Hello Music Lover! Thanks for listening to Episode Ten about the music of Northern California. In it, I feature the San Francisco sound, the 1967 Summer of Love, and songs of revolution, defiance, and change.
Please feel free to listen to just this episode, or if you prefer, start the tour from the beginning and follow our spirit guide Woody Guthrie on a musical tour of America.
Either way, it’s nice to have you come along.
As with all the episodes, the “Show Notes” feature links to the complete recordings of the songs, additional comments about the music, associated images, and bonus material. But please don’t allow those notes to distract you from listening to the audio, because that’s where the real meat is.
Show Notes & Playlist
“San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair)” by Scott McKenzie is the natural opener for this show, and this video will really get you in the mood. It shows the zeitgeist of the era, which was oh so groovy.
“Everyday People” by Sly & the Family Stone. I love the lyrics to this song — written almost 60 years ago, and yet apropos for our modern times.
There is a blue one who can’t accept the green one
For living with a fat one trying to be a skinny one
There is a long hair that doesn't like the short hair
For bein’ such a rich one that will not help the poor one
There is a yellow one that won't accept the black one
That won’t accept the red one that won't accept the white one
And different strokes for different folks
I recently saw an interview with Canadians who said they don’t want to be “Americans.” Notwithstanding that they are already American (Canada is part of North America, as is Mexico), I wondered: What the hell does it even mean to be “American?”
There are nearly 400 million U.S. citizens of every stripe and color. There is space for everyone. “Different strokes for different folks,” as Sly said. That’s the very essence of what it means to be American.
Here’s a fabulous video of Sly & the Family Stone, at the height of their powers, performing their hits “Hot Fun in the Summertime” and “Don’t Call Me Nigger, Whitey.” Note the interracial makeup of the band and the audience. There is no doubt Sly influenced other artists, like Hendrix, Prince, and Outkast.
In respect for those who march and stand for what they believe in, I played the studio recording of “Stand” by Sly & the Family Stone. Here is a live recording of the same song.
There’s a cross for you to bear
Things to go through if you're going anywhere
Stand
For the things you know are right
It’s the truth that the truth makes them so uptight
Stand
Bonus Track
For a little extra Sly & the Family Stone fun, check out yours truly singing and playing guitar on “Hot Fun in the Summertime” as performed by Five Spot & the Soul Patrol Horns.
Next, I played “Reach Out in the Darkness” by Friend & Lover.
Environmental Protest Songs
I played one of my all-time favorite songs about the environment, “Nature’s Way,” by the band Spirit. Here is a live version from 1990, including some sweet guitar work by composer Randy California.
Seven years later, at the age of 45, Randy California drowned in the Pacific Ocean while rescuing his 12-year-old son from a rip current. Before perishing, Randy managed to push his son (who survived) toward the shore.
“Mercy, Mercy, Mercy Me (The Ecology)” by Marvin Gaye. Here is a live version. Below is Dan Campbell’s artistic visualization of the song, which he painted in honor of Earth Day, which started in 1970 and is celebrated every year on April 22.
Tragically, Marvin Gaye was shot dead by his father in 1984.
Where did all the blue skies go?
Poison is the wind that blows from the north and south and east
Woo mercy, mercy me, mercy father
Ah, things ain't what they used to be, no no
Oil wasted on the ocean and upon our seas, fish full of mercury
Ah oh mercy, mercy me
Ah things ain't what they used to be, no no
Radiation underground and in the sky
Animals and birds who live nearby are dying
Oh mercy, mercy me
I played “Big Yellow Taxi,” by Joni Mitchell. This video has great visual images.
The Summer of Love
During the introduction of this segment, I play a bit of “The End,” by The Doors. That’s the studio version, but of course, the only way to really “get” The Doors and their enigmatic lead singer Jim Morrison, The Serpent King, was to see them live. If you are up for a 12-minute dark ride, here is a live performance of “The End.”
“We Can Be Together,” by the Jefferson Airplane. This video does an excellent job of syncing the studio recording of the song with the band’s live performance at the Woodstock Music Festival of 1969.
The people shown in the video are the “Boomers” so many Gen Zers love to hate. I have a message for those young punks: “We don’t like you either.”
The Jefferson Airplane’s fifth album, “Volunteers of America,” was originally titled “Volunteers of Amerika,” reflecting the band’s fiercely political views. Record company execs forced them to change the title. That record, released in 1969, was controversial because of its revolutionary, anti-war lyrics, and its use of profanity.
We are all outlaws in the eyes of America
In order to survive we steal cheat lie forge hide and deal
We are obscene lawless hideous dangerous dirty violent and young
We are forces of chaos and anarchy
Everything they say we are we are
And we are very
Proud of ourselves
Comparison for Comment
I compared “Talkin’ Dust Bowl Blues” by Woody Guthrie with “Hot Rod Lincoln” by Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen. If you don’t know what a “Hot Rod” car looks like, watch the Commander Cody video. It’s super fun!
The Grateful Dead
To introduce the band, I play just a bit of The Grateful Dead’s psychedelic jam “Space,” followed by “Truckin’” and “Uncle John’s Band.” The live performance is from 1972, right about the time I heard the Dead play live. They blew me away.
I closed out the show with “Age of Aquarius,” by The Fifth Dimension. Holy Mystic crystal revelation! Talk about starry-eyed naïveté, this song says it all, and I still like it.
Honorable Mention
I want to thank friend and listener Jay Dobis for introducing me to a San Francisco musician I did not know — Davie Allan & the Arrows. The news came too late to include Allan’s music in the podcast, but here’s a taste of guitarist Davie Allan’s unique sound.
Jay, shown below with his lovely wife Oya, is the Crown Prince of Obscure Music. He is always turning me on to music and musicians I’ve never heard of. Thanks Jay!
That’s a Wrap!
Thanks for listening. Next week, we’ll take the magic bus to America’s picturesque and enchanting Pacific Northwest territory, where we’ll meet a diverse group of musicians and learn about the eclectic music they create.
I’ll see you there and then!
About Me
To learn more about me, my books, my other podcast, and various mad musings, tap on the big orange button below.
Share this post