Woopsie-daisy we skipped publishing the blog for a week, so tune into It’s November, 1966 first if you want the complete historical ride, before listing to this week’s sounds from Christmas of that year…
Songs of the month
“96 Tears” – Question Mark And The Mysterians
“A Hazy Shade Of Winter” – Simon And Garfunkel
[new] “A Place In The Sun” – Stevie Wonder
“Born Free” – Roger Williams
“But It’s Alright” – J.J. Jackson
[new] “Coming Home Soldier” – Bobby Vinton
“Coming On Strong” – Brenda Lee
[new] “Cry” – Ronnie Dove
“Devil With The Blue Dress / Good Golly Miss Molly” – Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels
[new] “Devil With The Blue Dress” – Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels
[new] “East West” – Herman’s Hermits
[new] “Good Thing” – Paul Revere And The Raiders
“Good Vibrations” – Beach Boys
[new] “Happenings Ten Years Time Ago” – Yardbirds
[new] “Help Me Girl” – Eric Burdon And The Animals
[new] “Holy Cow” – Lee Dorsey
“Hooray For Hazel” – Tommy Roe
[new] “I Got The Feelin'” – Neil Diamond
[new] “I Know I’m Losing You” – Temptations
[new] “I Need Somebody” – Question Mark And The Mysterians
[new] “I’m A Believer” – Monkees
“I’m Ready For Love” – Martha And The Vandellas
[new] “I’m The One You Need” – Miracles
“I’m Your Puppet” – James And Bobby Purify
[new] “I’ve Passed This Way Before” – Jimmy Ruffin
[new] “It Tears Me Up” – Percy Sledge
[new] “Knock On Wood” – Eddie Floyd
“Lady Godiva” – Peter And Gordon
“Last Train To Clarksville” – Monkees
“Love Is A Hurtin’ Thing” – Lou Rawls
[new] “Mame” – Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass
“Mellow Yellow” – Donovan
[new] “Mustang Sally” – Wilson Pickett
“Poor Side Of Town” – Johnny Rivers
“Rain On The Roof” – Lovin’ Spoonful
[new] “Run Run Look And See” – Brian Hyland
[new] “Single Girl” – Sandy Posey
[new] “Snoopy Vs The Red Baron” – Royal Guardsmen
[new] “Standing In The Shadows Of Love” – Four Tops
“Stop Stop Stop” – Hollies
[new] “Sugar Town” – Nancy Sinatra
[new] “Talk Talk” – Music Machine
[new] “Tell It Like It Is” – Aaron Neville
[new] “Tell It To The Rain” – Four Seasons
[new] “That’s Life” – Frank Sinatra
[new] “The Wheel Of Hurt” – Margaret Whiting
“What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted” – Jimmy Ruffin
[new] “Whispers” – Jackie Wilson
“Winchester Cathedral” – New Vaudeville Band
[new] “Words Of Love” – Mamas And Papas
[new] “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” – Supremes
[new] = New to the chart this week.
You can listen to the full playlist on Youtube via this link.
This month in history
On the 12th ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, a musical based on the bestselling book by Truman Capote (which had already been adapted to a successful film) opened on Broadway for a preview, and became one of the more memorable flops in theater history. After it was performed four times at the Majestic Theatre, which had planned to formally launch it on December 26, the Bob Merrill musical was closed down by its producer, David Merrick, who ran an advertisement in The New York Times to explain, “Rather than subject the drama critics and the theatre-going public— who invested one million dollars in advance ticket sales— to an excruciatingly boring evening, I have decided to close the show… the closing is entirely my fault.”
Then on the 18th, in more successful book-adaptation-entertainment-news, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!”, based on the book of the same name by Dr. Seuss , was shown for the first time on CBS, becoming an annual Christmas tradition in the United States. “As a result of the television version,” an author would note later, “adults and children renewed their love of Seussian tales and bought his books in record-breaking numbers.
And on the last day of the year, in the most expensive art theft in history up to that time, thieves stole eight paintings from London’s Dulwich Art Gallery, the oldest art museum in the United Kingdom, and demanded a ransom of 100,000 pounds sterling (worth, at the time, $280,000) for their safe return. The paintings themselves were considered worth more than $20,000,000. The ransom failed and three of the paintings would be recovered a couple of days later, and the next evening, the other five would be found “wrapped in old newspapers behind a bush” at Streatham Common, a few miles from the gallery.
What’d Sadie think?
A battle for the top, with “Winchester Cathedral” by the New Vaudeville Band taking it for a week before the absolute classic Beach Boys tune, “Good Vibrations”, gets only a week there before the former snatches it back for another couple! No accounting for taste, with faux-Beatles the Monkees taking the last week with “I’m A Believer”.
Loved ’em
Sadie was particularly explicit about liking some songs this week – I think she’s almost cottoned on to the idea we share the playlist and write about them. She’ll probably be dictating this blog by Xmas… Anyway, it wasn’t new this week but she loves Donovan’s “Mello Yellow”.
When you re-read this in many years time Sadie, you can discover that the song was named thusly, “I was reading a newspaper and on the back there was an ad for a yellow dildo called the mellow yellow,” Donocan said. “Really, you know the ‘electric banana’ was right in there and gave it away. And that’s what the song’s about.”.
She also loved, new to the charts, “Sugar Town” by Nancy Sinatra. Which again is somewhat of a coded song, an allusion to sugar cubes laced with Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). Although apparently, like other songs Hazlewood wrote, “Sugar Town” was equivocal, speaking to a young audience able to recognize its allusion, yet outwardly tame enough to receive radio play.
- “A Place In The Sun” – Stevie Wonder
- “Devil With The Blue Dress” – Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels
- “Help Me Girl” – Eric Burdon And The Animals
- “I’m A Believer” – Monkees
- “Knock On Wood” – Eddie Floyd
- “Mustang Sally” – Wilson Pickett
- “Standing In The Shadows Of Love” – Four Tops
- “Sugar Town” – Nancy Sinatra
- “Tell It Like It Is” – Aaron Neville
- “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” – Supremes
Liked ’em
- “Coming Home Soldier” – Bobby Vinton
- “Cry” – Ronnie Dove
- “East West” – Herman’s Hermits
- “Good Thing” – Paul Revere And The Raiders
- “Happenings Ten Years Time Ago” – Yardbirds
- “I Got The Feelin'” – Neil Diamond
- “I Know I’m Losing You” – Temptations
- “I Need Somebody” – Question Mark And The Mysterians
- “I’m The One You Need” – Miracles
- “I’ve Passed This Way Before” – Jimmy Ruffin
- “It Tears Me Up” – Percy Sledge
- “Single Girl” – Sandy Posey
- “Talk Talk” – Music Machine
- “Tell It To The Rain” – Four Seasons
- “That’s Life” – Frank Sinatra
- “Whispers” – Jackie Wilson
- “Words Of Love” – Mamas And Papas
Leave ’em
- “Holy Cow” – Lee Dorsey
- “Mame” – Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass
- “Run Run Look And See” – Brian Hyland
- “Snoopy Vs The Red Baron” – Royal Guardsmen
- “The Wheel Of Hurt” – Margaret Whiting
Now go listen to the full playlist on Youtube via this link.