what Frank is listening to #221 – PAUL REVERE & THE RAIDERS – Just Like Us! – (Columbia) -1966
I'm going to rehash a large chunk of an earlier "comment":
Back in "what Frank is listening to #119" I said this in relation to The Raiders album "Spirit of '67":
It's only in the last few years I have been really getting into Paul Revere and the Raiders. Back in the 80s I got their two greatest hits compilations ( yes, two – they had a truck load of hits) after foolishly selling some of their earlier albums off at a record fair. Cest la vie .
What I like most about PRR is the fact that though they have been influenced and inspired – sometimes clearly with an eye on sales – by other bands they managed to incorporate other styles and trends into their own sound without affecting that sound greatly. Though not always great their work sounds individual and when they get it right they are magnificent.
From allmusic:
"One of the most popular and entertaining groups of the 1960s, Paul Revere & the Raiders enjoyed seven years of serious chart action, and during their three biggest years (1966-1969), sold records in numbers second only to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. And their hits "Steppin' Out," "Just Like Me," "Hungry," "Him or Me-What's It Gonna Be," and "Kicks," in particular, are now seen by compilers as bold, unpretentious pieces of '60s rock & roll with a defiant, punk edge. Paul Revere was born on January 7, 1938 in Harvard, NE. He learned to play the piano as a boy, and developed a keen appreciation for the work of Spike Jones & His City Slickers. He joined his first real band while in his teens, and was later joined by 16-year-old Mark Lindsay (b. March 9, 1942), a singer/saxman who ended up replacing the group's vocalist. Called the Downbeats, they were popular at local dances, and cut a demo for Gardena Records in Los Angeles, where the company's owner was interested in issuing a record, but only if they changed their name. Revere's given name was such a natural as a gimmick that they became Paul Revere & the Raiders".
I went on to say:
The key to their success was their commitment to upbeat rock and roll whilst acknowledging change, and they weren't precious about it as sometimes they were "influenced" by bands that post dated them. Though, as I have said, they kept their original sound, unlike a slavish imitator or someone just jumping the bandwagon. Also they did this even through line-up changes. Despite line-up changes Paul Revere ( the keyboardist) and Mark Lindsay ( the vocalist) were the nucleus of the group and Revere knew where to take the group and Lindsay could sing anything.
This album comes from their big hit making period and is very 1966 – lots of twangy guitars punctuated with a bit of 60s punk, more than a nod or two to the Beatles, and some introspection creeping in. This album is their garage version of "Revolver" though with some thought to future musical innovations. "The Beach Boys" and "The Beatles" may have been the high water mark on innovation but PPR were only just behind and they were more forward thinking than say The Rolling Stones ( if not as consistent). Produced by the legendary Terry Melcher ( Doris Day's son, band member in the Rip Chords, and friend and /or producer to The Byrds, The Beach Boys etc), who knows ( and got) what he wants which is rock, hard edged ballads, and frantic garagy punk but with a clean sound. Melcher also produced a number of other PPR albums.
All this remains the case for this album which immediately preceded "Spirit of 67".
This album has most of the band contributing songs as well a s a couple of classic songs not written by them but first recorded by them, like "Kicks" and "Stepping Stone". On top of that they can all play; Revere's organ, Smitty's drums, Lindsay's vocals, Volk's bass and Levin's guitar are faultless ….
allmusic: As a member of Paul Revere & the Raiders from 1965 through 1967 — the group's prime hitmaking years and their time of biggest exposure on television — Phil "Fang" Volk was probably the second-best-known bassist in rock, at least in America, after the Beatles' Paul McCartney…..
With the rise of the band's fortunes over the next five years, Levin became one of the most well-known guitarists in rock & roll — the group's appearances on Where the Action Is, an after-school music program hosted and produced by Dick Clark, and various other television venues ensured that the members were all well-known to their fans, so that Levin may well have been the second best-known rock guitarist in America after the Beatles' George Harrison, and there's also no telling how many Epiphone guitars may have been sold because of his use of them on camera during this period.
The sound is crisp and clear as you would expect from producer Terry Melcher who had a gift for bringing out the melody and "pop" in a song but retaining the grit.
This album (their 4th) is really the Raiders transition album between theyr earlier albums and their run of 3 or 4 great albums. And by "transition" I do not mean it's patchy. It's not. It is solidly great music which captures the sound of their best early work and looks forward to their best work to come.
Some of those early sounds show their roots in frantic frat rock that sounds dated by 1966 standards (or, may sound dated?) but the reality is that this was probably recorded in1965 sometime as it's release date is January 1966 so it's not dated by 1965 standards, if you know what I mean. Anyway, the album does not miss a beat.
At #5 in the charts this was their highest album placing and it was also the album that made them into pop stars with the young-uns.
Interestingly it is also probably the last album where the individual band members share the limelight. After this, lead vocalist Mark Lindsay would spend most of the time out in front, partially due, I suspect, to his boyish good looks but also to cement his look and the band in the mind of the record buying teens.
I suspect their popularity and costumes may put them on the outer with garage aficionados but their music is more solid than just about anyone else in the genre.
OK, in this album there is a nod to some contemporary bands and sounds (Beatles, Byrds, soul) but the Raiders are far from a covers band even when they are doing covers. Every song has been submerged into the Raiders individual sound, British Invasion or not. It's as if Paul Revere and the Raiders, just like the original Paul Revere, rode through the night warning of the British Invasion. The difference here is Paul Revere and the Raiders turn around and ambush the British Invaders with some hard edged music before heading off on their merry way.
The "Where the Action is" on the front sleeve refers to the US TV pop show which really contributed to their stardom, and in the mid 60s they were probably Americas most consistent hit makers. It's a pity the Rolling Stone magazine intelligentsia generation in typical myopic Anglophilia dismissed Paul Revere while revering (sic) The Rolling Stones and The Who because at their best the Raiders sound like a garage band doing Beach Boys harmonies and every bit as good as those English invaders.
Tracks (best in italics)
- Steppin' Out -Lindsay, Revere – magnificent. How can an album that starts with this pulsating piece of nastiness be bad. Great vox ….
- Doggone – Robinson, Moore, Tarplin – a garage tune with soul overtones or in other words "blue eyed soul" a la Mitch Ryder, and it smokes.
- Out of Sight – Wright – the James Brown tune from 1964. Does he start it off with a German count in? Another smoker.
- Baby Please Don't Go – Williams – the old blues song made famous, again, by Them with Van Morrison. This version is every bit as good with a vocal by bass player Phil Volk
- I Know – George – a soul song by Barbara George from 1962.
- Night Train – Forrest, Simpkins, Washington – Lindsay on sax ….the old Jimmy Forrest standard that James Brown did in the early 60s ….a nice way to finish side 1 with a reference to the bands roots.
- Just Like Me– -Dey, Hart – a 60s garage classic. Originally an obscure song by Washington band the Wilde Knights. Apparently, here, this is one of the first rock records to feature a distinctive, double-tracked guitar solo by guitarist Drake Levin. Sung by Lindsay. This has to be one of the greatest songs of the 60s.
- Catch the Wind– Donovan – the Donovan classic but as if it was done by the Byrds with guitarist Drake Levin providing vocals.
- (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction – Jagger, Richards – a good version and edgy but strangely subdued compared to the Stones classic.
- I'm Crying – Burdon, Price – The Animals hit from 1964. Volk on lead again …and he nails it.
- New Orleans – Guida, Royster – the Gary US Bonds hit from 1960
- Action- Boyce, Venet – the theme song to the TV show "Where the Action is" …written by Tommy Boyce and Steve Venet … pure pop ..as you would expect from Boyce.
And…
Sure there are a lot of covers, all done well, but the two stand out tracks are worth their weight in gold ….. I'm keeping this.
Chart Action
US
Singles
1965 Steppin' Out The Billboard Hot 100 #46
1966 Just Like Me The Billboard Hot 100 #11
Singles
1965 Steppin' Out The Billboard Hot 100 #46
1966 Just Like Me The Billboard Hot 100 #11
Album
#5
England
Singles
Singles
Album
Sounds
I apologise in advance for any sounds attached ….my record has quite a few surface scratches.
Steppin' Out
great clip
Out of Sight
attached
Baby Please Don't Go
Night Train
Just Like Me
and attached
Catch the Wind
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
I'm Crying
New Orleans
Others
Review
Bio
Website
Trivia
- The Raiders were also the most televised band in rock history appearing 520 times on Dick Clark's production "Where The Action Is"…and a long list of guest spots from Shindig to the Tonight Show. The group later hosted "The Happening" which was a let down compared to "Where The Action Is". http://www.stumptownblogger.com/2009/10/index.html
Other Comments
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(Originally posted: 07/08/2011)
