J.B. And The Playboys, "Tears Of Woe" c/w "Chances," RCA-Victor Canada International 57-3342 (rel. 6/1965)
One of Canada's best rock bands of the mid-1960s, JB and The Playboys were huge on their home turf for a couple of years; unfortunate things broke up the group at a bad time. They left behind an LP and six singles, plus a few more as splinter group The Jaybees. Today's we'll hear their debut single--one of three singles issued with near-identical picture sleeves, each with their release order on the back cover.
The group emerged from Quebec in 1964 as Beatlemania swept the upper reaches of this continent. (It had a headstart: British groups got regular Canadian releases in 1963, including the original, deleted version of The Beatles' debut single, "Love Me Do," which sold under 100 copies when issued early that year.) Allan Nichols, whose nickname was JB, fronted the group, which included a relic from British pop's past in their bespectabled lead guitarist Bill Hill, whose style owed much to Hank Marvin of The Shadows. Hungarian rhythm guitarist/harmony vocalist Andy Kelecsenyi, who chose Andy Kaye as his stage name, co-wrote most of the group's material and cut a dashing figure on-stage. Lou Atkins, a small, sheepish-looking lad, played bass and drummer Doug West rounded out the group.
After a private-pressed debut disc, made to sell at the group's shows, The Playboys were signed by Canada's RCA Victor, who. unlike the American original, embraced youth music and signed many home-grown acts to their fetching green and silver label. To launch the group, they issued a new single three weeks in a row. All got onto the Canadian pop charts and the quintet was in-demand all over the nation. They opened for major acts like The Rolling Stones when they toured Canada and this helped them snowball into a homegrown favorite.
None of their records got a US release--a mystery, since they might have gotten played, as did the early sides of The Guess Who and solo singer Terry Black. Thus, they remain complete unknowns to most American music fans.
Kaye and Nichols were the band's principle songwriters, and Kaye's adventurous melodies distinguish their original numbers. They owe a debt to the British groups (as did just about every young musician in 1964/65) but put their own credible spin on the style.
"Tears of Woe" has a touch of rockabilly, a hint of future groups like Creedence Clearwater Revival and some Motown influence, all balled up into a potent two minutes. A rollicking beat bolsters this haunting-as-the-dickens record, which abounds with melodic tidbits, including a bridge that cribs from Martha and The Vandellas' hit "Heat Wave" to charming effect. Nichols and Kaye's harmonies are excellent. The total effect is one of those moving, unusual, promising recordings that the mid-1960s held en masse. I love the waltz-timed coda; a touch I can't recall in any other beat-group recording of the day. I've wanted a copy of this single for a decade and it showed up at the Tacoma record meet to my delight. Another collector brought it to my attention, bless him.
"Chances" opens with the Shadows-esque guitar of Bill Hill, who dominates this ballad flip, which breaks into a bluesy second strain to fine effect. As with the A-side, the melody is ambitious and surprising. This single epitomizes what was special about the beat-group era: it upended the old formulas of rock 'n' roll songwriting and welcomed the unusual and untested. Soon these innovations became cliches of their own, but, as heard on this fulsome single, they bore fresh and lovely fruit when new.
Excellent singles continued from this group, followed by an album. The band appeared in the first Canadian color horror film, Playgirl Killer, which also features a shirtless Neil Sedaka and one of the wackiest concepts of any fright flick, past, present or future. JB and the boys do a rockin' version of Ray Charles' "Leave My Woman Alone" during an evening pool-party sequence. Why isn't this movie on Bluray?
Marijuana problems (a police bust) broke up the original group in 1966. They reformed as The Jaybees, and at last received a US release of their music; Andy Kaye left the group to become a mail carrier and the group's members formed other bands such as Carnival Connection and Peter & the Pipers.
I hope to acquire this first group's other singles. A two-CD set that contains all their known recordings came out in 2005 and may still be available; check Discogs, etc. if you'd like to hear more.
Tomorrow: eerie, ahead of its time rock 'n' roll from The Deuces Wild, a duet from California, via their 1958 debut disc for Specialty Records. Don't miss this one!
A shame this band wasn't heard in America. They sure have an accomplished sound. "Tears of Woe" sounds to me like if Buck Owens had wrote "Last Train To Clarksville" and "Chances" could have been a hit for Chad and Jeremy. These guys certainly liked to change tempos mid song.
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