass and gently twanging sitar. It was also written by Ruthann Friedman, who'd composed "Windy." Listening to the song's reverb-laden voice and flutes, and its general sunshine pop elegance, one wonders whether the people playing here aren't the same session musicians who handled most of the playing on the Association's records, and whether Warner Bros. might have been trying to groom a potential sound-alike act. Alas, this record never took off, and Shannon was to release only one more single, on Uni in 1969, before giving up his career as a recording artist. "Candy Apple, Cotton Candy" was pretty much forgotten until Rhino Handmade resurrected it for 2004's Come to the Sunshine: Soft Pop Nuggets from the WEA Vaults. At last report, Shannon was living in retirement in California, and had suffered a stroke.

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John Gregory Orchestra

All your favorite detective show hits!

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P.F. Sloan

He was raised on records ... as was I.

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Silverbird

Here's my vinyl rip of "Broken Treaties," the debut album from Silverbird. I think I'm more partial to their second album, which you can find in the January 27th entry.

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Mariano and the Unbelievables

A perfect album for a lazy Sunday afternoon. BTW, this post is 2-fer, containing their other record, "25th Hour."

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The Bantams

Answers the musical question: What if Rodney Allen Rippy fronted Dino, Desi and Billy?

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The Wheel

Kick back in your comfortable chair, slip into euphoria and spin the Wheel.

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A Treasury of Great Folk Rock Hits

More Dunhill goodness. If anyone has other Dunhill comps, please post a link in the comments.

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More Kyle

This fills a request from Rock Archeologia. A nice album, very different in feel from the one I posted yesterday.

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Dave Antrell

This one goes out to monkeeboy. Sweet and sunshiny (especially nice on this snowy day here in Boston), with the assistance of the Wrecking Crew (Carol Kaye, Mike Deasy, Hal Blaine, et al). Enjoy.

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Bobby Hart

Speaking of Bobby Hart ...

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Kyle

Here's an album I picked up yesterday for $1.99 at In Your Ear in Harvard Square. I have seen Kyle's other two records - "Times That Try a Man's Soul" and "Kyle" - floating around the interwebs, but not this one. I couldn't track down much about this guy other than this was his final disk. At times he sounds a little like Neil Diamond. It was produced by Danny Janssen and Bobby Hart (of Tommy Boyce and ...), which made it essential - at least for me. If anyone out there has some info on ol' Kyle, please share it in the comments.

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Don Randi

Thanks to Rock Archeologia, here is "Revolver Jazz." Alas, it's only 160 kbps, but it's nice to finally listen to this album. If anyone has a higher-quality rip, please post a link in the comments.

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Terry Jacks

As a follow-up to the Susan Jacks entry (thanks, btw, to blog friend Rock Archeologia for posting "Forever"), here are two albums by her hubby, "Seasons in the Sun" and "Y' Don't Fight The Sea." If anyone has two later albums from Terry - "Pulse" and "Just Like That" - my collection, and my pitiable life, will be complete. Please post in the comments if you do.

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Bobby Bloom

Don't know about you, but I'm ready to head over to Montego Bay.

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Brutal Beauty

Yeah, I know this is outside the musical realm of my usual posts, but I'd like to share this record with you. The link below will take you to Bandcamp where you can either download the album for free or leave a little in the tipping tray. Please choose the latter.

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Booker T and Priscilla

Fresh vinyl rip for you. Features "Bobby Dylan" on harmonica, Chris Ethridge of the Flying Burrito Brothers on bass and Johnny Barbata of the Turtles/Jefferson Starship on drums. Careful listeners will notice the piano motif from "Layla" popping up on one of the tunes. A question arises: who stole it from whom? Overall, a pretty unusual record. A bit of mellow funk, some gospel, some light soul. Priscilla's voice can grate at times, especially when she's getting into it. BTW, if someone has Booker T and Priscilla's album "Home Grown" and would like to share it, please put a link in the comments. Thanks.

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Bobby Darin

In which ol' Walden Robert Cassotto signs on with Motown for one last shot at relevance.

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Jeanie Greene

Very nice (and rare) white gal Southern soul. Here's some info: Mississippi native Mary Elizabeth Lee started her recording career under the stage name Jeanie Johnson in 1958 when she contracted with RCA Victor with assistance by Chet Atkins. The mid 1960s brought about a new moniker, Jeanie Fortune; an introduction to future husband Marlin Greene; and backing vocals session work at American Studios in Memphis and Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Alabama. Toward the end of the '60s, under her married name, Jeanie Greene, she released a singles for both Atco and Cotillion; her 1971 full-length solo debut, Elektra's "Mary Called Jeanie Greene"; and played gigs in both the Alabama State Troupers and Southern Comfort. Throughout Mary Elizabeth Lee's career as a singer, songwriter and keyboardist, her vocals can be heard on recordings by Big Ben Atkins, Wayne Berry, Reuben Howell, Eddy Mitchell, Willie Nelson, Don Nix and Dan Penn as well as on stage at "The Concert for Bangla Desh" and with Elvis Presley "On Stage: February 1970."

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More Spanky

What happens when the squares try to be hip.

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Groovie Goolies

Archies go goth.

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Rob Galbraith

Hen's-teeth rare soul-country gem.

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Jim Price - Part 1

By request.

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Jim Price - Part 2

Ubiquitous sax man second solo disk.

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Silverbird

If anyone has their other album, "Broken Treaties," please share it in the comments. Thanks.

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Tom Pacheco

You can find this fine record over at Rock Archeologia. Many thanks!

Punch

Some California sounds to warm up this frigid winter's day.

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The Shacklefords

Many thanks to Rock Archeologia.

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The Klowns

Killer klowns.

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Stuart Margolin

Nifty solo record from Rockford crony and former Parade member.

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Blossoms

Sweet soul music.

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Don Does S&G

Been laid low with pneumonia for the last week, but I wanted to post this cheery little record that I've been groovin' too.

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Phil's Diner

More great Phil. Did anyone actually buy his solo records back in the day?

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Phil Everly, R.I.P.

A sad, sad day.

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Sammy Davis Jr.

Hard-to-find record from Mister Entertainment. Check the comments to download "Portrait of Sammy Davis Jr.," courtesy of Timmy.

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Burt Bacharach & Friends

With thanks to Rock Archeologia

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It's All Happening on the Inside

Because so many of you phoned in to express your distaste for my rip of Rippy, I thought I'd post something that might soothe your savage breast.

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Jazz in a Penthouse

Nice little comp from my all-time fav boutique label (back when it was such a thing).

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Classical Smoke

Bubblegum + classical = huh?

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Roger Nichols & Paul Williams

Mondo Exploito slaps together a various artists comp of Roger Nichols and Paul Williams tunes for you. Track list is in the file.

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The Doodletown Pipers

Do you know the way to Doodletown?

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The Crusaders

Answers the musical question, What if the Standells got with God?

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Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs

Back to exploito soundtracks.

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The Flying Nun

Still more Colgems.
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Sajid

Another slice of Colgems.
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Living Jazz

Hayes lite.
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Mr. & Mrs. Garvey

From Allmusic: One of many obscure underground rock albums issued by Columbia or its subsidiary Epic in the late ’60s, Pat Victoria Garvey’s "Mr. & Mrs. Garvey" seems to have sold remarkably few copies considering that it came out on a major label. Not only that, it was produced by one of the most successful producers of the time, Bob Johnston (most known for working with Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash), and featured top Nashville session dudes like Kenneth Buttrey, Norbert Putnam, Wayne Moss, Charlie McCoy, and a young Charlie Daniels (with keyboards by a young Craig Doerge, who would become one of the top L.A. session men in the 1970s). Like some other obscure albums of the late '60s (like Penny Nichols’ Penny’s Arcade), though it had a folk-rock base, it mixed that with early singer/songwriter influences and dashes of Baroque pop, psychedelia, and country-rock. The married couple wrote all of the songs and sang them with strident, bittersweet harmonies reminiscent of those of Ian Sylvia (though not as good). In fact, the record itself sounded like something that could have happened if Ian Sylvia had gone more determinedly pop-commercial, in a trendy countercultural sort of way. There were slightly whimsical story-songs with some flighty fantasy-tinged lyrics (“Today is the first day of the rest of my life” goes the very first line of the album), occasionally infused with references to circa late-19th century Americana. There were piccolo, horns, violin, French horn, and oboe on top of the straightforward folk-rockish bed. But there weren’t captivating songs, melodically or lyrically, relegating this to the period piece rack.

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