The Glitterhouse - Color Blind (1969 psych pop)

Once the contract hit the file, the Glitterhouse - if the band's recollections are to be believed - existed as a Bob Crewe vanity project, something to bolster his artistic reputation. See, Crewe (the Four Seasons & Frankie Valli, the Walker Brothers, the Tremeloes, Lesley Gore), a future member of the Songwriters' Hall of Fame, saw these guys play for a book release party & decided he could turn them into the next Lovin' Spoonful. But once their contribution to the Barbarella soundtrack (Crewe picked studio musicians, relegating the band to vocals only) tanked at radio, support for Color Blind was all but withdrawn. You know where I'm going next - damn shame. Cos even with Crewe's sweetening, Color Blind is an interesting document, albeit one that induces a few winces. The band blames their producer for fare like "Child of Darkness" (a moody, underwritten midtempo piece in the vein of the Association). But who gets blamed for the sugar-spun too-muchness of "Sassafrass and Cinnamon"? The anthemish "I Lost Me a Friend" with its anemic drumbreak? "Hey Woman" is more down-to-earth, kind of generic bubblegum but featuring wicked harmonies and some nice organ buildups. Comparisons to Love (both bands were five-pieces with a Black singer) are inevitable. Album closer "Happy to Have You Here Again" is an excellent Beatley bit (with a Geroge Martin-cribbing instrumental break), Mike Gayle's easygoing 'n' loose lead vocal carrying the day. The most successful song (Top 50 in New York City!) is "Tinkerbell's Mind," a grand, string-laden music box. In total Arthur Lee mode, Gayle coos over a great lite-psych arrangement. The only goof-up is the band's (producer's?) decision to have Mike speak-repeat the last phrase of every verse. Kind of heavy-handed. So: not a classic, but still a small country. 
From RYM (silent mike)

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Earth Island - We Must Survive (1970 usa psych psych pop)

Very good Psych-lite with tinges of Pop and prog. Is music on the same wavelength as The Millennium; light "airy" sort of super-produced pop with (often) positive messages. For a few tracks I could've sworn the lead singer was Curt Boettcher (like on "Seasons of Our Lives"). Even some of the other vocalizations are similar (which is a good thing): --Ooh!-- and --Ahh!-- backing vocals on several tracks along with multiple singers, instrumentation varied from song to song, etc. The album is solid throughout, with no real "clunkers" to be found. Fillers, (see below), yes perhaps... but even the fillers aren't horrible. On repeated listens I've grown to appreciate it more and more. Highlights: "Earth People's Park" "This Island Earth" and "Ride the Universe" stand out to me. I didn't really care for "Peace and Understanding, Toronto 1970" as it just felt like tossed-together filler material compared to the rest of the record. Same with "The Hungry Planet"; they tried to spice it up with backing vocals but it's still a simple blues-themed jam in the end. Actually the second side is the weakest part of the record, with the first few tracks being very solid. If you can get your hands on it and enjoy Psych-lite/Millennium-style 60's Pop, I recommend checking out the first few songs at least.
From RYM (Faltain)

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Cat - Cat (psych pop 1970 us)

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Wichita Fall - Life Is But a Dream (1969 us psych pop))

A true conceptual pop psych gem,blatantly ignored by everyone and still waiting to be reissued.With the structural complexity of a soundtrack and the melodic variety of a pop record.The fact it was released in a major would explain such disdain.It reminds me of "The Revolt of Emily Young" but milder and "The Story of Simon Simopath" but funnier. 
 From RYM (CarlosCastro)

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Sounds of Modification - Sounds of Modification (1968 us psych pop)

Sounds of Modification This pop group was ahead of its time. This album must of taken a lot of work. I know at the time it was recorded on 8 tracks at Jubilee recording studios in New York City, 1790 Broadway. With the proper management and guidance this group could of gone a long way. I know this group recorded many recordings. Such as Carry on Carole,Im Down Again,darkness fills my lonely heart, the Umbrella song,I don't know what, and of course their masterpiece A New Place To Live album which I heard was only released in Canada under Mandella records. I would like to collect any and all recordings this rock group has made. The only problem is that I can't find any records to purchase. I know for a fact that Jubilee pressed thousands of copies during 1968 and were distributed throughout the country. But I am still searching. The drummer Mike Cavouto was one of the best drummers on the East coast during the 60s and 70s. Again this group was a sure thing, only if they were managed properly. What a sin. 
From RYM (butchball)

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Vision of Sunshine - Vision of Sunshine (70 pop/psych folk)

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Stuffin' - Stuffin (1969 us psych pop)

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Potter-St. Cloud - Potter-St. Cloud (psych pop 1970)

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Snow - Snow (1969 usa psych pop)

Another great obscure late 60's American Pop/Psych band. geez...why didn't anyone buy this stuff. "Caterpillar" is just great period psychedelic freakiness and some of the more straight ahead pop tracks like "Where Has My Old Friend Billy Jones Gone" are first class. Yea sure....there are some sappy moments....but hey, that's typical of the era, and actually quite an achievement when you find something sappy...and yet STILL want to listen to it. ....definitely worth a listen for late 60's pop/rock fans. From RYM (progrockasaurus)

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Spindrift - Spindrift Liberate the Pirates of Penzance (72 psych pop usa)

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Lt. Garcia's Magic Music Box - 'Cross the Border (1969 usa psych pop)

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The Klowns - Ringling Bros. & Barnum & Bailey (1969 usa psych pop)

Now if this group had their own Saturday morning live-action tv show they not only would have lasted longer but also been more well known. I found this lp at a record convention in the early 90's. It was in the back of one guy's milk crate o' doom. It wasn't till later that I dug up some info that this bubblegum band had future actor Barry Bostwick (SPIN CITY) as one of the singers. Well many years before KISS, Alice Cooper, and the ilk,
these six employees of Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Archies offshoot put on white greasepaint/ black teardrops and kicked it out.
Their music is unlike Filmation's HARDY BOYS, Andy Kim, and Spanky & Our Gang. Mild soul, watered-down psych, and bubblegum goodness.

Kinda freaky gatefold where one guy looks just like Bruce Johnson of The BeachBoys. Of course there are 2 girl sings who look like Betty & Veronica of course. And there's good 'ol Barry looking like a giant Lurch standing at the back.

Great songs and at times great guitar work, no doubt performed by studio musicians.
Perfect addition to your wall of lps.
From RYM (kupa99)

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The Forum - The River Is Wide ( usa psych pop 1967)

Sunshine pop arranged by Easy Listening / Soundtracks master Les Baxter. The Forum was an alter ego of the Les Baxter Balladeers, who were supposed to be a Folk group ; so they changed their name for this album, which borrowed from everything groovy: the title song sounds like The Righteous Brothers, most of the time it reminds you of Sérgio Mendes & Brasil '66, The 5th Dimension and such. Of course it is a pure exploitation album, surfing on the trends of the time. But commercial music like this is not bad at all ...

The British cd reissue includes bonus songs, some very good Les Baxter instrumentals, and 3 alternate versions of "the River Is Wide", really different from the main version.
From RYM (crissmass61)

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Vanity Fare - The Sun The Wind and Other Things (68 uk psych pop)

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Eastfield Meadows - Eastfield Meadows (69 psych pop)

Even though I'd never even heard of Eastfield Meadows, I grabbed this LP due to the fact "The David" (one of my favorite slices of mid-1960s psych) is also on the Vance Music Company (VMD) label.

In terms of biographical information I simply haven't been able to dig up much on this outfit. The minimal liner notes on their sole LP don't add much information. Apparently from California, the line-up seems to have consisted of John Bierber, David Carpenter, Wayne Grajeda, Tony Harris, Dwight Payne and James Whittemore. The liner notes don't even tell you what instruments each member played ... All six members contributed material though the back cover only showed five guys, leading to speculation on my part that Harris wasn't a full member. So what's the Hatch produced cleverly titled "Eastfield Meadows" sound like? Exemplified by material such as 'You're Nowhere' and 'Love's Gone' the predominant sound is harmony-rich country-rock a-la Gram Parsons era Byrds. 'Travelin' Salesman' and 'Cowboy Song (The Time Spent)' actually sound a little like something Michael Nesmith might have penned for The Monkees. Less typical, 'Only Girl' and 'Silent Night' sport more of a rock/psych-oriented sound, while 'Young Love' sounds like an early Buffalo Springfield effort and the ballad 'Helpless Is a Feeling' recalls The Association. In case anyone cares, VMC pulled two instantly obscure singles from the LP:

- 1968's 'Silent Night' b/w 'Love's Gone' (VMC catalog number V-734)
- 1968's 'Travelin' Salesman' b/w 'Helpless Is a Feeling' (VMC catalog number V-736)

One other piece of needless trivia, the actual track sequence differs from what's shown on the back cover liner notes.

"Eastfield Meadows" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Travelin' Salesman (Wayne Grajeda) -
2.) Only Girl (James Whittemore) - 2:35
3.) You're Nowhere (Dwight Payne) - 2:26
4.) Cowboy Song (The Time Spent) (Wayne Grajeda) - 3:01
5.) Love's Gone (James Whittemore) - 4:15

(side 2)
1.) Weekend (Tony Harris) - 3:21
2.) The Price (Wayne Grajeda) - 3:25
3.) Helpless Is a Feeling (David Carpenter) - 2:20
4.) Young Love (James Whittemore - Wayne Grajeda) - 2:40
5.) Silent Night (John Bierber - James Whittemore - Wayne Grajeda) - 4:01
One final non-LP 45, 1968's Vic Brigg's produced 'Friend of Unequal Parallel' b/w 'Love All Men Can Share' (VMC catalog number V-745) and the band was history.
Harris went on to work the production side of the business. Grajeda seems to have kept his hand in music and has a small website at:
http://www.hagelberger.com/Wayne.htm
From RYM (rdten1)

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3's a Crowd - Christopher's Movie Matinee(1968 psych pop can)

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Design - Tomorrow Is So Far Away (1973 psych pop usa)

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The Springfield Rifle - The Springfield Rifle (1968 psych pop)

This album is an enjoyable listen. A group of good songs with a bunch of covers. A really solid version of Will you still love me tomorrow, is probably the best track on the album. Overall these guys are good players that can sing well. There is nothing incredibly distinctive or inventive on the album, but, nonetheless, is fun to have on while hanging out with a few friends a glass of wine.
From RYM (bfazz)

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