Very interesting two sider here. The a) side is a pleasant piece of sunshine pop with piano and horns. Bond has a soothing voice. Very professional sounding. It's the b) side that I think would have collectors going wild if they only knew about it. Definitely downer folk with flute, tympani, and chimes. Haunting.
Monday, July 21, 2025
Jeff Bond - Man and His Mountain / Alone. 1971 USA ~ Denver, Colorado
Very interesting two sider here. The a) side is a pleasant piece of sunshine pop with piano and horns. Bond has a soothing voice. Very professional sounding. It's the b) side that I think would have collectors going wild if they only knew about it. Definitely downer folk with flute, tympani, and chimes. Haunting.
Friday, April 4, 2025
The Fabulous Raindrops - People Need A Beat / El Putty. USA ~ Denver, Colorado
Now this is something special. I bought a milk crate full of 45s for $5 last weekend from an old Hispanic lady. I took them home and sorted through them. Most in bad condition and about 98% of them were donated to a thrift shop and a few found their way to my $2 show bin. There were two gems in there: The Mod Squad and... by far and away the big one: The Fabulous Raindrops. This was the heavy hitter. And hyper rare. That's how 45 buys go. 200 nickel records and one $500+ treasure.
The labels aren't very telling. One side says "Soul" the other "Ranchera". Do you know what Ranchera is? Think Mexican country music. The label, from the Denver industrial suburb of Commerce City, specialized in Latin music. Hence the style typed on each side. That's just what Latin labels do. If one was to just hear the Ranchera side first, you'd already be in for a surprise. It's instrumental and barely Mexican in construct.
It's the A) side that is a... banger. And a half (I'm such a hipster now). It's as if someone made it recently as the perfect example of late 60s (or early 70s - who knows?) heavy psychedelic funk. So much phased acid guitar and heavy beats. Separated perfectly for those who love to sample. And what a groove the organ sets. It's not Soul as you would typically associate the term with. And I don't think the label had any idea what they were putting out. With names like Spike and Ricky Martinez, it's interesting that the music sounds more like a private Detroit or Philly ghetto release.
Seeing some dates of 1966 thrown around. No chance. Way too psychedelic for that. I'd go '67 but probably later than that.
Brilliant I tell ya. It's on YouTube so check it out. You can also hear this track on Gear Fab's Psychedelic States: Colorado in the 60s.
Own.
4/4/25 (new entry)
Sunday, May 16, 2021
Robin Banks Band - Positive Side / Flyin' and Cookin'. 1978 USA-Denver
Certainly one of the top 5 of the SP's I picked up last year, Boulder's Robin Banks Band remains a complete mystery. As you can see, it was produced by Ed Cassidy, I presume of Spirit fame (confirmed it is him). The production is first class as well. The a) side is a bit quirky and funky, and oddly reminds me of Illinois' Peter Berkow. But it's the b) that just slays. Featuring a wonderful bass line, strumming acoustic guitar, and soaring flute, it's a progressive rock wonder. And when the searing electric guitar hits, you'll be wanting this to be part of The Unknown Progressive Rock 45s Vol. 1 compilation. How this remains unknown is beyond my comprehension.
Ownership: SP: 1978 private. Online acquisition (2020). Picture sleeve with no info other than the date. Has a regular spindle hole but it's still a 45.