Now that the Yardbird's singles have been covered I am feeling a Zombies mood coming on. Here is their great August 1965 single that sank like a stone - Whenever You're Ready. The bridge section - "you're not teaching me a new thing" - between the verse and the chorus is a thing of beauty. Rod Argent was such an excellent songsmith, and of course Colin Blunstone was the perfect singer for his songs. The b-side was the excellent I Love You, which unfortunately was a hit for another band - People. The Zombies were sadly always in the wrong place at the wrong time. For me though their music holds up and is nearly equal in quality to the Kinks and the Beatles when it comes to the 60s.
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music holds up and is nearly equal in quality to the Kinks and the Beatles ...
Agreed -- I wonder: where would the Hollies & The Who rank in that Pantheon. I think I would move the 60s Who just below the Kinks, then put the Zombies marble statue just below that but just above the Hollies so that Clarke, Hicks and Nash would be nipping at their heels & keeping them honest ...
Good call Mr. Anyway. Definitely would put the Who up there. Up through "Tommy" they were stupendous. I love the Hollies but they do seem a bit lightweight in comparison to the other bands mentioned. Sort of like the Substitute Legion of Super Heroes - if you read DC comics back in the day.
You know me too well, Mr. P -- I DID read DC comics back in the day! :-)
I think on a clearer night (I'm not foggy; it's just the damned night! :-)) I could make a decent argument that the Hollies, though admittedly and frankly just not up to the Zombies, had some genuine heavyweight potential -- sometimes realized! -- that earns them a place in the Pantheon.
I will try to make my case ... later!
Meanwhile, in all sincerity, thanks so much for the great guided trip through the Yardbyrds' singles. I looked forward to boarding your Magic Bus every night and was flat-out delighted every single time I did. Like all your blog entries, these deserve multiple viewings & i will be back to them again and again, as my world is always better thanks to the wit, wisdom, and good vibes of your fine blog.
P.S. Nothing purely sucks on this list of Top Singles WITH A BULLET in 1965, but clearly Whenever You’re Ready belongs in the Top 5 (sorry, Gary Lewis), and arguably in the Top 3 (sorry Ms. Ross).
September 29 update: Hey Oh -- autumn's closing in & a hit of Mr. Pleasant sanity would really, truly help right about now; i'm not lying ...
Hey, I'm voting to put the Zombies above the Who, and certainly above the Hollies. And I might lobby a bit for the Animals as well. Like the Zombies, their days were numbered and they never built up the extensive catalog that the others did -- but man, in their prime they were stellar. Eric Burdon's voice was so raw and bluesy, and Colim Blunstone's so ethereal, it almost seems crazy to compare them. Personally the Zombies are for me a pure shot of 1960s British sound. I love Argent's keyboard work (as I love Alan Price's in the Animals) and the unearthly beauty of those melodies. The first single I ever owned was "She's Not There" (flip side: "You Make Me Feel Good") and it's still among my very top tracks of all time. Thanks for writing about them!
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