Morphing into the psychedelic bag from vocal groups (The Four Chaps, The Townsmen & The Fenways) in the Happenings/ Four Seasons mode, The Racket Squad were basically straight out of the Pittsburg, Pennsylvania suburbs. The Four Chaps worked for a time as backing singers on TV's "Shindig!" in 1964-65.
Everything gels together on this track; the group's r&b influences match perfectly with their own brand of psychedelic exploitation for a 3 minute blast with superhuman drumming and a groove that predates the hypnotic sound of German bands such as Can and Neu, all matched with excellent lyrics that provide an even more cynical alternative to "Pleasant Valley Sunday".
from 1968...
THE RACKET SQUAD - SUBURBAN LIFE
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3 comments:
Geez, that DOES sound like Can drumming (Halleluwah).
I have another of their singles: Let's Dance To The Beat Of My Heart b/w Higher Than High. Neither of those sound like Can but they share Suburban Life's much higher level of sophistication than the average product of the era.
Did you know that the most often misspelt city name in the US is Pittsburgh, PA.
I'm from there and saw the Fenways, Racket Squad and even the Jaggerz live.
Ken in Texas
Loving this :-)
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