ITâS NO SECRET that most of us form strong emoÂtional bonds with things during our teenage years. This inÂcludes atÂtachÂments to huÂmans (think your best friend), food (think pizza), even sports teams (think âGo, Phillies!â) This seems esÂpeÂcially so about music: usuÂally, whatÂever the hits on the radio were that we loved when we were 15-years-old, we are going to loveâfor better or worseâuntil we are 95-years-old!
Even if our tastes âprogressâ and we deÂvelop a pasÂsion for jazz or clasÂsical music, we usuÂally keep our conÂnecÂtions to those pop hits from our teen years. And hereâs the best partâno matter when our teen years were, no matter how bad the hits were during those years, we think ourÂselves lucky to have been teens through those years and those hits!
Hellâs Belles, there are people who reÂmember the â80s with fondÂness! You may think, âHow can that be?â
But itâs true! (Itâs true! Itâs true!)
There are magic records that transÂport me back in time to when I was 14-years-old and there was magic in the music.
There reÂally are people who sigh when the synth sound of Flock of SeagÂulls, or the raspy voice of Bonnie Tyler, or the whatever-it-is-that-makes-him-so-annoying of LiÂonel Richie turns up on the radio or in a movie or even on the piped-in backÂground music at their faÂvorite shopÂping emporium.
I was lucky, as I grew up when the âoldies but goodiesâ conÂcept and format was new and fresh and exÂciting. And it was everyÂwhere, esÂpeÂcially the northÂeastern part of the country.
ConÂseÂquently, not only did I get the hear the Top 40 hits of the mid-1960sâhits so good that no one had to coin the term classic rock to sucker you into lisÂtening to them!âbut inÂterÂspersed among those hits were memÂoÂrable blasts from the pastâthe past being the late â50s.
To hear Petula Clark and Dusty SpringÂfield alongÂside Brenda Lee and Connie Francis, and to hear the MirÂaÂcles and the TempÂtaÂtions back-to-back with the Flamingos and the PlatÂters was both a joy and an edÂuÂcaÂtion. 1
It turns out that Friendsâs resÂiÂdent nerds, Ross Geller (David Schwimmer) and ChanÂdler Bing (Matthew Perry), had a band back in the â80s, where they atÂtempted to look hip. Ross bears a reÂsemÂblance to LiÂonel Richie while ChanÂdler sported a hiÂlarÂious Flock of SeagÂulls look. No wonder they had trouble getÂting layed. 2
Traveling through time at 45 rpm
I am not given to nosÂtalgia, meaning Iâm not inÂclined to a âwistful or exÂcesÂsively senÂtiÂmental yearning for reÂturn to or of some past peÂriod or irÂrecovÂerÂable conÂdiÂtion.â When I listen to music from the past, I reÂmain firmly planted in the here and now. And that past inÂcludes Bach and Haydn and Ellington and Mingus as well as Chuck Berry and Elvis and the MirÂaÂcles and the Shangri-Laâs!
I could spend months blogÂging about the vast array of good music that found its way onto the naÂtional and local charts, whether pop or country or easy-listening or soul or rock & roll. InÂstead, Iâm going to focus on a very speÂcial type of record that I call time travel records.
Most of us form strong emoÂtional bonds during our teenage years to friends, food, sports teams, and esÂpeÂcially music.
There are a handful of records that stop me in my be-here-now tracks and transÂport me back in time. When I hear them, a part of me finds myÂself not wistful or yearning for some byÂgone era where faÂther knew best, but I find myÂself transÂported back to when I was 14-years-old and the magic was in the music and the music was in me.
If I was writing this in a story, this exÂpeÂriÂence would not be listed under sciÂence ficÂtion since there is no techÂnoÂlogÂical deÂvice or exÂplaÂnaÂtion as what makes this happen. Itâs magic. Like Stephen Kingâs 11/22/63 novel, it would beÂlong in the fanÂtasy shelves in your local bookstore.
During the mid-1960s, CoÂlumbia pressed a number of proÂmoÂtional 45s on lovely transluÂcent red vinyl and shipped them to radio staÂtions. The idea, of course, was to atÂtract atÂtenÂtion to the records and get them played. StaÂtion manÂagers often marked the side to be played by writing âplug sideâ or drawing an âXâ on the label, such as on this copy of CoÂlumbia 4-43396.
Those magic moments
Aside from these exÂpeÂriÂences not being asÂsoÂciÂated in any way with regÂular nosÂtalgia, there are two things I want to stress about these magic moÂments with these records:
⢠they are inÂvolÂunÂtary, and
⢠I canât make them happen with other records.
ReÂgardÂless of their age, their proxÂimity in time with these records, or how much I love them, the time travÂeling only ocÂcurs with a few records. Oddly, itâs not records by my very faÂvorite artists (no Elvis or Dylan) or my favÂerave groups (no Beach Boys, BeaÂtles, Byrds, Kinks, or Stones).
There are four records by artists, three of whom were among the stellar acts of their time. What they have in common is that they are groups (one being a duo) and they were reÂleased within months of each other in 1965.
Here are my Fab Four Time MaÂchine Records, listed in order of their reÂlease date. Two were isÂsued in SepÂtember and two in NoÂvember. I have inÂcluded a nutÂshell look at the top of the charts at the time of their release:
On Cash Box, Bob Dylan had one #1 record, Like A Rolling Stone reached the top spot for one week in SepÂtember 1965. On BillÂboard, Dylan has yet to score a #1 record. UnÂless he beÂcomes a born-again hip-hopper, I donât see that happening.
September 1965
During the first two weeks of SepÂtember 1965, the #1 spot on the Cash Box Top 100 was held by the BeaÂtlesâ Help! Since my brother was a BeaÂtles fan, I had to supÂpress my enÂjoyÂment of their music for sevÂeral years, but who could help but love this record?
The Fab Four were folÂlowed by Bob DyÂlanâs Like A Rolling Stone, which was stunÂning on first hearing: it stopped me in my tracks at Public Square Records and made me stop browsing and listen: I knew someÂthing was hapÂpening but I didnât know what it was. Decades later and it reÂmains stunÂning after thouÂsands of hearings!
One week later and Barry McGuireâs Eve Of DeÂstrucÂtion was the topÂperÂmost of the popÂperÂmost! Alas, the foreÂbodÂings of this song are as worthy of conÂtemÂplaÂtion now as they were then, exÂcept weâre a little closer to midÂnight on the doomsday clock.
On the BillÂboard Hot 100, Help! was #1 for three weeks folÂlowed by Eve Of DeÂstrucÂtion. That is, Dylan was squeezed out of the top spot on the most folkâs top survey.
Simon & Garfunkel
Columbia 4-43396, The Sounds Of Silence
This side deÂbuted on the Cash Box Top 100 on NoÂvember 20, 1965. It spent fifÂteen weeks on the survey, reaching #1 for one week on JanÂuary 29, 1966. It was a bigger hit on BillÂboard: it topped the chart on JanÂuary 1, 1966, surÂrenÂdered the top spot to the BeaÂtlesâ We Can Work It Out for two weeks, then reÂturned to #1 on JanÂuary 22.
The basic track for this record was an acoustic verÂsion that apÂpeared on S&Gâs first album, WEDNESDAY MORNING 3 A.M., which very few people had heard let alone purÂchased in 1965. Without the duoâs knowlÂedge, proÂducer Tom Wilson recorded an elecÂtric backing track and added it to the origÂinal verÂsion, turning the forÂgotten folkie recording into one of folk-rockâs greatest hits. 3
The Hollies
Imperial 66134, Look Through Any Window
This side deÂbuted on Cash Box on NoÂvember 27, 1965. It spent eleven weeks on that survey, reaching #34, alÂthough it reached #32 on BillÂboard, making it the groupâs first Top 40 hit in the US. In the UK, it was their sevÂenth Top 10 hit in twenty-four months.
Many readers donât know that the HolÂlies were second only to the BeaÂtles as hitÂmakers in EngÂland beÂtween 1963 and 1970. Here is the tally of their Top 20 hits along with those of a few other popÂular pop groups:
BeaÂtles 22
HolÂlies 21
HerÂmanâs HerÂmits 17
Rolling Stones 16
Kinks 15
AnÂiÂmals 11
Searchers 10
Who 10
UnÂforÂtuÂnately, the HolÂlies were nowhere near as big in the US, where they scored only seven Top 20 hits. But they did do someÂthing here that they didnât do at home: on SepÂtember 16, 1972, Long Cool Woman (In A Black Dress) reached #1 on the Cash Box Top 100, their only chart-topper in eiÂther of the worldâs two biggest marÂkets! 4
As lead singer for the Dovells, BarÂryâs disÂtincÂtive raspy voice could be heard on five Top 40 hits in the early 1960s. Both Bristol Stomp and You Canât Sit Down reached the Top 10 but spending ages at the top spot in homeÂtown PhiladelÂphia. As a solo artist, he placed three more sides in the Top 40, with 1-2-3 topÂping the Cash Box charts but stalling at #2 on Billboard.
November 1965
During the month of NoÂvember 1965, the #1 spot on the Cash Box Top 100 was held by the Rolling Stonesâ Get Off Of My Cloud for two weeks. I was a self-proclaimed Stones-hater at the time, but seÂcretly liked the quirky sound of this record.
It was folÂlowed by the Supremesâ I Hear A SymÂphonyâand everyÂbody liked the Supremes and so did Iâthen Len BarÂryâs 1-2-3. I bought the Barry record then and still think it an under-appreciated gem now, but itâs probÂably doomed to be known only by those who were teenagers in the â60s (or those doomed to grow up to be record collectors).
On BillÂboard, Get Off Of My Cloud and I Hear A SymÂphony split the four weeks beÂtween them, deÂpriving Barry of the top spot.
The Mamas & The Papas
DunÂhill D-4020, CalÂiÂfornia Dreaminâ
This side deÂbuted on Cash Box on JanÂuary 8, 1966. It peaked at #4 on March 12, 1966, where it stayed for three weeks, spending nineÂteen weeks on the survey. It also peaked at #4 on BillÂboard but, in what apÂpears to have been a quirky deÂciÂsion by the BBC and British record buyers, it failed to even reach the Top 20 in the UK.
AlÂthough written by John and Michelle Phillips, the song was origÂiÂnally recorded by Barry McGuire for his THIS PRECIOUS TIME album. DunÂhillâs main man Lou Adler knew two things:
1. CalÂiÂfornia Dreaminâ was going to be a hit record.
2. The Mamas & The Papas were going to be a hit group.
So he took McGuireâs recording, reÂmoved the lead vocal, and had The Mamas & The Papas record new voÂcals. Adler proved himÂself corÂrect and the rest is history.
The Vogues
Co & Ce B-232, Five OâClock World
This side deÂbuted on Cash Box on DeÂcember 4, 1965. It peaked at #3 on JanÂuary 29, 1966, reaching #4 on BillÂboard. While it topped Canadaâs RPM survey, it reÂceived little atÂtenÂtion in the rest of the worldâs major pop market.
The Vogues broke into the naÂtional Top 40 with the great Youâre The One, which was apÂparÂently given to them by one of the songâs co-writers, Petula Clark. The song sounds like it would have been a natÂural for the TurÂtles as a follow-up to their Top 10 sucÂcess with It Ainât Me Babe earÂlier in the year.
Like so many rock-based groups blessed/cursed with a lead singer with a heavÂenly voice (as the groupâs Bill BurÂkette was), they gravÂiÂtated toÂwards easy-listening music, evenÂtuÂally sounding more like the LetÂtermen than the Turtles.
Like many movies of the time, Dell gave us a comic book adapÂtaÂtion. here a reader could travel with George (Rod Taylor) hunÂdreds of thouÂsands of years into the fuÂture to vanÂquish the flesh-eating MorÂlocks and fall in love with the toothÂsome Weena (Yvette Mimieux)âand all for only a dime!
Are you a fellow time traveler?
If you have a time travel record, please conÂsider this an inÂviÂtaÂtion to menÂtion it in a comÂment below. And menÂtion how old you were when the conÂnecÂtion was made beÂtween you and the record.
You too can travel through time at 45 rpmâall you need is your own time travel record! Click To Tweet
FEATURED IMAGE: Rod Taylor as H.G. âGeorgeâ Wells in of The Time MaÂchine from 1960. There were very few sciÂence ficÂtion movies good enough to jusÂtify a willing susÂpenÂsion of disÂbeÂlief from fans of the genre in the 1960s. George Palâs brilÂliant proÂducÂtion of this Wells novel was a rare and wonÂdrous exceptionâalmost sixty years later and I can still recÂomÂmend this movie to the disÂcerning few among younger fans of the genre.
FOOTNOTES:
1 While Top 40 AM radio is long gone, there are faux âradio staÂtionsâ that one can acÂcess onÂline (Sirius XM is king but there are preÂtenders) that someÂwhat comÂpenÂsate for those days when we heard our faÂvorite jocks asÂsuring us that âThe hits just keep coming!â
2 Both layed and laid are acÂceptÂable when deÂscribing having had sex. I prefer the former beÂcause it looks more, ahem, active.
3 Trying to find conÂsisÂtent and acÂcuÂrate acÂcounts of Simon and GarÂfunkelâs reÂacÂtions to hearing the ânewâ verÂsion of their record was fruitÂless. Both men had isÂsues with techÂnical asÂpects of Wilsonâs overÂdubs: Art GarÂfunkel stated, âI would have made sure the drums and bass were in sync with the voices at the end of the fourth verse, but I was inÂterÂested in having a hit record.â
But whatÂever their isÂsues, Simon and GarÂfunkel quickly emÂbraced the new sound and recorded an enÂtire album in a folk-rock vein to capÂiÂtalize on the sinÂgleâs sucÂcess. The two beÂcame one of the most sucÂcessful duos in recorded muÂsical history.
4 On BillÂboardâs Hot 100, the HolÂliesâ rocker was #2 for two weeks, kept out of the top spot by Gilbert OâÂSulÂliÂvanâs inÂsipid Alone Again (NatÂuÂrally). Oddly, that record did not reach #1 on Cash Box, deÂspite being played everyÂwhere all the time for what seemed like forÂever in 1972.
And I would be reÂmiss in my duÂties if I forgot to menÂtion that way back then, we had the opÂtion of buying two comic book Time MaÂchines: the movie verÂsion and the ClasÂsics IlÂlusÂtrated verÂsion, adapted from the book. This comÂpany charged 15¢ (even in 1956, when #133 The Time MaÂchine was pubÂlished) when other AmerÂican comics were 10¢, imÂplying a suÂpeÂriÂority to the other four-color publications.
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