About 15 years ago, I went to a friend’s house and made a mixed CD of songs I dubbed The Rest of ’66. It was a homage to two LPs I own, The Best of ’66, put out by Columbia Records way back then.
Unfortunately, the CD tracking has deteriorated, so I decided to replicate it here. But there are 24 tracks, and I’m too old and lazy to do that. So I’m not linking to the songs that hit #1 on any Billboard chart, since I will link to them in July.
But before that, WHY 1966? Back in my FantaCo days in the 1980s, we would occasionally listen to WTRY radio. They would play oldies from 1955 to 1972, roughly. I realized they seemed to play about 30% of the songs I loved from that year, when I turned 13.
Don’t Mess With Bill – the Marvelettes. #3 for four weeks RB, #7 pop. I LOVE the bassline.
What’s Become Of The Brokenhearted – Jimmy Ruffin, #6 RB, #7 pop. I wrote about the Ruffin brothers, Jimmy, and the Temptations’ David.
Function at the Junction – Shorty Long, #43 RB, #97 pop
I’m skipping You Can’t Hurry Love – the Supremes
I See The Light – the Five Americans, #26 pop. I’d like to suggest I intentionally picked the group’s track fifth, but that would be a lie.
Little Girl – Syndicate of Sound, #8 pop
I’m skipping Wild Thing – the Troggs
Psychotic Reaction – The Count Five, #5 pop
Pushing Too Hard – the Seeds, #36 pop
STAX
You Don’t Know Like I Know – Sam and Dave, #7 RB, #90 pop
Time – Pozo-Seco Singers, #3 AC, #47 pop
I’m skipping Satisfaction – The Rolling Stones
Daydream– The Lovin’ Spoonful, #2 pop for two weeks. I gt the LP from the Capitol Record Club; I still have it.
I’m skipping When a Man Loves a Woman – Percy Sledge
Nothing’s Too Good For My Baby – Stevie Wonder, #4 RB, #20 pop
Red Rubber Ball – the Cyrkle, #2 pop; song written by Paul Simon
River Deep, Mountain High – Ike and Tina Turner, #88 pop. This was a particularly disastrous commercial record produced by Phil Spector
You Better Run – the Rascals, #20 pop. This came out before the release of their second album, Collections, but doesn’t appear on an LP until their third album, Groovin’.
Background
I Saw Her Again – the Mamas and the Papas, #5 pop. I always had a great affection for this song. On the greatest-hits album, Farewell to the First Golden Era, the separation of this song was very weird. The Denny Doherty lead vocal was very muted, so you got to hear a lot of the background vocals, and I always hear that song that way in my mind. Also, the song’s intrigue predates the Fleetwood Mac drama surrounding Rumours.
Yellow Submarine – The Beatles. The single was #2 pop. This is a version from the Real Love EP (at 6:59), which answered a burning question. On the YS/Eleanor Rigby single, the last verse lyric is: “As we live a life of ease.” On the single, the line is echoed: “a life of ease.” But on my Revolver LP, the echoing didn’t start until the next line: “Every one of us (every one of us).” I learned that the mono version had the earlier echo and the stereo had the later one.
B-A-B-Y – Carla Thomas, #3 RB, #14 pop.
I’m skipping Knock On Wood – Eddie Floyd
Standing In The Shadows of Love – The Four Tops. #3 RB for two weeks, #6 pop
If I Were A Carpenter – Bobby Darin, #8 pop
