Customer Reviews

Love & Sunshine: Best of

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While San Francisco may have been the birthplace of mid- to late-60s psychedelia in its purest and most serious form, the pop-psychedelic groups which emerged from Los Angeles largely had a more commercial bent, with their connections to the movie and television industry and scores of first-rate session artists. Of these, groups such as Yellow Balloon, The Sunshine Company may come to mind first. But the premier example of Southern California "sunshine pop" has to be the The Love Generation. Led by John and Tom Bahler, two of the most sought-after studio singers of the day, The Love Generation produced three albums of pure pop-psychedelic bliss, with all the characteristic touches of the day such as harpsichords, interwoven harmonies, and cryptic lyrics. While some songs clearly were written to capitalize on the psychedelia craze ("Meet Me At the Love-In"), the Bahlers and their co-singers show substantial talent at both singing and arranging. This is unabashedly "up with people" music, and reminds us of a time when being happy and "high on life" was "in." Not to be missed!

As I listened to this, I recalled a lot of it form my early childhood (late 60s- early 70s). I remember "Catchin Up on Fun" from the Archie cartoons from the late 60s and I recall reading that the Love Generation was the group that did much of the actual vocals for the Partridge Family. It shows. Like a lot of the bubblegum pop of the time, this is the kind of unhip stuff that most people today would be too embarrased to admit to liking and would certainly not play in public or around a group of friends for fear of being considered a geek. But hey, if you're all alone on a sunny day with your CD player, there's nothing wrong with a little "Groovy Sunshine" for some fond memories. Bring on the Cowsills, Freddie and the Dreamers, and the Brady Bunch Band while you're at it.

Those who enjoy the Free Design, Association, Harpers Bizarre, and other close harmony groups of the pop-psychedelic variety will find this a highly pleasing collection. Gathering 25 tracks from the group's three 1967-68 albums, and accompanied by a booklet with excellent notes and photos, this CD is a gem.

Excellent execution by top session vocalists. Mostly male lead from the Bahler bros. (who lend background voices to Partridge Family, Monkees and many others) Lyrically challenged and excessive use of the words groovy, sunshine and flowers. Some good material, especially in first 10 tracks...maybe after that the sound starts to wane. Big dissappointment on track 20 (A Touch of Love), which was/is a great tune featuring only the brothers...unfortunately they used the version from the Montage album which has added John F. Kennedy (sounds like George Bush senior!) talking at the beginning and end of the song. If you can get past that, it sounds like a great Byrds acoustic demo (except for the lyrics). The version on the first album does not have the talking.

Imperial records put out three LPs in the late 60s from this Los Angeles conglomeration. Brothers John & Tom Bahler were the mainstays of the band that also added Ann White from the New Christy Minstrels. The Bahlers' major credits include singing behind other acts from Cher to Michael Jackson to Frank Sinatra. They had several songs with vocals on the first Partridge Family album. One standout is a Jimmy Webb song titled "Montage from How Sweet It Is (I Knew That You Knew)." It features soft wispy vocals and a light samba-like arrangement, "And then your face was full of me, and then your eyes were too." Carol Bayer Sager & Neil Sedaka also have a track they penned included, "Let the Good Times In." It's a sunny pop confection, "The leaves of life are falling down around you, girl." The band's biggest single, "Groovy Summertime," went to #74 on the Billboard singles chart in July 1967. It bubbles joyfully. "The Love In Me" is well produced sunny pop that brings a smile, particularly to those of us who lived through the era, "We'll find the universal love* inside our love." The single "Magic Land" has a sunny Willy Wonka kind of attraction, "Chocolate highways, ice cream trees, candy kites & gingerbread bees." This collection highlights one of the less successful bands, but is quite representative of an era that rewarded sunny pop hits by the Cowsills & the Fifth Dimension. Enjoy!

*According to my ear

Vaguely even remember this act's name let alone their music. By name anyway, as I tend to recall a few of these sunshine pop songs. As I check out tunes like "The Love In Me", "Not Be Found", "When The Sun Goes Down" and "Leaves You Grey", I look into seeking more info about this bunch and think....WAIT a second, there! Several of this band's members were apparently the voices dubbed in for the Partridge Family's music during their four year TV series. I mean, this sort of sound was GREAT for it's time. Should appeal to fans of the Mamas&The Papas, Association, Freddie And The Dreamers, the Monkees, and the Cowsills. Recommended, if you dig this sort vintage memory.