Coming in December, this is a double CD of a band I know quite well, having purchased a vinyl copy of their remake of The Action’s “Rolled Gold” AKA “Strange Roads” album, so impressed was I when reviewing the promo sent to me Keith Jones of FdM. This is included on CD two, with CD one containing ten originals alongside choice covers of songs by the Bee Gees, the Small Faces, The Pretty Things, the Stones and David Bowie, which complete a fascinating story, compiling Sidewalk Society’s EPs for Fruits de Mer, as well as other CDs and tracks taken from a 2012 album “Venus, Saturn and the Crescent Moon”, and more (34 tracks in all over the two CDs)
Sidewalk Society pulled off something quite remarkable in 2017 when the group from Long Beach, California managed to authentically replicate and reimagine an album that never was by a band of whom Paul Weller said, “The Action were one of the few bands to not only capture the Tamla/soul sounds, but actually shape it in their own style and sound.” “Rolled Gold” eventually came out in 1998 after acetates of master tapes, recorded between 1967 and 1968, of an album planned for release on the Polydor label, shelved at the time, emerged. This was despite The Action being signed by George Martin’s AIR Production Company at the beginning of their career and releasing some wonderful singles and an album “Shadows and Reflections” on the Parlophone label in 1967; they were to undergo a metamorphosis into Mighty Baby, adopting a more progressive, psychedelic and improvisational approach.
Actually, you get a sense of the beginning of this transformation on “Strange Roads”. Shut your eyes and you’ll think the first three songs, apart from being highly infectious in the nicest possible way, might have been The Beatles from their “Revolver” period in these stylish recreations. The album never lets up; the title track is stunning and the thundering drums and vocal harmonies of ‘Icarus’ mirror The Who. The notable lyrics and arrangement with reflections on life in ‘Things You Cannot See’ show a direction of travel from their early Motown covers towards the “Sergeant Pepper” era. “Strange Roads” is in fact right up there with the best of late 60s psych pop, especially given the ‘turbo boost’ by the multi-talented Sidewalk Society.
As for the rest, Fruits de Mer have unearthed a real treasure here in adding to the story of The Action, who were in the process of adapting to a more progressive psychedelic pop approach which was never fully realised at the time, but who nevertheless have attracted a growing number of admirers over the years. Also, this collection brings to music listeners’ attention a Californian trio with an empathy towards The Action’s music and a love for late 60s British pop and rock, manifesting itself in a marvellous recreation of an album that never was, and interpretations of some late 60s groups’ songs and originals of their own inspired by an era that revolutionised popular music.
Comments