The Going Thing – Promo Albums (1969-70)

Artist: The Going Thing
Title: 1969/1970 Promo Albums
Year: 1969-70
Format: LP
Label: Ford Motor Company

This is a compilation of both promotional albums from 1969 & 1970. This is some of the most Squarest Bubble Gum Pop Psych stuff you will ever hear, a True Treasure!

For fans of easy listening, bubblegum, middle of the road pop or any other non-rock retro-kitsch genre, the Going Thing is sure to be grail. They are a classic example of how the “youth market” was packaged to non-youths of the late 60s. The group offers all the energy and sex appeal of “the in sound” with none of the messy commitment.

The records are packed with rock and roll medleys as soothing to the over-the-hill crowd as they are insulting to rock fans. They’ve got hits of the day with new lyrics written especially for Ford Motors employees. They’ve got trite jokes about this crazy loud music all the kids are listening to these days. The whole affair is served up with the kind of infectious super-square showbiz glitz that I’m always on the lookout for.

The core of the Going Thing was the writing/arranging/producing/performing team of brothers John and Tom Bahler. In the late 60s and early 70s, these guys were everywhere. They sang with Percy Faith, Anita Kerr and Hugo Montenegro. They supplied Raiders for Paul Revere and a Union Gap for Gary Puckett.

They fixed vocals for The Monkees, Bobby Sherman and The Kids From The Brady Bunch. They “were” the Partridge Family (except for Keith). They appeared on the backs of cereal boxes and in the cartoons as such post-Archies groups as The Sugar Bears and Pebbles and Bamm Bamm’s Bedrock Rockers. They sang the theme to “Love American Style” and wrote lots of commercial jingles. They also released three albums with their own group, The Love Generation.

It was in the waning days of that project when the Bahlers signed on with advertising agency J. Walter Thompson to help organize a rock oriented campaign for Ford Motors. Designed to sell the the 1969 Ford line, The Going Thing — with their good looks and “youthful” outlook — appealed both to young consumers and dirty old franchise owners. They appeared in television commercials, performed at dealers conventions and recorded these three promotional giveaway albums.

Along with the Bahlers, the group also included guitarist Larry Carlton and singer Janis Hansen, who sang the lead vocal on the Sergio Mendez hit “The Look Of Love.” The group also very nearly included a young Karen and Richard Carpenter. At the last minute, they begged off to sign with A&M Records instead, thus reportedly foregoing a salary of fifty grand a year each and a couple of new Mustangs.

Like most ace studio session people, the Bahlers are mostly unknown to the general public. But there’s a great interview with Tom over at the “C’mon Get Happy” Partridge Family Tribute site, and some fan pages of Bahlerana on a site called — appropriately enough — The Bahler Pages.

There’s also some video of The Going Thing in the LOVEfords Web site’s video library. And if that’s not enough, you can catch the Bahlers’ current work with the New Lawrence Welk Orchestra at the Champagne Theatre-Welk Resort in Branson, Missouri. (deeplygrooved)

Track Listing

1. A Message From John Morrissey
2. We’re The Going Thing
3. I Would Like To Get To Know You
4. Bossananny Medley
5. The Warranty Song
6. The Varsity Drag
7. Scarlet Begonias
8. Tijuana Taxi
9. I Dig Rock And Roll Music
10. It’s The Going Thing 1969
11. It’s The Going Thing 1970
12. Dance To The Music
13. Hey Jude
14. Happiness Is…
15. For Once In My Life
16. Salute To The Sixties
    

Jaim – Prophecy Fulfilled (1969)

Artist: Jaim
Title: Prophecy Fulfilled
Year: 1969
Format: LP
Label: Ethereal

Sunshine pop fans, here’s your lost Grail! I’ve just finished listening to Jaim’s 1969 album Prophecy Fulfilled straight through, and I gotta say – I’m floored by this unknown duo’s incredible knack for the pop hook and the big Curt Boettcher style of production. And together, that makes for a mighty powerful combo.

One after another, they throw perfect sunshine pop melodies at ya, backed with all the trimmings – a weeping symphony behind the gentle “Time Ago,” a nifty bell glissando to represent the sparkle of “Sparkle in Her Eyes Again,” and silky smooth double tracked vocals like pillow clouds of pop in the warm and fuzzy “Running Behind.”

Gawd, this thing SOUNDS like they spent BIG Brian Wilson bucks on it – but it’s just a tiny little pressing, probably church-related, that couldn’t have been more than a thousand at MOST. But play ANY of these soft pop gems right after something off the Millennium’s Begin or Sagittarius’ Present Tense, and you’d swear both bands took their cash from the same bottomless coffer. So how’d these kids DO it?

Really, though, this is a spectacular record. Jaim’s Prophecy Fulfilled sometimes swings like Strawberry Alarm Clock, sometimes explodes like a Turtles Top 40 single, and sometimes soars to the orchestrated heights of the Moody Blues.

And it ends with the last syllable repeated over and over, fading out on a trippy note like the final flames of the candle that separates the two brothers Jaim on the front cover. If the prophecy was to create the album Curt Boettcher WOULD have made if he were an ordained minister in the Church of Love, then consider this a prophecy fulfilled. (popsike review)

Track Listing

1. Your Lovin’ Voice
2. Pretty Woman
3. Sparkle In Her Eyes Again
4. Time Ago
5. Running Behind
6. Back In Circulation Again
7. Ship Of Time
8. As The Sun Meets The Sea
9. More Than You Have Dreamed
10. Sunny Dawning Morning
    

Mark Eric – A Midsummer’s Day Dream (1969)

Artist: Mark Eric
Title: A Midsummer’s Day Dream
Year: 1969
Format: LP
Label: Revue

L.A. native Mark Eric was leading the Southern California dream life in his teens — surfing by day and writing songs about girls by night — before his musical talents drew him to Hollywood. He was 16 when he met Russ Regan, then at Warner Bros., but his first break came while waiting in the lobby of label honcho Lou Adler’s office. There he met Bob Raucher, an engineer at local KHJ radio station (who wondered why Eric wasn’t in high school). Raucher took a liking to the suntanned surfer/songwriter, and, under his “personal management,” Eric was soon recording at Gold Star studios in Hollywood.

One of his songs was later recorded by the Four Freshmen, who were by then on Liberty. Subsequent sessions by Eric, backed with studio musicians, led to another meeting with Regan, now heading up UNI (owned by MCA), who signed the promising soft pop singer to the label.

Eric only recorded one album, A Midsummer’s Day Dream, which was released in 1969 on UNI’s R&B subsidiary, Revue Records is treasured by collectors as one of the more perfect blends of soft pop and surf pop, with appropriately accenting vibraphones and French horns, pseudo-studio jazzy/soft pop melodies, “bah bah bah” harmonies, and moody string arrangements reminiscent of Curt Boettcher’s productions of Sagittarius and the Millennium. Eric’s charming, somewhat imperfect falsetto (in a somewhat obvious homage to Brian Wilson) hints at a subterranean layer of loneliness throughout.

His self-penned, broken-hearted Beach Boys-style ballads (think Pet Sounds/Friends) are, in fact, the perfect vehicle for his faltering upper-register voice. Highlights include “California Home” (about a homesick airplane flight away from L.A.); an end-of-summer lament, “Where Do the Girls of the Summer Go”; and “Don’t Cry Over Me,” with its gorgeous blend of harmonic filigree and sophisticated studio sheen. .

Eric eventually left music behind and began working as an actor in Hollywood, appearing on numerous TV sitcoms and several commercials. One of his songs, “Fly Me a Place for the Summer,” was later recorded by the Mike Curb Congregation for an airline commercial. (Bryan Thomas, All Music Guide)

Track Listing

1. California Home
2. Move With The Dawn
3. Laura’s Changing
4. Where Do The Girls Of The Summer Go
5. I’d Like To Talk To You
6. Take Me With You
7. Night Of The Lions
8. Don’t Cry Over Me
9. We Live So Fast
10. Sad Is The Way That I Feel
11. Just Passing By
12. Lynn’s Baby
    

Euphoria – Euphoria (1969)

Artist: Euphoria
Title: Euphoria
Year: 1969
Format: LP
Label: Heritage

Euphoria was a short-lived band from 1968 to 1969, consisting of Roger Penney, Wendy Penney, Tom Pacheco, and Sharon Alexander. Roger and Wendy were a folk duo performing in Greenwich Village, using the names Roger Becket and Wendy Becket.

Euphoria is generally regarded as a sunshine pop group. Initially, Roger and Wendy were approached by Tom and Sharon to form a band with the express purpose of procuring a recording deal. Roger and Wendy were to front the band as lead vocalists in the Folk Rock group, with Roger Penney on electric autoharp and keyboard, Wendy on bass guitar, Tom on guitar, and Sharon on percussion.

They signed with Jerry Ross’s Heritage Records, which was affiliated with MGM as distributor and promoter, and recorded one album entitled “Euphoria”. (Sunshine Pop music style, not unlike other music groups such as The Mamas And Papas or Spanky And Our Gang). Arranged by Joe Renzettii it was released in 1969, but without promotional support. A single was released of “You Must Forget”, with Roger singing lead. Another single, of “Calm Down” was also released on Polydor Records.

The album and the group’s live performances were subjects of printed articles in Record World magazine, Go magazine, Cashbox magazine, and Variety. Euphoria performed live with musician Van Morrison, and the 1910 Fruitgum Company at Madison Square Garden’s Felt Forum as well as with Sly and the Family Stone and Iron Butterfly. They appeared on the Bozo the Clown television show at WWOR-TV from New York City, and were slated for a performance on the Johnny Carson Show but disbanded before appearing. Roger and Wendy went on to form Bermuda Triangle Band. (Wikipedia)

Track Listing

1. There Is Now
2. What A Day
3. Seldom Seen Slim
4. Sun And Shadow
5. Sitting In A Rockin’ Chair
6. Ride The Magic Carpet
7. You Must Forget
8. Tucson
9. Calm Down
10. Sleep
11. Walkin’ Thru’ The City
    

Eternity’s Children – Eternity’s Children (1968)

Artist: Eternity’s Children
Title: Eternity’s Children
Year: 1968
Format: LP
Label: Tower

Sunshine pop cult favorites Eternity’s Children were formed in Cleveland, MS, in 1965 by singer/keyboardist Bruce Blackman and drummer Roy Whittaker, fellow students at Delta College. With the addition of lead guitarist Johnny Walker, rhythm guitarist Jerry Bounds, and bassist Charlie Ross, the group (originally dubbed the Phantoms) began developing the complex, overlapping vocal harmonies that remained the hallmark of their sound throughout their career.

According to Dawn Eden’s comprehensive liner notes in the 2002 Rev-Ola reissue Eternity’s Children, in 1966 the Phantoms relocated to Biloxi, becoming the house band in the basement nightclub of the Biloxi Hotel and backing visiting performers including Charlie Rich and B.J. Thomas.

With the addition of local folksinger Linda Lawley, the fledgling band adopted the more contemporary moniker Eternity’s Children, and after Baton Rouge health club magnate Ray Roy caught one of their live appearances, he convinced business partner Guy Belello to form a management company (Crocked Foxx Productions and Music), which soon signed the group to a contract.

Eternity’s Children quickly recorded a demo that made its way to A&M producer Allen Stanton, and in the spring of 1967 recorded their lone effort for the label, the David Gates-penned single “Wait and See.” (It was produced by Keith Olsen, the former Music Machine bassist best known as the production partner of studio wizard Curt Boettcher.) The record went nowhere, and despite touring as part of a package headlined by the Strawberry Alarm Clock, the Seeds, and the Blues Magoos, Eternity’s Children were quickly dropped by A&M. Crocked Foxx soon landed their charges a deal with Capitol’s tax-shelter subsidiary, Tower; Olsen again manned the boards, this time bringing Boettcher, who’d previously enjoyed massive success with vocal groups like the Association as well as his own Sagittarius and the Millennium.

Despite some flashes of brilliance, Eternity’s Children’s self-titled debut does not rank among the Boettcher/Olsen duo’s crowning achievements — both producers were distracted by other concurrent projects, and for every potential smash like the lilting first single “Mrs. Bluebird” or the beautiful “Again Again,” there was a “Rupert White” (which simply added a new vocal to a backing track issued the year earlier as the Chocolate Tunnel’s “The Highly Successful Rupert White”) or “You Know I’ve Found a Way” (which doesn’t even feature the group at all — a Boettcher production demo, it later resurfaced in much more complete form on Sagittarius’ Present Tense).

During production of the album, relations between the members of Eternity’s Children and their management became increasingly strained, and prior to the LP’s mid-1968 release, Blackman, Walker, and Bounds all exited. Only Blackman was replaced, by classically trained keyboardist Mike “Kid” McClain, previously of the Houston group the Neurotic Sheep. An appearance on American Bandstand spurred “Mrs. Bluebird” up the pop charts, but Tower did little to promote the single or the band, and after three weeks at number 69 on Billboard, both quickly plummeted out of the Hot 100. Eternity’s Children nevertheless reconvened to begin work on their second album, Timeless, this time recruiting Boettcher’s longtime engineer, Gary Paxton, to helm the sessions.

With primary songwriter Blackman now out of the mix, Ross, Lawley, and McClain all contributed original material, and Paxton also wrangled songs from future Byrds Clarence White and Gene Parsons. After Whittaker left the group sometime during the sessions, drummer Bo Wagner was brought into the studio to complete the tracks — coincidentally, Wagner would later join Blackman and Walker in their post-Eternity’s Children project, dubbed simply the Children. (Blackman and Walker finally achieved massive chart success in the mid-’70s as members of Starbuck, which scored the Top Five smash “Moonlight Feels Right.”) The album, titled Timeless, wrapped in late 1968, and promo copies of the first single, “Till I Hear It from You,” were soon dispatched to radio.

But when “Till I Hear It from You” caused little excitement among radio programmers, Tower abruptly scuttled Timeless’ U.S. release; the album did appear on Capitol’s Canadian branch (“Mrs. Bluebird” was a sizable hit north of the border). Desperate for a change in geography and approach, Eternity’s Children decamped to Memphis, home of Chips Moman’s legendary American Studios. Abandoning the lush, pristine production of their previous efforts for a more earthy, blue-eyed soul sound, the group teamed with Moman and ace session bassist Tommy Cogbill to record the single “The Sidewalks of the Ghetto.” It went nowhere — by now, Capitol was shuttering the entire Tower imprint, although one last Eternity’s Children single, the Spooner Oldham-penned “Blue Horizon,” slipped through the cracks, as did solo singles from Lawley (“When the World Turns”) and Ross (“A Railroad Trestle in California”).

Remarkably, there was one last gasp — Liberty Records, reeling from the loss of the 5th Dimension to rival Bell, seized upon Eternity’s Children as a replacement. They signed to record a single, “Alone Again,” but when Liberty was folded into parent company United Artists, the band was dropped. No subsequent recordings ever saw official release, but various Eternity’s Children lineups continued performing during the 1970s. (Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide)

Track Listing

1. Again Again
2. Rupert White
3. Flowers
4. My Happiness Day
5. Lifetime Day
6. Mrs. Bluebird
7. Your World
8. You Know I’ll Find A Way
9. Little Boy
10. Sunshine Among Us
    

The Sunshine Company – Happy Is (1967)

Artist: The Sunshine Company
Title: Happy Is
Year: 1967
Format: LP
Label: Imperial

Formed in Los Angeles, California, USA in February 1967, the Sunshine Company was a psychedelic pop band that made a minor impact during its two-year existence. The quintet consisted of Mary Nance (vocals), Douglas ‘Red’ Mark (guitar/vocals), Maury Mansea (guitarist/pianist/vocalist), Larry Sims (bass) and Merel Bregante (drums). As their name would suggest, the group specialized in lightweight ‘flower-power’ music and dressed the hippie role to the hilt.

Shortly after forming the group was signed to Imperial Records. Similar in style to the Mamas And The Papas and Spanky And Our Gang, the Sunshine Company did not share their commercial success. Their first single, ‘Happy’, made it to number 50 in the USA in July 1967, while the follow-up, ‘Back On The Street Again’, reached number 36 in October. One more single, ‘Look, Here Comes The Sun’, ended their chart run when it peaked at number 56 in February 1968. The same year they became a sextet with the inclusion of Dave Hodgkins (acoustic guitar).

The Sunshine Company recorded three albums during 1967-68, but only the first, Happy Is The Sunshine Company, reached the charts. By 1969, the group had dissolved, with Mark forming Redeye and Bregante joining Loggins And Messina. (Internet Source)

Track Listing

1. Children Could Help Us Find The Way
2. Up, Up And Away
3. I Need You
4. Just Beyond Your Smile
5. I Just Want To Be Your Friend
6. Four In The Mornin’
7. Warm In My Heart
8. A Year In Jaine Time
9. Rain
10. Love Is A Happy Thing
11. Back On The Street Again
12. Happy
    

The Three Ring Circus – Groovin’ On The Sunshine (1968)

Artist: The Three Ring Circus
Title: Groovin’ On The Sunshine
Year: 1968
Format: LP
Label: RCA Victor

A weird bit of sunshine pop — with the unusual feature that side one of the album is vocal, and side two is instrumental! There’s some wonderful backings on the set — almost in a Rotary Connection mode, with lots of strange production, echoey orchestrations, and a good mix of conventional instrumentation turned trippy, next to rockfish influences on guitar.

Very wild stuff, especially on the instrumentals, and with tracks that include “Fantastic Voyage”, “Groovin On Sunshine”, “So True”, “Lovin Machine”, and “I Can’t Be Trusted”. (Dusty Groove)

Track Listing

1. Groovin’ On The Sunshine
2. So True
3. I Can’t Be Trusted
4. Lovin’ Machine
5. Too Much Of A Good Good Thing
6. Give Me Tomorrow
7. Fantastic Voyage (Instrumental)
8. Groovin’ On The Sunshine (Instrumental)
9. So True (Instrumental)
10. Too Much Of A Good Good Thing (Instrumental)
11. Lovin’ Machine (Instrumental)
    

The Sunshine Company – The Sunshine Company (1968)

Artist: The Sunshine Company
Title: The Sunshine Company
Year: 1968
Format: LP
Label: Imperial

Breezy baroquey folkie sunshine pop in the Curt Boettcher vein, even including a Boettcher composition. This is one of the best California soft pop records I’ve heard. Highly recommended! (garymaher RYM)

Track Listing

1. Look, Here Comes The Sun
2. Reflections On An Angel
3. Love, That’s Where It Is
4. Sunday Brought The Rain
5. I Can’t Help But Wonder
6. I, To, We And Back Again
7. It’s Sunday
8. You Don’t Know Her Like I Do
9. You Heart Is Free Just Like The Wind
10. If You Only Knew
11. Darcey Farrow
12. Without Really Thinking
    

Twinn Connexion – Twinn Connexion (1968)

Artist: Twinn Connexion
Title: Twinn Connexion
Year: 1968
Format: LP
Label: Decca

Twinn Connexion, Jerry and Jay Hopkins were born in Helena, Montana on January 15, 1941. As kids, they performed country music learned from the radio, at various organizations around Helena including the Masonic Lodge, The Chittendon Home for Unwed Mothers, and the Helena Old Age Home. Following graduation from Helena High the twins enrolled in the drama department at University of Montana in Missoula. At U of M they became known as “The Hopki,” and played leading roles in the University Theatre, Jay as Shakespeare’s King Lear, and Jerry as Prospero in The Tempest.

In 1963 they moved to New York where they met Robert Cessna, who created a new act for them and became their manager. Appearances at various clubs and coffee houses in Greenwich Village including the Bitter End helped them to develop their act and in 1967, they were discovered by Bill Downer, a publisher at Northern Music, MCA who took them to Decca where they were signed to do an album of songs by the writing team of Jerry Keller and Dave Blume.

The album was released in 1968 to positive reviews and though reception across the midwest was enthusiastic, the album did not reach the stratosphere. The release of two singles followed, and Twinn Connexion gained some notoriety through TV appearances but not sufficient to warrant another album. (Prairie Prince Minsky)

Track Listing

1. Sixth Avenue Stroll
2. I Think I’ll Just Go And Find Me A Flower
3. I Think I Know Him
4. Dilemma
5. Turn Down Day
6. The Music Turns Me On
7. Foolin’ Around
8. Wind Me Up And I Dance
9. Summer Sadness
10. Young And Free
11. Oh What A Lovely Day