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From L.A. to Bakersfield: Omnivore Celebrates California Music Heroes Dean Torrence and Buck Owens on New Collections

September 30, 2022 By Joe Marchese 1 Comment

Dean Torrence The Teammates

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This fall, Omnivore will be revisiting the back pages of two California artists with whom the label has become associated: Dean Torrence and Buck Owens.

Back in 2017, Omnivore issued Filet of Soul Redux: The Rejected Master Recordings from Jan Berry and Dean Torrence, the innovative surf-rock duo and Beach Boys pals who transformed the sound of SoCal pop. But Dean was always much more than "just" one-half of that pioneering musical pair.  As a graphic designer, Torrence won the Grammy Award for Best Album Cover in 1971 for the band Pollution's debut album; he went on to design memorable covers for artists including The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and, of course, The Beach Boys.  As a musician, he kept busy outside of his partnership with Jan Berry as a collaborator of the loose aggregation he dubbed The Legendary Masked Surfers. One of those Masked Surfers was Beach Boy Mike Love, with whom Torrence recorded a number of Beach Boys and Jan and Dean favorites for various projects.  The 2002 Varese Sarabande compilation The Dean Torrence Anthology: Legendary Masked Surfer Unmasked rounded up 18 of those rarities with Love, Flo and Eddie, Gary Griffin, and Torrence's other buddies.  Now, 20 years later, Omnivore is revisiting the Dean Torrence story with a new volume in that same spirit.  The Teammates: Twenty Years of Making Music 1965-1985 features 23 rare and unreleased tracks featuring Dean with Mike Love, Terry Melcher, Bruce Johnston, Flo and Eddie, Leon Russell, Harry Nilsson, and Jan Berry.

Curated by Dean and Beach Boys historian David Beard (who also penned the notes for the 2002 album), The Teammates showcases Torrence's camaraderie with his famous friends.  The set includes ultra-rare single sides from Dean's side projects such as Our Gang and The Laughing Gravy (famous for a cover of the SMiLE tune "Vegetables," heard here in an alternate mix) as well as a pair of 1973 recordings from Torrence, Terry Melcher, and Bruce Johnston.  You'll hear nostalgic Dean solo covers of "Teenager in Love," "I Only Have Eyes for You," and "Get a Job" as well as Mike and Dean's recordings of "Lightnin' Strikes," "Alley Oop," and "Her Boyfriend's Back" from the 1983 Japanese compilation Listen to the Air and "Jingle Bell Rock" from the same year's yuletide-themed Listen to the Air: Winter Party on the Beach.  (The former received a U.S. issue from Radio Shack as Rock 'n' Roll City while the latter was released under various titles in the U.S. with track listing tweaks.)  Flo and Eddie join Dean for Jan and Dean's "Ride the Wild Surf" (a Brian Wilson/Dean/Roger Christian co-write) and The Legendary Masked Surfers, too, with "Buy Our Album" and "Order Our Album."  (Done!)

The Teammates features new liner notes from Torrence as well as a Q&A between Torrence and Beard as well as a foreword by Winston Simone.  The CD release arrives in stores on October 14 from Omnivore.

Buck Owens Bakersfield Gold

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The city of Bakersfield is located over 100 miles north of Los Angeles but a very different musical sound was conjured by its artists (even if many of those classic country tracks were recorded in Hollywood!).  The California country capital's favorite son, Buck Owens, has been celebrated by Omnivore on various releases over the last decade including three 2-CD collections collecting the late legend's Complete Capitol Singles 1957-1976.  (The three volumes have also been released as one slipcased, 6-CD de facto box set.)  On September 9, Omnivore will revisit Owens' singles repertoire for a handy distillation.  Bakersfield Gold: Top 10 Hits 1959-1974 brings together 46 songs - all of Owens' top ten smashes, including a whopping nineteen No. 1s - on 2 CDs, 3 LPs, and digitally.

Essentially, this is a comprehensive greatest hits set featuring Owens, his Buckaroos, and associates including Rose Maddox, Susan Raye, and his son Buddy Alan at Capitol Records.  All of the expected Owens favorites are here such as "Act Naturally," "I've Got a Tiger by the Tail," "My Heart Skips a Beat," "I Don't Care (Just as Long as You Love Me)," "Who's Gonna Mow Your Grass," and "Only You (Can Break My Heart)" as well as more surprising selections such as covers of "Johnny B. Goode" and "Bridge Over Troubled Water."

Bakersfield Gold boasts new liner notes from Owens historian Randy Poe.  A special gold vinyl edition will be available exclusively through independent retailers.  Look for this collection of twangy, rip-roaring honky-tonk country from one of the all-time greats on October 7 from Omnivore.

You'll find track listings and pre-order links for both titles below.

Dean Torrence and Friends, The Teammates: Twenty Years of Making Music 1965-1985 (Omnivore, 2022) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

  1. Buy Our Album - The Legendary Masked Surfers
  2. Summertime, Summertime - Our Gang
  3. The Theme From Leon's Garage - Our Gang
  4. Louisiana Man (With Session Intro) - Jan & Dean
  5. Snowflakes On Laughing Gravy's Whiskers - The Laughing Gravy
  6. Vegetables (Alternate Mix) - The Laughing Gravy
  7. Moving Day - Locksley Hall
  8. It's A Beautiful Day - Hogfat Cantina Singers & Bel Air Bandits
  9. Just Keep It Up - Terry Melcher, Bruce Johnston, Dean Torrence
  10. Love Lace - Terry Melcher, Bruce Johnston, Dean Torrence
  11. A Teenager In Love - Dean Torrence
  12. I Only Have Eyes For You - Dean Torrence
  13. Get A Job - Dean Torrence
  14. One Summer Night - Dean Torrence
  15. Dead Man's Curve (Dr. Landy Version) - Dean Torrence
  16. Be True To Your Bud (Budweiser Fight Song) - Mike & Dean
  17. Lightnin' Strikes - Mike & Dean
  18. Her Boyfriend's Back - Mike & Dean
  19. Alley Oop - Mike & Dean
  20. Jingle Bell Rock - Mike & Dean
  21. Ride The Wild Surf - Flo & Eddie with Dean Torrence
  22. Order Our Album - The Legendary Masked Surfers
  23. Fun, Fun, Fun (Commercial) - Mike & Dean

Buck Owens and The Buckaroos, Bakersfield Gold: Top 10 Hits 1959-1974 (Omnivore, 2022) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1

  1. Under Your Spell Again
  2. Above And Beyond
  3. Excuse Me (I Think I've Got A Heartache)
  4. Foolin' Around
  5. Loose Talk - Buck Owens & Rose Maddox
  6. Mental Cruelty - Buck Owens & Rose Maddox
  7. Under The Influence Of Love
  8. Kickin' Our Hearts Around
  9. You're For Me
  10. Act Naturally
  11. Love's Gonna Live Here
  12. My Heart Skips A Beat
  13. Together Again
  14. I Don't Care (Just As Long As You Love Me)
  15. I've Got A Tiger By The Tail
  16. Before You Go
  17. Only You (Can Break My Heart)
  18. Gonna Have Love
  19. Buckaroo
  20. Waitin' In Your Welfare Line
  21. Think Of Me
  22. Open Up Your Heart
  23. Where Does The Good Times Go
  24. Sam's Place

CD 2

  1. Your Tender Loving Care
  2. It Takes People Like You (To Make People Like Me)
  3. How Long Will My Baby Be Gone
  4. Sweet Rosie Jones
  5. Let The World Keep On A Turnin' - Buck Owens & Buddy Alan
  6. I've Got You On My Mind Again
  7. Who's Gonna Mow Your Grass
  8. Johnny B. Goode
  9. Tall Dark Stranger
  10. Big In Vegas
  11. The Kansas City Song
  12. The Great White Horse - Buck Owens & Susan Raye
  13. I Wouldn't Live In New York City (If They Gave Me The Whole Dang Town)
  14. Bridge Over Troubled Water
  15. Ruby (Are You Mad)
  16. Rollin' In My Sweet Baby's Arms
  17. I'll Still Be Waiting For You
  18. Made In Japan
  19. Big Game Hunter
  20. On The Cover Of The Music City News
  21. (It's A) Monsters' Holiday
  22. Great Expectations

Categories: News Formats: CD, Digital Download, Digital Streaming, Vinyl Genre: Country, Pop Tags: Bruce Johnston, Buck Owens, Dean Torrence, Flo and Eddie, Jan and Dean, Mike Love, Terry Melcher

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Joe Marchese

JOE MARCHESE (Editor) joined The Second Disc shortly after its launch in early 2010, and has since penned daily news and reviews about classic music of all genres. In 2015, Joe formed the Second Disc Records label. Celebrating the great songwriters, producers and artists who created the sound of American popular song, Second Disc Records, in conjunction with Real Gone Music, has released newly-curated collections produced by Joe from iconic artists such as Johnny Mathis, Bobby Darin, Laura Nyro, Melissa Manchester, Chet Atkins, and many others. He has contributed liner notes to reissues from a diverse array of artists, among them Nat "King" Cole, Paul Williams, Lesley Gore, Dusty Springfield, B.J. Thomas, The 5th Dimension, Burt Bacharach, The Mamas and the Papas, Carpenters, Perry Como, Rod McKuen, Doris Day, Jackie DeShannon, and Andy Williams, and has compiled releases for talents including Robert Goulet and Keith Allison of Paul Revere and the Raiders. Over the past two decades, Joe has also worked in a variety of capacities on and off Broadway as well as at some of the premier theatres in the U.S., including Lincoln Center Theater, George Street Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, and the York Theatre Company. He has felt privileged to work on productions alongside artists such as the late Jack Klugman, Eli Wallach, Arthur Laurents, Betty Comden and Adolph Green. In 2009, Joe began contributing theatre and music reviews to the print publication The Sondheim Review, and in 2012, he joined the staff of The Digital Bits as a regular contributor writing about film and television on DVD and Blu-ray. Joe currently resides in the suburbs of New York City.

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Comments

  1. Galley says

    October 1, 2022 at 4:53 am

    I have all three volumes of the Complete Capitol Singles collections, but may pick up this, as well.

    Reply

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