Swedish Sounds Part One: The Other Side

Newly I've listened a lot to more obscure, Swedish 60's beat/freakbeat/psych/garage bands, so I decided that until next Thursday I am just going to write about Swedish bands and artistes. 

Jack Downing, the group's leader, was born in Little Rock, Arkansas but moved to Sweden in 1963. In October '65, he formed The Other Side together with three Englishmen and one Swede. They released one 45 in 1966 on a label called Karusell, before changing their name to Jack Downing & The Other Side and releasing four more country-sounding 45's on RCA Victor and CBS from 1969 to 1973. Downing also had a solo career for some years in the 70's.

This is the one single they released as The Other Side, and by far their best 45. The A-side is a song many have tried to cover, but few has made a good version of it. This version is OK, but nothing more. The flip, on the other hand, is great. The organ riff is brilliant, Downing's vocals are brilliant and everything else is rather brilliant as well.

Since a young man called Mac MacLeod was a member of the Other Side, both songs can be found on a compilation called "The Incredible Musical Odyssey Of The Original Hurdy Gurdy Man: Mac MacLeod".

"Out My Light":    

Heavy Metal '66

Parlophone R-5510

What we have here children, is one of my favourite British 60's freak psych 45's EVER MADE, and possibly one of the rarer (a mint copy is worth vertiginous 750 British pounds according to Record Collector Magazine's "Rare Record Price Guide" from December 2010) as well. Guitarist Geoff Gibbs' website says Him & The Others were George Demetrious (vocals), Colin Roche and Geoff Gibbs (both guitar), Lennie Shaw (bass) and Keith Giles (drums) and released only this nugget in 1966. 

"I Mean It" is a pretty good song, but the flip side "She's Got Eyes That Tell Lies" totally blows it away. With the lovely guitar noise and amazing drumming it pre-dates Blue Cheer's "Summertime Blues" as the first ever heavy metal track with two years. In 1967,  Lennie Shaw decided to leave, so Geoff Gibbs became basist and the group changed their name to The Hand.

As "The Hand", 1967

She's Got Eyes That Tell Lies

"I Mean It" appeared at a 1998 comp. called "Purple Pill Eaters", but I do not believe it is still in print.