The Left Banke
Band members Related acts
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line
up 1 (1964-)
George Cameron (guitar, drums, vocals), Tom Finn (bass, vocals, 1965–69, 1971-72, 1978, 2011-12), Steve Martin (lead vocals, guitar, 1965-69, 1971-72, 1978, 2015-present), Michael Brown (keyboards, vocals, 1965-67, 1969, 1971-72, 1978), Warren David-Schierhorst (drums, 1965), Jeff Winfield (guitar, vocals, 1965-67), Richard Brand (guitar, vocals, 1967), Tom Feher (keyboards, vocals, 1968-69) line up 1 (1964-) - Rick Brand --
guitar, banjo, mandolin (replaced Jeff Winfield) (1967-)
line up 3 (1978) - George Cameron -- drums, percussion, backing vocals - Tom Finn (RIP) -- vocals, bass, guitar - Steve Martin -- vocals, guitar
supporting musicians (1978) - Michael Brown -- keyboards, synthesizers - Charlie Cazalet --bass
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- The
Beckies (Mike Brown) - Tom Feher (solo
efforts) - The Outsiders (Charlie Cazalet) - The Tony Roman Cinq (Charlie Cazalet) - The Silver Byke (Charlie Cazalet) - Bert Sommer
(solo efforts)
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Genre: pop Rating: **** (4 stars) Title: Walk Away Renee/Pretty Ballerina Company: Smash Catalog: SRS 67088 Year: 1967 Country/State: New York, New York Grade (cover/record): VG / VG Comments: -- Available: 1 Catalog ID: not yet listed Price: $25.00 Cost: $1.00
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Michael Lookofsky (aka Michael Brown) began his professional musical career
working as a keyboard player and assistant at his father's New York based
World United s
Braced by their initial success, in early 1967 the group returned to the
studio to record the sound-alike follow-up single 'Pretty
Ballerina' b/w 'Lazy Day' (Smash catalog number 2074). Like it's predecessor, the single
became a top-40 hit. As was then normal marketing practice, hoping to
capitalize on their initial successes, the group was rushed into the studio
to record a supporting album. Unfortunately, with the exception of Brown,
who was a classically trained keyboardist (and who had written most of the
band's material), none of the other members had any musical training. As a
result, they found themselves with very little to do in the recording
process. Relegated to the sidelines, most of 1967's cleverly titled
"Walk Away Renee/Pretty Ballerina" was played by studio musicians
including guitarist Hugh McCracken and drummer Al Rogers. Adding insult to
injury, producer/manager Lookofsky booted guitarist Winfield, replacing him
with former Spyders guitarist Rick Brand. Still, in contrast to most quickie
albums, the collection proved a sterling debut. While hastily recorded with minimal investment and
in the midst of a personnel upheaval which saw guitarist Winfield replaced
by Rick Brand; Brown's sweet voice and uncanny commercial instincts (he
wrote or co-wrote all but one track) carried the day. Exemplified by
material such as 'I've Got Something On My Mind', 'Let Go of
You' and 'I Haven't Got the Nerve' the album featured a
highly enjoyable blend of top-40 pop and more ornate instrumentation.
Labeled 'baroque' by the press (thanks to their use of harpsichords and
classical influenced string arrangements), the album made for one of the
year's freshest and most enjoyable debuts. Elsewhere, the feedback propelled
'Lazy Day' stood as the collection's oddest offering.
Inexplicably, in spite of two top-20 singles, the set could do no better
than # 67. Adding to the band's problems, shortly after the album's release a
frustrated Brown quit to pursue solo interests (see separate entries).
1.) Pretty Ballerina (Michael Brown) - 2:35
1.) Walk Away
Renee (Michael Brown - B. Calilli - T. Sansone) - 2:42
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Genre: pop Rating: **** (4 stars) Title: The Left Banke Too Company: Smash Catalog: SRS 67113 Year: 1968 Country/State: New York, NY Grade (cover/record): VG / VG Comments: minor ring wear Available: 1 Catalog ID: not yet listed Price: $80.00 Cost: $40.00
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With Brown unwilling to tour, the band effectively splintered into two factions. Having had the foresight to retain rights to the 'Left Banke' name, Brown promptly recruited vocalist Bert Sommer, returning to the studio to record new material including the single 'Ivy Ivy' b/w 'And Suddenly' (Smash catalog number 2089). The single was immediately greeted by the other band members with threats of a lawsuit. In the meantime, fearing legal ramifications, radio stations simply refused to play any Left Banke material. With the rest of the band terminating their management arrangement with Lookofsky, a brief reconciliation with Brown resulted in the singles 'She May Call You Up Tonight' b/w 'Barterers and Wives' (Smash catalog number 2097) and 'Desiree' b/w 'I've Got Something On My Mind' (Smash catalog number 2119).
With the singles bombing, the reconciliation quickly
fell apart.
- 1968's 'Goodbye Holly' b/w 'Sing Little Bird Sing' (Smash catalog number 2198) - 1968's 'Give the Man a Hand' b/w 'Bryant Hotel' (Smash catalog number Smash 2209) - 1969's 'Nice to See You' b/w 'There's Gonna Be a Storm' (Smash catalog number 2226)
The album failed to sell and within a couple of months the group
was dropped from Smash's recording rooster. They struggled on for several
months, playing small venues and clubs, before finally calling it quits at
the end of the year. 1.) Goodbye Holly
(Tom Feher) - 2:42
1.) Bryant Hotel
(Tom Feher) - 3:22 Over the next two years the band tried several comebacks. With Brown and Martin reuniting, the 1969 single 'Myrah' b/w 'Pedestal' (Smash catalog number 2243) went nowhere. Similarly, 1971 saw the reunited original lineup release the single 'Love Songs In the Night' (though it was inexplicably credited as a Martin solo effort). Again the results vanished without a trace; Brown then reappearing as a member of Stories and The Beckies (see separate entries).
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Genre: pop Rating: **** (4 stars) Title: The History of The Left Banke Company: Rhino Catalog: RNLP-123 Year: 1985 Country/State: New York, NY Grade (cover/record): VG / VG Comments: included biographical insert Available: SOLD Catalog ID: SOLD Price: SOLD
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As far as compilations go 1985's "The History of the Left Banke" wasn't bad, though to be perfectly accurate it wasn't a true Left Banke efforts since it included a couple of post-Left Banke numbers. The radio hits were here, as were some interesting 'B' sides, odds and ends ('Pedestal'), and the post-Left Banke material, including a pair of excellent Steve Martin solo tracks ('Love Songs In the Night' and ' Two By Two'), and two Stories selections ('I'm Coming Home' and 'Brother Louie').
"The History of the Left Banke" track listing:
1.) Walk Away Renee (Michael Brown - B. Calilli - T. Sansone) - 2:40 2.) Pretty Ballerina
(Michael Brown) - 2:32 5.) Desiree (Michael Brown - Tom Feher) - 2:39 6.) Goodbye Holly (Tom Feher) - 2:47 7.) Foggy Waterfall (Kaye - Koupersmith) - 5:10
(side 2) 1.) Love Songs In the Night (Michael Brown) - 2:08 2.) Two By Two (Michael Brown) - 3:02 3.) Myrah (Michael Brown - Steve Martin) - 3:18 4.) Pedestal (Kaye - Koupersmith) - 3:44 5.) And Suddenly (Michael Brown - Bert Sommer) - 2:-07 6.) I'm Coming Home (Michael Brown - Lloyd) - 2:37 7.) Brother Louie (E. Brown - Tony White) - 3:55
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Genre: pop Rating: *** (3 stars) Title: Strangers On a Train Company: Relix Catalog: RRLP 2021 Year: 1988 Country/State: New York, NY Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+ Comments: -- Available: 1 Catalog ID: -- Price: $40.00
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Ten years after the release of "The Left Bake Too" the original Left Banke band line-up of Michael Brown, George Cameron, Tim Finn and Steve Martin regrouped to start work on their third studio album. After recording a couple of tracks the always volatile Brown quit, leaving the other three to continue the sessions with help from bassist Charlie Cazalat and producer Les Fradkin. While it was billed as a Left Banke reunion, without Brown's participating, the Left Banke tag was questionable.
Still in the demo phase and under pressure to show they were still a commercial presence, the band agreed to float a single. The problem was the tune was a non-original that none of the members liked:
- 1978's 'Queen of Paradise' b/w 'And One Day' (Camerica catalog number CS 0005)
When the single bombed, the trio decided to shelve the album and the reunion fell apart. Eight years later the Grateful Dead affiliated Relix label acquired rights to the master tapes. Released as "Strangers On a Train" in the States, throughout the rest of the world the album carried the title "Voices Calling" (Bam Caruso catalog number KIRI 045). Along with different cover art the non-US release sported a modified track order.
Against that backdrop you'd expect this project to be an unmitigated disaster. While it failed to hit the Baroque-pop heights of the first two Left Banke albums, I'd tag it a valiant try. demonstrated by the group-penned 'You Say' these guys clearly had the raw talent to do great things, but you got the feeling they were under-capitalized and lacked a clear vision for the project. First the obvious topic. With the possible exception of the Tom Finn ballad 'Lorraine' and the Beatle-esque 'I Can Fly' nothing here mimicked the unique sound the group initially conjured up. Of course that was never more than a pipe dream. These sessions took place a decade after "Left Banke Too" was released. Instead the end result was ten songs that were mostly unfinished demos. Musically they bounced all over the musical spectrum. The earlier single 'Queen of Paradise' represented the band at their worst - in this case exploring disco. Elsewhere there were far too many ballads with tracks like 'Lorraine' and 'Only My Opinion' failing to make any long term impact. The closer 'Yesterday's Gone' could have been mistaken for a Badfinger tune, while 'Heartbreaker' showed they'd been listing to late-'70s AOR. That left a couple of decent power-pop tunes in the form of 'Hold On Tight' and 'You Say'. I actually stumbled across something the late Tom Finn had written on YouTube that was the perfect summation for the album:
['Strangers On a Train'] turned out to be the title track for our 3rd LP. This album, with the exception of 'And One Day', 'You Say' 'Queen of Paradise' - they were all demos. 'Queen of Paradise' was done with a gun to our heads. Our backer insisted we do it. So, that means, an album of 11 songs, 8 songs were demos. Done in local studios with a staff producer from our backer - publisher Victor Benedetto of CAM-USA. Anyway, with all due respect, I must say, Damn! With a group like us, there should have been a producer like ...... Alan Parsons
Ah, another case of what might have been.
"Strangers On a Train" track listing:
1.) Hold On Tight (Tom Finn) - 2:45 rating: **** stars The good news if 'Hold On Tight' was a bright slice of power-pop. Catchy and fun, the echoey refrain was super catchy. The downside is the song sounded nothing like classic Left Banke. I'll leave it up to you to decide how you feel about it. I liked it. 2.) Heartbreaker (Steve Martin - Tom Finn) - 3:29 rating: **** stars Sporting a gorgeous melody and some lovely harmony vocals, 'Heartbreaker' came a little closer to the patented Left Banke sound, had the band continued on as a '80s AOR outfit. I guess that's a little tough ... This wasn't exactly Journey, or REO corporate rock. Steve Martin turned in an awesome guitar solo. 3.) Lorraine (Tom Finn) - 3:03 rating: ** stars Finn's ballad was a bit precious and sharp, not helped by the needless over-orchestration. 4.) You Say (Steve Martin - Tom Finn - George Cameron) - 2:51 rating: **** stars One of three group compositions, 'You Say' was a gorgeous ballad showcasing Martin's lovely voice and the trio's sweet vocal harmonies. My opinion, it was one of the performances that came the closest to capturing the old Left Banke vulnerabilities. Its the track I would have tapped as a single. 5.) And One Day (Steve Martin - Tom Finn - George Cameron) - 3:22 rating: *** stars Clearly ballads were their stock and trade and while 'And One Day' was nice, but at this point the album would have benefited from a change in direction. The one thing it had going for it was a tasty slide guitar solo. The song was tapped as a British single:
- 1986's 'And One Day' b/w 'I Can Fly' (Bam Caruso catalog number NRIC 041)
(side 2) 1.) Queen of Paradise (Shade Smith) - 2:57 rating: ** stars 'Queen of Paradise' was written and recorded by the New Zealand band The Rumour, Who knows how The Left Banke members stumbled across the song, but their version sounded almost identical to the original. Not to be overly critical, but having released it back in 1978 as a "teaser" single, the song's disco-tinged sound probably went a long way to explaining why it flopped as a single. The song wasn't horrible but it lacked a rhythm that was catchy enough to please dancers, while original Left Banke fans were likely appalled by the group's apparent sell out move. 2.) Only My Opinion (Tom Finn) - 4:30 rating: ** stars 'Only My Opinion' could easily have made it onto a country-rock album. Matter of fact, it would not have sounded out of place on a mid-career Eagles album. Yeah, that probably wasn't a good thing. 3.) Strangers On a Train (Tom Finn) - 4:20 rating: *** stars The title track was a mess, unable to decided whether it wanted to be a power ballad, or a slice of power-pop. The end result was neither. For his part Finn seemed to think he could power his way through the song and bring it all together. Didn't happen. 4.) I Can Fly (Tom Finn) - 4:10 rating: **** stars 'I Can Fly' was another track that vaguely recalled past glories with more than a touch of Beatles influences running through it. 5.) Yesterday's Love (Steve Martin - Tom Finn - George Cameron) - 3:50 rating: *** stars The third and final group composition, 'Yesterday's Love' could easily have been mistaken for a Badfinger tune.
Sadly The Left Banke is one of those bands with a high mortality rate. In this ase 100% of the original line-up is gone,.
- Michael Brown died in March 2015. - George Cameron died in June 2018 - Steve Martin passed in January 2020 - Having been in poor health for several years, Tom Finn died in June 2020.
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tudios. The job brought him into contact with engineering
assistant Steve Martin, former Morticians drummer George Cameron and former
Magic Plants bassist Tim Finn. Discovering a mutual love of popular music
and harboring fantasies of becoming the next Beatles; the quartet began
hanging around the studio, working on a mix of popular covers and original
material. Brown's father producer Harry Lookofsky, took an interest in
Martin's voice and the boys' ability to harmonize, eventually deciding to
record some of their material. The band's breakthrough came when they
recorded the song 'Walk Away Renee'. Written by a lovesick Brown,
then lusting over Finn's girlfriend, the song featured an arresting
harpsichord solo and Martin's borderline cloying vocals. Originally shopped
around to dozens of companies, none expressed an interest in the song.
Luckily for the band, having produced the song at his own expense, Lookofsky
persisted in his efforts to market the song, eventually convinced Mercury's
Smash subsidiary to pick up distribution rights. Released as a single, (b/w
'I Haven't Got the Nerve' Smash catalog number 2041) the
track became a sudden and unexpected hit, cresting at # 5, turning the group
into overnight stars.
