Ace digger Alec Palao continues his West Coast mission, this time burrowing deep into Gary S. Paxton's Garpax tape archives. |
Here's the scoop from Alec Palao...
Vintage garage rock is only one of the many tributaries of popular music that the maverick Gary S Paxton recorded and produced in his 1960s heyday, and compared to other genres, the off-kilter genius behind ‘Alley Oop’ and ‘Monster Mash’ was hardly prolific with it. But for a producer-engineer of his repute, it was inevitable that Paxton would cross paths with the sudden surge of teenaged rock groups that emerged in the wake of the British Invasion. We’ve gathered the best of them on “Lost Innocence”, and for any aficionado of the genre, a treat is in store. As well as a brace of acknowledged Californian punk classics present and correct for the first time direct from master tape, this rockin’ little disc also shares further booty from the Garpax vaults, including some obscurities well worthy of re-appraisal, along with completely unreleased nuggets of note.Counting among the well-known are the Avengers, Bakersfield’s top dogs in the punk bracket thanks to snot-nosed missives such as ‘I Told You So’ and the controversial ‘Be A Cave Man’. Ken & the Forth Dimension and Limey & the Yanks serve up the highly regarded items ‘See If I Care’ and ‘Guaranteed Love’ respectively, with a trio of ear-opening unissued tracks from the latter as a bonus. Riverside’s Whatt Four weigh in with the popular ear-burners ‘Our Love Should Last Forever’ and ‘You're Wishin’ I Was Someone Else’. And the Buddhas’ title cut is still the most eloquent ode to carnal knowledge in the entire 60s punk pantheon.
The eccentricities that are never far from a Paxton production inform a couple of tracks that nevertheless have punk merit. In particular, the unbelievable screaming on Carl Walden & the Humans’ ‘I’ll Never Let You Go’ would put James Brown or Wilson Pickett to shame. Last but not least, the voluminous Garpax tape library revealed a tantalising mystery in the unknown group responsible for a marvellous Raiders-style pounder titled ‘This Freedom I Have Found’.
In the commercial environs of mid-1960s Hollywood, the producer remained omnipotent and Paxton would happily call on his seasoned session crew if you weren’t cutting it, musically speaking. On “Lost Innocence”, however, most of the players remained those same wide-eyed teenagers that had been ushered into his presence. Their stories also have the same ring of truth as most youthful combos in that era: hearing your record on the radio for the first time, the expanded social and career possibilities afforded by membership of a successful local band and seeing that dream rent asunder by the draft. Yet having Gary S Paxton behind the controls, with his innate expertise and guidance, not to mention a soupçon of the appropriately bizarre, helped these same “typical” groups make some truly memorable music. – Alec Palao
You can pre-order a copy of Lost Innocence: Garpax 1960s Punk & Psych (available January 29) right here. Check out "See If I Care" by Ken & The Fourth Dimension and the track list below. Read Jon 'Mojo" Mills' Shindig interview with Alec Palao about the Lost Innocence comp right here.
V.A. – Lost Innocence: Garpax 1960s Punk & Psych
01 Our Love Should Last Forever - The Whatt Four
02 Be A Cave Man - The Avengers
03 Guaranteed Love - Limey & The Yanks
04 Lost Innocence - The Buddhas
05 Grey Zone - The Fog
06 I Need Love - The New Wing
07 See If I Care - Ken & The Forth Dimension
08 In The Heat Of The Night - Mental Institution
09 When It's Over - The Avengers
10 You're Wishin' I Was Someone Else - The Whatt Four
11 Flight Of The Dead Bird - Limey & The Yanks
12 My Dream - The Buddhas
13 I Told You So - The Avengers
14 Peddlers Of Hate - Don Hinson
15 Melodyland Loser - The New Wing
16 The Highly Successful Young Rupert White - The Chocolate Tunnel
17 Tomorrow Never Comes - Limey & The Yanks
18 You Better Stop Your Messin' Around - The Whatt Four
19 Shipwrecked - The Avengers
20 This Freedom I Have Found - Unknown Artist
21 Leather Coated Cottage - Limey & The Yanks
22 Brown Eyed Woman - The New Wing
23 My True True Love - The Avengers
24 I'll Never Let You Go - Carl Walden & The Humans
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