I think we’re more than all in agreement here that something very, very special took place during the middle 1960’s; a magical, monumental something in the air(waves) which gave rise to an undeniable socio-artistic upheaval courtesy of bards like Dylan, bands like the Beatles, filmmakers like Kubrick and, if I may push the issue quite thinly, television the likes of Get Smart and Green Acres to boot.
In our previous installment, Yorkville Village heroes The Paupers had effectively ambushed New York City and taken the American music business by storm following their gigs at the Café Au-Go-Go. It landed them both a U.S. record deal with MGM/Verve-Folkways and a deal with Uber-manager Albert Grossman (Bob Dylan, The Band, Odetta, Peter Paul & Mary, Paul Butterfield, Janis Joplin). The wheels were in motion for The Paupers to conquer America. The band did a promotional tour across the U.S. to radio stations in preparation for the release of their debut album ‘Magic People’ and live dates to follow. Skip Prokop continues the story…
Well before all the 49th (or is it 51st?) Anniversary doom ‘n’ gloom of bloated coffee table retrospectives and HBO documentaries – not to mention thousand-dollar-plus “reunion” ticket prices – there was quite simply, quite pimply, just a promising little mock-blues band from the wrong side of London, stealing empties to pay for the gas heater and cherishing all the Bo Diddley B-sides they could find, steal, and/or cover whenever Alexis Korner allowed them to sit in for a song or two.
Bullseye Records of Canada
Segarini: Don't Believe a Word I Say 