1966 in Music - Reaching a Critial Mass

 

The pop/rock revolution that began three years earlier with the emergence of the Beatles and Bob Dylan reached an astonishing peak in 1966, as those two artists, along with the Beach Boys and the Rolling Stones, produced their most unexpectedly sophisticated work yet. Other bands, such as the Byrds, the Lovin’ Spoonful, the Kinks, plus significant new groups like Love, Buffalo Springfield - and yes, the Monkees - appeared on radios and record players all across the States, in Britain and beyond, changing musical tastes and trends monthly.

Along with the top artists seemingly competing for the ultimate pop masterpiece, 1966 also saw (or heard) strange new sounds coming out of garages, often inspired by some trendy new chemicals: the Seeds, the Electric Prunes, the Troggs, and the extraordinary "psychedelic sounds" of Texas’ 13th Floor Elevators announced a new era of mental recreation and discovery. And right in the middle of the year, perhaps the most audacious debut album in history emerged, as Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention seemingly leap-frogged over everyone with the satiric/avant-garde challenge of Freak Out!

Though black pop music continued to be played on white AM stations, continuing with enormous hits for Motown artists like the Supremes, the Temptations, and the phenomenal Four Tops, it was the harder and grittier "soul" sound of artists like Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, and of course, Mr. James Brown that would continue to lead the black youth of America in new, more hard-driving directions that would separate it more and more from white rock.

As for jazz, the trend was more and more away from the mainstream, as experimental performers like Cecil Taylor, Sun Ra, Don Cherry and Roscoe Mitchell kept pushing the envelope. But the biggest sound belonged to veteran John Coltrane, who leapt feet-first into the leadership of the avant-garde with challenging albums like Ascension and Meditations. Jazz was reaching a critical point itself, as musicians traveled in wilder and more esoteric directions, practically daring listeners to follow them.

 

Though 1966 produced some of the greatest albums in the history of popular music (Pet Sounds and Revolver are often pointed to as perhaps the greatest of all time), the year was still rich in the 45-rpm single. As a matter of fact, this was probably the last year in which hit singles would be as popular and important as LPs, as the next year would see a virtual explosion of ambitious, conceptual albums. While it is difficult (perhaps impossible) to produce any really definitive list of every significant or canonical work released 50 years ago, I have done my best to search out what seems to me a more or less sumptuous compilation of the most remarkable albums and songs of this magnificent musical vintage. This selection was based on personal opinion, as well as the views expressed on several web sites that offer up their own versions of the greatest releases by artist and year. Most importantly, however, such a project is only possible for me due to the amazing existence of Spotify, since I can now listen to thousands of releases that were previously only legendary to me.

 

I think that a simple read-through of what all is contained in this list will be enough to amaze most music lovers with the quantity, quality and variety of music that was evolving during this extraordinary period. There are no doubt still some serious omissions here - and I fondly request that anyone add their own suggestions. But looking at the selections here, I seriously see very few that I would dare to delete. I welcome everyone interested to check out this remarkable wealth of a concentrated artistic legacy for themselves. I plan to explore these titles more closely here in the months to come, but since you are lucky enough to live in the digital age, I invite you to start right away.

 

January

Paul Revere & the Raiders: Just Like Us! (January 3)
The Isley Brothers: "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)" (January 12)
Simon & Garfunkel: Sounds of Silence (January 17, 1966)
          "I Am a Rock" (single)
Simon & Garfunkel: "Homeward Bound" (January 19, 1966)
The 13th Floor Elevators: "You’re Gonna Miss Me" (January 17/May, national release)

February

The Rolling Stones: "19th Nervous Breakdown" (UK: February 4/US: February 12)
The Temptations: "Get Ready" (February 7)
The Walker Brothers: "The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore" (February 15)
The Lovin’ Spoonful: "Daydream" (February 19)
The Young Rascals: "Good Lovin’" (February 21)
The Yardbirds: "Shapes of Things" (February 25)
John Coltrane: Ascension

March

Brian Wilson: "Caroline, No" (March 7)
The Who: "Substitute" (UK: March 4/US: April 5)
The Byrds: "Eight Miles High" (March 14)

The Beach Boys: "Sloop John B" (March 21)
Dusty Springfield: "You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me" (March 25)
The Rolling Stones: Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) (US: March 28)
           "19th Nervous Breakdown" (single)
 Love: Love
          "My Little Red Book" (single)
Love: "My Little Red Book"
The Lovin’ Spoonful: Daydream
           "Daydream" (single)
The Mamas and the Papas: If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears
          "Monday, Monday" (single)
The Mamas and the Papas: "Monday, Monday"
Monks: Black Monk Time
Sam and Dave: "Hold On! I’m Comin’"
 

April

Neil Diamond: "Solitary Man" (April 4)
The Supremes: "Love Is Like an Itching in My Heart" (April 8)
Manfred Mann: "Pretty Flamingo" (April 15)
The Rolling Stones: Aftermath (UK: April 15/US  version: June 20)

          "Mother's Little Helper" (UK version - US single)
          "Paint It, Black (US version - single)
          "Lady Jane" (US B-side)
          "Under My Thumb"
Percy Sledge: "When a Man Loves a Woman" (April 16)
James Brown: "It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World"
Cher: "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" (single from The Sunny Side of Cher)
The Seeds: The Seeds
          "Pushin' Too Hard" (single)
Wayne Shorter: Speak No Evil

May

The Temptations: "Ain’t Too Proud to Beg" (May 3)
The Rolling Stones: "Paint It, Black" (US: May 7/UK: May 13)
Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston: "It Takes Two" (May 12)
The Beach Boys: Pet Sounds (May 16)

         
          "Wouldn’t It Be Nice" (single)
          "You Still Believe in Me"
          "Don’t Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)"
          "Sloop John B" (single)
          "God Only Knows" (single)
          "I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times"
          "Caroline, No" (single)
Bob Dylan: Blonde on Blonde (May 16)

          "Visions of Johanna"
          "I Want You" (single)
          "Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again" (single)
          "Just Like a Woman" (single)
           "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands"
Bob Dylan: "Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again" (May 16)
The Beatles: "Paperback Writer" / "Rain" (US: May 30/UK: June 10)
Simon & Garfunkel: "I Am a Rock"
Frank Sinatra: Strangers in the Night
          "Strangers in the Night" (single)
Ike & Tina Turner: "River Deep - Mountain High"

 

June

Jimmy Ruffin: "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" (June 3)
Bob Dylan: "I Want You" (June 10)
The Hollies: "Bus Stop" (June 17)
The Beatles: Yesterday and Today (US: June 20)
          "I'm Only Sleeping"
          "And Your Bird Can Sing"
The Mothers of Invention: Freak Out! (June 27)

          "Hungry Freaks Daddy"
          "Trouble Every Day"
The Animals: Animalisms (UK: June/Animalization (US: July)
The Creation: "Making Time"
Bobby Hebb: "Sunny"

 

July

The Rolling Stones: "Mother’s Little Helper" / "Lady Jane" (US: July 2)
Frank Sinatra: "Strangers in the Night" (July 2)
The Lovin’ Spoonful: "Summer in the City" (July 4)
The Beach Boys: Best of the Beach Boys (July 5)
The Beach Boys: "God Only Knows" (July 11)

The Yardbirds: Roger the Engineer (American version: Over Under Sideways Down (July 15)
          "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago" (single)
The Beach Boys: "Wouldn’t It Be Nice" (July 18)
The Byrds: Fifth Dimension (July 18)
          "Eight Miles High" (single)
John Mayall with Eric Clapton: Bluesbreakers (July 22)
The Supremes: "You Can’t Hurry Love" (July 25)
The Troggs: "Wild Thing" (July 25)
Count Five: "Psychotic Reaction"
Donovan: "Sunshine Superman" (US: July/UK: December)
Tim Hardin: Tim Hardin 1
          "Reason to Believe"
The Left Banke: "Walk Away Renee"
Love: "7 and 7 Is"
Roy Orbison: The Classic Roy Orbison
Wilson Pickett: "Land of 1,000 Dances"
The Velvet Underground and Nico: "All Tomorrow’s Parties"

August

The Beatles: Revolver (UK: August 5/US: August 8)

          "Taxman"
          "I’m Only Sleeping" (UK version only)
          "Eleanor Rigby" (single)
          "Here, There and Everywhere"
          "Yellow Submarine" (single)
          "She Said She Said"
          "And Your Bird Can Sing" (UK version only)
          "For No One"
          "Got to Get You Into My Life"
          "Tomorrow Never Knows"
The Beatles: "Eleanor Rigby" / "Yellow Submarine" (UK: August 5/US: August 8)
Small Faces: "All or Nothing" (August 5)
The Monkees: "Last Train to Clarksville" (August 16)
The Four Tops: "Reach Out I’ll Be There" (August 18)

Donovan: Sunshine Superman (August 26)
          "Sunshine Superman" (single)
          "Season of the Witch"
The Who: "I’m a Boy" (UK: August 26)
The Paul Butterfield Blues Band: East-West
Jaques Dutronc: "Et mois, et mois, et mois"
Bob Dylan: "Just Like a Woman"
Wilson Pickett: The Exciting Wilson Pickett
          "Land of 1000 Dances" (single)
? and the Mysterians: "96 Tears"

September

The Rolling Stones: "Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing in the Shadow?" (UK: September 23/US: September 24)
The Remains: The Remains (September 26)
John Coltrane: Meditations
Eddie Floyd: "Knock on Wood"
Bert Jansch: Jack Orion
Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels: "Devil with a Blue Dress On/Good Golly Miss Molly"

October

Hermit’s Hermits: "No Milk Today" (UK: October 8)
The Beach Boys: "Good Vibrations" (October 10)

The Monkees: The Monkees (October 10)
           "Last Train to Clarksville" (single)
Simon & Garfunkel: Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme (October 10)
          "Homeward Bound" (single)
The Supremes: "You Keep Me Hangin’ On" (October 12)
Otis Redding: Complete and Unbelievable: The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul (October 15)
          "Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa (Sad Song)" (single)
          "Try a Little Tenderness" (single)
Simon & Garfunkel: "A Hazy Shade of Winter" (October 22)
The Kinks: Face to Face (October 28)
           "Sunny Afternoon" (single)
Tim Buckley: Tim Buckley
The Spencer Davis Group: "Gimmie Some Lovin’"
Lorraine Ellison: "Stay with Me"
The Seeds: "Pushin’ Too Hard" (1966 re-release)
The Yardbirds: "Happenings Ten Years Time Ago"

 

November

The Temptations: "(I Know) I’m Losing You" (November 2)
Aaron Neville: "Tell It Like It Is" (November 9)
The Monkees: "I’m a Believer" (November 12)
Otis Redding: "Try a Little Tenderness" (November 14)
The Easybeats: "Friday on My Mind" (November 17)
The Kinks: "Dead End Street" (UK: November 18)
Frank Sinatra: That’s Life (November 18)
The Animals: Animalism (November 21)
Donovan: "Mellow Yellow" (US: November 24)
The Four Tops: "Standing in the Shadows of Love" (November 28)
Paul Revere and the Raiders: "Hunger" (single - from the album Spirit of ‘67, November 28)
Jacques Dutronc: "Les play boys"
The Electric Prunes: "I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)"
Tom Jones: "Green, Green Grass of Home"
Love: Da Capo
          "7 and 7 Is" (single)
          "She Comes in Colors" (single)
The Lovin’ Spoonful: Hums of the Lovin’ Spoonful
          "Summer in the City" (single)
Loretta Lynn: "Don’t Come Home a-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind)"
The Music Machine: "Talk Talk"
The 13th Floor Elevators: The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators
          "You’re Gonna Miss Me" (single)

December

Buffalo Springfield: Buffalo Springfield (Original release: December 5, 1966)
Cream: Fresh Cream (December 9)
          "I Feel Free" (single)
The Who: A Quick One (December 9)
The Jimi Hendrix Experience: "Hey Joe" (UK: December 16)
Cat Stevens: "Matthew and Son" (December 30)
Fred Neil: Fred Neil
          "Everybody’s Talkin’" (single)
Fred Neil: "Everybody’s Talkin’"
Cream: "I Feel Free"
Bob Lind: "Elusive Butterfly"
The Velvet Underground and Nico: "Sunday Morning" / "Femme Fatale"

 

Other Releases

Cannonball Adderley: "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" (from the album Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at ‘The Club’
Antoine: "Les elecubrations d’antoine"
Barbara: "La plus belle histoire d’amour"
The Barbarians: "Moulty"
Georges Brassens: "Supplique pour etre enterre a la plage de Sete"
Jacques Brel: Ces Gens-La
Ray Charles: "Let’s Go Get Stoned"
Don Cherry: Symphony for Improvisors
Ornette Coleman: At the "Golden Circle" Stockholm, Vol. 1
Lee Dorsey: "Get Out of My Life, Woman"
Lee Dorsey: "Working in the Coal Mine"
Roy Harper: Sophisticated Beggar
Slim Harpo: "Baby Scratch My Back"
Skip James: Today!
Krzysztof Komeda: Astigmatic
Los Bravos: "Black Is Black"
Loretta Lynnn: "You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man)"
Roscoe Mitchell: Sound
Ennio Morricone: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Robert Parker: "Barefootin’"
Wilson Pickett: "Mustang Sally"
Michel Polnareff: "La Poupee qui fait non"
Baden Powell and Vincias de Moraes: Os Afro Sambas de Baden e Vincius
James & Bobby Purify: "I’m Your Puppet"
Lou Rawls: Live!
Johnny Rivers: "Secret Agent Man"
The Seekers: Come the Day
The Shangri-La’s: "Past, Present and Future"
Sandie Shaw: "Love Me, Please Love Me" (from the album Love Me, Please Love Me)
Nina Simone: Wild Is the Wind
Nancy Sinatra: How Does That Grab You?
Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazleton: "Summer Wine"
The Sonics: Boom
Sun Ra: The Magic City
Sun Ra: The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra, Volume 2
Cecil Taylor: Unit Structures
Koko Taylor: "Wang Dang Doodle"
Ike and Tina Turner: River Deep - Mountain High
          "River Deep - Mountain High"
The Troggs: "I Can’t Control Myself"
Junior Walker & the Allstars: "(I’m a) Road Runner"
Doc Watson: Southbound
Walter Wanderley: Rain Forest
Larry Young: Unity