Up-to-dates

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.

It’s 53 years and 9 months before Sadie is born and 10 years and 3 months before Thomas is… yes, it’s November, 1966 so let’s turn our ears to the tunes of the day.

Songs of the month

“96 Tears” – Question Mark And The Mysterians
[new] “A Hazy Shade Of Winter” – Simon And Garfunkel
“B-A-B-Y” – Carla Thomas
[new] “Born Free” – Roger Williams
[new] “But It’s Alright” – J.J. Jackson
[new] “Coming On Strong” – Brenda Lee
[new] “Dandy” – Herman’s Hermits
[new] “Devil With The Blue Dress / Good Golly Miss Molly” – Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels
[new] “Go Away Little Girl” – Happenings
[new] “Good Vibrations” – Beach Boys
[new] “Have You Seen Your Mother Baby
“Hooray For Hazel” – Tommy Roe
[new] “I’m Ready For Love” – Martha And The Vandellas
[new] “I’m Your Puppet” – James And Bobby Purify
“If I Were A Carpenter” – Bobby Darin
[new] “Lady Godiva” – Peter And Gordon
“Last Train To Clarksville” – Monkees
[new] “Look Through My Window” – Mamas And Papas
[new] “Love Is A Hurtin’ Thing” – Lou Rawls
[new] “Mellow Yellow” – Donovan
[new] “Paint Me A Picture” – Gary Lewis And The Playboys
“Poor Side Of Town” – Johnny Rivers
[new] “Rain On The Roof” – Lovin’ Spoonful
“Reach Out I’ll Be There” – Four Tops
[new] “Secret Love” – Billy Stewart
[new] “Stop Stop Stop” – Hollies
“Walk Away Renee” – Left Banke
“What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted” – Jimmy Ruffin
[new] “Who Am I” – Petula Clark
[new] “Winchester Cathedral” – New Vaudeville Band
[new] “You Keep Me Hanging 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

I was searching for a video on the invention of the Jacuzzi (“spa pool”) that happened in November, 1966 but I couldn’t find anything appropriate. However, this great 1966 news reel came up and whatever the month it is from, it needs to be seen.

On the 18th Roman Catholics in the United States would no longer be required to abstain from meat on Fridays, as a national conference of Roman Catholic cardinals, archbishops and bishops voted in Washington to revoke a requirement of abstinence that had been in effect for 11 centuries. As part of the recognition of Friday as a day of penance, Pope Nicholas I had decreed in the 9th century that adherents to Roman Catholic faith would be required to abstain from the eating of meat, although the consumption of fish on Fridays was permitted. Friday, December 2, 1966, would mark the first day that 45,000,000 American Roman Catholics could consume beef, chicken, pork, or other meats without violating Church doctrine.

Then on the 30th the existence of the drink “Gatorade” was revealed to readers of the Miami Herald by sports columnist Neil Amdur, after Amdur had noticed that the University of Florida Gators football team had been drinking from what appeared to be milk cartons. Surprised, Amdur asked coach Ray Graves, “Are you giving your players milk?” and Graves showed him the beverage and said, “No. We’ve been fooling around with this stuff for a while now,” then told him about the invention of Florida medical professor Robert Cade. Days after the game, Amdur’s story, headlined “Florida’s Pause That Refreshes: ‘Nip of Gatorade'”. The story was soon spread nationwide by UPI about the team’s “bitter beverage… designed to keep the players from wearing down as they lose body fluid on a hot day”, and would be marketed nationwide in 1967.

What’d Sadie think?

A mixed bag at the top this month with the Monkees first single, “Last Train To Clarksville” taking it for a week before “Poor Side Of Town” by Johnny Rivers does likewise, rounded out by the Supremes new single “You Keep Me Hanging On” taking it for 2 weeks.

Loved ’em

• “A Hazy Shade Of Winter” – Simon And Garfunkel
• “Good Vibrations” – Beach Boys
• “I’m Ready For Love” – Martha And The Vandellas
• “I’m Your Puppet” – James And Bobby Purify
• “Mellow Yellow” – Donovan
• “You Keep Me Hanging On” – Supremes

Liked ’em

• “Born Free” – Roger Williams
• “But It’s Alright” – J.J. Jackson
• “Coming On Strong” – Brenda Lee
• “Devil With The Blue Dress / Good Golly Miss Molly” – Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels
• “Go Away Little Girl” – Happenings
• “Lady Godiva” – Peter And Gordon
• “Look Through My Window” – Mamas And Papas
• “Love Is A Hurtin’ Thing” – Lou Rawls
• “Secret Love” – Billy Stewart
• “Stop Stop Stop” – Hollies
• “Who Am I” – Petula Clark
• “Winchester Cathedral” – New Vaudeville Band

Leave ’em

• “Dandy” – Herman’s Hermits
• “Rain On The Roof” – Lovin’ Spoonful

Now go listen to the full playlist on Youtube via this link.

We’re already getting towards the end of another year in our journey – let’s tune our ears back to October, 1966…

Songs of the month

“96 Tears” – Question Mark And The Mysterians
[new] “All I See Is You” – Dusty Springfield
[new] “All Strung Out” – Nino Tempo And April Stevens
“Almost Persuaded” – David Houston
[new] “B-A-B-Y” – Carla Thomas
“Beauty Is Only Skin Deep” – Temptations
“Black Is Black” – Los Bravos
“Born A Woman” – Sandy Posey
“Bus Stop” – Hollies
“Cherish” – Association
“Cherry Cherry” – Neil Diamond
“Eleanor Rigby” – Beatles
[new] “Flamingo” – Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass
“Guantanamera” – Sandpipers
[new] “Hooray For Hazel” – Tommy Roe
“How Sweet It Is” – Junior Walker And The All Stars
[new] “I Really Don’t Want To Know” – Ronnie Dove
“I’ve Got You Under My Skin” – Four Seasons
[new] “If I Were A Carpenter” – Bobby Darin
“Land Of 1000 Dances” – Wilson Pickett
“Last Train To Clarksville” – Monkees
“Mr. Dieingly Sad” – Critters
“Open The Door To Your Heart” – Darrell Banks
[new] “Poor Side Of Town” – Johnny Rivers
“Psychotic Reaction” – Count Five
“Reach Out I’ll Be There” – Four Tops
[new] “See See Rider” – Eric Burdon And The Animals
“See You In September” – Happenings
[new] “Summer Samba” – Walter Wanderley
[new] “Summer Wind” – Frank Sinatra
“Sunny Afternoon” – Kinks
“Sunshine Superman” – Donovan
[new] “Walk Away Renee” – Left Banke
“What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted” – Jimmy Ruffin
“Wipe Out” – Surfaris
“Wouldn’t It Be Nice” – Beach Boys
“Yellow Submarine” – Beatles
“You Can’t Hurry Love” – 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 7th of the month the hallucinogenic drug LSD became illegal in the state of California as it became the first state in the USA to ban LSD – no doubt only commending it more to the swelling hippie movement.

And on the 10th Bob Moog applied for the only patent ever granted for his invention, the highly influential Moog synthesizer, specifically for the Moog ladder filter that provides the electronic tones that give the synthesizer its distinctive sound. The patent would be granted on October 28, 1969.

Then on the 27th Walt Disney recorded his final filmed appearance prior to his death, detailing his plans for Epcot, a utopian planned city to be built in Florida. After his death less than two months later, the original concept would be scrapped and Epcot would become an amusement park… sad yet fitting.

What’d Sadie think?

It’s two weeks at the top for “Cherish” by Association then for “Reach Out I’ll Be There” by the Four Tops before the curiously named Question Mark And The Mysterians take it with “96 Tears”.

Loved ’em

• “All Strung Out” – Nino Tempo And April Stevens
• “B-A-B-Y” – Carla Thomas
• “See See Rider” – Eric Burdon And The Animals

You can go down a real rabbit hole if you look into the history of “See See Rider ” (nee “C.C. Rider”) but I’ll just link the first known recording by Ma Rainey and her band (that included Louis Armstrong on cornet!) from 1924.

Liked ’em

• “All I See Is You” – Dusty Springfield
• “Flamingo” – Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass
• “Hooray For Hazel” – Tommy Roe
• “If I Were A Carpenter” – Bobby Darin
• “Poor Side Of Town” – Johnny Rivers
• “Summer Wind” – Frank Sinatra
• “Walk Away Renee” – Left Banke

Leave ’em

• “I Really Don’t Want To Know” – Ronnie Dove
• “Summer Samba” – Walter Wanderley

Now go listen to the full playlist on Youtube via this link.

A lot of songs with “summer” in the title this month, as befits the end of that season in September, 1966. Let’s tune our ears back…

Songs of the month

[new] “96 Tears” – Question Mark And The Mysterians
[new] “Almost Persuaded” – David Houston
[new] “Beauty Is Only Skin Deep” – Temptations
[new] “Black Is Black” – Los Bravos
“Blowin’ In The Wind” – Stevie Wonder
“Born A Woman” – Sandy Posey
“Bus Stop” – Hollies
[new] “Cherish” – Association
[new] “Cherry Cherry” – Neil Diamond
[new] “Eleanor Rigby” – Beatles
“Guantanamera” – Sandpipers
[new] “How Sweet It Is” – Junior Walker And The All Stars
“I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love” – Petula Clark
[new] “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” – Four Seasons
“Land Of 1000 Dances” – Wilson Pickett
[new] “Last Train To Clarksville” – Monkees
“Lil Red Riding Hood” – Sam The Sham And The Pharaohs
[new] “Mr. Dieingly Sad” – Critters
“My Heart’s Symphony” – Gary Lewis And The Playboys
[new] “Open The Door To Your Heart” – Darrell Banks
[new] “Psychotic Reaction” – Count Five
[new] “Reach Out I’ll Be There” – Four Tops
“Respectable” – Outsiders
[new] “Say I Am (What I Am)” – Tommy James And The Shondells
“Say I Am” – Tommy James And The Shondells
“See You In September” – Happenings
“Summer In The City” – Lovin’ Spoonful
“Summertime” – Billy Stewart
[new] “Sunny Afternoon” – Kinks
“Sunny” – Bobby Hebb
“Sunshine Superman” – Donovan
[new] “The Dangling Conversation” – Simon And Garfunkel
“The Joker Went Wild” – Brian Hyland
[new] “Turn-Down Day” – Cyrkle
“Wade In The Water” – Ramsey Lewis
“Warm And Tender Love” – Percy Sledge
[new] “What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted” – Jimmy Ruffin
[new] “Wipe Out” – Surfaris
[new] “With A Girl Like You” – Troggs
“Working In The Coal Mine” – Lee Dorsey
“Wouldn’t It Be Nice” – Beach Boys
“Yellow Submarine” – Beatles
“You Can’t Hurry Love” – 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 first of the month, while waiting at a bus terminal, Ralph H. Baer, an inventor with Sanders Associates, wrote a four-page document which laid out the basic principles for creating a video game to be played on a television set. As Baer, described it, he had been on New York City’s East Side, waiting to board a bus to Boston, when he noticed an advertisement for TV Guide on the wall.

Contemplating what a viewer could do with a television set if there was nothing worth watching, he remembered an idea that had occurred to him in 1951, the possibility of playing a game on a TV set, and realized that he now had the resources to develop the concept. His idea would become the Magnavox Odyssey home entertainment system, introduced on January 27, 1972. Video from the launch a few years later below:

Then on the 8th, “Star Trek”, the new science fiction television series from NBC, was broadcast for the first time on American television, with its first episode “The Man Trap”.

And on the 12th the first episode of, another childhood favourite, “The Monkees” was broadcast on the NBC network, introducing a rock band that had been assembled as part of the casting of a situation comedy, but whose records would become bestsellers. The group, composed of Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork, went on to have seven gold records, starting with “Last Train to Clarksville”, released on August 16, a month before the show’s debut. It’s in our charts this week.

What’d Sadie think?

It’s a week at the top for Donovan’s “Sunshine Superman” before “You Can’t Hurry Love” by the Supremes has two, followed by Association with “Cherish”.

Loved ’em

• “Beauty Is Only Skin Deep” – Temptations
• “Eleanor Rigby” – Beatles
• “How Sweet It Is” – Junior Walker And The All Stars
• “Last Train To Clarksville” – Monkees
• “Psychotic Reaction” – Count Five
• “Reach Out I’ll Be There” – Four Tops
• “Sunny Afternoon” – Kinks
• “What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted” – Jimmy Ruffin
• “Wipe Out” – Surfaris
• “With A Girl Like You” – Troggs

Plenty of great classics this month. I’ll admit to having been more of a fan of The Monkees, than The Beatles as a child. Simply because the former had a TV show (in repeat in NZ in the ’80s when I was young) one imagines. Interesting to see how blatantly they were designed to play off the latter’s success –

[Song writer of ‘Last Train to Clarksville’] Boyce has said that the song’s opening guitar part was an attempt to emulate the type of memorable and clearly identifiable riff that the Beatles had used in songs such as ‘I Feel Fine,’ ‘Day Tripper’ and ‘Paperback Writer’. The latter Beatles’ song had reached number one on the U.S. charts three months earlier, around the time that ‘Last Train to Clarksville’ was written and recorded.
The lyrics, too, were inspired by ‘Paperback Writer’: Hart misheard the end of that song on the radio and thought Paul McCartney was singing ‘take the last train’; Hart then decided to use the line himself, after he found out that McCartney was actually singing ‘paperback writer.’

Liked ’em

• “96 Tears” – Question Mark And The Mysterians
• “Almost Persuaded” – David Houston
• “Black Is Black” – Los Bravos
• “Cherry Cherry” – Neil Diamond
• “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” – Four Seasons
• “Open The Door To Your Heart” – Darrell Banks
• “Say I Am (What I Am)” – Tommy James And The Shondells
• “The Dangling Conversation” – Simon And Garfunkel
• “Turn-Down Day” – Cyrkle

Leave ’em

• “Cherish” – Association
• “Mr. Dieingly Sad” – Critters

Now go listen to the full playlist on Youtube via this link.

It’s still 54 years before Sadie will be born in our little trip down musical memory lane, so let’s get into it – we have catching up to do!

Songs of the month

“Ain’t Too Proud To Beg” – Temptations
[new] “Blowin’ In The Wind” – Stevie Wonder
[new] “Born A Woman” – Sandy Posey
[new] “Bus Stop” – Hollies
[new] “Guantanamera” – Sandpipers
“Hanky Panky” – Tommy James And The Shondells
“Hungry” – Paul Revere And The Raiders
“I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love” – Petula Clark
“I Saw Her Again” – Mamas And Papas
“I Want You” – Bob Dylan
[new] “Lady Jane” – Rolling Stones
[new] “Land Of 1000 Dances” – Wilson Pickett
“Lil Red Riding Hood” – Sam The Sham And The Pharaohs
“Love Letters” – Elvis Presley
[new] “Make Me Belong To You” – Barbara Lewis
“Mother’s Little Helper” – Rolling Stones
[new] “My Heart’s Symphony” – Gary Lewis And The Playboys
“Over Under Sideways Down” – Yardbirds
“Paperback Writer” – Beatles
[new] “Pretty Flamingo” – Manfred Mann
“Red Rubber Ball” – Cyrkle
[new] “Respectable” – Outsiders
[new] “Say I Am” – Tommy James And The Shondells
[new] “Searching For Your Love” – Bobby Moore
“See You In September” – Happenings
“Somewhere My Love” – Ray Conniff
“Strangers In The Night” – Frank Sinatra
“Summer In The City” – Lovin’ Spoonful
[new] “Summertime” – Billy Stewart
“Sunny” – Bobby Hebb
[new] “Sunshine Superman” – Donovan
“Sweet Dreams” – Tommy Mclain
“Sweet Pea” – Tommy Roe
[new] “The Joker Went Wild” – Brian Hyland
“The Pied Piper” – Crispian St. Peters
“The Work Song” – Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass
“They’re Coming To Take Me Away Ha-Haaa” – Napoleon Xiv
“This Door Swings Both Ways” – Herman’s Hermits
“Trains And Boats And Planes” – Dionne Warwick
[new] “Wade In The Water” – Ramsey Lewis
[new] “Warm And Tender Love” – Percy Sledge
“Where Were You When I Needed You” – Grass Roots
“Wild Thing” – Troggs
[new] “Working In The Coal Mine” – Lee Dorsey
[new] “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” – Beach Boys
[new] “Yellow Submarine” – Beatles
[new] “You Can’t Hurry Love” – Supremes
“You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me” – Dusty Springfield

[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 4th of August the station manager of WAQY-AM radio in Birmingham, Alabama, became the first to urge listeners to boycott record stores and bookstores that sold music and memorabilia of The Beatles, starting an American backlash against the British rock group that was preparing to make a tour of the United States. Manager Tommy Charles told reporters, “We just felt it was so absurd and sacrilegious that something ought to be done to show that they cannot get away with this sort of thing.”

And then…inevitably, on the 11th The Beatles held a press conference in Chicago, during which John Lennon apologized for his “more popular than Jesus” remark made in a magazine interview in March, saying, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry I said it really. I didn’t mean it as a lousy, anti-religious thing. I was sort of deploring the attitude toward Christianity. I wasn’t saying the Beatles are better than God or Jesus.”

On the 26th NASA released the first photograph of the Earth as seen from the Moon, after Lunar Orbiter 1 transmitted a picture taken three days earlier. Ground control had decided to turn the orbiter’s camera toward the Earth, just as the probe was about to travel toward the far side, in order to show both objects in the same photo.

And back to The Beatles who, on the 29th, played their final official concert, “marking the end of a career as international performing artists that lasted just under three years”. A crowd of 25,000 turned out at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, paying between $3.80 and $7.00 to see the Fab Four. Somewhat cheaper than Taylor Swift tickets in 2024…

Crazy to think they were only touring for 3 years, which leads to the question of “why did they stop?”. Apparently a lot of it was technical – with the stadium setups of the time they couldn’t hear themselves over the crowd going crazy, and as their songs became more technical in the studio (overdubs, more than the four instruments the band played) they became harder to reproduce live – so they become a studio band for the remainder of their career.

What’d Sadie think?

Another two weeks at the top for classic “Wild Thing” by the Troggs before two weeks for “Summer In The City” by Lovin’ Spoonful.

Loved ’em

Some real classics on this week’s playlist – a personal favourite has to be “Wouldn’t it be nice” by the Beach Boys, off their classic “Pet Sounds” album that was released this year.

• “Blowin’ In The Wind” – Stevie Wonder
• “Bus Stop” – Hollies
• “Pretty Flamingo” – Manfred Mann
• “Summertime” – Billy Stewart
• “Sunshine Superman” – Donovan
• “Working In The Coal Mine” – Lee Dorsey
• “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” – Beach Boys
• “Yellow Submarine” – Beatles
• “You Can’t Hurry Love” – Supremes
  
  

Liked ’em

• “Born A Woman” – Sandy Posey
• “Guantanamera” – Sandpipers
• “Lady Jane” – Rolling Stones
• “Land Of 1000 Dances” – Wilson Pickett
• “Make Me Belong To You” – Barbara Lewis
• “My Heart’s Symphony” – Gary Lewis And The Playboys
• “Respectable” – Outsiders
• “Say I Am” – Tommy James And The Shondells
• “Searching For Your Love” – Bobby Moore
• “Wade In The Water” – Ramsey Lewis
• “Warm And Tender Love” – Percy Sledge

Leave ’em

• “The Joker Went Wild” – Brian Hyland

Now go listen to the full playlist on Youtube via this link.

As we head into the shortest day of the year down under in 2024, let’s turn our ears back to July, 1966 to hear some warm sounds of summer…

Songs of the month

“A Groovy Kind Of Love” – Mindbenders
“Ain’t Too Proud To Beg” – Temptations
[new] “Along Comes Mary” – Association
“Barefootin'” – Robert Parker
“Cool Jerk” – Capitols
“Crying” – Jay & The Americans
“Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind” – Lovin’ Spoonful
“Dirty Water” – Standells
“Don’t Bring Me Down” – Animals
“Double Shot” – Swingin’ Medallions
“Girl In Love” – Outsiders
“Green Grass” – Gary Lewis & The Playboys
[new] “Hanky Panky” – Tommy James & The Shondells
[new] “Happy Summer Days” – Ronnie Dove
“He” – Righteous Brothers
“Hold On I’m Comin'” – Sam & Dave
[new] “Hungry” – Paul Revere & The Raiders
“I Am A Rock” – Simon & Garfunkel
[new] “I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love” – Petula Clark
[new] “I Saw Her Again” – Mamas And Papas
[new] “I Want You” – Bob Dylan
[new] “Lil Red Riding Hood” – Sam The Sham And The Pharaohs
“Little Girl” – Syndicate Of Sound
[new] “Love Letters” – Elvis Presley
[new] “Mother’s Little Helper” – Rolling Stones
[new] “Muddy Water” – Johnny Rivers
“Oh How Happy” – Shades Of Blue
“Opus 17” – Four Seasons
[new] “Over Under Sideways Down” – Yardbirds
“Paint It Black” – Rolling Stones
“Paperback Writer” – Beatles
[new] “Please Tell Me Why” – Dave Clark Five
“Popsicle” – Jan & Dean
“Rain” – Beatles
“Red Rubber Ball” – Cyrkle
[new] “See You In September” – Happenings
[new] “Somewhere My Love” – Ray Conniff
“Strangers In The Night” – Frank Sinatra
[new] “Summer In The City” – Lovin’ Spoonful
[new] “Sunny” – Bobby Hebb
[new] “Sweet Dreams” – Tommy Mclain
[new] “Sweet Pea” – Tommy Roe
“Sweet Talking Guy” – Chiffons
[new] “The Land Of Milk And Honey” – Vogues
“The More I See You” – Chris Montez
[new] “The Pied Piper” – Crispian St. Peters
[new] “The Work Song” – Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass
[new] “They’re Coming To Take Me Away Ha-Haaa” – Napoleon Xiv
[new] “This Door Swings Both Ways” – Herman’s Hermits
[new] “Trains And Boats And Planes” – Dionne Warwick
“When A Man Loves A Woman” – Percy Sledge
[new] “Where Were You When I Needed You” – Grass Roots
[new] “Wild Thing” – Troggs
[new] “You Better Run” – Young Rascals
“You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me” – Dusty Springfield

[new] = New to the chart this week.

You can listen to the full playlist on Youtube via this link.

This month in history

On their way back home after their Asian concert tour, The Beatles arrived in India on July 5th for the first time, after having experimented with Indian instruments such as the sitar.

On the 11th “The Newlywed Game”, a TV game show described by one reviewer as “four newlywed couples answering questions which reveal how much or how little they know about each other”, premiered in the USA. TV critic Rick Du Brow of United Press International generally praised the show and its host, Bob Eubanks, as “quite pleasant and unpretentious” but said that the questions asked of the wives and husbands “weren’t exactly life and death matters.” …welcome to modern TV sir!

Then on the 27th, for the first time in 58 years, liquor was legally served in Mississippi, the last of the United States to have repealed its prohibition laws. Quite the dry spell!

What’d Sadie think?

“Strangers In The Night” by Frank Sinatra is the first number one of the month, then we have “Paperback Writer” by the Beatles, “Hanky Panky” – Tommy James & The Shondells for two weeks and finally newcomer, “Wild Thing” by the Troggs.

Loved ’em

• “Hanky Panky” – Tommy James & The Shondells
• “I Want You” – Bob Dylan
• “Love Letters” – Elvis Presley
• “Mother’s Little Helper” – Rolling Stones
• “Summer In The City” – Lovin’ Spoonful
• “Sunny” – Bobby Hebb
• “Wild Thing” – Troggs

Song of the week has to be “Wild Thing” by the Troggs. Which, I did not realise, was a cover. The original was composed for a band called “the Wild Ones”… which is wild? Too wild perhaps as it failed to chart and The Troggs version become the definitive take and hit.

Apparently Chucken, Alden fron the Wild Ones, later said that he regretted not performing the song in the same way as the composer (Chip Taylor’s demo). The solo in the middle of the song was performed by the recording engineer using his hands as a whistle. This sound was subsequently imitated by the Troggs in their version using an ocarina… (A little fact for Nintendo fans.)

Liked ’em

• “Along Comes Mary” – Association
• “Happy Summer Days” – Ronnie Dove
• “Hungry” – Paul Revere & The Raiders
• “I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love” – Petula Clark
• “I Saw Her Again” – Mamas And Papas
• “Over Under Sideways Down” – Yardbirds
• “Please Tell Me Why” – Dave Clark Five
• “See You In September” – Happenings
• “Sweet Dreams” – Tommy Mclain
• “Sweet Pea” – Tommy Roe
• “The Land Of Milk And Honey” – Vogues
• “This Door Swings Both Ways” – Herman’s Hermits
• “Trains And Boats And Planes” – Dionne Warwick
• “Where Were You When I Needed You” – Grass Roots
• “You Better Run” – Young Rascals

Leave ’em

• “Lil Red Riding Hood” – Sam The Sham And The Pharaohs
• “Muddy Water” – Johnny Rivers
• “Popsicle” – Jan And Dean
• “Somewhere My Love” – Ray Conniff Singers
• “The Pied Piper” – Crispian St. Peters
• “The Work Song” – Herb Alpert And The Tijuana Brass
• “They’re Coming To Take Me Away Ha-Haaa” – Napoleon Xiv

Now go listen to the full playlist on Youtube via this link.