SPRING 1971 LP Brian Wilson, Beachboys, Honeys NM

$

29

SPRING WAS A GIRL GROUP WITH THE ROVELL SISTERS (MARILYN WAS BRIAN'S WIFE), PRODUCED BY BRIAN WILSON, EXCELLENT ALBUM

Record Grade: Near Mint, a 9 on a 1-10 scale

Cover Grade: VG++, gatefold cover has minor wear, d.j. copy embossed in upper right corner

Labels: Tan

About the Album:

by Joe Viglione

Not the 1971 album, also self-titled, by Spring, a progressive rock group with the same name (that band featured Pat Moran and was produced by Gus Dudgeon), this particular Spring is an excellent artifact from the world of the Beach Boys, and is highly entertaining with much historical value. The album features Marilyn Wilson-Rovell and Diane Rovell, who Creem magazine managing editor Ben Edmonds explains in his trippy liner notes were the Rovell Sisters and the Honeys, and is produced by Marilyn's husband, Brian Wilson. The gals stare out of the gatefold in a blurry blue hue — an appropriate image for a disc that never got the notice it deserved. The album begins with "Tennessee Waltz," a two-minute version that puts the vocals front and center in a fusion that might be called "girl group folk music." Not as orchestrated as the Beach Boys' thick harmonies and the all-pervasive carbon-copy wall of Spector-ized sound, this is more like Brian Wilson emulating Spector's work with the Teddy Bears, light and airy with the ladies' voices very present and in control. The major find here is track two, "Thinkin' 'Bout You Baby," written by Wilson and Mike Love. It is the song "Darlin'" in different form, and it is lovely hearing that melody with other lyrics and in this unique setting. The band excels on this title, which may be what Wilson was working on with a group known as Redwood, the singers who became Three Dog Night and were denied this song because the Beach Boys thought it was too good to give to someone else. Renditions of the Shirelles' "Mama Said" and Bonnie Bramlett's "Superstar" don't fare as well as the originals and more obscure tunes here. On the popular covers they come off as a forced girl group, abandoning the folksy charm of the first two songs. They overdo a song that Rita Coolidge made a name with, and if Bramlett didn't like what Karen Carpenter did to her song, she might take solace in the fact that at least this album stayed underground and was a tip of the hat to Bramlett's songwriting genius. Tommy Roe's "Everybody" gets a similar treatment to the group's version of "Mama Said," and at least the cover tunes give insight to what the group was attempting to do. They do it much better when Wilson gives them material, or uncovers music like "Now That Everything's Been Said," the title track to Carole King's lost classic, the City album. It is one of Spring's best moments, but the tonal quality remarkably favors King. Who at United Artists dropped the ball on this great cut when Tapestry catapulted to the top of the charts? The addition of Carole King and Gerry Goffin's song covered by Ricky Nelson and Ben E. King in the mid-'60s, "Down Home," is also a treat. What you get with the Spring album is Wilson lovingly creating music with his significant other, and unearthing some gems in the process. The best tracks, along with the early version of "Darlin'" and the two Carole King covers, are the Wilson co-writes "Sweet Mountain" (penned along with co-producer and co-arranger David Sandler), "Good Time," which Wilson put together with Alan Jardine, Dennis Wilson and Greg Jacobson's "Forever," and Floyd Tucker's "Awake." The album just misses being a grand slam, perhaps because the production doesn't hit you over the head the way Sonny & Cher's "I Got You Babe" or the Ronettes' "Be My Baby" exploded off the turntable. Despite a few flaws, this is as essential a recording as the City's 1969 debut, Now That Everything's Been Said, and really should have made some serious noise. The LP was re-released on Rhino as well as a 1994 issue on See for Miles that listed the group as American Spring, probably to keep the confusion down regarding the aforementioned Pat Moran ensemble. The original album art on the United Artists vinyl is a bluish/sea-green head of a statue with stars in its eyes on the front cover and hearts in its eyes on the back. That artwork was kind of prophetic, as this album is a true artifact in every sense of the word, and one with some great moments that are truly important, not just because they are obscure.

Song Titles:

1. Tennessee Waltz

2. Talkin' Bout You Baby
3. Mama Said
4. Superstar
5. Awake
6. Sweet Mountain
7. Everybody
8. This Whole World
9. Forever
10. Good Time
11. Now That Everything Has Been Said
12. Down Home

    MY GRADING SYSTEMS: I’ve been told that I grade conservatively. My NM (near mint) is my highest grade for opened records (which would also include unplayed records). It’s a 9 or 10 on a 1-10 scale. M- would be equivalent to an 8; VG++ to a 7; VG+ to a 6; VG to a 5; VG- to a 4; G to a 3; F to a 2 and P to a 1. The same scale applies when I grade covers (jackets). Significant defects are specifically noted and taken into consideration in the grade.

    GRADING DESCRIPTIONS

    
    RECORDS:
    • GRADING Grading is based on the following criteria
    • Sealed = store stock new
    • Near Mint = like new or near new with only one or two small insignificant defects, a 9 or better on a 1-10 scale
    • Mint- = extremely nice. Would be Near Mint, except for a couple of light hairlines or scuffs, which do not affect play
    • VG++ = still a very nice record with all or nearly all of its original gloss but may have a few more light, surface marks, hairlines, needle tracks or the like which should not materially effect play
    • VG+ = a nice, but used record that may have a series of light scuffs or scratches. It probably plays with a few pops, but has no serious problems.
    • VG = a well-used record that still should sound OK when played, but may have moderate surface noise, pops, etc.
    • VG- = a very well-worn record that plays through without skipping, but will do until a better copy comes along.
    • Good = not actually good at all but probably will play through but with much in the way of surface noise, pops, crackles, etc. Still, will have no cracks, chips or the like
    • Fair = you’re getting this record just to own but not to play
    • Poor = the sky’s the limit, generally I will discard a record this bad (and sell the cover, jacket or sleeve alone) unless the label holds some particular interest

      VISUAL GRADING: All records are visually graded only unless I state that they are play-graded. Some labels such as RCA, Capitol, Colpix, Atlantic, MGM were pressed on better quality vinyl and will sound better than a record which visually appears the same on labels such as Crown, Score or Design. Recording techniques also varied. The sound on live albums may be far inferior to studio recordings. There may also be defects in the pressing which are invisible. The point is that an album on RCA graded VG+ may sound far better than an album on Crown graded Near Mint. I have no problem issuing a refund if you are dissatisfied with the sound on a record as long as it’s requested as per my stated return policy below. But please don’t be shocked if a record visually graded Near Mint doesn’t sound state of the art. If I base my grade on a PLAY GRADE, I will state this specifically in my grading section.

      COVERS: There are really too many possible defects regarding covers to be as specific in my definitions as I had been with my record grades. But please keep in mind these general grading guidelines:

      • I will give greater weight to the condition of the front cover than back cover when assigning an overall grade
      • No cover with a cut out hole or saw mark will be graded Near Mint even if it is still in factory shrink and there is no other wear
      • I will not reduce the grade of a cover for stickers which are glued to the jacket by the record company (eg. Contains the hit song Tennessee Stud); but will reduce the grade for stickers glued on the cover by stores, previous owners, etc.
      • If I write that a cover has a bb hole, I’m talking about a small cut out hole
      • A saw mark is a narrow cut in the perimeter of the cover, could be anywhere and vary in length from 1/2” to 2” at the most.
      • The overall grade takes into consideration any stated defects. For example, if I grade a cover VG+ and then state it has 6” top and bottom seam splits - I’ve already reduced the grade because of the seam splits. If the seams weren’t split, the cover would be graded higher such as VG++ or Mint-.

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