LOST TREASURES
ELMER GANTRY’S VELVET OPERA
“Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera”
By Peter Marston
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Albums burdened with the label “lost classic” are typically period pieces, even if they are remarkable creative achievements. But the self-titled debut from Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera is decidedly not. The first time I heard the record—played by a DJ before a local show—I was immediately struck by how wonderful the music was and began to guess at who it might be: The Cato Salsa Experience? The Makers? A Supergrass side project? When I finally asked the DJ, I found I was forty years off. It was, indeed, Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera, released in 1968.
Now, I must admit that when I finally tracked down the album myself, not all the tracks were as timeless as the ones I had heard that night, but as a whole, it was certainly years ahead of its time. It is inexplicable why Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera was not as successful or as influential as their contemporaries such as Pink Floyd and Tomorrow. Even Blossom Toes are much better known.
Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera was originally Five Proud Walkers, a Coventry band who played standard British interpretations of American R&B. Sgt. Pepper, of course, changed everything and the band turned in a decidedly psychedelic direction. Lead singer Dave Terry began wearing preacher’s garb and adopted the name Elmer Gantry after the lead character in Sinclair Lewis’ novel of the same name (though the entire image was taken primarily from the 1960 film adaptation of the novel). Bassist and songwriter John Ford (who had left the Five Proud Walkers for Jaymes Fender and the Vulcans) rejoined the band and, along with Terry/Gantry, provided most of the band’s original material.
After recording a demo with Mickie Most, Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera was signed by Direction and went into the studio to record their first single (and best-known song), “Flames.” The song did not quite make the charts, but was reportedly covered by Led Zeppelin in their first live performances. Shortly thereafter, the self-titled Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera was released. It failed to chart as well.
The album opens with the brief, but utterly compelling “Intro,” a kick-ass rave-up name-checking the members of the band and introducing the second track, “Mother Writes,” a terrific blend of psychedelia and music hall supported by thunderous bass and drums reminiscent of late 60s Who. “Mary Jane” joins a Brit-pop verse with a trippy and very fluid psychedelic chorus that somehow sets up each return to the verse perfectly. The only cover on the album, “I Was Cool” is a clever and playful character study in bohemia that presages and precedes Tom Waits—whose style it strongly evokes—by nearly two decades. Not quite a novelty song, it is nonetheless quite funny. “Air” is a sitar-drenched raga with a lovely melody, and although the production is not nearly as impressive, the overall effect is just as engaging as “Within and Without You” or “The Inner Light.” The highlight of the record is the aforementioned “Flames.” Built on a 4/4 beat that manages to evoke both Motown and Social Distortion, “Flames” features a simple but contagious melody and perhaps the finest vocal performance on the album. It is by all measures a classic. “Long Nights of Summer” and “Reaction of a Young Man” are more lyrical tracks that evoke the late 60s work of Honeybus, the Peep Show and Mike D’Abo. “Now She’s Gone” is a very strong closer: a dark brooding verse running into a sweeping Zombies-meets-Beach Boys chorus. The remaining tracks, though extremely accomplished, are somewhat more dated psychedelia—“Walter Sly Meet Bill Bailey” is a mash-up of a freak-out with a brief reading of “Won’t You Come Home, Bill Bailey?”
After the release of Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera, the band quickly began to disintegrate. Guitarist Colin Forster left first, quickly followed by Terry/Gantry himself. Trimming the name to Velvet Opera, the band soldiered on and released a second album, Ride a Hustler’s Dream, in 1969. Shortly thereafter, Ford and drummer Richard Hudson went on to greater success after joining the Strawbs. Terry dropped the Gantry act and went on to perform in the British cast of Hair and sing with both Stretch and the Alan Parsons Project. (Terry was also the frontman in a notorious 1974 tour of a band purporting to be Fleetwood Mac, with no members of the more famous band involved. Manager Clifford Davis sought to excuse the shenanigans by claiming to own the name “Fleetwood Mac,” though litigation quickly put the entire affair to rest.)
Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera was recently reissued by on CD by Grapefruit (a subsidiary of Cherry Red), featuring eleven bonus tracks, some of which are essential. It certainly deserves a place in any self-respecting psych or pop record collection.
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Pop Pioneer and “Lost Treasures” writer, Peter Marston is the leader of long-running power pop band, Shplang, whose most recent album, “My Big Three Wheeler” has been described as “the Beatles meet Zappa in pop-psych Sumo match.” You check it out at this link: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/shplang
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LINKS:
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elmer_Gantry%27s_Velvet_Opera
AllMusicGuide: http://www.allmusic.com/album/elmer-gantrys-velvet-opera-mw0000263215
ProgArchives post: http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2503
Marmlade Skies: http://www.marmalade-skies.co.uk/elmer.htm
VIDEOS:
“FLAMES”
“MARY JANE”
“AIR”
