Label: Beacon
Year of Release: 1968
This particular 45 has been a largely overlooked effort in the mad rush there's been to seemingly compile every sixties pop single with vague psychedelic leanings on to CD. Whilst some real filler has worked its way on to the digital format, "From Now The Sun Shines" has had to make do with some very obscure placings on limited run (possibly bootleg?) issues.
Whilst I wouldn't want to rush forward and try to make case for this being up there with "SF Sorrow is Born" or "Piper at the Gates of Dawn" in terms of quality, it's something you would hope somebody would have found a bit more space for. It has the high tempo, propelling, pounding quality of a Joe Meek production, whilst adding the kind of fairy dust and sunshine lyrics typical of the late sixties era, complete with fantastic vocal harmonies. It's nigh on impossible to sit still while it spins, and it's a thing of confidence and quaint old catchiness.
Almost unbelievably, Sons and Lovers are still very much active and have their own website. Book them for a wedding, bar mitzvah or birthday and you can boast that you had your very own Rubbles-styled band playing at your bash. Not quite, though - members Spike Cowlard and Phillip Wright went on much greater success with Paper Lace in the seventies, managing a very sizable hit single with "Billy Don't Be A Hero", and I'd imagine most of your guests would probably be demanding that stuff. The band issued a run of singles on the independent Beacon label in the late sixties, and excerpts from most of these can be heard on their site.
2 comments:
Spike is an original member of Sons and Lovers as is Michael Maltby and not linked to Paper Lace! They should be credited with this single along with the other members of the band at the time and not Phil...Phil Wright only joined the band when Sons and Lovers reformed and his connection was as the drummer in Paper Lace. Can't imagine why anyone would want to keep listening to 'Billy Don't Be a Hero'..it was a poor record when it was first released and should have been put in the bin and left there...sorry my opinion! There was some quality music from Sons and Lovers back in the day and this was only one example of their releases! They are still performing with a new line up and I saw them last night in Toton...great night, good music and the place was packed! Well done lads just keep that music coming!
Thanks for the corrections, DT - I will try to work these in to the body of the main entry soon.
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