What a name to conjure with. The Human Expression. There must have been a hundred ways they imagined subjects for their songs back in 1966 when these 4 guys formed in Orange County, California.
And just to compound that idea the original 'B' side of their first single was called "Readin' Your Will".
No, surely they couldn't have written something about actually reading your will.
Well they did and guess what it was later dropped as such by the record company.
This original piece of lyric writing was actually a cautionary tale about a friend who indulged in too much illicit sex and drugs.
So, a little preaching going on here to the hedonistic lifestylers of the 60's.
What a vocal delivery it is too. Definitely 11 on the garage rock sneer meter.
By 1967 the band had evolved from the garage rock and now rather than condemning the drug culture that there friend had participated in on "Readin' Your Will" they were now thoroughly embracing the psychedelic experience with the single "Optical Sound". That being a tale where the singer is collecting his thoughts after a drug experience. How times have changed in only a year.
The rarity of the single on original vinyl today would have then kept their stash topped for the rest of 60's with a recent sale going on Ebay for $2,300.
The continuing slow sales of their records might have explained why the manager, and also one of the members Dads (aagh.. never do it), brought demos of two songs by then-unknown songwriter Mars Bonfire, with the band rejecting one of the songs that then went on to be Steppenwolf's monster hit "Born to be Wild,"
"Doh!"
It just wasn't mean to be. The Human Condition was over.
Here is the raw garage rock of "Readin' Your Will" and below that the psychedelic "Optical Sound".
