The Association
Encyclopedia
The Association is a pop music
band from California
in the folk rock
or soft rock
genre. During the 1960s, they had numerous hits at or near the top of the Billboard charts
and were the lead-off band at 1967's Monterey Pop Festival
. , they are still performing.
) was in Hawaii in 1962 serving a stint in the Navy when he met Terry Kirkman
(born December 12, 1939, Salina, Kansas
), a visiting salesman. The two young musicians jammed together and promised to get together once Alexander was discharged. That happened a year later; the two eventually moved to Los Angeles
and began exploring the city's music scene in the mid-1960s. (Kirkman played in groups with Frank Zappa
for a time before Zappa went on to form The Mothers of Invention
). Eventually, at a Monday night hootenanny at the LA nightclub The Troubadour, in 1964, an ad hoc group called The Inner Tubes was formed by Terry, Jules and Doug Dillard, whose rotating membership contained, at one time or another, Cass Elliot
, David Crosby
and many others who drifted in and out. This led, in 1965, to the forming of The Men, a 13 piece folk-rock band. This group had a brief spell as the house band at The Troubadour.
After a short time, however, The Men disbanded, with six of the members electing to go out on their own (some of the remaining players continued on as Tony Mafia's Men, one of the others, Mike Whalen
, joined The New Christy Minstrels). At the suggestion of Kirkman's then-fiancée, Judy, they took the name The Association. The original lineup consisted of Alexander (using his middle name, Gary, on the first 2 albums) on vocals and lead guitar; Kirkman on vocals and a variety of wind, brass and percussion instruments; Brian Cole
(born September 8, 1942, Tacoma, Washington
) on vocals, bass and woodwinds; Russ Giguere (born October 18, 1943, Portsmouth, New Hampshire
) on vocals, percussion and guitar; Ted Bluechel, Jr (born December 2, 1942, San Pedro, California) on drums, guitar, bass and vocals; and Bob Page (born May 13, 1943) on guitar, banjo and vocals. However, Page was replaced by Jim Yester (born November 24, 1939, Birmingham, Alabama
) on vocals, guitar, and keyboards before any of the group's public performances.
The new band spent about five months rehearsing before they began performing around the Los Angeles area, most notably a regular stint at The Ice House in Pasadena
and its sister club in Glendale
. They also auditioned for record labels but faced resistance due to their unique sound. Eventually, the small Jubilee label issued a single of "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You
" (a song originally recorded by Joan Baez
, later popularized by Led Zeppelin
) but nothing happened. Finally, Valiant Records
gave them a contract, with the first result being a version of Bob Dylan
's "One Too Many Mornings
".
The Men were first managed by Doug Weston
, owner of the Troubador, before switching to actor Dean Fredericks, who remained onboard when the Association was formed and helped get them the Valiant deal. In 1966 Fredericks turned the reins over to Pat Colecchio, who managed the group for the next eight years.
", written by Tandyn Almer
. Alexander first heard the song when he was hired to play on a demo version and persuaded Almer to give The Association first crack at it. The recording went to #7 on the Billboard
charts, and led to the group's first album, And Then... Along Comes the Association
, produced by Curt Boettcher
. A song from the album, "Cherish
", written by Kirkman, would become The Association's first #1 in September 1966.
The group followed with their second album, Renaissance
, released in early 1967. Somewhat surprisingly, the band changed producers, dumping Boettcher in favor of Jerry Yester
(brother of Jim and formerly of The Modern Folk Quartet
). The album did not spawn any major hits (the highest charting single, "Pandora's Golden Heebie Jeebies" stalled at #35) and the album only reached #34, compared with a #5 showing for its predecessor.
, which had been distributing Valiant, bought the smaller label (and with it, The Association's contract). In 1967, Jules Alexander left the band to study meditation in India and was replaced by Larry Ramos (born Hilario Ramos on April 19, 1942, Waimea, Kauai, Hawaii) on vocals and guitar. Ramos had previously performed with The New Christy Minstrels and recorded solo singles for Columbia Records
. He would later sing co-lead (along with Russ Giguere and Terry Kirkman) on two of The Association's biggest hit singles, "Windy
" and "Never My Love
".
With the lineup settled, the group returned to the studio, this time with Bones Howe
in the producer's chair. The first fruits of this pairing would be the single "Windy
" written by Ruthann Friedman
, topping the Hot 100 in July 1967 and preceded by the album Insight Out, which reached #8 in June. On June 16, 1967, The Association had the unique honor of being the first act to perform at the Monterey Pop Festival
. (The Criterion Collection DVD of the festival includes their performance of "Along Comes Mary" on disc 3.)
The group's winning streak continued with their next single, "Never My Love
", written by Don and Dick Addrisi; it went to #2 in Billboard and #1 in Cash Box in October 1967. It became the group's only double-sided charted record as its B-side, "Requiem For The Masses", made a brief showing on the Billboard chart. Like "Cherish" and "One Too Many Mornings", "Never My Love" had a vocal arrangement that was provided by Clark Burroughs, a former member of the Hi-Los.
"Never My Love" has been accredited by BMI as the song with the second most US airplay in the 20th century.
After rejecting the recording of an entire cantata written by Jimmy Webb
, which included the song "MacArthur Park
", the group, in early 1968, produced its fourth album, Birthday, with Bones Howe again at the controls. This album spawned "Everything That Touches You", the group's last Hot 100 top 10 hit, and the more experimental "Time for Livin'", the group's last Hot 100 top 40 hit. Later that year, the group released a self-produced single, the harder-edged "Six Man Band". This song would also appear on Greatest Hits
, released in November.
, the film version of Philip Roth
's best-selling novel. The title track, written by Yester, rose to #80. John Boylan, one third of the unknown Hamilton Streetcar, and who would become one of the most important record producers of the '70s and '80s, worked with the group on the soundtrack and stayed on board for the next album, The Association. Not surprisingly, many of the tracks have a decidedly country-rock feel. None of the singles made any impact, so the group re-teamed with Curt Boettcher for a one-off single, "Just About the Same", a reworking of a song Boettcher had recorded with his group, The Millennium
. This failed to hit as well.
Despite all this, the band remained a popular concert draw and on April 3, 1970, a Salt Lake City performance was recorded for The Association Live
. In 1971 Russ Giguere left the band; he would release a solo album, Hexagram 16, that same year. The Association replaced him with keyboardist/singer Richard Thompson (no relation to the English singer-songwriter, guitarist), who had contributed to previous albums and would go on to be known primarily in jazz circles. 1971 also saw the release of Stop Your Motor
. Despite some good tracks (notably a cover of Jimmy Webb
's "P.F. Sloan" with Brian Cole imitating Roy Rogers
in the bargain), the album was their worst selling to date, reaching only #158 on the Billboard chart.
Stop Your Motor also marked the end of The Association's tenure at Warner Bros. In early 1972, they resurfaced on Columbia with Waterbeds in Trinidad!
, produced by Lewis Merenstein
(best known for producing Van Morrison
's Astral Weeks
). The album fared even worse than Stop Your Motor, reaching #194, while a single of The Lovin' Spoonful
's "Darlin' Be Home Soon" failed to break the Hot 100.
At the end of 1972, Kirkman departed, as did Meltz and Berkowitz. The group was then moved over to the CBS distributed Mums label (which had been formed by Bobby Roberts
, formerly of Dunhill Records
) and put out a new single "Names, Tags, Numbers & Labels". It failed to make much of an impression, though, and Mums folded by the end of 1974.
Thompson left at the beginning of 1973 and the remaining foursome of Alexander, Bluechel, Yester & Ramos brought in new members Maurice Miller (vocals, drums, percussion), Art Johnson (vocals, guitar) and David Vaught (vocals, bass, and later a member of the Lopez Beatles) and continued touring. Jim Yester was briefly replaced by his brother Jerry later this same year, only to return in 1974. When Jules Alexander left soon after to join Russ Giguere in a new vocal outfit, Bijou, Jerry again came in to play with the group until the end of that year.
1975 saw the band now on RCA and they put out another single, "One Sunday Morning". An album called The Association Bites Back was to follow but never got released. Membership was a bit fluid in 1975-1976. Dwayne Smith (vocals, keyboards) joined and appeared on the above single but was replaced by Andy Chapin
by the end of 1975. Ramos departed as well in mid-1975 replaced by Larry Brown (vocals, guitar), who came in for three years. Art Johnson stayed onboard for a short while longer but was likewise gone by the end of 1975. The increased tour schedule led to Chapin's departure in 1976. (He later played for artist Rick Nelson and perished along with Nelson and his band when his plane crashed on December 31, 1985.) Chapin was replaced, first by Jay Gruska, who had just finished a stint with Three Dog Night
, and then by David Morgan in mid-1976.
During this period the band was offered a production deal with Mike Curb who wanted them to record a disco version of the prior hits, "Cherish", "No Fair At All" and an original song which Larry Brown wrote and sang entitled "It's High Time To Get High". Reportedly, Curb was dissatisfied with the drum tracks and wanted to bring in session drummer Jim Gordon
to play and the band refused, sinking the deal.
In 1978 Brown left to concentrate on session work and was replaced by Cliff Woolley. But the prime gigs were fewer and far between by this time and Yester left leaving Bluechel as the only original member. Keyboard man Ric Ulsky stepped in at this point and the group had two keyboardists for a short time. Russ Levine (who had played with Bobby Womack
, Donna Summer
and Ultimate Spinach
) also arrived to replace Miller on drums. But the band then dissolved shortly afterwards, leaving Bluechel with a huge debt. To help clear away some of it, on November 1, 1978, he leased the group's name to another company who put a fake Association out on the road.
In 1979 the surviving key members: Terry Kirkman, Jules Alexander, Russ Giguere, Ted Bluechel, Jim Yester & Larry Ramos, along with Richard Thompson and new bassist Joe Lamanno, reunited at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles
for an HBO special called Then and Now (Kirkman was working for HBO at the time) and a charity show hosted by Ed McMahon
called Ed McMahon and Company. This led, in the early '80s, to a few singles on Elektra Records
(one of which, "Dreamer", made the Hot 100 with virtually no promotion) and more touring.
In 1980 the originals(with Ric Ulsky returning in place of Thompson and Jules taking over the bass) went back on the road for a concert tour. With the genuine article back out touring, the bogus band was eventually put out of business.
Jim Yester left again in 1983 and the group added Keith Moret(bass, backing vocals) as Alexander went back to playing guitar. Moret only stayed briefly until Joe Lamanno returned in 1984. That same year the group was invited to appear on the Happy Together Again tour, a multi-bill of 60s acts produced by David Fishof
, headlined by the Turtles, and also including Gary Puckett and Spanky McFarlane of Spanky & Our Gang. Gary's brother, Brian Puckett, played drums in the show for Gary and Spanky and likewise joined the Association for their set as well. But by the end of the year, there was a mass exodus as Kirkman, Bluechel, Ulsky, Lamanno, and Brian Puckett all departed.
In 1985 the band carried on as Alexander, Giguere, and Ramos recruited new members: Paul Beach (vocals, bass, who'd also played in the Happy Together Again show band), Bruce Pictor (vocals, drums, percussion) and Donni Gougeon (vocals, keyboards). Gougeon was briefly replaced in 1986 by Chris Urmston, but was back by the following year. Paul Holland took Gougeon's place in 1988 before moving over to bass in 1989 when Beach quit. Gougeon then rejoined for a ten year stint 1989–1999, succeeded by Bob Werner, who had been the band's light man and road manager in 1974-75 and fill-in member, as needed, from 1994 on. Jules Alexander turned in his notice in early 1989. Larry Ramos's brother Del, who was doing sound for the group, then began adding his voice to the mix from that point on. Eventually, he was promoted to full onstage membership as bassist for the group.
During the 1980s & 1990s the group's recorded output was minimal. They recorded a few new tracks and some covers of popular 60s songs for a few compilation albums on the Hitbound label made through Radio Shack
's Tandy Corporation
in the mid-80s, re-recorded some of their older material for another album, Vintage, for CBS
in 1983 and put out another album full of cover tunes, The Association '95: A Little Bit More, in 1995. But most of what has been released from the 80s on have been various collections of their hits.
In September 2003, they were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame
, joined by former members Yester, Alexander, Kirkman and Bluechel at the induction ceremony at Cafaro Field, a Cleveland Indians
Minor League Baseball Stadium in Niles, Ohio
. Yester, Alexander, Kirkman, and Bluechel again rejoined the others for the taping of a PBS 60s rock music special 60s Experience on December 9, 2004 at Dover Downs
Showroom in Dover, DE.
By 2010, the band included Russ Giguere, Larry Ramos, Jim Yester (who rejoined again in 2007 as Bob Werner departed after an eight year stint), Del Ramos, Bruce Pictor, and Jordan Cole (son of Brian) on keyboards, who joined in 1999. The Association continued to tour, mostly on bills with similar styled acts of the late 1960s, like The Grass Roots
, The Buckinghams
, Tommy James
of Tommy James and the Shondells, and Gary Puckett. During the summer of 2011, The Association appeared in a heavy touring schedule throughout the U.S. as part of the "Happy Together: 2011" tour, along with The Grass Roots
, Mark Lindsay
, The Buckinghams
, and The Turtles
featuring Flo & Eddie
.
: "Cherish
", "Windy
", and "Never My Love
".
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
band from California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in the folk rock
Folk rock
Folk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
or soft rock
Soft rock
Soft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock music to compose a softer, more toned-down sound. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships. The genre tends to make heavy use of acoustic guitars, pianos, synthesizers and sometimes...
genre. During the 1960s, they had numerous hits at or near the top of the Billboard charts
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
and were the lead-off band at 1967's Monterey Pop Festival
Monterey Pop Festival
The Monterey International Pop Music Festival was a three-day concert event held June 16 to June 18, 1967 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California...
. , they are still performing.
Beginnings
Jules Alexander (born September 25, 1943, Chattanooga, TennesseeChattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in the US state of Tennessee , with a population of 169,887. It is the seat of Hamilton County...
) was in Hawaii in 1962 serving a stint in the Navy when he met Terry Kirkman
Terry Kirkman
Terry Kirkman, in Salina, Kansas, U.S., is a musician and writer of the hit songs "Cherish", "Everything That Touches You", and "Six Man Band". He left the band Men in 1962 to become a founding member and sometime leader of the musical group The Association. Kirkman co-wrote some material with...
(born December 12, 1939, Salina, Kansas
Salina, Kansas
Salina is a city in and the county seat of Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 47,707. Located in one of the world's largest wheat-producing areas, Salina is a regional trade center for north-central Kansas...
), a visiting salesman. The two young musicians jammed together and promised to get together once Alexander was discharged. That happened a year later; the two eventually moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and began exploring the city's music scene in the mid-1960s. (Kirkman played in groups with Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
for a time before Zappa went on to form The Mothers of Invention
The Mothers of Invention
The Mothers of Invention were an American band active from 1964 to 1969, and again from 1970 to 1975.They mainly performed works by, and were the original recording group of, US composer and guitarist Frank Zappa , although other members have had the occasional writing credit...
). Eventually, at a Monday night hootenanny at the LA nightclub The Troubadour, in 1964, an ad hoc group called The Inner Tubes was formed by Terry, Jules and Doug Dillard, whose rotating membership contained, at one time or another, Cass Elliot
Cass Elliot
Cass Elliot , born Ellen Naomi Cohen and also known as Mama Cass, was an American singer and member of The Mamas & the Papas. After the group broke up, she released five solo albums. Elliot was found dead in her room in London, England, from an apparent heart attack after two weeks of sold-out...
, David Crosby
David Crosby
David Van Cortlandt Crosby is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of three bands: The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash , and CPR...
and many others who drifted in and out. This led, in 1965, to the forming of The Men, a 13 piece folk-rock band. This group had a brief spell as the house band at The Troubadour.
After a short time, however, The Men disbanded, with six of the members electing to go out on their own (some of the remaining players continued on as Tony Mafia's Men, one of the others, Mike Whalen
Mike Whalen
Mike Whalen is an American athlete and coach. He was a collegiate wrestler and football player at Wesleyan University. He spent six years as the head football coach at Williams College, where he won four consecutive Little Three football championships...
, joined The New Christy Minstrels). At the suggestion of Kirkman's then-fiancée, Judy, they took the name The Association. The original lineup consisted of Alexander (using his middle name, Gary, on the first 2 albums) on vocals and lead guitar; Kirkman on vocals and a variety of wind, brass and percussion instruments; Brian Cole
Brian Cole
Brian Cole was the bass guitar player and one of the founding members of the 1960s folk rock band The Association....
(born September 8, 1942, Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
) on vocals, bass and woodwinds; Russ Giguere (born October 18, 1943, Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire in the United States. It is the largest city but only the fourth-largest community in the county, with a population of 21,233 at the 2010 census...
) on vocals, percussion and guitar; Ted Bluechel, Jr (born December 2, 1942, San Pedro, California) on drums, guitar, bass and vocals; and Bob Page (born May 13, 1943) on guitar, banjo and vocals. However, Page was replaced by Jim Yester (born November 24, 1939, Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
) on vocals, guitar, and keyboards before any of the group's public performances.
The new band spent about five months rehearsing before they began performing around the Los Angeles area, most notably a regular stint at The Ice House in Pasadena
Pasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
and its sister club in Glendale
Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population is 191,719, down from 194,973 at the 2000 census. making it the third largest city in Los Angeles County and the 22nd largest city in the state of California...
. They also auditioned for record labels but faced resistance due to their unique sound. Eventually, the small Jubilee label issued a single of "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You
Babe I'm Gonna Leave You
"Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" is a folk song written by Anne Bredon in the late 1950s. It was recorded by Joan Baez and released on her 1962 album Joan Baez in Concert, Part 1, and also by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, who included it on their 1969 debut album Led Zeppelin...
" (a song originally recorded by Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
, later popularized by Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
) but nothing happened. Finally, Valiant Records
Valiant Records
Valiant Records was an independent record company co-owned by Four Star Television which was sold in 1967 to Warner Bros. Records.Valiant Records was never fully independent, for most of its existence, its distributor was ABC Records before Warners took it over distribution in 1965 and then...
gave them a contract, with the first result being a version of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
's "One Too Many Mornings
One Too Many Mornings
"One Too Many Mornings" is a song by Bob Dylan, released on his third studio album The Times They Are a-Changin in 1964. The chords and vocal melody are in some places very similar to the song "The Times They Are A-Changin'". "One Too Many Mornings" is in the key of C Major and is fingerpicked...
".
The Men were first managed by Doug Weston
Doug Weston
Doug Weston was an American nightclub owner. He established and owned The Troubadour in Los Angeles, California, USA, which in the 1960s and 1970s was particularly responsible for promoting many successful singer-songwriters in the early stages of their careers.Weston founded the club as a coffee...
, owner of the Troubador, before switching to actor Dean Fredericks, who remained onboard when the Association was formed and helped get them the Valiant deal. In 1966 Fredericks turned the reins over to Pat Colecchio, who managed the group for the next eight years.
First success
Their national break would come with the song "Along Comes MaryAlong Comes Mary
"Along Comes Mary" is a song composed by Tandyn Almer, originally recorded in 1966 by The Association, and released on their debut album And Then... Along Comes the Association. It was their first hit and reached number seven on the U.S. charts. It has been covered by several artists, most notably...
", written by Tandyn Almer
Tandyn Almer
Tandyn Almer is a musician, composer, lyricist, and record producer, most famous for writing the song "Along Comes Mary", the 1966 hit by the Association...
. Alexander first heard the song when he was hired to play on a demo version and persuaded Almer to give The Association first crack at it. The recording went to #7 on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
charts, and led to the group's first album, And Then... Along Comes the Association
And Then... Along Comes the Association
-Credits:*Produced by Curt Boettcher for Our Productions*Engineered by Gary Paxton and Pete Romano...
, produced by Curt Boettcher
Curt Boettcher
Curt Boettcher was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer from Wisconsin. His career spanned 1964 to 1983...
. A song from the album, "Cherish
Cherish (The Association song)
"Cherish" is a pop song written by Terry Kirkman and recorded by The Association. Released in 1966, the song reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in September of that year and remained in the top position for three weeks. In Canada, the song also reached number one...
", written by Kirkman, would become The Association's first #1 in September 1966.
The group followed with their second album, Renaissance
Renaissance (The Association album)
-Charts:...
, released in early 1967. Somewhat surprisingly, the band changed producers, dumping Boettcher in favor of Jerry Yester
Jerry Yester
Jerry Yester is an American folk rock musician, record producer, and arranger.Growing up in Burbank, California, Yester formed a duo with brother Jim Yester, the Yester Brothers, and starting playing folk clubs in Los Angeles in 1960...
(brother of Jim and formerly of The Modern Folk Quartet
Modern Folk Quartet
The Modern Folk Quartet recorded two albums of folk revival music in the early 1960s, with an emphasis on group harmonies, and have subsequently re-formed more than once and made further recordings....
). The album did not spawn any major hits (the highest charting single, "Pandora's Golden Heebie Jeebies" stalled at #35) and the album only reached #34, compared with a #5 showing for its predecessor.
Changes
In late 1966 Warner Bros. RecordsWarner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
, which had been distributing Valiant, bought the smaller label (and with it, The Association's contract). In 1967, Jules Alexander left the band to study meditation in India and was replaced by Larry Ramos (born Hilario Ramos on April 19, 1942, Waimea, Kauai, Hawaii) on vocals and guitar. Ramos had previously performed with The New Christy Minstrels and recorded solo singles for Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. He would later sing co-lead (along with Russ Giguere and Terry Kirkman) on two of The Association's biggest hit singles, "Windy
Windy
"Windy" is a pop music song written by Ruthann Friedman and recorded by The Association. Released in 1967, the song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July of that year. Later in 1967, an instrumental version by jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery became his biggest Hot 100 hit when it peaked at...
" and "Never My Love
Never My Love
"Never My Love" is a pop standard written by American siblings Donald and Richard Addrisi and best known from a hit 1967 recording by The Association. The Addrisi Brothers had two Top 40 hits as recording artists, but their biggest success was as the songwriters of "Never My Love"...
".
With the lineup settled, the group returned to the studio, this time with Bones Howe
Bones Howe
Dayton Burr "Bones" Howe is a Grammy-award-winning record producer and recording engineer associated with 1960s and 1970s hits, mostly of the sunshine pop genre, including most of the hits of The 5th Dimension and The Association, as well as music supervision of several films...
in the producer's chair. The first fruits of this pairing would be the single "Windy
Windy
"Windy" is a pop music song written by Ruthann Friedman and recorded by The Association. Released in 1967, the song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July of that year. Later in 1967, an instrumental version by jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery became his biggest Hot 100 hit when it peaked at...
" written by Ruthann Friedman
Ruthann Friedman
Ruthann Friedman is an American folk singer.Born in the Bronx, New York, Friedman spent her formative years in the San Fernando Valley, north of Los Angeles. She started playing guitar at the age of eight while listening to Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger and Josh White. Her first song gained her a...
, topping the Hot 100 in July 1967 and preceded by the album Insight Out, which reached #8 in June. On June 16, 1967, The Association had the unique honor of being the first act to perform at the Monterey Pop Festival
Monterey Pop Festival
The Monterey International Pop Music Festival was a three-day concert event held June 16 to June 18, 1967 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California...
. (The Criterion Collection DVD of the festival includes their performance of "Along Comes Mary" on disc 3.)
The group's winning streak continued with their next single, "Never My Love
Never My Love
"Never My Love" is a pop standard written by American siblings Donald and Richard Addrisi and best known from a hit 1967 recording by The Association. The Addrisi Brothers had two Top 40 hits as recording artists, but their biggest success was as the songwriters of "Never My Love"...
", written by Don and Dick Addrisi; it went to #2 in Billboard and #1 in Cash Box in October 1967. It became the group's only double-sided charted record as its B-side, "Requiem For The Masses", made a brief showing on the Billboard chart. Like "Cherish" and "One Too Many Mornings", "Never My Love" had a vocal arrangement that was provided by Clark Burroughs, a former member of the Hi-Los.
"Never My Love" has been accredited by BMI as the song with the second most US airplay in the 20th century.
After rejecting the recording of an entire cantata written by Jimmy Webb
Jimmy Webb
Jimmy Webb is an American songwriter, composer, and singer. He wrote numerous platinum selling classics, including "Up, Up and Away", "By the Time I Get to Phoenix", "Wichita Lineman", "Galveston", "The Worst That Could Happen", "All I Know", and "MacArthur Park"...
, which included the song "MacArthur Park
MacArthur Park (song)
"MacArthur Park" is a song by Jimmy Webb, originally composed as part of an intended cantata. The song was initially rejected by The Association. Richard Harris was the first to record it, in 1968; the song was subsequently covered by numerous artists. Among the best-known covers are Donna Summer's...
", the group, in early 1968, produced its fourth album, Birthday, with Bones Howe again at the controls. This album spawned "Everything That Touches You", the group's last Hot 100 top 10 hit, and the more experimental "Time for Livin'", the group's last Hot 100 top 40 hit. Later that year, the group released a self-produced single, the harder-edged "Six Man Band". This song would also appear on Greatest Hits
Greatest Hits (The Association album)
Greatest Hits is the first compilation album by The Association, released in 1968 by Warner Bros. Records. The album peaked at #4 on the Billboard 200 album chart. It has sold more than 2 million copies in the U.S. alone, making it the group's biggest seller.The collection combines hit singles...
, released in November.
Comings and goings
In early 1969, Jules Alexander returned to the group, which now made The Association a seven-man band (they acknowledged by changing the title and lyric of "Six-Man Band" to match.) The first project with the seven-piece band was music for the soundtrack of Goodbye, ColumbusGoodbye, Columbus (film)
Goodbye, Columbus is a 1969 American romantic comedy drama film starring Richard Benjamin and Ali MacGraw, directed by Larry Peerce and based on the novella of the same name by Philip Roth...
, the film version of Philip Roth
Philip Roth
Philip Milton Roth is an American novelist. He gained fame with the 1959 novella Goodbye, Columbus, an irreverent and humorous portrait of Jewish-American life that earned him a National Book Award...
's best-selling novel. The title track, written by Yester, rose to #80. John Boylan, one third of the unknown Hamilton Streetcar, and who would become one of the most important record producers of the '70s and '80s, worked with the group on the soundtrack and stayed on board for the next album, The Association. Not surprisingly, many of the tracks have a decidedly country-rock feel. None of the singles made any impact, so the group re-teamed with Curt Boettcher for a one-off single, "Just About the Same", a reworking of a song Boettcher had recorded with his group, The Millennium
The Millennium
The Millennium was an American super group based in California, who were conceived by Curt Boettcher. The group consisted of psychedelic rock musicians, and they incorporated sunshine pop harmonies....
. This failed to hit as well.
Despite all this, the band remained a popular concert draw and on April 3, 1970, a Salt Lake City performance was recorded for The Association Live
The Association Live
The Association Live is the first live album by The Association. The 2 album set was recorded at a concert in Salt Lake City and released by Warner Bros. Records in 1970. This album peaked at #79 on the Billboard 200 album chart.-Track listing:...
. In 1971 Russ Giguere left the band; he would release a solo album, Hexagram 16, that same year. The Association replaced him with keyboardist/singer Richard Thompson (no relation to the English singer-songwriter, guitarist), who had contributed to previous albums and would go on to be known primarily in jazz circles. 1971 also saw the release of Stop Your Motor
Stop Your Motor
Stop Your Motor is the Association's seventh studio album and their final project for Warner Bros. It marked the debut of keyboardist Richard Thompson, replacing original member Russ Giguere....
. Despite some good tracks (notably a cover of Jimmy Webb
Jimmy Webb
Jimmy Webb is an American songwriter, composer, and singer. He wrote numerous platinum selling classics, including "Up, Up and Away", "By the Time I Get to Phoenix", "Wichita Lineman", "Galveston", "The Worst That Could Happen", "All I Know", and "MacArthur Park"...
's "P.F. Sloan" with Brian Cole imitating Roy Rogers
Roy Rogers
Roy Rogers, born Leonard Franklin Slye , was an American singer and cowboy actor, one of the most heavily marketed and merchandised stars of his era, as well as being the namesake of the Roy Rogers Restaurants franchised chain...
in the bargain), the album was their worst selling to date, reaching only #158 on the Billboard chart.
Stop Your Motor also marked the end of The Association's tenure at Warner Bros. In early 1972, they resurfaced on Columbia with Waterbeds in Trinidad!
Waterbeds in Trinidad!
Waterbeds in Trinidad! is the eighth studio album by The Association. This album was the group's only release for Columbia Records as well as their last recorded project of the 1970s. Released in 1972, it was the last album to feature original bassist Brian Cole, who died in August that year...
, produced by Lewis Merenstein
Lewis Merenstein
Lewis Merenstein is most famous as the record producer for the Van Morrison album, Astral Weeks, and as executive producer for Moondance, Morrison's 1970 album.Astral Weeks is listed as #19 on the Rolling Stone Magazine's The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003...
(best known for producing Van Morrison
Van Morrison
Van Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
's Astral Weeks
Astral Weeks
Astral Weeks is the second solo album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, released in November 1968 on Warner Bros. Records. It was Morrison's first album after Warner Bros. had been able to free him from his contract with Bang Records...
). The album fared even worse than Stop Your Motor, reaching #194, while a single of The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful is an American pop rock band of the 1960s, named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. When asked about his band, leader John Sebastian said it sounded like a combination of "Mississippi John Hurt and Chuck Berry," prompting his friend, Fritz Richmond, to suggest the name...
's "Darlin' Be Home Soon" failed to break the Hot 100.
Breakup and reformation
For their 1972 tour, the group expanded to nine members, bringing in session players Wolfgang Meltz and Mike Berkowitz on bass and drums respectively to add more musical versatility on stage and free up Brian Cole and Ted Bluechel to concentrate on singing only. But on August 2, 1972, 29-year-old Cole was found dead in his Los Angeles home of an overdose of heroin. For the rest of the 1970s, The Association was in a state of flux, releasing singles now and then along with sporadic touring.At the end of 1972, Kirkman departed, as did Meltz and Berkowitz. The group was then moved over to the CBS distributed Mums label (which had been formed by Bobby Roberts
Bobby Roberts
Bobby Roberts is a Scottish-born former footballer and manager, who played as a Midfielder.He joined from the Edinburgh Norton junior club, and went on to make almost 100 league appearances for them. He was made player of the year by the supporter's association for 1962. Bobby moved to play in...
, formerly of Dunhill Records
Dunhill Records
Dunhill Records was started by Lou Adler, Al Bennett, Pierre Cossette and Bobby Roberts in 1964 as Dunhill Productions, originally for the purpose of releasing Johnny Rivers recordings on Imperial Records. It became a record label in 1965 and was distributed by ABC Records...
) and put out a new single "Names, Tags, Numbers & Labels". It failed to make much of an impression, though, and Mums folded by the end of 1974.
Thompson left at the beginning of 1973 and the remaining foursome of Alexander, Bluechel, Yester & Ramos brought in new members Maurice Miller (vocals, drums, percussion), Art Johnson (vocals, guitar) and David Vaught (vocals, bass, and later a member of the Lopez Beatles) and continued touring. Jim Yester was briefly replaced by his brother Jerry later this same year, only to return in 1974. When Jules Alexander left soon after to join Russ Giguere in a new vocal outfit, Bijou, Jerry again came in to play with the group until the end of that year.
1975 saw the band now on RCA and they put out another single, "One Sunday Morning". An album called The Association Bites Back was to follow but never got released. Membership was a bit fluid in 1975-1976. Dwayne Smith (vocals, keyboards) joined and appeared on the above single but was replaced by Andy Chapin
Andy Chapin
Andy Chapin was an American keyboardist best known for his short stint with the Ricky Nelson Band, which ended in 1985 when he and his bandmates died after their plane crashed on New Year's Eve in De Kalb, Texas while en route to a performance in Dallas, Texas...
by the end of 1975. Ramos departed as well in mid-1975 replaced by Larry Brown (vocals, guitar), who came in for three years. Art Johnson stayed onboard for a short while longer but was likewise gone by the end of 1975. The increased tour schedule led to Chapin's departure in 1976. (He later played for artist Rick Nelson and perished along with Nelson and his band when his plane crashed on December 31, 1985.) Chapin was replaced, first by Jay Gruska, who had just finished a stint with Three Dog Night
Three Dog Night
Three Dog Night is an American rock band best known for their music from 1968 to 1975. During that time the band charted 21 Billboard top 40 hits in America, three of which reached Number One...
, and then by David Morgan in mid-1976.
During this period the band was offered a production deal with Mike Curb who wanted them to record a disco version of the prior hits, "Cherish", "No Fair At All" and an original song which Larry Brown wrote and sang entitled "It's High Time To Get High". Reportedly, Curb was dissatisfied with the drum tracks and wanted to bring in session drummer Jim Gordon
Jim Gordon (musician)
James Beck "Jim" Gordon is an American recording artist, musician and songwriter. The Grammy Award winner was one of the most requested session drummers in the late 1960s and 1970s, recording albums with many well-known musicians of the time, and was the drummer in the blues-rock supergroup Derek...
to play and the band refused, sinking the deal.
In 1978 Brown left to concentrate on session work and was replaced by Cliff Woolley. But the prime gigs were fewer and far between by this time and Yester left leaving Bluechel as the only original member. Keyboard man Ric Ulsky stepped in at this point and the group had two keyboardists for a short time. Russ Levine (who had played with Bobby Womack
Bobby Womack
Robert Dwayne "Bobby" Womack is an American singer-songwriter and musician. An active recording artist since the early 1960s where he started his career as the lead singer of his family musical group The Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing guitarist, Womack's career has spanned more than 40...
, Donna Summer
Donna Summer
LaDonna Adrian Gaines , known by her stage name, Donna Summer, is an American singer/songwriter who gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Summer is a five-time Grammy winner and was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach...
and Ultimate Spinach
Ultimate Spinach
Ultimate Spinach was a psychedelic/hard rock/blues band originally from Boston. In their '60's heyday they specialized in lengthy songs such as "Ballad of the Hip Death Goddess", from Ultimate Spinach and "Genesis of Beauty", from Behold And See...
) also arrived to replace Miller on drums. But the band then dissolved shortly afterwards, leaving Bluechel with a huge debt. To help clear away some of it, on November 1, 1978, he leased the group's name to another company who put a fake Association out on the road.
In 1979 the surviving key members: Terry Kirkman, Jules Alexander, Russ Giguere, Ted Bluechel, Jim Yester & Larry Ramos, along with Richard Thompson and new bassist Joe Lamanno, reunited at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
for an HBO special called Then and Now (Kirkman was working for HBO at the time) and a charity show hosted by Ed McMahon
Ed McMahon
Edward Peter "Ed" McMahon, Jr. was an American comedian, game show host and announcer. He is most famous for his work on television as Johnny Carson's sidekick and announcer on The Tonight Show from 1962 to 1992. He also hosted the original version of the talent show Star Search from 1983 to 1995...
called Ed McMahon and Company. This led, in the early '80s, to a few singles on Elektra Records
Elektra Records
Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
(one of which, "Dreamer", made the Hot 100 with virtually no promotion) and more touring.
In 1980 the originals(with Ric Ulsky returning in place of Thompson and Jules taking over the bass) went back on the road for a concert tour. With the genuine article back out touring, the bogus band was eventually put out of business.
Jim Yester left again in 1983 and the group added Keith Moret(bass, backing vocals) as Alexander went back to playing guitar. Moret only stayed briefly until Joe Lamanno returned in 1984. That same year the group was invited to appear on the Happy Together Again tour, a multi-bill of 60s acts produced by David Fishof
David Fishof
David Fishof is the founder of Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp. Born in New York City, David began his career representing acts in the Catskill Mountains...
, headlined by the Turtles, and also including Gary Puckett and Spanky McFarlane of Spanky & Our Gang. Gary's brother, Brian Puckett, played drums in the show for Gary and Spanky and likewise joined the Association for their set as well. But by the end of the year, there was a mass exodus as Kirkman, Bluechel, Ulsky, Lamanno, and Brian Puckett all departed.
In 1985 the band carried on as Alexander, Giguere, and Ramos recruited new members: Paul Beach (vocals, bass, who'd also played in the Happy Together Again show band), Bruce Pictor (vocals, drums, percussion) and Donni Gougeon (vocals, keyboards). Gougeon was briefly replaced in 1986 by Chris Urmston, but was back by the following year. Paul Holland took Gougeon's place in 1988 before moving over to bass in 1989 when Beach quit. Gougeon then rejoined for a ten year stint 1989–1999, succeeded by Bob Werner, who had been the band's light man and road manager in 1974-75 and fill-in member, as needed, from 1994 on. Jules Alexander turned in his notice in early 1989. Larry Ramos's brother Del, who was doing sound for the group, then began adding his voice to the mix from that point on. Eventually, he was promoted to full onstage membership as bassist for the group.
During the 1980s & 1990s the group's recorded output was minimal. They recorded a few new tracks and some covers of popular 60s songs for a few compilation albums on the Hitbound label made through Radio Shack
Radio shack
Radio shack is a slang term for a room or structure for housing radio equipment.-History:In the early days of radio, equipment was experimental and home-built. The first radio transmitters used a noisy spark to generate radio waves and were often housed in a garage or shed. When radio was first...
's Tandy Corporation
Tandy Corporation
Tandy Corporation was a family-owned leather goods company based in Fort Worth, Texas. Tandy was founded in 1919 as a leather supply store, and acquired RadioShack in 1963. The Tandy name was dropped in May 2000, when RadioShack Corporation was made the official name.-History:Tandy began in 1919...
in the mid-80s, re-recorded some of their older material for another album, Vintage, for CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
in 1983 and put out another album full of cover tunes, The Association '95: A Little Bit More, in 1995. But most of what has been released from the 80s on have been various collections of their hits.
In September 2003, they were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame
Vocal Group Hall of Fame
The Vocal Group Hall of Fame was organized to honor outstanding vocal groups throughout the world. It is headquartered in Sharon, Pennsylvania, United States. It includes a theater and a museum....
, joined by former members Yester, Alexander, Kirkman and Bluechel at the induction ceremony at Cafaro Field, a Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
Minor League Baseball Stadium in Niles, Ohio
Niles, Ohio
Niles is a city in Trumbull County, Ohio, United States. The city's population was 20,932 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA Metropolitan Statistical Area....
. Yester, Alexander, Kirkman, and Bluechel again rejoined the others for the taping of a PBS 60s rock music special 60s Experience on December 9, 2004 at Dover Downs
Dover Downs
Dover Downs Gaming & Entertainment ownes Dover Downs Hotel & Casino a hotel and casino that has a racing facility that holds harness horse racing on a track and NASCAR events on a concrete surface. The Sprint Cup track is now known as Dover International Speedway, and the Dover Downs name is...
Showroom in Dover, DE.
By 2010, the band included Russ Giguere, Larry Ramos, Jim Yester (who rejoined again in 2007 as Bob Werner departed after an eight year stint), Del Ramos, Bruce Pictor, and Jordan Cole (son of Brian) on keyboards, who joined in 1999. The Association continued to tour, mostly on bills with similar styled acts of the late 1960s, like The Grass Roots
The Grass Roots
The Grass Roots is an American rock band that charted between 1966 and 1975 as the brainchild of songwriting duo P. F. Sloan and Steve Barri.In their career, The Grass Roots achieved two gold albums, one gold single and charted singles a total of 21 times. Among their charting singles, they...
, The Buckinghams
The Buckinghams
The Buckinghams are an American Sunshine Pop band from Chicago, Illinois. They formed in 1966 and went on to become one of the top selling acts of 1967. The band dissolved in 1970 but reformed in 1980 and continue to tour throughout the United States....
, Tommy James
Tommy James
Tommy James is an American pop-rock musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, best known as leader of the 1960s rock band Tommy James and the Shondells.-Early life and career:...
of Tommy James and the Shondells, and Gary Puckett. During the summer of 2011, The Association appeared in a heavy touring schedule throughout the U.S. as part of the "Happy Together: 2011" tour, along with The Grass Roots
The Grass Roots
The Grass Roots is an American rock band that charted between 1966 and 1975 as the brainchild of songwriting duo P. F. Sloan and Steve Barri.In their career, The Grass Roots achieved two gold albums, one gold single and charted singles a total of 21 times. Among their charting singles, they...
, Mark Lindsay
Mark Lindsay
Mark Lindsay is an American musician, best known as the singer for the group Paul Revere & the Raiders.-Biography:Lindsay was born in Eugene, Oregon and was the second of eight children...
, The Buckinghams
The Buckinghams
The Buckinghams are an American Sunshine Pop band from Chicago, Illinois. They formed in 1966 and went on to become one of the top selling acts of 1967. The band dissolved in 1970 but reformed in 1980 and continue to tour throughout the United States....
, and The Turtles
The Turtles
The Turtles are an American rock group led by vocalists Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman. The band became notable for several Top 40 hits beginning with its cover version of Bob Dylan's "It Ain't Me Babe" in 1965...
featuring Flo & Eddie
Flo & Eddie
Flo & Eddie are a comedic musical duo.The two were the original founding members of the Top 40 rock group the Turtles. After the Turtles dissolved, Volman and Kaylan first joined the Mothers of Invention as "Phlorescent Leech & Eddie"...
.
Million sellers
The following songs were certified as having sold over one million copies, and were each awarded a gold discMusic recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
: "Cherish
Cherish (The Association song)
"Cherish" is a pop song written by Terry Kirkman and recorded by The Association. Released in 1966, the song reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in September of that year and remained in the top position for three weeks. In Canada, the song also reached number one...
", "Windy
Windy
"Windy" is a pop music song written by Ruthann Friedman and recorded by The Association. Released in 1967, the song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July of that year. Later in 1967, an instrumental version by jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery became his biggest Hot 100 hit when it peaked at...
", and "Never My Love
Never My Love
"Never My Love" is a pop standard written by American siblings Donald and Richard Addrisi and best known from a hit 1967 recording by The Association. The Addrisi Brothers had two Top 40 hits as recording artists, but their biggest success was as the songwriters of "Never My Love"...
".
Studio albums
- And Then... Along Comes The AssociationAnd Then... Along Comes the Association-Credits:*Produced by Curt Boettcher for Our Productions*Engineered by Gary Paxton and Pete Romano...
- Valiant VLM-5002/VLS-25002 (#5, 1966)
-
- Reissued in 1967 on Warner Bros. W-1702/WS-1702
Renaissance (The Association album)-Charts:...
- Valiant VLM-5004/VLS-25004 (#34 1967) - Reissued in 1967 on Warner Bros. W-1704/WS-1704
- Insight Out - Warner Bros. W-1696/WS-1696 (#8, 1967)
- Birthday - Warner Bros. W-1733/WS-1733 (#23, 1968)
- The Association - Warner Bros. WS-1800 (#32, 1969)
- Stop Your MotorStop Your MotorStop Your Motor is the Association's seventh studio album and their final project for Warner Bros. It marked the debut of keyboardist Richard Thompson, replacing original member Russ Giguere....
- Warner Bros. WS-1927 (1971) - Waterbeds in Trinidad!Waterbeds in Trinidad!Waterbeds in Trinidad! is the eighth studio album by The Association. This album was the group's only release for Columbia Records as well as their last recorded project of the 1970s. Released in 1972, it was the last album to feature original bassist Brian Cole, who died in August that year...
- Columbia KC-31348 (1972) - New Memories - Hitbound Records 51-3022 (1983)
- Vintage - CBS Special Products BT-19223 (1983)
- The Association 95: A Little Bit More - Track Records (1995)
- Reissued in 1967 on Warner Bros. W-1702/WS-1702
Other releases
- Greatest HitsGreatest Hits (The Association album)Greatest Hits is the first compilation album by The Association, released in 1968 by Warner Bros. Records. The album peaked at #4 on the Billboard 200 album chart. It has sold more than 2 million copies in the U.S. alone, making it the group's biggest seller.The collection combines hit singles...
- Warner Bros. WS-1767 (#4, 1968) - Goodbye, Columbus (Soundtrack) - Warner Bros. WS-1786 (#99, 1969)
- The Association LiveThe Association LiveThe Association Live is the first live album by The Association. The 2 album set was recorded at a concert in Salt Lake City and released by Warner Bros. Records in 1970. This album peaked at #79 on the Billboard 200 album chart.-Track listing:...
- Warner Bros. 2WS-1868 (#79, 1970) - Just the Right Sound - The Anthology 1966-1981 (Double CD, released in 2002 as Warner Bros. / Rhino R2 78303, including two previously unreleased outtakes ('The Machine', 'Better Times') from 1966. An import variation also includes the outtake 'Caney Creek')
Singles
| A-Side / B-Side Titles B-sides correspond to same album as A-sides except where indicated | Label & No. | Year | Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... | Cashbox | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You" b/w "Baby, Can't You Hear Me Call Your Name" |
Jubilee 5505 | 1965 | |||
| Non-album tracks | |||||
| "One Too Many Mornings" b/w "Forty Times" |
Valiant 730 | 1965 | - | - | |
| "Along Comes Mary Along Comes Mary "Along Comes Mary" is a song composed by Tandyn Almer, originally recorded in 1966 by The Association, and released on their debut album And Then... Along Comes the Association. It was their first hit and reached number seven on the U.S. charts. It has been covered by several artists, most notably... " b/w "Your Own Love" |
Valiant 741 | 1966 | #7 | #9 | And Then...Along Comes The Association |
| "Cherish Cherish (The Association song) "Cherish" is a pop song written by Terry Kirkman and recorded by The Association. Released in 1966, the song reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in September of that year and remained in the top position for three weeks. In Canada, the song also reached number one... " b/w "Don’t Blame It on Me" |
Valiant 747 | 1966 | #1 | #1 | |
| "Pandora's Golden Heebie Jeebies" b/w "Standing Still" (from And Then...Along Comes The Association) |
Valiant 755 | 1966 | #35 | #26 | Renaissance |
| "No Fair at All" b/w "Looking Glass" |
Valiant 758 | 1967 | #51 | #53 | |
| "Windy Windy "Windy" is a pop music song written by Ruthann Friedman and recorded by The Association. Released in 1967, the song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in July of that year. Later in 1967, an instrumental version by jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery became his biggest Hot 100 hit when it peaked at... " b/w "Sometime" |
Warner Bros. 7041 | 1967 | #1 | #1 | Insight Out |
| "Never My Love Never My Love "Never My Love" is a pop standard written by American siblings Donald and Richard Addrisi and best known from a hit 1967 recording by The Association. The Addrisi Brothers had two Top 40 hits as recording artists, but their biggest success was as the songwriters of "Never My Love"... " / "Requiem for the Masses" |
Warner Bros. 7074 | 1967 | #2 / #100 |
#1 | |
| "Everything That Touches You" b/w "We Love Us" (from Insight Out) |
Warner Bros. 7163 | 1968 | #10 | #11 | Birthday |
| "Time for Livin'" b/w "Birthday Morning" |
Warner Bros. 7195 | 1968 | #39 [#27-AC] | #22 | |
| "Six Man Band" b/w "Like Always" (from Birthday) |
Warner Bros. 7229 | 1968 | #47 | #29 | Greatest Hits |
| "Goodbye Columbus" b/w "The Time It is Today" (from Birthday) |
Warner Bros. 7267 | 1969 | #80 [#22-AC] | #78 | Goodbye Columbus soundtrack |
| "Under Branches" b/w "Hear in Here" (from Birthday) |
Warner Bros. 7277 | 1969 | #117 | ||
| The Association | |||||
| "Yes, I Will" b/w "I Am Up For Europe" |
Warner Bros. 7305 | 1970 | #120 | ||
| "Dubuque Blues" b/w "Are You Ready" |
Warner Bros. 7349 | 1970 | - | #84 | |
| "Just About the Same" b/w "Look At Me, Look At You" (from The Association) |
Warner Bros. 7372 | 1970 | #106 | #91 | Non-album track |
| "Along the Way" b/w "Traveler’s Guide" |
Warner Bros. 7429 | 1970 | - | ||
| Stop Your Motor | |||||
| "P.F. Sloan" b/w "Traveler's Guide" |
Warner Bros. 7471 | 1971 | |||
| "Bring Yourself Home" b/w "It’s Gotta Be Real" |
Warner Bros. 7515 | 1971 | - | ||
| "That’s Racin’" b/w "Makes Me Cry" (non-album track) |
Warner Bros. 7524 | 1971 | - | ||
| "Darlin' Be Home Soon" b/w "Indian Wells Woman" |
Columbia 45602 | 1972 | #104 | #90 | Waterbeds In Trinidad! |
| "Come the Fall" b/w "Kicking the Gong Around" |
Columbia 45654 | 1972 | - | ||
| "Names, Tags, Numbers and Labels" b/w "Rainbows Bent" |
Mums 6061 | 1973 | #91 [#27-AC] | #85 | Non-album tracks |
| "One Sunday Morning" b/w "Life Is a Carnival" |
RCA 10217 | 1975 | - | ||
| "Dreamer" b/w "You Turn the Light On" |
Elektra 47094 | 1981 | #66 [#17-AC] | ||
| "Small Town Lovers" b/w "Across the Persian Gulf" |
Elektra 47146 | 1981 | - | ||