Round 2 of the Battle of the Garage Bands: The Blues Magoos v The Misunderstood

Round 2 is officially underway in our 10-month long Battle of the Garage Bands to determine (very subjectively) the greatest US garage band single ever. This round kicks off with The Blues Magoos of New York going head to head with The Misunderstood of Riverside, California. 

On one side of the ring we have The Blues Magoos who landed a major record deal and put out multiple singles and multiple albums, performed on national TV shows and shared the stage with the likes of The Who. On the other side of the ring we have The Misunderstood who had to leave their Sun drenched Southern California homes to travel to the rainy UK to record a song called Children of The Sun. The single was shelved until well after the band had succumbed to the unbearable heaviness of obscurity and the boys never even saw a release of their material in their homeland. Two very different paths to this moment. Both deserving of it. 

Original Blues Magoos article can be found here.

Original post on The Misunderstood can be found here

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

Battle of the Garage Bands: The Squires v. The Blues Magoos

Day one of the Battle of the Garage Bands epic bracket system showdown. Today we have the winners of the New England Region going head to head with the winners of the New York region. The Squires of Connecticut v. The Blues Magoos of Greenwich Village. Celebrity judges will vote below to determine who moves on to the next round. Enjoy.

Original Squires article can be found here.

Original Blues Magoos article can be found here.

And the winner of the So Cal Battle of the Garage Bands is...

What an epic adventure that was! Seventeen entrants in the So Cal region of the Battle of the Garage Bands. We tried to cap it at 10. Then 15. But our offerings of goodness just kept spilling over like a beer being poured by a blind barkeep.

Unbelievably we had a unanimous choice for the coveted number 1 spot! The Misunderstood, a band that had to leave their hometown of Riverside for the rain and fog of London to get a recording contract, have brought home the coveted "best garage record from Southern California" award. The other bands rounding out the top five are Love, The Grains of Sand, The Music Machine, all of Los Angeles, and The Lyrics of San Diego.

The Misunderstood are misunderstood no more. Now they saunter over to the holding pen where they will join our other regional winners as they await the next region. That region is Northern California and Hawaii. We'll launch that assault tomorrow!  Until then, here is a sample from all the winners thus far. And a nifty map down below.

Southern California: The Misunderstood - Children Of The Sun/I Unseen

Rocky Mountains: Phil and the Frantics: Say That You Will/'Till You Get What You Want

Mid-West: The Litter with Action Woman/Legal Matter

Texas: The 13th Floor Elevators with You're Gonna Miss Me/Tried To Hide

New England: The Squires with Going All The Way and Go Ahead

The South: The Bad Roads with Too Bad/Blue Girl

Great Lakes: The Shadows of Knight with Bad Little Woman/Gospel Zone

The Mid-Atlantic: The Enfields with She Already Has Somebody/I'm For Things You Do

New York: The Blues Magoos with We Ain't Got Nothing Yet/Gotta Get Away

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

New York Spotlight: The Blues Magoos - We Ain't Got Nothin' Yet and Gotta Get Away

Our regional Battle of the Bands turns to the state of New York. And we start today with a group that actually was able to make some waves nationally. 

The Blues Magoos hailed from The Bronx in New York City. The band was Ralph Scala, Emil "Peppy" Thielhelm, Ron Gilbert, Mike Esposito and Geoff Daking. The band's first release was on Verve Records (as Bloos Magoos) but did little. Mercury Records swooped in and signed the band and took them into a studio to record an LP in 1966. The second single from the album, released in October of 1966, was their biggest hit, (We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet. The song was written by the lead guitarist, the organ player and the bassist and lifted a riff from Ricky Nelson's unique version of Summertime. But they took that riff and made it front and center of a musical explosion that simply soars. Somewhat improbably, the song became a national hit, reaching #5 in the US and getting The Blues Magoos a spot opening for The Who and Herman's Hermits as well as a spot on the very important Smothers Brothers show. 

The Flip-Side of We Ain't Got Nothin' Yet is the strong number, Gotta Get Away. Both sides demonstrate just how talented this band was. In particular, the guitar work of lead guitarist, Mike Esposito (second from left in the photo below), is more than a cut above the competition.

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

Video Diary: The Blues Magoos - Pipe Dream