Category: Lost and Found

Scarbrough Affair and Pete Ham

powerpopaholic
Rich Arithmetic

Scarbrough Affair “Leftists Unite”

Dave Scarbrough went back through some older recordings from 2006 and remastered them for a fresh re-release. “Leftists Unite” is a political rallying cry about “taking away my rights,” and other causes. Maybe we should approach Taylor Swift about singing this because it would be a huge hit with a female performer.

Dave goes through several styles here from yacht rock (“Take Me Home,” “Care for the Caregiver”) to light adult balladry (“No Sure Bet”) and these early tracks are nicely done. However, he really strikes gold with “Isabella Mae.” It sounds like a lost Gin Blossoms hit single and is a real keeper. Unfortunately nothing else compares to it, although “Oblivious” comes close. There is just enough here to recommend, but I look forward to some fresh tunes from Dave soon.

Bandcamp

Pete Ham

Pete Ham “Gwent Gardens”

You probably don’t need me to fill you in on Badfinger’s backstory. Because of this, one of the best guitarists, singers, and composers of the classic rock era—Pete Ham—took his own life in April 1975. The canonization of Pete Ham continues with more of his unreleased demos. Gwent Gardens is dedicated to the late Dan Matovina, Badfinger’s biographer, and it continues Ham’s discography that started with 7 Park Avenue in 1997. Another collection from last year, Misunderstood is similar in approach.

Just before he passed away in 2023, Matovina was gushing to a close friend about all the unpublished stuff. “There are so many wonderful Pete Ham tunes that nobody has heard yet. I can’t believe it,” he said. While the album is entertaining for sure, they are still finished demos and will appeal mainly to the dedicated Badfinger fan. You can hear the “hit” potential in songs like “Let the Sun Shine Through” and “I’m Only Human.” As a Pete Ham fan, I wish someone would arrange to cover these songs and produce them fully. Like the Pete Ham Tribute LP last year, this music needs to be heard.

Kool Kat Musik | Amazon

Lost Treasures Found: Peach and Lee

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Peach and Lee

Peach and Lee “Not For Sale 1965-1975”

This is truly a lost power pop treasure. Peach & Lee’s new double album, “Not For Sale,” is the result of ten years of work by Arlis Peach and Larry Lee, who have been best friends since childhood and grew up in Iowa together. They became deeply interested in rock and roll in the 1950s and were writing and recording their music by the mid-1960s. They got signed to RCA Records in 1972, and a single was released, but things never took off. Thankfully, they saved the tapes!

This release compiles all their output, a full 27 tracks. The band follows in the footsteps of The Beatles and The Hollies, evident in their opener, “Long Way to Go,” with churning guitars and solid harmonies. The comparisons to Badfinger are stunning here, especially on “Not For Sale,” “It’s Up To You,” “No Way Baby,” and “Do It Again,” including its handclaps and its infectious lead guitar.

A more basic, echoing early Beatles sound is clear on “Never Made the Grade” and “Down.” The catchy, simple lead in “Paradise” recalls the Hollies. “Help Yourself” and “Don’t Be Looking My Way” are very much in the Emmit Rhodes mold.

The band tries rocking harder (almost glam) on “You Ain’t Got Me Running” and “The Other Night.” The dramatic ballads “Can’t Let Go” and “Love Is On Our Side” are solid standouts.

The source material limits a few songs, such as “So Badly” and “Ooh Baby,” whose production is subpar. In addition, there are plenty of beautiful misses and demos here, but by any standard, this is a tremendous success. You wonder why these guys never made it big, but we finally have them 50 years later. Highly Recommended.

Amazon

Lost and Found: Adam Roth and Steve Rosenbaum

powerpopaholic

The Lost and Found category is for bands that up to this point were not “discovered” by the power pop community until recently.

Adam Roth

The Adam Roth and his Band of Men “Down The Shore”

Adam Roth was a musician mostly under the radar, but well-loved by those who knew him. Once a member of the Boston rock band Del Fuegos, and regular collaborator with comedian Dennis Leary, his album of 80s frat rock was just about lost to history. The 1982 movie Beach House (aka Down The Shore) was a very low-budget Animal House/Porkys teen comedy without much positive to mention, other than the soundtrack. It jump-started Roth’s career in movie soundtracks (The Ref, Monument Ave, Hollywood Vietnam) and TV commercials. He passed away in 2015 of cancer, but Hozac Records remastered his album and featured new liner notes written by Adam’s brother Charles Roth.

The music is very much a product of its time, but brilliance shows through. “Judy Won’t You Dance With Me” is similar in some ways to The Shoes, and “Now You’re Runnin” and “I Just Wanna Have Some Fun” have more of a punk attitude displayed on the faster-tempo rockers. Overall a good addition to your 80’s power-pop collection.

Amazon

 

Steve Rosenbaum

Steve Rosenbaum “Have A Cool Summer”

Steve Rosenbaum is a DIY San Diego musician with a jangling guitar and lots of songs written between 1979-89. Similar in style to Tom Marolda (The Toms), The Modulators, The Deal, The Rubinoos – Steve really should have been signed by a major label at that time. But it never happened.

Fortunately, these songs are finally available to the public at Bandcamp. The songwriting here is pretty good, but the production was recorded mainly on the Tascam 244 cassette 4-track, and the sound quality is pretty spotty. There are some gems to be found; the Beach Boys-like “Me Alone,” “Come On Over,” the Twilley-like “Got To Tell Ya,” and REM-like jangle of “72 days.” Steve does offer a FREEBIE sample of these tracks on his Two-Cassette Deck Bounces EP. Fans of the era will see the potential in these songs because it’s music that deserves to be heard.

Bandcamp