# Rascals - Young and Not-So-Young



## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Well, thanks to my friend Kevin Pearson's post on the "Non-Classical Current Listening" thread in response to my post on the Rascals, I've decided to take the plunge and bring up a new thread that will garner about as much interest as a broken sea shell on a beach (and major eye-rolls from fans of today's dystopian, violence-ridden or gothic bands, of which there seem to be a ton here).

So, for the handful of us Rascals-fans left in the world at large - what is it that made them so important to us?

The Rascals were always hard to define. Some refer to them as the quintessential blue-eyed soul band of the 1960's - and there's some truth to that, I guess.

But, Rascals fans were always a strange lot. The group certainly wasn't as popular as the Beatles (but who was?). They weren't as smooth and polished as The Beach Boys. They weren't really cool like The Doors or The Stones. Heck, they weren't even as cool as Crosby, Stills and Nash. On the other hand, they weren't really a pop band like the Monkees, or bubblegum like, well, like so many sixties bands.

What they were was eclectic. They were influenced as much by Dylan as they were by Wilson Pickett. They could do straight rock ("Good Lovin'" reached the Top 5 of the battle of the bands contests in my area for a couple of decades), laid-back pop, straight blues, straight soul, kitsch, psychedelia - you name it.

A lot of their songs were mixes of styles. ( I like to refer to "See" as a merger of Dylan and Iron Butterfly). Heck, I even heard reggae licks on one of their tracks long before reggae went mainstream. They did the best sittar track in the rock era (IMO) in *Once Upon a Dream's* "Sattva".

And, with Felix Cavaliere's rough-edged vocals and Atlantic's unpolished production, they could be as visceral as it gets.

But, from the early Little Lord Fauntleroy outfits to the occasional schmaltzy lyrics (i.e. "My Hawaii"), they could also make even the diehard fans shake their collective heads sometimes.

So, sure they were raw and imperfect, but we loved them just the same.

They weren't the bright red Mustang, the Ferrari, the Chevy convertible or the GTO of the rock era. They were more like the Dodge charger with the half-finished body work and the bad muffler. But, man, it could really get you around.


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

The first Rascals album (1965), was from the "Young" period. It features the gimmicky outfits that characterized the group in their original appearances.

The album opens with the 1958 Larry Williams' classic "Slow Down", most famously covered by the Beatles as the B-side to "Matchbox" and on the Long Tall Sally EP.

The Young Rascals released it as the B-side to their first single, "I Ain't Gonna Eat My Heart Out Anymore" (also on this album).

I've always thought that, by comparison, the Beatles' version seems almost tame. Felix's raspy vocal is short on flow and long on menacing. All in all, a good introduction to the hard driving feel of the early Rascals.


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

Like many groups of the period the Rascals got their start by playing cover tunes and quite often better than the originals. I do agree with your assessment about Slow Down in that the Beatles version does seem tame. Felix Cavaliere's distinctive voice is really what made the Rascals unique and his organ style. It gave their sound that soulfulness without which they would have just been another American garage band. Their interpretations, or more specifically Felix's interpretations, give this album several stand outs. I especially like *Mustang Sally* with that cool bass line. *I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore* reminds me of The Animals and probably would have been a great cover song for Eric Burdon. Sadly they never recorded it.* In The Midnight Hour* is probably the best track and works well as a final track. I especially dig the organ sound but that steady driving bass line is pretty cool too. My least favorite track is the Dylan song *Like A Rolling Stone*. It's not that it's bad it's just that the Dylan version is so much better and rather iconic. I also kind half expect to hear Roger McGuinn's, of The Byrds, jangly guitar coming in. The variety of songs on the album is really a lot of fun and pretty much happy, feel good, music. Not feel good like the California Sunshine sound but gutsy, bluesy, on the streets, kind of feel good. The kind of inspiration of the Blues Brothers.

Kevin


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Your analysis was spot on in my opinion. I noticed that all the songs you detailed were from side two of the album. It is definitely the stronger part of the album.

The curiosity about this album, given the group's later history, is that there is only one song, the side one closer *Do You Feel It?*, that was written by a band member. It's a soulful screamer by Felix, and though nothing to make the greatest hits collection, isn't too bad.

Eddie gets another Pam Sawyer ("Love Child", "If I was Your Woman") song in *Baby, Let's Wait*. (The other one was "I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore" on side two). I'd put it next to last on the album. The only one I like less is Felix's cover of *I Believe*. Among other things, the sound is atrocious. If there is one Rascals song I will usually skip on replay, this is it. *Like a Rolling Stone* comes in third from the bottom for me.

That only leaves Eddie's version of *Just A Little*, which I rather like - more for the instrumentals than for his voice.

Oh wait! Neither of us mentioned *Good Lovin'*. Well, what can you say? It's the reason the album sold as well as it did. 

My pecking order:

*Good Lovin'
Mustang Sally
In the Midnight Hour
Slow Down
Just a Little
I Ain't Gonna Eat My Heart Out Anymore
Do You Feel It?

Like A Rolling Stone
Baby, Let's Wait
I Believe*


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## norman bates (Aug 18, 2010)

It's curious, the other day I was listening to Peaceful world because I've discovered that Linc Chamberland played on it (for those who don't know, Chamberland was one of the greatest jazz guitarists ever, even if he's sadly unknown) and the band on it is basically a supergroup of great players: Chamberland, Chuck Rainey, Ron Carter, Joe Farrell, Alice Coltrane, Pepper Adams etc. Rarely I've seen a pop album with a similar display of talents.


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

norman bates said:


> It's curious, the other day I was listening to Peaceful world because I've discovered that Linc Chamberland played on it (for those who don't know, Chamberland was one of the greatest jazz guitarists ever, even if he's sadly unknown) and the band on it is basically a supergroup of great players: Chamberland, Chuck Rainey, Ron Carter, Joe Farrell, Alice Coltrane, Pepper Adams etc. Rarely I've seen a pop album with a similar display of talents.


Yea...that album was almost like a CTI all stars line up. I'm sure We'll get to discussing it eventually.

Kevin


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

Vesteralen, I do have to agree about the sound quality of *I Believe*. I'm not sure why the vocal is so low and there is just a general muddy sound to it. The ballad itself though isn't too bad. For some reason *Baby Let's Wait* reminds me of the Brooklyn Bridge song *The Worst That Could Happen*. *Do You Feel It* is a great song and even at almost 60 makes me want to get up and dance. I really do feel it! That guitar rhythm is awesome and I don't think I've heard that chord progression in another tune by anyone. My order for the album would be:

*Good Lovin'
Mustang Sally
In the Midnight Hour
Do You Feel It?
I Ain't Gonna Eat My Heart Out Anymore
Slow Down
Just a Little
Baby, Let's Wait
Like A Rolling Stone
I Believe*


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Kevin Pearson said:


> *Do You Feel It* is a great song and even at almost 60 makes me want to get up and dance. I really do feel it! That guitar rhythm is awesome and I don't think I've heard that chord progression in another tune by anyone.


I'm usually driving while I listen, so getting up to dance could be dangerous - and, in my case at 62. 



> My order for the album would be:
> 
> *Good Lovin'
> Mustang Sally
> ...


Well, I could certainly live with that order. No real disagreements at all. The middle four are sort of interchangeable for me.


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

I should also mention that Felix's versions of *Mustang Sally* and *In the Midnight Hour* have always been *the* versions of those songs for me. I just read that he says Atlantic pulled the rug out from the group on *Mustang Sally* that they had already recorded and gave it to Wilson Pickett as a single.

The only thing that confuses me on that is, doesn't WP's version say "1965" while the Young Rascals' version says "1966"? Or was "1965" only on Mack Rice's version? Of course, WP could have left the original lyric unchanged even if he recorded it later.


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

Mack Rice originally wrote and released Mustang Sally in 1965 and Pickett released it in 1966 as did The Young Rascals. It's likely that the Rascals recorded it in 1965 as their album came out in March of 1966. I couldn't find a release date for Pickett's version. The Rascals version is considerably slower than many versions that have been released over the years. I do really enjoy the Pickett version though. His studio band on the song were really good. Interestingly the Kingsmen also recorded the song and it's surprisingly pretty good and soulful. My favorite, besides the Rascals might have to be Ronnie Milsap's version. The John Lee Hooker version is just horrid in my opinion. The version by Buddy Guy playing his guitar kind of gives you an idea of what Stevie Ray Vaughn might have sounded like had he recorded the song and is pretty awesome actually. 

Kevin


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

Check out these versions of Mustang Sally:











Kevin


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Kevin Pearson said:


> Mack Rice originally wrote and released Mustang Sally in 1965 and Pickett released it in 1966 as did The Young Rascals. It's likely that the Rascals recorded it in 1965 as their album came out in March of 1966. I couldn't find a release date for Pickett's version. The Rascals version is considerably slower than many versions that have been released over the years. I do really enjoy the Pickett version though. His studio band on the song were really good. Interestingly the Kingsmen also recorded the song and it's surprisingly pretty good and soulful. My favorite, besides the Rascals might have to be Ronnie Milsap's version. The John Lee Hooker version is just horrid in my opinion. The version by Buddy Guy playing his guitar kind of gives you an idea of what Stevie Ray Vaughn might have sounded like had he recorded the song and is pretty awesome actually.
> 
> Kevin


Thanks for the insights, Kevin. Sampling some of the different versions back to back was very interesting. To my mind, the most radically different versions are Mack Rice's really, really fast version, with an almost entirely different rhythm, and the Rascals' really, really slow version that blends attitude with a weird kind of remoteness. But, that was fun. My favorite local cover band does a nice version that isn't really unique in any way, but it's always good to hear this song live.

Bob


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Moving on:









The two singles released from their first album, *I Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore* and *Good Lovin'*, went #52 and #1 respectively.

This next album sort of had three singles (more on that later) that went #20, #43 and #16. The album, like its predecessor, went gold. Overall, it was a modest success, I guess. But, what might get overlooked is that there was a lot more original material here.

Before getting into a lot of detail, I just wanted to say that, as much as I enjoyed the sound of *Good Lovin'*, this new album's *Lonely Too Long* is the song that made me a fan. It's the first song in a chain leading through *A Girl Like You*(co-written with Eddie Brigati), all the way to *People Got To Be Free*, that showcased that certain something in Cavaliere's writing that set him apart from anyone else, in my opinion. And, for me (as one who really doesn't much like the organ, Hammond or otherwise), it's the very best organ showcase they ever did.


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

Really hard to know where to start with this album. There is a lot to commend on it. As you say six of the eleven tracks were actually written by the guys. I suppose that with the first album's success Atlantic Records decided to give them a little more liberty to work in their own compositions. I'm thinking maybe we should talk about the original songs on the album first and then move on to those not written by the boys. If we look at the six songs, out of the six, what are the standouts?

"What Is the Reason" (Felix Cavaliere, Eddie Brigati)
"(I've Been) Lonely Too Long" (Cavaliere) 
"No Love to Give" (Gene Cornish) 
"Come On Up" (Cavaliere) 
"Nineteen Fifty-Six" (Cornish) 
"Love Is a Beautiful Thing" (Cavaliere, Brigati)

I'll talk about the these out of order. Really out of the six songs only *Lonely Too Long* is a standout song. It really is a quintessential Rascals tune and does showcase Cavaliere as a songwriter and vocalist. You could actually see this being a really great jam song in concert.

*What Is The Reason* is a good opener for the album. The beginning instrumental actually reminds me somewhat of The Who until the vocals begin. I imagine that many people then and today wonder about our purpose and meaning of love and this song asks those questions. The main thing about this song is that Cornish's solo seems kind of out of place. Had the song been released in 1965 then I would say it was appropriate but by this time we have had Beatles Revolver, Rubber Soul and soon Sgt. Peppers and Days of Future Past and many other innovative albums and this style of guitar just seems dated in my mind. It's not that I don't enjoy it I just wonder if the song could have been better with a more contemporary sound?

*Love Is A Beautiful Thing* is a fine song by Cavaliere but reminds me a little too much of the Tommy James and The Shondells' Mony Mony and Hanky Panky style of writing. Just a party song really. Not a bad party song by any means I just think that it's on a lower level than many of their songs. *Love Is A Beautiful Thing* almost rises to the best of the Rascals sound and really is quite fun. I think the song was a missed opportunity though to showcase their instrumental talents more.

*Come On Up* I think is kind of a forward looking song in that this style would be something that groups like Rare Earth and Three Dog Night would soon capitalize on. I actually dig this song a lot!

The last two songs were both written by Gene Cornish and couldn't be more different. If you heard someone speak the sentiments in *No Love To Give* today you might be calling a suicide hotline for them. It's a pretty depressing song and yet many people can relate to the sentiments in the song at some point in their lives. Cornish writes "I wish that I could find the reason why I live, cause I found no love to take and I have no love to give". Really sad sentiments and yet true to many people's human experience at one time or another. Although a downer a pretty good song though overall. Thankfully *Nineteen Fifty-Six* is completely different. It's a really good R&B tune more along the lines of Chuck Berry or Jerry Lee Lewis style. My biggest complaint would be that the song is way too short. Missed opportunities here for some good blues jamming.

I'll leave the non-Rascal's written tunes for another post there Bob. Trying to keep our discussion a little bit manageable. Before I close though I would like to at least post this YouTube of *Lonely Too Long*. Dino Danelli was an awesome drummer and video performances really show how great he was! I hope our discussions in this thread might lead to others at least exploring The Rascals and maybe we might get a few new fans!






Kevin


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Having watched that video, this would be a good time to bring up the question - who played bass for the Rascals?

I believe Felix used pedals to do it when they played live. But, apparently they used a bunch of different people in the studio.

I think it's a bit odd, though other bands played without a bass guitar, too. But, the bass lines were so important on their recordings. I definitely missed it on this video, although it was great in many other ways.

Also, for those unfamiliar with their music - Lonely Too Long was truncated on this version and they synched into a shortened version of Come On Up at the end.


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

I do believe you're right in that Felix played the bass parts using the bass pedal on the organ in their live performances but Cornish is credited with playing bass on this album.


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Sticking mainly to the songs you commented on already -

*What Is The Reason* was issued as the B-side to *Come On Up*. It was not on the *Time - Peace* collection, but it did show up again on other compilation albums. I hadn't really thought about the guitar solo in the way you said, but I guess I see your point. My biggest complaint with this track is the pinched, almost distorted sound that was kind of a hallmark with early Rascals stuff. This song, in particular, could have benefited from clearer recording - stereo-tracking drumrolls notwithstanding.

*Love Is a Beautiful Thing* is one of their call-and-response things they could do so well. (My favorite is *Any Dance'll Do* from *Freedom Suite*) It's not really an A-list tune, but it's kind of fun.

Curiosity - this song was issued as the B-side of *You Better Run*, which didn't show up on an album till their next one - *Groovin'*. It hit #20 on Billboard.

*Come On Up* is one of those songs you can take at face value or interpret a different way, I guess. Musically, it drives all right. It doesn't fascinate me for some reason. Would not make my top twelve all-time Rascals songs.

Did Cornish sing his own songs? It's kind of odd that he would write two kind of dark songs. When you look at the video clips, he seems like the happy one. *No Love to Give* is a pretty unusual song. Very depressing, like you said. But, I like the creative chance taken on it. *Nineteen Fifty-Six*, though a little dark, is an old style rock tune, for sure. It's so Chuck Berry, I actually thought it was a CB tune the first time I heard it. (Of course, a lot of those rockin' blues tunes do sound alike.) I find this effort just a bit too derivative to really be impressive.

Of the six original songs on this album, one is an all-time favorite, two make my greatest hits list, one is a novelty, and two I can take or leave.


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

So, to get to the cover songs on this album -

First, we have the slow songs (right up Eddie's alley, I guess) starting with *Since I Fell For You* (1945), a jazz/pop standard that had its biggest chart success in 1963 in a version by Lenny Welch. Brigati reportedly loved this song, and I suppose he must have fought for its inclusion on this album. It's a bit heavy on the organ accompaniment for me, but I do enjoy this one.

The other slow song, *More*, from the movie "Mondo Cane" (1962) is more of a head-scratcher for me. This is the *I Believe* of the second album for me - one I would rather skip than suffer through. Way too much organ and not a good fit at all for the Rascals' sound.


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

I have to split this response into two posts because of too many videos.

Ok so for the songs not composed by the band we have:

"Since I Fell for You" (Buddy Johnson) - 3:25
"Mickey's Monkey" (Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier, Eddie Holland) / "Turn On Your Love Light" (Deadric Malone, Joseph Scott) - 4:41
"Too Many Fish in the Sea" (Eddie Holland, Norman Whitfield) - 2:16
"More" (Riz Ortolani, Nino Oliviero, Norman Newell, Marcello Ciorciolini) - 4:20
"Land of a Thousand Dances" (Chris Kenner) - 1:58

*Since I fell For You* is a classic "lounge" type song. Sooooo many people have sang and recorded this song that I suppose it could be classified as an American Standard. I Enjoy this version but I probably prefer this version by Dinah Washington from 1961:






Or even this heart wrenching soulful version 1959 version By Annie Laurie:






I noticed you didn't mention *Mickey's Monkey/ Turn On Your Love Light* in your post Bob. *Mickey's Monkey* is another one of those Rascals party songs made famous by Smokey Robinson and the Miracles and even starts with the "Alight is everybody ready?" question and everyone says ..."yea!". The Rascals version is almost an imitation of the original with very little Rascals touch in my opinion. I do like it though and think for a party song it's fun. Written of course by the very famous Holland/Dozier/Holland trio of smash hit songwriters. They wrote some of the biggest hits of the 60s mostly for Motown Records. I doubt Motown would have been as successful without them. Then the song segues into *Turn On Your Love Light*. I'm not sure about the pairing of these two tunes together but I suppose it works OK. My favorite version of this tune is the 15 plus minute Grateful Dead jam on Live Dead or Bobby Bland's version from 1961. It's another one of those tunes that remind you of the Blues Brothers!
















*CONTINUED IN NEXT POST>>>>>>*


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

*Too Many Fish In The Sea* is of course a Marvelettes hit and here I actually prefer the Rascals version. I think it suited their sound and style just perfectly. Here's the Marvelettes:






I'm not sure why *More* is a head scratcher for you Bob. Listen to the opening chords and imagine the ahh ahh ahhs of *Groovin'*. It's certainly a song that in my mind is moving in that direction. I actually think it's one of the more classic Rascal sounding songs and demonstrates their eclecticism that you pointed out in your first post. I also think that their love of the lounge music style is what helped influence their decision. I'm not sure anyone does it better or classier than the 1964 version by Frank Sinatra and Count Basie though:






And finally we come to my head scratcher, which is the *Land of a Thousand Dances*. Felix uses the song to introduce the band but the tune never really goes where it ought to. The na na na vocals was not in the original Chris Kenner which starts out like a gospel song. Cannibal and the Headhunters devised that. I like the Chris Kenner version a lot but the na na na does add something to the party nature of the song. It seems to me that this track should have been at least one minute longer.











And probably my favorite version is Wilson Pickett's! It just has that something that makes this song move along and gets you dancing...unh! I feel alright! Wooh!






To wrap it up though this is overall a solid effort by the Rascals and we can definitely hear the seeds of great things to come.

Enjoying this discussion Bob! Even if it is mostly two way. 

Kevin


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Wow! I have to bow to your superior knowledge of all these alternative versions, Kevin.

Overall, I find myself in almost total agreement with you on these cover songs (with the exception of *More*).

I find it hard to believe that, according to one source, Felix claimed that both *Mustang Sally *and *Land of 1000 Dances* were originally promised to them by Atlantic before Wilson Pickett. The Rascals' version of the latter seems limited to just a few repetitions of the playground-style "na..na na na na...."'s. It seems like an epilogue to the album rather than a real song. I'm not much of a fan of this song to begin with, but the Rascals' version has to be my least favorite.

As far as *More* goes, I guess we're just going to have to disagree. It's a track I feel like skipping every time, and when I do let it play, I can't wait for it to end (which it teases us that it's going to do several times before it actually does). It does evidence their eclecticism, though. I'll give you that.

Here's my overall track ranking for this album:

*Lonely Too Long* (by itself, worth the price of admission)
*
What is the Reason
Love Is A Beautiful Thing

No Love to Give
Too Many Fish in the Sea
Come on Up
Mickey's Monkey/Love Lights
Since I Fell For You
Nineteen Fifty-Six

Land of 1000 Dances
More*

(#4 - #7 on my list are the ones where my order of preference may be most subject to change depending on my mood at the time of listening)


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## Kevin Pearson (Aug 14, 2009)

My ranking would be the same with the exception of the last two.

*Lonely Too Long 
What is the Reason
Love Is A Beautiful Thing

No Love to Give
Too Many Fish in the Sea
Come on Up
Mickey's Monkey/Love Lights
Since I Fell For You
Nineteen Fifty-Six
More
Land of 1000 Dances*


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Can't believe we actually got so close to the same on this one.

I guess it's almost time we started on album #3:









I don't know how much time I'll have to post today, but I'd at least like to start with Track #1: *A Girl Like You*

This one holds a special place in my heart, because at the age of fourteen it became the song I identified with my girl. And, she's still my girl today. It's hard for me to be completely objective about something so personal.

It's *Lonely Too Long* taken to the next level. Always loved it. Always will.


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Sandwiched in between two top ten singles on side one are three other tracks - two by Cavaliere and Brigati and one by Cornish.

Cornish's *I'm So Happy Now* is a typical mid-sixties pop tune that sounds like it could have been sung by Petula Clark. At least it makes a break from the depressing lyrics of *No Love to Give *on the last album.

*Sueno* is a party-song with hand claps on the off-beats, but it's a cool, laid-back kind of party this time - sort of an anti-Mickey's Monkey.

The only one of these three to really make an impression on me was *Find Somebody* - the Rascal's first dive into psychedelia. It mainly shows in the echoing vocals and the raga guitar line. We're not yet in *It's Wonderful* territory, and the lyrics are more love song than enlightenment. But, it's an interesting track.

At the end of side one is *How Can I Be Sure?* - Eddie's first big hit (#4 Billboard), and the first Rascals' song to be covered by a bunch of night club singers in the late sixties and seventies. It's actually a pretty good song. The only weak spot in it for me is the straining-high-pitch "whoa-a-whoa-a-whoa-a"'s by the band in unison. Always sounds like they're going to snap a vocal chord or two. Fortunately, they all lived to sing another day.


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Okay, getting back to *Groovin'*:

Side Two starts with the album's eponymous single. I remember back in 1967 how it took me a long time to warm up to this one. It just didn't seem to be what I thought of at the time as a typical Rascals' number. Ironic that today, it is probably the song most identified with the group in whatever public consciousness of them there is.

Whatever else you can say about it, it is unique. It showcases the gentler side of the group - not so much happy as thankful. Felix is supposed to have written it about his then-girlfriend and their time together. With as much tenseness and anxiety as there was in 1967 socially and politically, it's a bit of a minor miracle that a song this laid back struck a chord with the country and had four weeks (non-consecutively) at number one.

Interesting trivia - Atlantic originally didn't want to release it as a single, mainly because there was no drum part.

The other single on this side is *You Better Run*, which, chronologically speaking, should have been on *Collections*, not this album. Pat Benatar released a version of this song as the first single off of her second album. It's a bit of a Felix-screamer, but it moves well with a walking beat.

The rest of side two includes the only cover song on the album, *A Place in the Sun*, which, along with *If You Knew*, has an uncharacteristically folk music feel to it. I would have expected the folk influence from Cornish, but his song *I Don't Love You Anymore* sounds more like soft soul to me.

And. the album closes with *It's Love*. This hearkens back to the first side's *Find Somebody*, with just the faintest of psychedelic traces. It's actually harmonically interesting, and one of the better songs on the album.

So, what to make of the album as a whole? It will probably always be the defining album for the group historically speaking, but in my opinion, there was a lot better stuff yet to come. But, with four great singles and two or three other nearly indispensable tracks, I can't knock it. Pretty solid effort.

Track ranking:

*A Girl Like You
Groovin'

How Can I Be Sure?
It's Love
You Better Run
Find Somebody
If You Knew
I Don't Love You Anymore

A Place in the Sun
Sueno
I'm So Happy Now*


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

No more "Young Rascals", just "Rascals".. Apparently, there was some legal problem or they would have shed the adjective before this.

But, to go along with the name change, their fourth album *Once Upon a Dream* was a new direction for the group. For, the first time, they were not producing a compilation of hit singles, original non-singles and covers, but an actual album.

The reviewer at AMG waxes lyrical over this effort, saying it deserves a place right alongside *Pet Sounds *and *Sgt Pepper*. No matter how a person may feel about that comparison, there can be no doubt that there had never been an album quite like it - with tracks running into each other in an equal mix of rock, soul, jazz and psychedelia. You really need to listen to this one either with a good set of headphones or a great sound system to get the full impact.

The album starts off with a snatch of the title track (to be heard in its entirety at the end of the album) and a mix of mind-bending extramusical sounds and then settles into the super-laid-back funk of *Easy Rollin'*. It's like *Groovin'* simultaneously on steroids and sedatives. As with many songs on this album, there is a lot going on in the background, hence the need of a good system to make the most of it.

One question (for when my friend Kevin returns). I could have sworn that *Easy Rollin'* was released as a single. I know that in the town where I grew up, it was on the radio a lot (sometime, I believe, after the release of the non-album track *A Beautiful Morning* in early 1968). Wikipedia claims that the only single off of this album was *It's Wonderful*. So what's the reality?

To be continued....


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Just like *Easy Rollin'* evokes *Groovin'* in a certain way, the next song on the album, *A Rainy Day*, sort of brings up the aura of *How Can I Be Sure?*, with it's romantic orchestration and generally positive lyric. The song begins with a spoken-word intro, then goes right into the chorus - a Motown-like soft soul piece. But, when the verses start, we're back in Eddie's old standards idiom. After the third repetition of the chorus, the orchestra picks up the pace for an fast interlude and then slows back down for the third verse. The song ends with a balancing spoken-word epilogue. In the background, the orchestra rapidly increases in intensity and ends on a note that perfectly introduces the next song - a whole different kettle of fish, and maybe my favorite of the whole album, *Please Love Me*.

The latter starts out as a driving bass-and-drum-led rock track, but breaks off a couple of times for Hubert Laws and Steve Marcus to give some killer flute and sax solos. This is the kind of track only Felix could sing. I don't think anyone could cover it successfully. And, as if it weren't great enough already, after a short connecting merry-go-round evocation, it goes right into *It's Wonderful* (about which more later).

(I'm dragging this out a bit, because I have a feeling Kevin's going to want to say something about this album when he gets a chance.)


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Continuing on with this disc.

*It's Wonderful* is a rather unique take on psychedelia. It features the Rascals' attitude-driven (as opposed to drug-driven) consciousness-raising. It's kind of cool and kind of sweetly naïve at the same time. But, all interpretation of message aside, it's just a good song. Well written and fun, if kind of weirdly "cosmic".

Through these first four songs, this album was shaping up to be one of their very best. But, in my opinion, things kind of fell apart after this opening. Many of the remaining songs can be looked at in two ways - either just amazingly eclectic, or disappointingly derivative.

Gene Cornish's *I'm Gonna Love You* sounds like a song that tries to give Paul McCartney's English music hall pieces an American twist, featuring a brass band accompaniment. There a couple of interesting moments - like the brief tempo change - but, overall it's not a really interesting song for me.

*My Hawaii* is a great song. It's just not a Rascal's song. It sounds like an attempt to do something in a Beach Boy's vein, but comes off more like something that should be on a Mel Torme album.

*My World* is pure pop soul, and not bad. *Silly Girl* is pure pop and is only saved by the lyric and by the fact that it moves directly into *Singin' the Blues Too Long*, where Felix's soulful voice gets a bluesy workout that's pretty impressive.

I love *Sattva*. It's no doubt inspired by the Beatles' Indian music (John and George), but of all the songs featuring sitar, this one is my favorite. It's not sitar in the mix like *Norwegian Wood*, but more something along the lines of *Within You Without You*, but a hundred times more accessible.

The album concludes with the title track (sung by Eddie's brother Dave?). It's a perfect ending track to the album, though not a stand-alone song by any means.

So, to sum up. I think it's an album that starts out fantastic, dips into mediocrity, then picks back up into something solid. Their best was still to come, IMHO.

Track rating:

*Please Love Me
Easy Rollin'
It's Wonderful
Sattva

A Rainy Day
Singin' the Blues Too Long
My World
Once Upon a Dream

My Hawaii
Silly Girl
I'm Gonna Love You*


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Now, here's where I really depart from conventional wisdom. It seems like both popular and critical opinion would have it that by this point in time, with the possible exception of the single "People Got To Be Free", the Rascals had already hit their peak.

I disagree. In my opinion, the next three albums were their very best. In fact, the more I listen to them even now, the better they seem. I've even revised my opinion in the last two months on which one of the three was their very best album.

But, before I get into these three albums, a brief digression is in order.

Taking advantage of the general mood of "Groovin'", their biggest hit up to this point, the Rascals issued another single. It appeared on their Greatest Hits album.









The title of this track was "A Beautiful Morning", and I think it holds the distinction of being the most referenced track of the group - being heard in various TV commercials and in movies as well.

On the surface, it's just a very genial MOR piece. But, it really is a great song on its own merits, in that unique Felix Cavaliere idiom. Given it's release date, it easily could have been released as part of *Once Upon A Dream*. But, it was probably a good ploy to put it right on the Greatest Hits album in case someone needed more incentlve to buy the latter.

As it turned out, the extra incentive may not have been needed, as the Greatest Hits album hit Number One on Billboard and stayed in the Top Ten for twenty weeks.


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

Just a word on the musical talents of the group before proceeding:

I may not be in the best position to judge these things, being as I am a rather indifferent classical guitarist, but I would say that The Rascals were a group with superior talents on many levels.

Dino Danelli, to begin with, was a great drummer. (At 71 and still kicking, I guess I should say "is") - a jazz drummer by training, who played with Lionel Hampton briefly in his pre-Rascals days.

Felix Cavaliere is a superior keyboard artist (classically trained). And, though the organ is not my own personal favorite instrument, he does some amazingly effective things with it, and also plays piano on a lot of their tracks.

I don't know how to assess Gene Cornish's talents as a guitarist. Maybe Kevin, if he ever returns to this thread, can do that.

Eddie Brigati only played tambourine (kind of the Davy Jones of the Rascals), but he wrote or co-wrote and sang a good number of their songs.

Assessing the singing is a little easier. Felix had one of the truly distinctive and golden voices of rock music. Compared to him, most other blue-eyed soul singers sound like wannabes.

Eddie could sing in the same style as Felix, and there are times when a particular range makes them sound almost alike. But, his voice was much thinner and more youthful sounding in most contexts.

Gene's voice, to me, sounded even thinner and more youthful than Eddie's.

Finally, song-writing was one of their greatest talents, with Felix and Eddie as John and Paul, and Gene doing the George-thing with somewhat lesser overall success.

They have actually reunited recently and have been on tour. I haven't heard any of their recent efforts, live or recorded, but I generally feel uncomfortable with older people singing. (On the other hand, I really enjoyed modern-day incarnations of Yes with younger guys doing the Jon Anderson bit and letting the rest of the band be what they are. Felix's voice, though, would be a lot harder to replace if it needed to be.)


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

*Social-Consciousness Masterpiece or Self-Indulgent Excess?*









Well, I would say "neither". On the one hand, only five of the 14 songs on this double-album are related to events of the time.
And, on the other hand, though at the time I was a bit disappointed that the three pieces that make up the second LP in the set are basically instrumentals (one a thirteen and a half minute drum solo), the later one-CD issue makes it all quite palatable for me.

But, what it is remains - one of the three best albums the group did, with some of the very best songs they ever wrote.

It was a time of political assassination and rioting, and the opening two songs get right into that - *America the Beautiful* is not so much ironic, as might at first have been suspected, but more a kind of heartfelt plea for change. *Me and My Friends* is a bit lighter weight, but also an earnest statement of commitment.

Oddly, the third song takes a whole different tack - *Any Dance'll Do* is one of those fun group free-for-alls that hearken back to older songs like *What is the Reason?*, and one that I really enjoy a lot more than the first two tracks on the album.

But, social comment returns with *Look Around*, which is a stunner. The sound effects may be a bit excessive for some people, but I think it's balanced perfectly. This is the album's first true highlight.

*A Ray of Hope*, however is the track that got single release, referencing as it did the Bobby Kennedy assassination. I don't personally think it's nearly as effective a piece as *Look Around*, but that's just my take.

Side Two of the first LP is remarkable. *Island of Love* puts the band into a welcome groove and is a relief from what was starting to get a little heavy-handed. *Of Course* should have been a monster hit - one of the real mysteries of The Rascals' catalog. What's not to like about this gutsy rocker?

Even Gene Cornish gets into the act with one of his best tracks - *Love Was So Easy To Give* - with its deceptively simple tune giving way to a dissonant string quartet.

Then came the highlight of the album (and, IMO, the whole Rascals' catalog), their last number one hit *People Got to Be Free*. For me, it was the song of the decade, and the fifth and final social commentary piece on the album.

*Baby I'm Blue* is just like what it sounds it is - blues. Felix goes crazy on this one.

Only the final track, *Heaven*, is a disappointment on this side. Why it was ever released as a single, I'll never know. I've always equated it with the group's sudden loss in popularity - though, their two best albums were still to come.

The instrumentals that comprise the second LP are more listenable for me today than they were at the time. It does give the band, particularly Dino the drummer, a chance to shine as instrumentalists. But, to be honest, I would still prefer to have had another eleven regular songs.

I disagree with some commentators who refer to this as a concept album and talk about its "psychedelic" pretensions. I don't find anything remotely psychedelic about this album. There are sound effects on *Look Around*, and there is a strange-sounding string quartet on Cornish's piece, but psychedelic? No way. And, as far as being a concept album - well less than half the tracks relate to any particular theme. That does not make for a concept album in my book.

Track Rankings:

*People Got To Be Free

Of Course
Island of Love
Look Around
Any Dance'll Do
Love Was So Easy to Give
Baby I'm Blue

Adrian's Birthday
Me And My Friends
American the Beautiful
A Ray of Hope
Cute
Boom!

Heaven*


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## Vesteralen (Jul 14, 2011)

*Discover Who You Really Am - SEE - The Rascals Best Album*









Conventional criticism says the Rascals failed when they made this album (and their next one - Search and Nearness) because they moved out of their pattern of radio-ready two-to-three minute songs and attempted to do some more extended tracks. For those who've never listened to this album, the impression is created that they were trying to do prog rock or something. There is not a single track on this album that even reached five minutes in length.

Yes, "See" and "Death's Reply" are a little more hard rock than they had attempted before, but it really wasn't anything too extreme.

Personally, I think that the reason the album didn't succeed was the same problem that started on the previous album - they picked the wrong songs for airplay. "Carry Me Back" is not a bad song, but it is mediocre compared to some of the best tracks here. "See" is also not bad, but it suffers from having a lick that isn't that catchy and is far too repetitive.

But, it's a shame people couldn't have had a chance to hear "Death's Reply", "Hold On" and, especially, what I think is the best song they ever did - "Nubia". Not for the first time, they seemed to be several years ahead of their time. The ending of "Nubia" sounds for all the world like something the Police would have done ten years later. But, the beginning of the song is really exceptional.

The only song on this album I don't really care for much is "Temptation's 'Bout to Get Me". It just sounds to Motown for me.

Here's my track ranking:

*Nubia

Death's Reply
Hold On
See
Stop and Think*

Remember Me (hilarious Gene Cornish piece - his best yet)
I'd Like to Take You Home
Carry Me Back
I'm Blue
Real Thing
Away Away

Temptation's 'Bout to Get Me*

*enunciation was not always Felix's strong point. When I first heard this song, I thought he was saying "Doctor Dan"


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## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

I remove my hat and I bow in the presence of such excellent commentary on one of my favorite groups. Congratulations to all.


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