Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era 1965-1968 [LP]

• Artist: Various Artists
• Rating:
• Release Date: 1972
• Total Time: 57:25
• Type: Collection (various artists)
• Genre: Rock

Review

If a single compilation can be attributed to beginning the oldies revolution, it is easily the original 1972 double LP Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era, 1965-1968. Compiled by Elektra Records founder Jac Holzman with assistance and input from guitarist and music historian Lenny Kaye, this deceptively haphazard 27-track aggregate became the cornerstone of both the serious appreciation of '60s underground music as well as a rather off-scale model for a plethora of reissue-based record labels such as Rhino, Sundazed, and See for Miles. A glance at the way the tunes stack up on the original two-disc vinyl collection reveals that Holzman was indeed looking beyond. Rather than re-treading the same tired "golden oldies" packages -- which were being hocked on TV and in print adverts by mail order throughout North America in the early '70s -- he and Kaye began to gather the secondary and even tertiary layers of rock music. These tunes likewise had a stated influence on a new breed of rocker. Musicians such as Patti Smith -- for whom Kaye happened to play lead guitar -- the Ramones, the Talking Heads, and R.E.M. were more than simply enthusiasts. As their new wave of pop music would reflect, they were actually students and disciples. One important factor that unifies and likewise levels the playing field for all 27 sides chosen for the first run of Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era, 1965-1968 is that they were all issued as singles. There are both Top 20 charting pop hits -- "Dirty Water" (Standells), "Liar, Liar" (Castaways), and at number five the highest-charting 45 of the bunch, "Psychotic Reaction" (Count Five) -- as well as several sides that never made the Top 200. These include the equally inspired "Let's Talk About Girls" (Chocolate Watchband), "Don't Look Back" (Remains), and "An Invitation to Cry" (Magicians). Each track is also given a brief bio which was researched and penned by Kaye. His comments go beyond the facts and figures of the typical discography, relating to the music as the personal experience that it was. This further unifies the subtle assertion that a new generation of pop/rock music fans were listening beneath the charts and the formats that began to dictate the contents of the airwaves as well as record store shelves. In 1998 Rhino Records reissued this set in an expanded edition containing 91 additional garage and psychedelic stacks of wax. As a paean to the two-LP set that started it all, the first CD in the Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era, 1965-1968 box replicates the running order and artwork of this fundamental rock & roll anthology. ~ Lindsay Planer, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)	Nancie Mantz, Annette Tucker	The Electric Prunes	(2:55)
Dirty Water	Ed Cobb	The Standells	(2:40)
Night Time	Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein	The Strangeloves	(2:29)
Lies (Lyrics)	Beau Charles, Buddy Randell	The Knickerbockers	(2:40)
Respect	Otis Redding	The Vagrants	(2:12)
A Public Execution		Mouse	(2:32)
No Time Like the Right Time	Al Kooper	The Blues Project	(2:40)
Oh Yeah!	Ellas McDaniel	Shadows of Knight	(2:44)
Pushin' Too Hard	Sky Saxon	The Seeds	(2:30)
Moulty	D. Morris, Robert Schwartz	The Barbarians	(2:29)
Don't Look Back	Billy Vera	The Remains	(2:35)
An Invitation to Cry	Alan Gordon, James Woods	The Magicians	(2:55)
Liar, Liar	Jim Donna	The Castaways	(1:52)
You're Gonna Miss Me	Roky Erickson	13th Floor Elevators	(2:20)
Psychotic Reaction	The Count Five, Craig Atkinson, Sean Byrne, Roy Chaney, Kenn Ellner	The Count Five	(2:56)
Hey Joe	Chester Powers	The Leaves	(2:40)
(Just Like) Romeo and Juliet	Freddie Gorman, Bob Hamilton	Michael & the Messengers	(2:06)
Sugar and Spice (Lyrics)	Fred Nightingale	The Cryan' Shames	(2:24)
Baby Please Don't Go	Big Joe Williams	The Amboy Dukes	(2:35)
Tobacco Road (Lyrics)	John D. Loudermilk	Blues Magoos	(4:30)
Let's Talk About Girls	Manny Freiser	The Chocolate Watchband	(2:41)
Sit Down, I Think I Love You (Lyrics)	Stephen Stills	The Mojo Men	(2:18)
Run, Run, Run	Joey Levine, Kris Resnick, Arthur Resnick	Third Rail	(2:00)
My World Fell Down (Lyrics)		Sagittarius	(3:37)
Open My Eyes (Lyrics)	Todd Rundgren	The Nazz	(2:48)
Farmer John		The Premiers	(2:12)
It's A-Happening		Magic Mushrooms	(2:40)

Credits

The Band (Performer), Barry & the Remains (Performer), Barry & the Remains (?), The Blues Project (Performer), The Blues Project (?), The Chocolate Watchband (Performer), The Chocolate Watchband (?), Robbie Robertson (Guitar), The Seeds (Performer), The Seeds (?), The Standells (Performer), The Standells (?), The Barbarians (Performer), The Barbarians (?), Blues Magoos (Performer), Blues Magoos (?), The Count Five (?), The Cryan' Shames (Performer), The Cryan' Shames (?), Rick Danko (Bass (Electric)), Rick Danko (Vocals), The Electric Prunes (Performer), The Electric Prunes (?), The Knickerbockers (Performer), The Knickerbockers (?), The Leaves (Performer), The Leaves (?), Mouse (Performer), Mouse (?), The Remains (Performer), Shadows of Knight (Performer), Shadows of Knight (?), The Strangeloves (Performer), The Strangeloves (?), The Vagrants (?), 13th Floor Elevators (Performer), 13th Floor Elevators (?), The Amboy Dukes (Performer), The Amboy Dukes (?), The Castaways (Performer), The Castaways (?), David Hassinger (Producer), Levon Helm (Drums), Garth Hudson (Organ), Richard Manuel (Piano), Tony Valentino (Drums), The Magicians (Performer), Michael & the Messengers (Performer)