Three years ago, Cherry Red's Grapefruit imprint saluted the career of singer and songwriter John Carter ("Beach Baby," "Little Bit o' Soul," "Can't You Hear My Heartbeat," "Winchester Cathedral") on the 4CD set My World Fell Down: The John Carter Story. Now, the label is turning to one of Carter's studio outfits, The Flower Pot Men, for the comprehensive, new 3CD collection Midsummer Dreaming: An Anthology 1967-1970.  Naturally, the set opens with "Let's Go to San Francisco," the Summer of Love homage written and produced by Carter and Ken Lewis which went to the top five on the U.K. Singles Chart.  But, as this set reveals, there's so much more to Carter and Lewis' Flower Pot Men.

1967's "Let's Go to San Francisco" indulged Englishmen Carter and Lewis' love of The Beach Boys, trading the Hawthorne, California family band's Southern California milieu for a Bay Area state of mind.  As David Wells' liner notes for this set explain, John Carter's career can essentially be split into three key phases: the beat years with The Ivy League, the psych-pop era, and the mid-'70s comeback with The First Class and "Beach Baby."  The Flower Pot Men fit squarely into that second period, even as the studio group's style evolved from the harmony-drenched Brian Wilson pastiche of "Let's Go to San Francisco."  (The First Class was anthologized by Grapefruit, too, on Beach Baby: The Complete Recordings in 2023.)  This collection brings under one roof everything recorded under the group moniker along with other John Carter studio creations in the same vein.  A number of previously unreleased recordings also premiere here.

It's no surprise that Carter and Lewis turned to an American style for The Flower Pot Men.  Their Ivy League tune "My World Fell Down" had soared to new heights - musically, if not commercially - with Brian Wilson pal Gary Usher's production for Sagittarius, and "Little Bit o' Soul' had transcended its origins with Coventry's The Little Darlings to become a No. 2 U.S. hit for The Music Explosion.  Carter admits in Wells' liner notes that "Let's Go to San Francisco" was inspired more by reading about the sound of American psych-pop than actually hearing it.  That proved to be no matter; the epic, two-part track with its intricate harmonies, twisting melody lines, and hip Mellotron accents beautifully evoked the Southern California psych sound.  Despite initially denying it in the U.K. press, Carter sang lead on the track with Lewis on backing vocals alongside ubiquitous studio voice Tony Burrows (First Class, Edison Lighthouse, White Plains).  Burrows would eventually go out on the road with a new version of the band sans Carter and Lewis.

Midsummer Dreaming spreads the Flower Pot Men's four Deram singles on the first and third CDs (including "Let's Go to San Francisco" in both mono and stereo).  While acid-tinged follow-up "A Walk in the Sky" was similarly psychedelic, the next spring's release of "Man Without a Woman" found Carter and Lewis navigating the post-Summer of Love by turning to mainstream pop.  The final 45 credit to the group, "In a Moment of Madness," was the work not of Carter and Lewis but of Rogers Cook and Greenaway.  Before long, The Flower Pot Men would morph into White Plains, with the "Cookaway" team penning "My Baby Loves Lovin'" and scoring an international hit.

Various bits of Flower Pot Men-related ephemera fill out Discs 1 and 3 including the spellbinding "Mythological Sunday" in two versions - one with John Carter's vocals, and one with Tony Burrows'.  It was originally credited, simply to Friends, but featured most of the same team that played on "Let's Go to San Francisco."  One of the oddities is "E=MC2/Musha Hada," from an abortive Carter/Lewis-penned musical, Seasons, which would have followed a group of hippies through the four seasons of the year.  (David Wells reveals that more Seasons demos exist but haven't yet been issued.  West End and Broadway star Elaine Paige, who sings backgrounds on "E=MC2," sang lead on some of the other demos.)  A clutch of delightful BBC sessions rounds out the first disc which give a taste of The Flower Pot Men's live show via such covers as The Mamas and the Papas' "California Dreamin'," Simon and Garfunkel's "Flowers Never Bend with the Rainfall," and The Beach Boys' "Don't Worry Baby."

The second disc of this collection spotlights two Flower Pot Men albums recorded with musicians including John Ford (bass), Richard Hudson (percussion/sitar), and Mickey Keen (guitar).  Carter handled lead vocals as well as playing guitar.  Ken Lewis, on piano and vocals, and Peter Barnfather on piano, guitar, and vocals, were key contributors to the 1969 album Peace but added background vocals only to 1970's Past Imperfect.  These albums (which first saw full release in 2000) are particularly fascinating as they lean heavily into the psych-pop style of the group's first two singles.  As John explains here, "Ken and I decided to do [a psychedelic concept album] ourselves but the touring Flower Pot Men lineup - Tony Burrows, Neil Landon, Rob Shaw, and Peter Nelson - wanted to carry on with a more commercial style.  So they decided to sign directly to Decca and change their name to White Plains, who went on to have several hits."  Among the previously unreleased cuts here are "I Think I'll Be Leaving Tonight," sung by Tony Burrows with Carter on backgrounds, and the Mellotron-flecked "Land of Love."

Midsummer Dreaming is housed in an eight-panel digipak and includes a 24-page booklet with photos and memorabilia accompanying the essay.  Simon Murphy has mastered all tracks for this collection.  This set makes an ideal soundtrack to the summer - of Love or otherwise.  It's available now at the links below from Cherry Red and Grapefruit.  As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

The Flower Pot Men, Midsummer Dreaming: An Anthology 1967-1970 (Cherry Red/Grapefruit CRSEG157T, 2025) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1

1. Let's Go to San Francisco (Part 1 & 2) (Mono) (Deram single DM 142, 1967)
2. Mythological Sunday (John Carter Lead)
3. A Walk in the Sky (Deram single DM 160, 1967)
4. Blow Away (previously released on Let's Go to San Francisco, Teldec 6.26179, 1985)
5. Say Goodbye to Yesterday (previously released on Midsummer Dreaming, Tenth Planet TP 051, 2001)
6. Now and Then (previously released on A Walk in the Sky, RPM 229, 2001)
7. Cooks of Cake and Kindness (previously released on A Walk in the Sky, RPM 229, 2001)
8. Children of Tomorrow (previously released on A Walk in the Sky, RPM 229, 2001)
9. Mythological Sunday (Tony Burrows Lead) - Friends (Deram single DM 198, 1968)
10. Midsummer Dreaming - John Carter and Russ Alquist (Spark single SRL 1017, 1968)

BBC Sessions (1967)

11. Let's Go to San Francisco (Part 1 & 2) (Stereo)
12. E=MC2/Musha Hada
13. Let's Go to San Francisco
14. California Dreamin'
15. Flowers Never Bend with the Rainfall
16. Don't Worry, Baby
17. A Walk in the Sky

CD 2

Peace (recorded 1968-1969)

1. Prologue
2. These Heavy Times
3. Mythological Sunday
4. Colours
5. Blow Away
6. Cooks of Cake and Kindness
7. Gotta Be Free
8. Heaven Knows When
9. White Dove
10. Epilogue

Past Imperfect (recorded 1970)

11. Now and Then
12. Say Goodbye to Yesterday
13. Memories of Tomorrow
14. Autumn Love
15. Morning Prayer
16. Blues
17. I Am Me
18. Journey's End
19. All I Have Is You
20. Brave New World
21. Children of Tomorrow

All tracks from Repertoire REP 4883, 2000

CD 3

1. The Laughing Man - John Carter and Russ Alquist (Spark single SRL 1017, 1968)
2. Light (previously released on Midsummer Dreaming, Tenth Planet TP 051, 2001)
3. Magic People (first released 2002)
4. In the Sky (first released 2002)
5. Conversations (In a Station Light Refreshment Bar) (previously released on Measure for Measure: The John Carter Anthology, RPM D268, 2003)
6. A Letter to Josephine - The Haystack (United Artists single UP 35024, 1969)
7. Tahiti Farewell - The Haystack (United Artists single UP 35035, 1969)
8. Pantomime People - The Haystack (United Artists single UP 35035, 1969)
9. A Night to Be Remembered - Dawn Chorus (MCA single MK 5004, 1969)
10. Goodbye to Rosalie (previously released on My World Fell Down: The John Carter Story, Grapefruit CRSEG108X, 2022)
11. Sunday in the Park (previously released on My World Fell Down: The John Carter Story, Grapefruit CRSEG108X, 2022)
12. Going Round and Round (previously released on My World Fell Down: The John Carter Story, Grapefruit CRSEG108X, 2022)
13. Life Is Living (previously released on My World Fell Down: The John Carter Story, Grapefruit CRSEG108X, 2022)
14. Roberto Billow (previously released on Men from the Ministry/Midsummer Nights' Dreaming, RPM D297, 2005)
15. When I Was Born (previously released on Men from the Ministry/Midsummer Nights' Dreaming, RPM D297, 2005)
16. Rain, Rain, Rain (John Carter Lead Vocal) (previously released on Men from the Ministry/ Midsummer Nights' Dreaming, RPM D297, 2005)
17. Going Nowhere (*)
18. I Think I'll Be Leaving Tonight (Tony Burrows Lead) (*)
19. Land of Love (*)
20. Take Me Along (*)
21. Lady of the Blue Lagoon (*)
22. Am I Losing You (Deram single DM 160, 1967)
23. Man Without a Woman (Deram single DM 183, 1968)
24. You Can Never Be Wrong (Deram single DM 183, 1968)
25. In a Moment of Madness (Deram single DM 248, 1969)
26. Young Birds Fly (Deram single DM 248, 1969)