Beyond The 60s

Dixon House Band   "Sooner Or Later" Dixon House Band was an obscure rock group that released one album and two singles in 1979. Taking their name from leader Edward Dixon House, the group sounded a bit like Styx, but had more in common with Heart, since both groups hailed from Seattle, had a female guitar player and were produced by Mike Flicker. Unfortunately Dixon House Band never had any of Heart's mainstream success. I remember hearing our spotlight song "Sooner Or Later" a few times on FM radio in the late 70s. It's a great mid-tempo rocker, with crystal clear production. Released as the second single from their lone album, it should've been a hit.

Jigsaw   "Sky High" This song was a huge #3 hit in the summer of 1975 that seemingly came from out of nowhere. But the British band Jigsaw had been around since the late 60s and  had some hits in Europe. In 1974 US listeners got a taste of what was to come when Bo Donaldson And The Heywoods had a top 20 hit with "Who Do You Think You Are" a song written by Jigsaw members Des Dyer and Clive Scott. This same duo also wrote the smooth and breezy "Sky High" But the success was short lived in The US. Their follow-up "Love Fire" was their only other single to make the top 40, peaking at #30 in early 76.

Dennis Coffey And The Detroit Guitar Band   "Taurus" Dennis worked behind the scenes as a session guitarist for Motown Records, playing on late 60's hits by The Temptations, The Supremes and others. In the fall of 1971 he released "Scorpio" a funky guitar driven instrumental which went top 10 on both the pop and RnB charts. For his follow-up single Dennis didn't have to look far for a title, he simply went over to the other end of the zodiac and called it "Taurus" Also an instrumental "Taurus" while not as successful as "Scorpio" did well peaking at #18 in early 1972. That was pretty much it for the hits and Dennis went on to produce for fellow Detroiters Gallery who hit big with "Nice To Be With You"

Simon Stokes   "Captain Howdy" Cult singer Simon Stokes has been compared to Captain Beefheart and has worked with Wayne Kramer and Timothy Leary. A fringe artist active in the 60s and 70s, he did manage to get a couple of songs to chart low on the Hot 100. In 1974 Simon Stokes signed to Casablanca records. Along with Kiss and Parliament, Stokes was one of the first acts signed to the label. "Captain Howdy" was released as a single in the spring of 1974.

Slave    "Slide" Along with The Ohio Players and several others, Slave emerged from the Dayton, Ohio funk scene and gained national attention. Signed to Atlantic Records' Cotillion label they released their first LP in the spring of 1977. "Slide" was the lead single from that LP, though heavily edited, it sold well, making #1 on the RnB charts, and #32 on The Hot 100.

Donovan      "I Like You" If there's one artist who's synonymous with the love and peace hippie culture of the 60s, it's Donovan. Donovan racked up a dozen top 40 hits in the 60s, but once the calendar turned to 1970 the hits dried up, and just like that Donovan was yesterday's news. Ironically some of the artists of the singer-songwriter movement of the early 70s, who were putting out hits left and right, were not that much different than Donovan was early in his career as a folkie troubadour. Donovan's huge success in the 60s is a combination of making the right music at the right time and teaming up with legendary record producer Mickie Most. When Donovan and Most parted ways in 1969 the hits dried up. But Donovan was not done yet, he continued to release records well into the 70s. Most of his 70s work is worth a listen. "I Like You" is Donovan's last song to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. It managed to climb to #66 in the spring of 1...