The Knickerbockers Stay With Us (LP)

(Line) 12 tracks - originally sealed copy

The Knickerbockers were formed in mid-I964 during the height of the Beatles craze, as a sort of Junior Four Seasons with guitars. They played at local high schools and colleges in the upstate New York area and featured entertaining stage patter as well as polished imitations of other bands, always an important part of their act. The band consisted of Buddy Randal, lead vocalist and sax (he played with the Royal Teens and co•wrote 'Short Shorts'); Jimmy Walker on drums; and brothers John and Beau Charles on bass and guitar. Their big break came in early 1965 when they performed with Jerry Fuller, a small-time solo-cat ('Shy Away', etc) signed with Challenge Records in Hollywood. Fuller liked their commercial style, their straight appearance (the Knicks wore matching charcoal suits with hair styles reminiscent of the previous decade) and their professional manner, so he signed them to Challenge.

After a couple of lame singles (apart from a couple of sides) they did the first album, 'Sing and Sync-Along with Lloyd/Lloyd Thaxton presents The Knickerbockers' (with guest vocalist Phyllis Brown on three tracks). The album was made up of stock cover versions (it's Not Unsual, 'King Of The Road') and Challenge's own 'In The Misty Moonlight', but with a couple of odd touches.
A second album came out in early 1965, 'Jerk & Twine Time' (also available on Line Records - LLP 5082 AS), again all covers except for a single, ferktown'. But the third single hit the jackpot, 'Lies' was an unabashed Beatk imitation, sounding more like the Beatles than the Beatles often did in late '65. in fact, when the record broke in Los Angeles many high school kids were firm-ly convinced it was a Beatles masquerading. At any rate it became a hu, seller for Challenge.

The Knicks' follow-up and third album, titled 'Lies' (of course also available from Line Record, LLP 50 56 AS) did not only had this particular hit, it was over-all very much Beatles-alike. It was and is one of the classic album from that time, with great other songs and with a lot of good sidemen like Leon Russell as an arranger and great so-called write-ups by stars like Brian Wilson etc.
The only problem began when the became regulars on the TV after their hit. They were so strange looking, not at all like the kids do like their stars, their idols. So aft, some good other material (part of it became available for the first time in Germany on this album) So they never re-captured their hit-record elixir, all they left will be classic songs, at least one.