1960s – Page 15

Eydie Gormé | Blame It On the Bossa Nova

Eydie Gormé and her husband Steve Lawrence were fixtures on radio and television during the 1960s. Known mostly for their “easy-listening” renditions of songs, occasionally they reached out of their comfort zone, with varying results. Both Steve and Eydie released material individually, and also as a duo.

The tune here, “Blame It On The Bossa Nova”, which became her last Top 40 solo hit, was written by Brill Building denizens Cynthia Weil and Barry Mann (Songfacts). The song was well out of Eydie’s comfort zone. She disliked it so much, she tried to hamstring the recording with some intentionally fluffed notes (in particular, listen to the passage from 1:26 to 1:34), hoping the execs would decide against releasing the record. Despite her best (worst?) efforts, the record was a smash, reaching no. 7 on the Billboard charts. The public may have found the vocal flaws part of the charm of this “novelty number”.

The song begins in C#, and modulates to D at 1:18, following a slightly-out-of-tune instrumental passage.

The American Breed | Bend Me, Shape Me

“Bend Me, Shape Me,” was originally recorded in 1966 by The Outsiders, who were known for their hit “Time Won’t Let Me.” The tune was written by songwriters Scott English and Larry Weiss, who later wrote “Rhinestone Cowboy,” made famous by Glen Campbell. In 1968, a band called Amen Corner took the tune to #3 in the UK (Songfacts). But in 1967, The American Breed took the definitive version of the song to #5 on the US pop charts and #24 in the UK.

The American Breed’s big break was quite unusual: “On January 20, 1967, a freak snow storm that dumped twenty inches on Chicago changed the fate of Gary & The Knight Lites,” (the band’s initial name) … “when Kenny Myers, former Senior Vice President of Mercury Records, found himself stranded and met with producer Bill Traut in his studio at Universal Recording. After Traut played Meyers some of the band’s tapes, Meyers was impressed enough to sign them to his new record label … and suggested they change their name. ‘They told us Gary and the Knight Lites sounded a little dated, so we put a bunch of names in a hat and pulled out American Breed.’ The band’s first single was ‘I Don’t Think You Know Me,’ written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin.” (Billboard).

Two of the four members of American Breed that played on “Bend Me,
Shape Me” — bassist Chuck Colbert and drummer Lee Graziano — formed a new group, which included newer AB members not on that hit, keyboardist
Kevin Murphy and singer Paulette Williams. That new group became “Ask
Rufus”. Eventually, AB guitarist Al Ciner joined. Three of the original four AB members were in Rufus, though only guitarist Al Ciner stayed through that group’s fame with vocalist Chaka Khan.

Key changes are the main ingredients here. The tune starts in C minor; the pre-chorus (0:27) shifts to A minor; finally, the chorus (0:41) is in A mixolydian. After a percussion break, the cycle repeats.

Tommy James | I Think We’re Alone Now

Tommy James, along with his band, The Shondells, scored a Billboard #4 in 1967 with the just-over-2-minutes bubblegum rocker “I Think We’re Alone Now”. The song, written by Ritchie Cordell (who also co-wrote another Shondells hit, “Mony Mony”), stuck to one key throughout.

Over 50 years later, in 2019, James reprised the song on his album Alive, featuring only acoustic guitar and background vocals, and a much slower tempo. Missing in this version are the percussive “heartbeats” from the original, perhaps because at this tempo, they would be suggestive of brachycardia. James’ voice, perhaps sweetened by a touch of autotune, is really the highlight here.

The song starts in A; in addition to some subtle re-harmonization here and there, it features an elegant modulation to C at 2:18.

Redwood | Time to Get Alone

Although also recorded by the Beach Boys, the band Redwood (later to become Three Dog Night) recorded Brian Wilson’s tune “Time to Get Alone” in 1967. Danny Hutton, one of Three Dog Night’s vocalists, recalls the recording session in the book Smile: The Story of Brian Wilson’s Lost Masterpiece:

“‘ … there’s something that sounds like this big, distorted, smooth guitar sound, and it’s just a little piano played through a blown speaker that I had at my house. Then I remember Brian calling in the string section. [Brian’s sister-in-law] Diane Rovell called them in at the last minute, and some of them still had their tuxedos on. Brian was thoroughly in control of those guys … he was sitting there, talking to me, while they were doing a take, and he stops and says, Hold it, Danny. Hey, viola! The second chair … you’re flat on that C. He not only heard a bad note; he knew which guy did it.’”

Redwood’s version and the Beach Boys’ subsequent 1968 version have some similarities and some differences, but anyone who’s heard Three Dog Night will recognize the overall textures of that band immediately. Wilson’s compositional sense, however, is so strong that it remains paramount throughout. At 1:31, there’s a shift from D major to C major.

More detail about the collaboration between Wilson and Redwood/Three Dog Night, directly from Hutton’s recollections:

Petula Clark | Geh in die Stadt (Downtown)

“Downtown,” Petula Clark’s signature song, reached the #1 slot on the Billboard charts in January 1965. In that era, it was common for singers to create cover versions of their own English-language songs in other European languages, often using the same backing track.

Famously, the Beatles recorded German-language versions of “She Loves You” (“Sie Liebt Dich”) and “I Want to Hold Your Hand” (“Komm gib mir deine Hand“). Other German covers of that time include the Honeycombs’ “Have I The Right” (“Hab Ich das Recht“) and Dionne Warwick’s “Walk On By” (“Geh’ vorbe“). This German-cover thing, it was a thing.

Besides the version heard here, Clark (a UK native) also recorded French (“Dans le temp”) and Italian (“Ciao ciao”) versions of “Downtown”. She also recorded songs in French, Italian, German, and Spanish that were not covers of her own hits, though some were covers of hits for other artists.

The familiar half-step upward modulation appears at 1:53.

Bunny Sigler | Follow Your Heart

“A veteran singer and composer during the classic period of Philly soul, Bunny Sigler was always capable of making striking, memorable soul/R&B material,”(AllMusic). “Debuting in the ’50s with his own group and as a solo performer, he reached the higher end of the R&B charts several times … Sigler actually earned much more acclaim for his work as a staff writer and producer. One of the major creative forces behind Philadelphia International’s dominance of ’70s soul, Sigler produced and wrote for dozens of major acts, including Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, Lou Rawls, Patti LaBelle, the Whispers, Stephanie Mills, Billy Paul, Curtis Mayfield, and Carl Carlton.”

“Follow Your Heart” (1967) starts in G major, but with almost no emphasis on chord color — instead, a distinctive I major / flat-II major (sub V) vamp rings out beneath the verse’s melody. At 0:39, the chorus shifts to Bb major; the less exotic chord progression in this section brings the sound closer to a textbook 1960s pop/soul hit. The pattern continues from there.

The Hollies | Bus Stop

“Bus Stop,” The Hollies’ 1966 hit, “was written by Graham Gouldman, who went on to form the band 10cc, best known for their hit ‘I’m Not In Love,’ (Songfacts). Gouldman was just 19 when he wrote ‘Bus Stop,” but he had already written three Yardbirds songs: ‘For Your Love,’ ‘Heart Full of Soul‘ and ‘Evil Hearted You.’

According to Gouldman, this song’s middle eight was one of the few instances in his songwriting career when he had a sudden inspiration rather than having to resort to hard toil. He explained to Mojo magazine in a 2011 interview: ‘You have to be working to make something happen. Occasionally you can wait for some magic, like McCartney waking up with ‘Yesterday’ already written in his mind, which does happen — it’s like a gift from your own subconscious. Or sometimes, it’s like a tap’s turned on.’ The middle eight section ‘all came to me in one gush, and I couldn’t wait to get home to try it. When that sort of thing happens, it’s really amazing. But that’s rare. Mostly, you have to do the slog.'” The tune reached #5 on the UK Singles chart and was also the band’s first US top ten hit, peaking at #5 on the Billboard charts in September 1966.

After a start in A minor, that lucky middle eight (0:35) shifts to E minor before reverting back to the A minor at 1:03. During that section, the melody shifts from a lower, smaller range to a more emphatic, higher one, while the melody’s compelling syncopation continues throughout. From 1:31 – 1:45, there’s an instrumental interlude which ends in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it piccardy third before the transition into another middle eight.

Mary Hopkin | Those Were the Days

“Who could possibly predict that a five-minute recording of a Russian romance song composed in the early 1900s with English lyrics written in the early ’60s, recorded in July 1968 by a green 17-year-old Welsh folk artist, produced by a Beatle, and arranged by a jazz nerd with unlikely instrumentation would result in a Number 2 on the Billboard charts? (MixOnline) Engineer Geoff Emerick says ‘Those Were the Days,’ produced by Paul McCartney and sung by artist Mary Hopkin, appealed to the public because of those unique qualities. ‘It was so different for the time,’ Emerick says. ‘Everyone loved it … Who knows about these things? We were always looking for something different, something spectacular every time we worked.’

(Arranger) Richard Hewson and McCartney spoke about what the producer had in mind for the arrangement, which only amounted to an instrument called the cymbalum. Interestingly, the percussion teacher with whom Hewson had been studying had a cymbalum. ‘It’s a Hungarian instrument that is like a piano without the lid on, hit with hammers,’ Hewson explains … As Emerick recalls, ‘I think we took a day out of the Beatles’ schedule so Paul could do this. We did it in Studio Number 3, Abbey Road.'”

The klezmer-style clarinet and rubato feel of the verse lend the tune its antique feel right off the bat, although the chorus picks up a consistent groove. At 3:12, Hopkin is joined by a children’s choir for a wordless trip through the chorus, followed by a brass-driven mixed-meter interlude which unexpectedly pushes us into the new key at 3:42.

The Capitols | Soul Brother, Soul Sister

“The Capitols, an R&B doo-wop trio originally known as the Three Caps, was formed in Detroit in 1962,” (BlackPast.org). “… The group primarily recorded dance-themed songs in the Detroit area.” After struggling for several years, “in 1966 they released the top ten hit, ‘Cool Jerk.’ The song composed by Don Storball and recorded at Golden World Studios in Detroit with the legendary Motown house band, The Funk Brothers, became their biggest hit. It was the lead single from their first album, Dance the Cool Jerk, and peaked at #2 on the Billboard R&B and #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart.

During their limited career, the Capitols released 6 albums and 19 singles … The group finished the decade in 1969 with the single ‘Soul Brother, Soul Sister’ that peaked at no. 42 on the Billboard R&B chart.” Very little additional information about this track is available online, but the trio’s signature sound is as clear here as it was on the smash hit single ‘Cool Jerk.”

After a short break in the groove, the tune shifts up a whole step at 1:26.

Shelby Flint | Cast Your Fate to the Wind

In 1962, pianist Vince Guaraldi created that rare thing, a hit jazz instrumental, “Cast Your Fate to the Wind”, which reached #22 on the Billboard chart. The recording won a 1963 Grammy for Best Original Jazz Composition. A few years later, Guaraldi enshrined himself in American popular culture as the composer of the songs for the Peanuts TV specials.

On their first date, lyricist Carel Werber went with her future husband Frank, then manager for the Kingston Trio, to a club in Sausalito, where Guaraldi played the song for her. She loved it, and wrote the lyrics during trips over the Golden Gate Bridge.

Singer Shelby Flint had her own Billboard #22 hit, “Angel on My Shoulder”, which she wrote, in 1962. Her vocal version of Guaraldi’s song was released in 1966, reaching #61 on the Billboard charts.

The song starts in Db major, with a modulation to D in the instrumental section at 0:51, closing with another half-step shift up at 1:14. The verse then resumes in D-flat.