31st of February
Band members Related acts
- Scott Boyer --
vocals, guitar (1968-69)
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- Duane and
Gregg Allman David
Brown and Butch Trucks) Butch Trucks)
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Genre: psych Rating: **** (4 stars) Title: 31st of February Company: Vanguard Catalog: VSD-6503 Year: 1969 Country/State: Jacksonville, Florida Grade (cover/record): VG+ / VG+ Comments: minor edge and corner wear Available: SOLD Catalog ID: SOLD Price: SOLD $120.00 Cost: $1.00
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It's kind of sad and outright erroneous that when this short-lived outfit is mentioned by collectors, it tends to be as little more than a footnote in a conversation that focuses on The Allman Brothers Band. That's made even more ironic by the fact that while Duane and Greg Allman contributed material to the The 31st of February's planned second LP, they were never formal members of this outfit. That tentative connection to the Allmans also overlooks the band's considerable talent, to say nothing of the members subsequent successes - Scott Boyer going on to the band Cowboy. David Brown serving as bass player for Santana. And yes, yes, Butch Trucks played drums for The Allman Brothers Band ...
- 1967's 'Hands Are Only To See' b/w 'Baby Blue' (ACP catalog number 380)
That 'success' led Boyer to drop out of school with The Bitter Ind subsequnelty morphing into The Tiffany System. Under the new name the trio started their recording careers with an instantly obscure single for the Florida-based Minaret label:
- 1968's 'Let's Get Together' b/w 'Wayward One' (Minaret catalog number MIN-128).
While the single did little commercially, by 1968 the trio had generated a large following in their native Jacksonville, Florida. Opting for yet another name change they relocating to Miami and as The 31st of February (anyone know the significance?), signed a recording contract with the Vanguard Records.
Co-produced by Steve Alaimo and Mike Shapiro, 1969's "The 31st of February" has always struck me as an undiscovered gem. Performed with considerable enthusiasm, the collection was varied and energetic. Boyer had a great voice, that occasionally reminded me of a more commercial Greg Allman, perfectly suited for the band's excursions into Byrds-styled folk-rock ('Porcelain Mirrors' and 'A Different Kind of Head'), progressive ('Treason') and psyche ('A Nickel's Worth of Benny's Help'). Elsewhere, the standout tracks may have been Brown's stomping 'Wrong' and the trio's ghostly cover of Buffy Sainte Marie's 'Co'dine'. Among the few missteps; Brown's 'Broken Day' was a little too sensitive singer/songwriter, while the band's cover of Jackie DeShannon's 'The Greener Isle' (good taste in outside material), came off as MOR (blame Shelby SIngleton's overwhelming string arrangement). Unfortunately, the set generated little in the way of sales.
Vanguard also tapped the album for a single in the form of:
- 1969's 'Sandcastles' b/w 'Pick a Gripe' (Vanguard catalog number VSR 35066)
Highly recommended !!!
(I'm not saving this just to sell the LP
(that's due to the fact I have two copies), but this is one of those set's I
pull out to hear on a regular basis.) 1.) Sandcastles
(Dan Penn - Spooner Oldham - Chips Moman) - 2:55 (side 2) 1.) A Different
Kind of Head (David Brown) - 2:46
There was also a second, non-LP single which subsequently made an appearance on a posthumous album entitled "Duane & Greg Allman":
- 1969's 'In the Morning When I'm Real' b/w 'Porcelain Mirrors' (VSR 35087)
With an assist from Duane and Greg Allman, the trio regrouped recording material for a projected sophomore LP. Unfortunately, internal disagreements saw the band fold in 1969 at which time the tapes were shelved. Drummer Trucks joined the newly formed Allman Brothers Band and following Duane Allman's untimely 1971 death, the Florida based Bold label acquired the tapes and released the material as a Duane and Greg Allman album.
Bold catalog number 33-301
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