THE MOON “Same”

After a personnel change that saw original bassist Andy ‘Drew’ Bennett replaced by David P. Jackson, the band reappeared with 1969’s “The Moon”. Co-produced by drummer Larry Brown and singer/multi-instrumentalist Matthew Moore, musically the set wasn’t a major change from the debut. With Moore again writing the majority of the eleven tracks, their overarching sound remained firmly rooted in sunshine-pop/pop-sike, though much of the debut’s sense of experimentation was dropped in favor of a relatively stripped down sound. Over the years I’ve listened to the set a dozen times and while it’s never impressed me as much as the debut, it has steadily grown on me over the years. Interestingly this was the first used album I ever bought. I remember shelling out $3.00 for it and being less than knocked out by the results (course I was listening to lots of Robin Trower at that point in my life).

– Yeah the lyrics were goofy (something about a mortal enemy being reincarnated as a beautiful woman), but ‘Pirate’ was one of the most top-40 commercial things they’d recorded. Featuring one of those bright pop melodies with great harmony vocals that Badfinger would effortlessly churn out, it was a great choice for a single, though it did little commercially. rating: **** stars
– I’m guessing ‘Lebanon’ was the band’s attempt at a big statement (though that plotline was lost on me). Moore’s vocal was unusual in that it featured him shifting into a high register and switching over into a decent English accent. The result was one of their prettiest melodies. Shame it was so short. rating: **** stars
– Opening with a nice David marks guitar and sporting another ‘out there’ lyric ‘Transporting Machine’ was surprisingly a funky outing for the band. Nice soul horn arrangement didn’t hurt the proceedings. rating: **** stars
– The lone non-original, slathered in a neo-Baroque arrangement ‘Mary Jane’ was just too precious and pompous for my tastes. Nice stereo separation on the mix. rating: *** stars
– ‘Softly’ found the band playing around with an R&B sound. Unfortunately it was kind of a cluttered song bouncing through different time signatures. One of Moore’s more forgettable efforts. Shame they didn’t stick with a streamlined melody line. rating: ** stars
– Once again featuring an English feel, the pretty ballad ‘Not To Know’ has always reminded me of an Emmit Rhodes-via-Badfinger track. rating: **** stars
– ‘The Good Side’ opened side two with what qualified as a stab at a bluesy number. Give them credit for being willing to try something outside of their normal creative bounds, but clearly blues weren’t their strength. rating: ** stars
– ‘Life Is a Season’ was a bland pop number that simply never ignited. rating: ** stars
– Propelled by a nice Marks fuzz guitar performance, ‘John Automation’ was an out-and-put rocker. Moore’s lyric was quite strange making it an interesting choice for a single and perhaps helping explain why it didn’t sell. rating: ****
– The piano dominated ‘Come Out Tonight’ could have been a “Ram”-era Paul McCartney outtake. Very commercial, but in a fashion that will certainly sicken some folks,. I like “Ram” so this one appeals to me. rating: ****
– With its intricate Beatlesque arrangement ‘Mr. Duffy’ was the song that most recalled the debut LP. Again, it’ll be too cute for some folks, but I love this kind of stuff. rating: ***** stars

Imperial also tapped the album for two singles:

– 1968’s ‘John Automation’ b/w ‘Faces’ (Imperial catalog number 66330)
– 1969’s Pirate” b/w ‘Not To Know’ (Imperial catalog number 66415)

A tad less appealing that the debut album, but still a very good slice of mid-1960s American pop-sike.

For hardcore fans there were actually two versions of the album. Both versions featured the same track listing, but the original Leveque cover illustration didn’t include the Paul Slaughter band photo.

Like the debut, the sophomore LP also failed to sell and the group subsequently called it quits.

– Brown continued working as a sessions player, as well as playing with Tony Allwine and Gunill Road.
– Jackson reappeared as a member of Dillard and Clark.
– In the mid-1970s Marks rejoined The Beach Boys, replacing the late Carl Wilson. When The Beach Boys underwent a nasty internal split, he hooked up with Mike Love’s Beach Boys, but ‘retired’ when he came down with Hepatitis C. He’s served as the national spokesman for The Hep C Hope Foundation and has a nice website at: