https://exchange.prx.org/p/602032
This time around we start in 1976, the year it all began to break down, and slowly make our way back to 1967, where we discover it was just castles made of sand all along. For our last few minutes we shift gears and check out some singles from artists we don't often hear from on Rockin' in the Days of Confusion, followed by an instrumental from the band that created arena rock.
Artist: Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers
Title: Breakdown
Source: LP: Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers
Writer(s): Tom Petty
Label: MCA (original label: Shelter)
Year: 1976
Just about everyone knows thatTom Petty was one of the most popular rock stars of the 1980s and beyond, but few realize that he released his debut single, Breakdown, in November of 1976, and was considered part of the punk/new wave movement at the time. It took over a year for his debut LP with the Heartbreakers to catch on in the US, but once it did it became obvious that Petty actually had little in common with bands like the Ramones or Sex Pistols. In fact, he was often compared to the Byrds, as well as early Rolling Stones. Breakdown itself is a bit of a departure from the rest of the album, but nonetheless has become a staple of classic rock radio.
Artist: Tommy Bolin
Title: Homeward Strut
Source: Japanese import CD: Teaser
Writer(s): Bolin/Cook/Sheldon/Tesar
Label: Sony (original US label: Nemperor)
Year: 1975
Although Tommy Bolin, as a new member of Deep Purple in 1975, did not have the opportunity to properly promote his new album, Teaser, the album itself contains many fine tracks such as the instrumental Homeward Strut. Unfortunately, my copy of Teaser is a Japanese import, with liner notes entirely in Japanese, which of course I don't read or speak. So, even though I'm sure there's some interesting stuff in there, I can't share it with you.
Artist: Rick Derringer
Title: Rock And Roll, Hoochie Coo
Source: 45 RPM single
Writer(s): Rick Derringer
Label: Blue Sky
Year: 1974
In the summer of 1965, 17-year-old Rick Derringer and his band the McCoys were hired to open for the Strangeloves, a group of New York songwriting record producers who were passing themselves off as the sons of Australian sheepherders and had a hit single out called I Want Candy. Not wanting to be the Strangeloves forever, they were already looking for an actual band to perform a new song they had written called My Girl Sloopy. After the show they asked Derringer if he might be interested in providing vocals and guitar parts for My Girl Sloopy. After convincing them to change the title to Hang On Sloopy, Derringer agreed, and the record was credited to the McCoys, despite the fact that the backing tracks had already been recorded by studio musicians. Although the song was a #1 hit worldwide (and is still a standard on oldies stations) it became a bit of an albatross for the band later in the decade, when the McCoys were trying to establish themselves as a serious rock band. In 1970, minus their keyboardist, they teamed up with blues guitarist Johnny Winter to become Johnny Winter And (originally intended to be Johnny Winter And The McCoys). The album, released in September, included four songs written by Derringer. According to Derringer, "The first song I wrote for Johnny was 'Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo'. 'Rock and Roll' to satisfy the rock 'n' roll that I was supposed to be bringing into the picture, and 'Hoochie Koo' to satisfy the king of blues sensibility that Johnny was supposed to maintain." The song was later re-recorded for Derringer's 1973 debut solo LP All American Boy and became Derringer's only top 40 hit in early 1974, peaking at #23.
Artist: Doobie Brothers
Title: Natural Thing
Source: CD: The Captain And Me
Writer(s): Tom Johnston
Label: Warner Brothers
Year: 1973
The Doobie Brothers' producer, Ted Templeman, brought in synth programmers Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff to engineer Natural Thing, the opening track of the band's third LP, The Captain And Me. Synthesizer technology being what it was in 1973, the two overdubbed individual notes to create chords for the Tom Johnston tune.
Artist: Yes
Title: Yours Is No Disgrace
Source: CD: The Yes Album
Writer(s): Anderson/Squire/Howe/Kaye/Bruford
Label: Elektra/Rhino (original label: Atlantic)
Year: 1971
1970 was a transition year for the progressive rock band known as Yes. Their first two albums, Yes and Time And A Word, had not sold well, and their label, Atlantic, was considering dropping them from their roster. Internally, creative differences between guitarist Peter Banks and the rest of the band led to Banks leaving the group, eventually forming his own band, Flash. The remaining members quickly recruited Steve Howe, who was making a name for himself as a studio musician following the breakup of Tomorrow a couple of years earlier. Howe proved to be a more than suitable replacement, as his versatility served the band's experimental style well. With Howe firmly in place, the group got to work on their third LP, The Yes Album. Unlike Yes's previous albums, which had each included a pair of highly rearranged cover songs (following a pattern set by such bands as Vanilla Fudge and Deep Purple), The Yes Album was made up entirely of original material, mostly written by vocalist Jon Anderson and bassist Chris Squire. Yours Is No Disgrace, however, which opens the album, is credited to the entire band, and gives each member a chance to shine without detracting from the band as a whole. The membership of Yes would continue to fluctuate, however, with keyboardist Tony Kaye, who did not share the rest of the band's enthusiam for the new synthesizers hitting the market, leaving shortly after the album was released, and drummer Bill Bruford following suit following the release of the band's fifth album, Close To The Edge. Eventually even Anderson and Squire would depart the group, leaving Steve Howe currently at the helm of a band containing none of its original members.
Artist: Ten Years After
Title: Working On The Road
Source: CD: Cricklewood Green
Writer(s): Alvin Lee
Label: Chrysalis (original label: Deram)
Year: 1970
Following their successful appearance at Woodstock, Ten Years After returned to the studio to record their fifth LP, Cricklewood Green. The album itself is considered by many critics to be their finest effort, with songs like Working On The Road showing how far Alvin Lee's songwriting had come in the three years since the band's 1967 debut LP.
Artist: Neil Young
Title: Sugar Mountain
Source: Mono 45 RPM single
Writer(s): Neil Young
Label: Reprise
Year: 1968,1970,1971,1972,1976,1977,1978
Neil Young must have been pretty fond of Sugar Mountain. Written on his 19th birthday, Young first recorded the song as a demo in December of 1965. He recorded a live performance of the song in Ann Arbor, Michigan on November 10, 1968 and released it as the B side of the Loner, his first single as a solo artist, the following month. And again as the B side of Cinnamon Girl in 1970. And the B side of When You Dance I Can Really Love in 1971. And the B side of Heart Of Gold in 1972. And as the B side of Lookin' For A Love in 1976. Sugar Mountain was not made available as an LP track until 1977, when it was included on Young's compilation album, Decade. It was subsequently released on a single for the sixth and final time in January of 1978, this time (finally) as the A side of a single promoting the Decade album itself.
Artist: Canned Heat
Title: Sandy's Blues
Source: British import CD: Living The Blues
Writer(s): Bob Hite
Label: BGO (original US label: Liberty)
Year: 1968
Generally considered the high point of Canned Heat's career, the 1968 double-LP Living The Blues is best known for the inclusion of Refried Boogie, the centerpiece of the band's live performances. In addition to the 41-minute track that takes up two entire sides of the album, there were several studio tracks as well, such as Sandy's Blues, a traditional slow blues progression, complete with spoken word section, written by vocalist Robert (the Bear) Hite.
Artist: Jimi Hendrix Experience
Title: Castles Made Of Sand
Source: LP: Axis: Bold As Love
Writer(s): Jimi Hendrix
Label: Experience Hendrix/MCA
Year: 1967
When I was a junior in high school I used to fall asleep on the living room couch with the headphones on, usually listening to pre-recorded tapes of either the Beatles' Revolver album or one of the first two albums by the Jimi Hendrix Experience. One song in particular from the second Hendrix album, Axis: Bold As Love, always gave me a chill when I heard it: Castles Made Of Sand. The song serves as a warning not to put too much faith in your dreams, either good or bad.
Artist: Roxy Music
Title: Love Is The Drug
Source: 45 RPM single (promo)
Writer(s): Ferry/Mackay
Label: Atco
Year: 1975
Roxy Music is considered one of the most influential bands in British rock history, racking up no less than 10 singles in the UK top 10 over the 10 year period from 1972 to 1982. All of their albums made the top 10 in the UK as well. In the US, however, they were far less successful, getting most of their airplay from college radio rather than commercial rock stations. They did manage to break into the US top 40 with the 1975 song Love Is The Drug, which peaked at #30 in early 1976.
Artist: Curtis Mayfield
Title: Superfly
Source: Mono 45 RPM single
Writer(s): Curtis Mayfield
Label: Curtom
Year: 1972
Although his original group, The Impressions, made some inroads on the top 40 charts (in addition to being a strong presence on the R&B charts) throughout the 1960s, it was as a solo artist in the early 1970s that Curtis Mayfield had his greatest commercial success. His soundtrack for the film Superfly is considered some of the finest music to come out of the funk era. The album produced two top 10 singles, Freddie's Dead and the film's title track, which peaked at #8.
Artist: Wet Willie
Title: Soul Jones
Source: 45 RPM single B side
Writer(s): Hall/Hall/Hirsch/Anthony/Ross
Label: Capricorn
Year: 1974
Wet Willie has always been a bit of an outlier among Southern rock bands. Consisting of the Hall brothers Jimmy (vocals, saxophone, harmonica) and Jack (bass), John David Anthony (keyboards), Ricky Hirsch (guitar) and Lesis Ross (drums), Wet Willie has always incorporated elements of R&B into their music, which can plainly be heard on songs like Soul Jones, the B side of their 1974 top 10 single Keep On Smilin'. Originally known as Fox, Wet Willie was formed in Mobile, Alabama in 1969, and relocated to Macon, Georgia in 1971 where they signed with Phil Walden's Capricorn label, releasing several singles and albums over the next few years. The group still performs occasionally as either Wet Willie or the Wet Willie Band, depending on whether Jimmy Hall is onstage.
Artist: Grand Funk Railroad
Title: Footstompin' Music
Source: 45 RPM single (taken from LP: E Pluribus Funk)
Writer(s): Mark Farner
Label: Capitol
Year: 1971
By late 1971 tensions between the members of Grand Funk Railroad and their manager/producer Terry Knight were coming to a head. Somehow, though, they managed to put together one last album before the band fired Knight, leading to a protracted legal battle that ultimately saw Knight getting exclusive rights to all Grand Funk Railroad recordings made before 1972. The album itself, E Pluribus Funk, only took a week to record, and is best known for the fact that the album cover itself was round rather than square, and was designed to look like a huge silver coin, with the faces of the three band members on the front cover and Shea Stadium, where the band had recently broken the Beatles' record by selling out all the seats in just 72 hours, on the flip side.
Even though Grand Funk Railroad was known primarily as a live act first and album-oriented rock band second, all but one of the songs on E Plurubus Funk were released on 45 RPM vinyl as well, although only the album's opening track, Footstompin' Music, was able to crack the top 40.
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