Customer Reviews

Buttercups & Rainbows: The Songs Of Macauley & Macleod

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The late-60s/early-70s writing and producing team of Tony Macaulay and John Macleod had a long string of UK hit-singles, several of which also made their mark on the U.S. charts. This jam-packed budget-priced two-disc set provides extensive coverage of their work. Many of the best (and best-known) songs have been frequently anthologized, e.g., The Foundations' "Build Me Up Buttercup" and "Baby, Now That I've Found You," The Flying Machine's "Smile a Little Smile For Me," and Jefferson's "Baby Take Me in Your Arms." What's novel about this collection is the depth to which it plums the team's catalog, and the exposure it gives U.S. listeners to the many chart hits that never made it outside the U.K., as well as lesser-charting followup singles and commercial flops.

The fifty tracks show how influences from Motown soul and the girlgroup pop sounds of the Brill Building were filtered through the sunshine-pop sensibility of Swinging London. Though many tracks fail to reach the transcendent state of Hit Single, they're still surprisingly consistent in quality. The also-rans are fine, often excellent pop tunes, but fall short of the remarkable lyrical or melodic hook that would carve an eternal place in one's memory.

In addition to the well-known U.S. hits, highlights include Marmalade's dramatic horn-and-string backed "Baby Make It Soon," Pickettywitch's bubblegum "That Same Old Feeling" (as well as "(It's Like A) Sad Old Kinda Movie," both with lead-vocalist Polly Brown sounding a bit like Dionne Warwick), the harmony of The New Formula's "My Baby's Coming Home," the blue-eyed soul of The Committee's "Memories of Melinda," and the Flying Machine's little-known "Send My Baby Home Again." The slew of tracks by the Foundations mostly ape the sound of their biggest hits, though "Mr. Personality Man," by title alone, is extra catchy.

Oddities include a pre-fame single from David Essex (the not particularly memorable "Just For Tonight"), soon-to-be Move bassist and vocalist Carl Wayne's "You're a Star" and "Bluebird," and blues-belter Long John Baldry's not-so-bluesy "Mexico (Underneath the Sun In)." The latter was picked up for the BBC's 1968 Olympics coverage, and along with the other of his string-laden ballads his presented here, could easily make you forget his blues background.

Several tracks discussed in the liner notes are MIA, including The Paper Dolls' version of "Take Me in Your Arms," and Tony Macaulay's post-Pye work (including Edison Lighthouse's "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)," which, stylistically, is very much a part of this work). The version of "Love Grows" presented here (waxed by Jefferson) is interesting, but no substitute for the hit single.

The inclusion of mono tracks where true stereo versions are readily available (e.g., Flying Machine's "Smile a Little Smile For Me" appears in true stereo on Varese Sarabande's "Bubblegum Classics, Volume Two," and "Send My Baby Home Again" is in stereo on Sequel's "Flight Recorder") is disappointing. Finally, though the liner notes provide excellent background on the writing/producing pair, as well as the acts themselves, they're missing release information (dates, matrix numbers) and chart info.

Overall, this is a fairly exhausting compilation. Unlike, say, Phil Spector or Brian Wilson, gathering together these producers' work from a short period of time shows just how similar many of their productions were. In isolation - listened to as singles - the horn arrangements and cheery melodies work their magic. Aggregated across so many tracks, the songs start to blend together. Perfectly splendid productions like Geno Washington's "Alison Please" would have a lot more impact without all the soundalikes that lead to it on side two. Perhaps cherry-picking this collection for your own mix-discs is its ultimate fate.

Tony Macauley and John MacLeod were very successful in the late sixties, writing and producing classic UK hits such as Build me up buttercup (Foundations), That same old feeling (Pickettywitch), Something here in my heart (Paper dolls), Baby make it soon (Marmalade), Baby now that I've found you (Foundations), Mexico (Long John Baldry), Sad old kinda movie (Pickettywitch) and Let the heartaches begin (Long John Baldry), all of which can be found here.

Some of those hits also charted in America but most didn't - however, Smile a little smile for me (The flying machine) was an American top five hit despite missing the UK charts completely. Another UK failure, Baby take me in your arms, sung by Jefferson (the former lead singer of the Rocking Berries) made the American top thirty. Jefferson later recorded Love grows where my Rosemary goes, but it remained in the vaults until appearing on this compilation. Edison Lighthouse had a major international hit with it on a different label.

Tony Macauley quit Pye in 1970 but proved he could still write big hits occasionally. John MacLeod remained with Pye but had much less success than Tony.

This is a wonderful compilation of late sixties pop music although it really sounds more like the mid-sixties without psychedelic or other progressive music here - just simple, upbeat, pop music.

The only reason I bought the CD was a single song I couldn't find anywhere else. The rest of the songs, other than Jefferson's, are absolutely horrendous.