"So You Want To Be A Rock 'n' Roll Star" #29 3/4/1967

A rather cynical view of the music business from the Byrds. Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman were poking fun at how manufactured rock groups like the Monkees had achieved overnight success. The screaming crowd was from a 1965 show the Byrds did in England. The trumpet solo is by South African musician Hugh Masakela, who later had an instrumental hit with "Grazing In The Grass."

"You Got To Me" #18 3/4/1967

The third Top 20 effort for Neil Diamond. By now, he was fairly well established as a songwriter. Neil attended New York University on a fencing scholarship - he was a member of their 1960 NCAA championship team - and was a pre-med major, but discovered a few years earlier at summer camp he'd rather write songs for a living. He dropped out of college to pursue music, and I think he made the right career choice.

"It Takes Two" #14 3/4/1967

Marvin Gaye had a number of duets over the years with Mary Wells, Diana Ross, and most notably with Tammi Terrell. Here's a Top 5 R&B duet he did with Kim Weston and co-written by her then-husband Mickey Stevenson, who helped put together the Funk Brothers, the house band at Motown. Kim and Mickey had already left the label in a dispute over her royalties by the time this was released as a single.

"Ruby Tuesday" #1 3/4/1967

Who could hang a name on you? Yes, this was the song that inspired the name of the restaurant chain. It's supposedly about an ex-girlfriend of Keith Richards. She'd taken up with Jimi Hendrix, and Keith was concerned about the drug-fueled path she was on. Oh, the irony. It was a B-side but became the hit when US radio stations shied away from the A-side due to its content. That will appear in this space in a few days.

"Pushin' Too Hard" #36 2/25/1967

The only Top 40 record for the Seeds, a Southern California band that was credited with coining the term "flower power." This was a simple two-chord tune that helped bring about the punk rock movement of the 70's and 80's, although it could be considered more 60's acid rock or garage rock than anything else. One of those records that became far more popular in later years than at the time it was released. Lead singer Sky Saxon was a rather intriguing dude. Google him sometime.

"Indescribably Blue" #33 2/25/1967

An extreme rarity in the mid-60's Elvis catalog, an A-side not from a movie soundtrack or years-old LP. It came from several sessions that eventually produced a gospel album. This was the first time the Imperials quartet recorded with Elvis, who were with him until 1971; I think they are still active in Christian music. The Jordanaires appear as well. One that just doesn't get played on the radio.

"Go Where You Wanna Go" #16 2/25/1967

The first of 20 Top 40 appearances for the 5th Dimension was a cover of the first record by the Mamas and the Papas. The difference was that the 5th Dimension got into the Top 20, whereas the Mamas and the Papas version did absolutely nothing; the next release, "California Dreamin' " would be their breakthrough single. Video is from a "Bandstand"-type syndicated show called "Shebang!" hosted by Casey Kasem and (I believe) taped at KTLA in Los Angeles. Love the 60's fashion sense!