Northern California Spotlight: The Chocolate Watchband - Are You Gonna Be There/No Way Out

Back to San Jose, California for more of our Nor Cal region of the epic Battle of the Garage Bands.

The Chocolate Watchband recorded for producer Ed Cobb between '66 and '68 down in LA. The recordings don't always feature all of the band as Cobb had a penchant for bringing in studio musicians. He even went so far as to record instrumentals with not a single member of the band in it (think Expo 2000) and even vocal songs with a different singer (think Let's Go, Let's Go, Let's Go!).

Are You Gonna Be There was written for the band by Cobb's friend and LA songwriter, D. Bennett (who occasionally sang lead on these records as well) and was the third, and last, single under their name (they had done a 4th under the pseudonym of The Hogs). It was released on Tower Records in October of 1967.

The Flip-Side of Are You Gonna Be There is the excellent quasi-instrumental, No Way Out. That song gets an Ed Cobb credit for composer. That said, credible claims by the band suggest they were really the composers of the song. Producers aren't always so honest, you know. The pairing of the two strong songs, the quality of the production and the quality of singer David Aguilar's voice make this one of the most desired singles out there.

Until next time, we'll see you On The Flip-Side!

Hanna-Barbera Records Spotlight: The Hogs (The Chocolate Watchband) - Loose Lip, Sync Ship

Back after a weekend off with the Hanna-Barbera Records Spotlight. So far we've featured The Five Americans, The Unrelated Segments, The New Breed and we even had Mouse and the Traps masquerading as a faux band called Positively 13 O'Clock. Today we have the Chocolate Watchband masquerading as faux band, The Hogs.

In December of 1966 someone had the bright idea of having The Chocolate Watchband record a version of Blues Theme, which was released just a month before by Davie Allan and The Arrows on Tower Records. Why I can not say. The Chocolate Watchband were apparently in studio with producer Ed Cobb recording their debut single for Tower Records subsidiary, Uptown Records. That 10-star single, Sweet Young Thing/Baby Blue wouldn't be released until a month after this release, however.

The Hogs' version of Blues Theme is quite inferior to the Arrows' original recording. It's the Flip-Side that we feature here today. The song is composed by The Chocolate Watchband's David Aguiar and Mark Loomis and goes by the obtuse name, Loose Lip, Sync Ship. The song is a bit odd and certainly has a "made up on the spot feel". It starts off as a decent enough riff and then at 1:38 David Aguilar starts an abstract rambling monologue that would make Frank Zappa proud:

Oh baby, I loved you
Please come back to me
I miss you
You're the best
Baby without you by my side
My whole complexion is a mess. 

Freaks are for kids
Not for silly rabbits

Then starts the weird stuff. Ok, at least more weird than what we already had...which was weird. The song breaks down into abstract jazz riffs, coughing, caterwauls and laughing before Aguilar turns to the gospel for inspiration.

Friends, I would like all of you to turn to Chapter 37
And we will all sing hymns
Row, row your boat
Gently down the stream. 

It's not for everyone, that's for sure. But HBR released it!

Until next time, we'll see you On The Flip-Side!