TEDDY AND THE PANDAS, "WE CAN'T GO ON THIS WAY" C/W "SMOKEY FIRE," MUSICOR 1190 (REL. 7/1966)

From Boston, Teddy and The Pandas delivered a sound similar to The Everly Brothers' contemporary non-hit material, filtered through the garage-band lens to fine effect.  The band began in 1963 as The Sensations but got its most bear-able name when guitarist William "Teddy" Dewart joined. Though not on the front line of the group, Dewart's excellent original songs were a big asset, and had the band not encountered a control-freak producer, they might have gone far.

Before they made records, theirs was the usual fare for a live band: college functions, teen dances and fraternity keggers. They performed the usual bar-band staples, Top 40 hits and Dewart's folk-rocking originals. The group had a smart plan: take two years and crowd-test their own material, develop a tight live set, and then, perhaps, get to the next level. A New York choreographer taught them stage moves that furthered their appeal. By early 1966, the group felt they were ready to make some records.

They met Bruce Patch, a Boston music influencer who became their manager. He got them into the studio to make their debut single for local label Coristine. It comprised two fine Dewart originals. "Once Upon a Time" got the attention of pop star Gene Pitney, who'd heard it and wanted to record it. He asked that the group not issue their version. Dewart realized this was a golden opportunity for him, but a bad move for the band; he declined. 

The group got on Pitney's label, Musicor Records, as it reissued the Coristine 45 for a wider audience. Interest in Dewart's songs got him some cuts on material the band hadn't recorded, and he also found work teaching music and doing session work. The Musicor single did well enough and got the group on national TV lip-syncing "Once Upon a Time."

For their next single, which we'll hear today, the group was paired with producer Bob Stone, who pushed his own material on them that to be performed just-so. Dewart said, in an interview for the Spectropop website:

He had every chord, every style of the vocal, every sizzle of the cymbal preplanned, which meant that our rehearsals with him were simply us trying to play his songs as he wanted them played.

Not an ideal situation for a group eager to record their own stuff. That said, "We Can't Go On This Way," penned by Stone, is a haunting folk-rock narrative of a young man who struggles with his feelings for a younger girl--a situation he knows isn't right but that he can't let go without anguish. It sounds like a blend of The Lovin' Spoonful and The Beau Brummels.

For this record, songwriter-vocalist Toni Wine and session guitarist Hugh McCracklin were in the studio with the group. Wine's voice adds something to this gentle, mostly acoustic slice of emotional regret. Lead vocalist Al Lawrence (often thought to be the "Teddy" of the group), delivers the producer's song with sincerity and though this wasn't the Pandas' favored material, they do well with it. 

Spot of honor amongst Cash Box's reviews of July 23, 1966.

"Smokey Fire" anticipates pop music soon to come. Dewart's song is based on his memories of childhood vacations in Canada. Its moody minor-keyed melody and unusual theme, rooted in the sights, sounds and smells of the sea, might have been too diffuse for consideration as a single A-side, but it's powerful and evocative and outshines the gentle pop song it hid beneath. Toni Wine's voice is most effective here; the band seems relieved to do their own material and this track is one of the highlights of their discography.

The group made several more singles, and an album for Capitol's Tower imprint in 1968; most of its songs were by outside writers and it doesn't show the band at their best. The group called it a day by the end of 1969. A full account of their career can be read here: https://spectropop.com/Teddy/

Tomorrow: still in 1966, we call again on The Dixie Cups for another of their neglected ABC-Paramount singles. Two excellent songs that show the group at their best.