Inevitably when people talk about The Cowsills they ended up mentioning The Partridge family.
This isn’t wholly fair but it is totally understandable.
The Cowsills, a singing family who played their own instruments and wrote a lot of their own songs, were infinitely more talented, with more vision than the Partridge Family. But the Partridge Family had the hits, the hit TV show … and David Cassidy.
Check out my other comment for some biographical info but, I said this there:
The Cowsills (there were seven of them – five brothers, one sister and a mother), not surprisingly maybe, given the music, are from Rhode Island, one of the richest states in the USA. They played bubblegum pop (with a bit of sunshine pop and straight pop in the mix) much like The Archies except that they were a real life family as opposed to a studio recording band. The concept of a family band was not (and still isn't) that uncommon in the US: The Osmonds, The Jackson 5, The Isley Brothers, The Everly Brothers, The Carter Family, Hanson, The Jonas Brothers, Kings of Leon.
The Cowsills have always been a proper group despite being related. By that I mean they play their own instruments, write their own songs (vocals were shared between the family members), and usually arrange their own material.
wilipedia has a little more detail, “The Cowsills are an American singing group from Newport, Rhode Island. They specialized in harmonies and the ability to sing and play music professionally at an early age. The band was formed in the spring of 1965 by brothers Bill, Bob, and Barry Cowsill; they shortly thereafter added their brother John. Originally Bill and Bob played guitar and Barry was on drums. When John learned how to play drums and joined the band, Barry went to bass. After their initial success, the brothers were joined by their siblings Susan and Paul and their mother Barbara. Bob's twin brother Richard, being severely hearing-impaired, was never part of the band, and also never functioned as the band's road manager, although this misinformation has been disseminated for years. The band's actual road manager for most of their career was Richard 'Biggie' Korn. When the group expanded to its full family membership by 1967, the six siblings ranged in age from 8 to 19. Joined by their mother, Barbara Cowsill (née Russell), the group was the inspiration for the 1970s television show The Partridge Family”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cowsills
Their hit making career (as the Cowsills) was short and frantic. They released seven albums and eighteen singles between 1967 and 1971, played 200 shows a year on average (apparently), appeared on the big TV variety shows of the time, hosted their own TV special, and toured the world. They broke up in 1972 but reformed 1978–80, and 1990–present (though with fewer siblings)
This was their second last album and their hits were about to dry up. They didn’t know that at the time though. Earlier in the year (1969 – this album was released vvery late 1969 or very early 1970) they had a #2 US (#1Australia) hit with their cover of “Hair” from “The Cowsills in Concert” so there is no reason for them to assume it would end.
They could have (and maybe they should have from a chart perspective) followed it up with more of the same but all their albums after their first (and even that shows ambitions) are quite adventurous and really pushing the boundaries of AM pop.
It was the time for it.
In the 60s pop music was being pushed forward in all sorts of ways by The Beach Boys, The Beatles, Harry Nilsson, Randy Newman, Jimmy Webb, Van Dyke Parks etc.
Experimentation as an adventure within the boundaries of pop rock was required, or demanded.
And, the Cowsills, being young (even their Mum wasn’t that old) were open to experimentation.
They seem to deliberately avoid the obvious as there is nothing straightforward about the pop sensibilities of this album. I don’t mean to compare the Cowsills to the Beatles (no one is allowed to compare anyone to the Beatles, apparently) but the Beatles were quite straightforward in their pop sensibilities, and it was George Martin’s frills that make all the difference to “Sgt Pepper’s” and “Magical Mystery Tour”. Undeniably they wrote good tunes but they dressed up by a good tailor. (In any event, and as an aside, after that they discovered The Band, Dylan’s “John Wesley Harding” and American roots music they went in the opposite direction to pop experimentation).
The Cowsills experimentation seemed to come from the California scene at the time as well as, especially, the intricate ambitious vocal arrangements and harmonies of the Beach Boys.
Like, many acts, usually American, who concentrate on arrangements (voice and instruments), harmonies and music rather than lyrics they are not adverse to doing covers. Of course when your concentration is on the musicality of a song rather than a lyric the song becomes, or can become, something altogether different to the original.
It is harder than it sounds, to make a song different, to suit your musical temperament without losing the melody and meaning of the song, the thing that attracted you to it in the first place.
And at the same time you have to have an ear on the charts … you won’t get the chance to experiment again (well not for a major label) if you aren’t selling records.
Here, the Cowsills followed their smash hit version of "Hair" in early 1969, with the awkwardly titled "The Prophecy of Daniel and John the Divine" and its biblical references. The whole album pursued a loose biblical theme, updating the concept of Noah's Ark (2 x 2 get it … 2 of every animal) to escaping the earth by space travel.
There are elements of their earlier sunshine pop but the album is more acoustic, more folk rock and definitely more autobiographical, and personal.
The harmonies are divine, like a cross between the Beach Boys and The Byrds.
This is mature and ambitious and has a lot going for it but, you have to give the people what they want.
They didn’t.
The album sank.
There was more album before the band called it quits, only to reform many years later
Tracks (best in italics)
Side One
- II x II – (Bill Cowsill) – a nice synthesis of The Beach Boys and The Beatles.
- I Really Want to Know You – (Barry Mann / Cynthia Weil) – Done first here ( I assume) but subsequently covered on the from the 1970 LP "The Partridge Family Album" though the song was performed by The Love Generation who provided main vocals (instead of David Cassidy and Shirley Jones) on two tracks on that album.. You have to love Mann and Weil. This is a good tune which has links (not surprising given the writers) to the teen love songs of the early 60s.
- Start to Love – (Bill Cowsill / Bob Cowsill) – introspective late 60s love song.
- Signs – (Bill Cowsill / Bob Cowsill / Paul Cowsill) – a example of the Cowsills rocking out, gently. A little Byrds-ish. Very good but not distinctive
- Goodtime Charlie – (Harvey Price / Dan Walsh) – I don’t know much about this songs origins but it is a nice rumination of a song with the usual questioning attitude of the time.
- Anything Changes – (Bob Cowsill / Paul Cowsill) – bouncing sunshine pop with hand claps and fuzz guitar. Wonderful
Side Two
- Silver Threads and Golden Needles – (Dick Reynolds / Jack Rhodes) – the song dates back to Wanda Jackson in 1956 buy UK folk pop band, The Springfields, had a 1962 hit with it #20 US (failed to chart in the UK) . Here it is done with a sunshine power pop arrangement (wuth a musical aside half way through) and it works and is fun. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_Threads_and_Golden_Needles
- Night Shift – (Bob Cowsill) – another gentle introspective song.
- The Prophecy of Daniel and John the Divine – (Remo Capra) – First recorded by The Cowsills. The author Remo Capra was discovered by Tommy Dorsey who hired Capra to play with his band on weekends. He released a album of trad pop standards in 1960. How he gets to here from there I do not know. I have no idea what this is about (and the chanted "666" is not meant to have sinister overtones) but, this is a great song.
- Don't Look Back – (Barry Cowsill) – with a strong Crosby Stills Nash & Young influence this is superior country folk rock.
-
Father – (Bob Cowsill / Paul Cowsill) – another gentle folk rock number with some
And …
Not quite a lot masterpiece but certainly a great album that needs recognition … I'm keeping it.
Chart Action
US
Singles
1969 The Prophecy Of Daniel and John The Divine #75
1969 Silver Threads and Golden Needles #74
Album
—
England
nothing
Australia
1969 The Prophecy Of Daniel and John The Divine #82
1969 Silver Threads and Golden Needles #36
Sounds
II X II
Clip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XV4KqCd6zc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeIiq2kD-M8
I Really Want To Know You
Live recently
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ic6uELZD5zg
Start to Love
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbVEz6z9bBA
Goodtime Charlie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkdw-0nriPQ
Anything Changes
live
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUpTyr1i9BQ
mp3 attached
Silver Threads and Golden Needles
Live
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSYSECCUSeY
The Prophecy of Daniel and John The Divine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU4MIQAhVS0
Don't Look Back
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSECrm4R5F8
Others
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt_yKPNORLM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e72MvES7eP0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcfW_ufyReM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PegF-6Vc1E
playboy after dark
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjlML0HvpPU
Review
https://isthmus.com/music/vinyl-cave/vinyl-cave-iixii-the-cowsills/
http://therisingstorm.net/the-cowsills-ii-x-ii/
https://groovesman.wordpress.com/tag/the-cowsills/
https://www.allmusic.com/album/ii-x-ii-mw0000837902
Bio
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cowsills
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-cowsills-mn0000784760/biography
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8QbCOJv4pg
Website
http://bapresley.com/silverthreads/
Trivia
- The album is produced by Bob Cowsill with the exception of "Silver Threads and Golden Needles" which is produced by Bob Wachtel (Waddy Wachtel). The album was designed by Jimmy Wachtel and Craig Benson. Jimmy also did all the collage and photography. He is the older brother of Waddy and has worked on a lot of album designs.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waddy_Wachtel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Wachtel
- The Cowsills: Bob Cowsill (1949) / Susan Cowsill (1959) – singer / Paul Cowsill (1951) / Past members: John Cowsill (1956) – singer and drummer / Bill Cowsill (1948-2006) – singer and guitarist / Barry Cowsill (1954 – 2005) singer and bass guitar / Barbara Cowsill (1928-1985) / Richard Cowsill (1949) a recent Cowsill (not a member during the hitmaking period).
- Circa 1971 “The Beach Boys had also considered Bill Cowsill as a replacement for Brian Wilson, who was no longer performing live with the Beach Boys. But nothing came of the idea, even after Bill visited Brian to discuss the matter”. https://archive.is/20121220214106/http://www.srv.net/~roxtar/cowsills.html#selection-53.238-57.207
- John is a member of the Touring Beach Boys Band (with Mike Love) playing drums and singing lead on some of the Beach Boys tunes.
- The Cowsills “starred in their own television special, called A Family Thing, in November 1968 on NBC, which guest-starred Buddy Ebsen. By 1969 Screen Gems approached the family to portray themselves in their own TV sitcom, but when they were told that their mother was to be replaced by actress Shirley Jones the deal fell through. Screen Gems later hired Jones' stepson David Cassidy to join the TV show cast, which went on to be called The Partridge Family, and to have a four-year run on ABC Television”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cowsills
