905 The Bobby Fuller Four “I Fought the Law” 1966

“Imagine that the British Invasion of the US never happened, that the Beatles’ three-night stand on The Ed Sullivan Show never aired, and that American popular music in the 1960s developed on its own, without the introduction of a viral strain from across the Atlantic. What might it have sounded like? Maybe the answer lies in the music of Bobby Fuller, self-styled ‘Rock’n’Roll King of the Southwest’, who died on 18 July 1966, aged 23, in mysterious circumstances. Throughout the early 60s—working variously as a songwriter, performer, producer, label-owner and impresario—Fuller carved out a unique sound, blending southern styles and drawing heavily on the stripped-down, raw, heart-on-sleeve rock’n’roll of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and Eddie Cochran. To those elements he added vocal harmonies styled on the Everly Brothers and searing blasts of surf guitar and garage rock fuzz bass. It was a purely American music—one that didn’t acknowledge the Beatles or other British bands then making an impact in America…Randy Fuller recalls that his brother liked to say the Beatles would ‘never be able to do Buddy Holly like Buddy Holly because they’re not from Texas’” (Chris Campion, The Guardian, 16 July 2015). 

The Bobby Fuller Four “I Fought the Law”

904 The Fugs “Kill for Peace” 1966

“The Fugs, led by Ed Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg, made protest an ecstatic, sarcastic comedy (‘Kill for Peace’ was their hit), bridging the gap between Beats and hippies, creating a template later followed by Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman. At the Bridge Theater, at 4 St. Marks Place, on August 7, 1965, a little more than a week after Lyndon Johnson sent 50,000 more troops to Vietnam, the Fugs held a ‘Night of Napalm.’ After their set, in what they termed the ‘new Fug spaghetti death,’ they pelted each other and their audience with spaghetti. ‘I spotted Andy Warhol in the front row,’ Sanders once wrote. ‘It appeared that he was wearing a leather tiethen blap! I got him full face with a glop of spaghetti’” (New York, March 2014). 

The Fugs “Kill for Peace”

903 The Four Tops “Standing in the Shadows of Love” 1966

“The Four Tops are a one-in-a-million. They were the best in my neighborhood in Detroit when I was growing up. When I was eleven or so, my first group was an early version of what would become the Miracles. Back then the Four Tops were called the Four Aims. We all used to sing on the corners, at school functions and at house parties. Sometimes we'd have talent competitions. But all the groups in the neighborhood knew that if the Four Aims were going to be there, you were going to be singing for second place at best. They were the first group from the neighborhood that sang modern harmony: They could sing like a gospel group but then do R&B like no one else. I love singers whom you can identify the first second they open their mouth, and Levi Stubbs is one of those; he's one of the greatest of all time. He has that distinctive voice, and his range is staggering. The combination of Levi, Obie Benson, Duke Fakir and Lawrence Payton was truly awesome” (Smokey Robinson, Gregory Machess, Rolling Stone, 21 April 2005). 

The Four Tops “Standing in the Shadows of Love”

902 The Four Tops “Reach Out, I’ll Be There” 1966

Lamont Dozier (songwriter): “Back in ’66, we were listening to a lot to Bob Dylan. He was the poet then, and we were inspired by his talk-singing style on ‘Like a Rolling Stone.’ Dylan was something else—a guy we looked up to. We loved the complexity of his lyrics and how he spoke the lines in some places and sang them in others. We wanted Levi [Levi Stubbs, lead singer] to shout-sing the lyrics to ‘Reach Out’—as a shout-out to Dylan” (Marc Myers, Anatomy of a Song, 2016). 

The Four Tops “Reach Out, I’ll Be There”

901 The Four Seasons “Working My Way Back to You” 1966

“Their success has been attributed to the strong falsetto and three-octave range of Valli, the group’s tight doo-wop harmonies, the songwriting skill of pianist Bob Gaudio, and excellent production. Their recording career spans five decades; the Four Seasons is the only group to have at least one hit in so many consecutive decades…With sales over 100 million records worldwide, they are the most successful white doo-wop group in rock and roll history” (Roger Wesby, Encyclopedia of New Jersey, 2004).

The Four Seasons “Working My Way Back to You”