The Fun and Games
Band members Related acts
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line-up 1 (1966-68) - Joe Dugan --
vocals, keyboards
- Paul Guille -- lead guitar |
- The Baroque Brothers (Roger " Rock" Romano) - Herschel Berry And The Natives (Roger " Rock" Romano) - Janis Carbone And The Glow-Coats (Joe Ramoano) - Doctor Rocket (Rock Romano) - Duck Soup (Sam
Irwin and Roger "Rock" Romano) - The
Sheetrockers (Roger " Rock" Romano)
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Genre: pop Rating: *** (3 stars) Title: Elephant Candy Company: Uni Catalog: 73042 Year: 1968 State/Country: Houston, Texas Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: small punch hole top right corner Available: 1 Catalog ID: not listed yet Price: $45.00
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Originally known as The Fun and Games Commission, this short-lived Houston, Texas based outfit featured the talents of keyboardist Joe Dugan, drummer Carson Graham, guitarist Paul Guille, woodwind player Sam Irwin, bassist Joe Romano, and singer/guitarist Rock Romano. Gillet, Irwin and Rock Romero had previously been in the Houston-based The Sixpentz. A contract with Walt Andrus' Houston, Texas-based Cinema Records saw the band make their recording debut with an instantly obscure single:
- 1966's 'It Must Have Been the Wind' b/w 'Holding Me Back' (Cinema catalog number C-9-A / B)
While their debut went nowhere, it caught the attention of Bob Shad's Mainstream Records which financed a second single:
- 1967's 'Today-Tomorrow' b/w 'Someone Must Have Lied To
You' (Mainstream catalog number 671)
Having caught the attention and support of
songwriter/producer Gary Zekley, the band signed with MCA's Uni subsidiary.
Having opted to abbreviate their name to The Fun and Games, they made their
label debut with 1968's "Elephant Candy."
The album cemented their partnersh
1.) Sadie (Gary Zekley - Mitchell Bottler) - 2:37 rating: *** stars The
first couple of times I heard 'Sadie' I pretty much detested the song.
It seemed rather tuneless, vapid and overly commercial. It's still
vapid and overly commercial, but I have come to appreciate the tune's Beach
Boys-styled vocal harmonies. A classic, if overlooked slice of bubblegum pop ... How could you not fall in love with the bouncy melody and the lyrics which seemingly name-checked a host of then popular pop hits (Beatles, John Fred & HIs Playboys, The Strawberry Alarm Clock) . Wonder if they got some sort of award for the highest number of "la-la-las" on a single ...
- 1968's 'The Grooviest Girl In the
World' b/w "It Must Have Been the Wind" (Uni catalog number 55098)
# 78 Billboard pop charts The
sweet ballad 'Close To Carmel' offered up a
glorious slice of sunshine pop that simply screamed summer-of-love to my
ears. It's always reminded me of something The Free Design might have
recorded. I've always wondered if Joe Dugan was playing an early
synthesizer, or a harpsichord on the track. Hum,
I think we need a California-sounding song on the album ... As a big
harpsichord fan this one's love-song-to-California vibe had me from Joe
Dugan's opening chords. Admittedly it wasn't one of the album
highlights, but it's certainly an era timepiece. Imagine an also-ran
Association-styled ballad. Louis
Cabaza's orchestration did nothing to help the sappy ballad 'Tuesday,
Tuesday.' This could easily have been a Jimmy Webb effort. Not
hard to imagine them playying this on the Merv Griffin talk show. (side 2) 1.) Gotta Say Goodbye (Gary Zekley - Mitchell Bottler) - 2:02 rating; ** stars Complete with beach sound effects, 'Gotta Say Goodbye' was another vapid and forgettable ballad. Guess that's why it was tapped as the third and final 45:
- 1968's 'Gotta Say Goodbye' b/w 'We' (Uni catalog number 55128)
There's
nothing wrong deciding to cover a classic Beach Boys song, but when you add
nothing of consequence to the effort, what's the point? Extra star
given the source material was such a classic song. Another slice of bubblegum, the title track could have easily fit on any of the late-'60s albums produced by Jerry Kasenetz and Jeff Katz (think 1910 Fruitgum Company, The Archies, The Ohio Express, etc.). The track was tapped as the album's second single:
- 1968's 'Elephant
Candy' b/w 'The Way She Smiles' (Uni catalog number 55086)
4.) Something I Wrote (Joe Romano) - 2:47 rating: **** stars The
first of two originals, 'Something I Wrote' was a "cute" pop tune
with a bouncy, slightly psychedelic melody and some suitably "happenin'"
instrumentation - coral electric sitar? One of the album
highlights and would have made a better single than the ones Uni released. 'The Way She Smiles' was easily the album's standout performance and the only track to showcase guitarist Paul Guille. Great folk-rockish melody; wonderful Association-styled harmonies and a bit of edge that was missing from the rest of the album. Why didn't Uni ask the band for more original material?
Unhappy with Zekley's management and Uni's support, conflicts reached a zenith when Uni dithered on whether to release the band's cover of Harry Nilsson's 'One' as a single. By the time they agreed to go with the single, Three Dog Night had released their version, scoring a major hit. The Fun and Games version was promptly shelved. Frustrated with Uni, the band called it quits within a couple of months.
Only 67, Joe Romano passed away from cancer in August 2017.
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with Zekley who in addition to producing the album, co-wrote seven out of
the eleven tracks. Musically the set was a curiosity. Heavy on Zekley
material the album didn't really give the band a chance to showcase their
own identifies. There were only two band originals on the collection
and Los Angeles studio pros apparently recorded at least portions of the
collection. Clearly under pressure to showcase a commercial sound the
collection featured a mixture of bubblegum ('The Grooviest Girl In the World'),
sunshine pop ('Close To Carmel') and sappy,
radio-ready ballads ('Gotta Say Goodbye').
Irwin served a lead singer and on material such as 'Sadie,' 'Close To
Carmel' and the title track he displayed a nice and commercial voice.
Perhaps a little too tame for their own good 'Topanga Canyon Road',
the highly orchestrated ballad 'Tuesday, Tuesday' and a nauseating cover of The Beach Boys'
'Don't
Worry Baby' pushed them too far towards a bland set of MOR pop. Imagine The
Association after a couple of beers and you've pretty much captured their
act. Ironically, the two originals Something I Wrote
and The Way She Smiles were among the best efforts. Uni should have
given the members an opportunity to showcase more original material.
