| Sunshine pop | |
|---|---|
| Etymology | c. 1990s |
| Other names |
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| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Mid 1960s,California, U.S. |
| Derivative forms | |
| Other topics | |
Sunshine pop (originally calledsoft pop andsoft rock[1]) is a loosely defined form ofpop music that was first associated with earlysoft rock producers and songwriters based inLos Angeles, California, during the mid- to late 1960s. Itsstudio-centric sound was primarily rooted infolk rock andeasy listening, typically featuring rich harmony vocals andprogressive elements, while lyrics combined idyllic imagery with a subtle awareness of societal change, melancholic undertones, andcountercultural themes. It was among the dominating music styles heard in television, film, and commercials of the era.
Branching from the nascentCalifornia sound, the movement initially straddled multiple styles among many groups who existed briefly while adapting to evolving music trends, resulting in much crossover withbubblegum,folk-pop,garage rock,baroque pop, andpsychedelia. Most groups were less successfulsound-alikes of acts such asthe Mamas & the Papas, led byJohn Phillips, andthe 5th Dimension, whose songs were initially helmed byJimmy Webb.Curt Boettcher produced numerous key records forthe Association,Eternity's Children, his bandthe Millennium, and with collaboratorGary Usher (Sagittarius). Thoughthe Beach Boys rarely approached the style,Brian Wilson's production of their 1966 albumPet Sounds was a foundational influence on this milieu, as were the arrangements ofBurt Bacharach.
By the late 1960s, the sound had regional variants ranging fromthe Free Design in New York toPic-Nic in Spain, although most acts largely struggled to sustain commercial success amid shifting popular music trends. In the 1970s, new waves of soft rock were heralded by acts such asthe Carpenters andFleetwood Mac, whose successes eclipsed that of many earlier groups. Renewed interest in sunshine pop, initially led by Japanese fans, developed in the 1990s among record collectors and musicians, especially those associated with Tokyo'sShibuya-kei scene, where the work ofRoger Nichols was a central influence. Many sunshine pop records were subsequently anthologized and reissued by labels includingRhino (Come to the Sunshine), Collector's Choice, andSundazed, in addition toindie rock music circles reviving the genre's prominence.
Sunshine pop originated from California-basedpop songwriters and producers.[2] The West Coast music scene of the mid- to late 1960s had provided a fertile environment forstudio-oriented pop musicians experimenting withrock,folk, andpsychedelic influences. Artists such asBrian Wilson, leader ofthe Beach Boys, andJohn Phillips, leader ofthe Mamas & the Papas, played pivotal roles in shaping the era's pop sensibilities, blending idealistic themes with undercurrents of melancholy.[3] These innovators, along with lesser-known acts that achieved fleeting commercial success, contributed to the development of sunshine pop.[3]A.V. Club contributor Noel Murray argued in 2011 that records by Phillips and Wilson had attained a cultural stature so large "that it's hard [today] to hear them as part of any kind of trend", in direct contrast to the less successful contemporaneous work of producer-songwriter-performerCurt Boettcher.[3]
Sunshine pop music—originally categorized assoft rock[1] and soft pop[4]—mainly encompassessound-alikes of the Beach Boys, the Mamas & the Papas, andthe 5th Dimension.[5] The term was coined retrospectively—akin to other genre labels such asfreakbeat,northern soul, andgarage punk[5]—in reference to the regularly sundrenchedclimate of California[6] and gained traction among music historians and collectors long after the 1960s.[7] Author Kingsley Abbott creditedRecord Collector editorPeter Doggett with originating the term in a September 1997 article feature,[2] though the phrase "LA-style sunshine pop" had previously appeared in Vernon Joynson's 1993 bookFuzz, Acid and Flowers.[8]
The genre's boundaries remain loosely defined partly due to the absence of contemporary self-identification by artists as "sunshine pop" practitioners. Many of the groups straddled multiple styles, includingfolk rock,bubblegum pop, garage rock, and psychedelia. In addition to receiving limited critical attention during their initial activity, many acts had existed briefly while adapting to evolving musical trends. Other rock and pop bands not normally associated with the genre occasionally produced singles or albums that integrated its sound.[3] Among interpretations of the genre's criteria,AllMusic's entry for sunshine pop describes it as a "mainstream pop style" characterized by "rich harmony vocals", "lush orchestrations", and an optimistic ethos.[9] Music criticRichie Unterberger defined the genre as "the most ridiculously optimistic, commercial outgrowth of folk-rock that could be imagined", adding that the style "was not so much folk-influenced rock as folk-rock-influenced pop, sometimes very much in an easy listening, Mamas-&-the-Papas mold, such asSpanky & Our Gang".[10] Author David Howard characterizes "soft pop" as a "harmonic, slightly psychedelic vocal music genre" that modernized "traditional pop vocals [via] hip lyrics, breezy harmonies, and an effervescent production style".[4]
Associated acts usually drew elements fromeasy-listening, commercialjingles, andcountercultural themes, often juxtaposing idyllic imagery with a subtle awareness of societal change, and bore names referencing fruits, colors, or "cosmic concepts".[3] While occasionally incorporating elements of psychedelia, they generally avoided overt drug-related imagery, instead drawing from what AllMusic termed the "whimsical" and "warm" aspects ofpsychedelic pop. Stylistically, sunshine pop also intersected withbaroque pop,folk-pop, andBrill Building pop.[9] Author and musicianBob Stanley, who identifies sunshine pop as an early soft rock variant, frames the genre as developing upon theprogressive "instrumentation", "musical complexity", and subversion of rock traditions exemplified by the Beach Boys'Pet Sounds (1966) andthe Beatles'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967).[11][nb 1] Stanley additionally traces the genre's preoccupation with exotic arrangements and unorthodox combinations of instruments to the work ofBurt Bacharach andHal David.[12]
According to AllMusic, the "star" sunshine pop acts included the Beach Boys circaPet Sounds,the Association, and the Mamas & the Papas, among others, with later reappraisals bringing renewed attention to lesser-known groups likeSagittarius,the Yellow Balloon, andthe Millennium.[9] While Wilson's production techniques substantially influenced subsequent sunshine pop developments,[9] the Beach Boys' output largely diverged from the genre's core characteristics.[3] Murray states that Phillips, to a clearer extent than Wilson, "practically created the blueprint for sunshine pop, with little of Wilson's uncommercial weirdness."[3][nb 2] Howard traces the genre to Boettcher and his collaborations withGary Usher—especially Boettcher's reconfigurations of the "California sunshine sound" originally formulated by Wilson andTerry Melcher.[15]
Compilation albums and retrospectives have since anthologized works from the genre, though some recordings appear interchangeably across "bubblegum pop" collections. Murray felt that while sharing superficial similarities with bubblegum, the latter's repetitive structures and superficial themes contrast with the "emotional richness" of the "best" examples of sunshine pop.[3] InBubblegum Music Is the Naked Truth (2001), contributor Chris Davidson writes that the "most blinding [sunshine pop] matches bubblegum's oomph", although "where bubblegum says, 'I got love in my tummy,' s-pop exclaims: 'I love the flower girl.'"[16]
The Mamas and the Papas emerged from New York'sGreenwich Village in early 1966 with "California Dreamin'" (December 1965).[1] The group achieved three transatlantic hits that year: "California Dreamin'" (number 4), "Monday, Monday" (number 1), and "I Saw Her Again" (number 5).[1] Their debut albumIf You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears, produced byLou Adler, blended collegiate choral traditions with contemporary countercultural sensibilities.[3] Stanley identified the group as "torchbearers for soft rock" with a "hugely influential" music style later reconfigured by sunshine pop acts such as the 5th Dimension ("who added a touch moresoul"), the Millennium ("a touch more rock"), andthe Free Design ("a touch morejazz").[1]
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Curt Boettcher, originally from Minnesota, relocated to Los Angeles in the mid-1960s with a background in traditional folk music.[17] According to Howard, he was a "crucial figure in the further maturation of the California Sound" from which sunshine pop originated.[17] Boettcher became a sought-after producer for acts including the Association, for whom he produced the 1966 singles "Along Comes Mary" (March) and "Cherish" (August),[3] the latter topping theBillboard Hot 100 for three weeks in September.[4][nb 3] AuthorDomenic Priore cites "Along Comes Mary" and "Cherish" as "the defining influence on sunshine pop" through the group's blending ofStan Kenton'sprogressive jazz,the Byrds' reconfiguration of traditional folk, and the Beach Boys' jazz-influenced vocal arrangements.[18] According to Howard, the success of these singles cemented the Association "as one of the main purveyors of [what was] dubbed 'soft pop'", a sound that "quickly became a staple ofAM radio and a decided antidote to the hard and heavy direction rock was taking onFM."[4] Howard additionally credits Boettcher with redirecting the development of the California sound into a "sunshine pop direction".[4]
Stanley highlights Boettcher, alongsideRandy Newman andVan Dyke Parks, as further examples of formative soft rock writers who "had a strong sense of theGreat American Songbook and, quite often, sharp humor".[19] Parks’ debut single "Come to the Sunshine", recorded in early 1966 and released that September, preceded the trend of sunlit-themed records likeDonovan's "Sunshine Superman" (July) and the Beatles’ "Good Day Sunshine" (August).[20] Many preeminent Los Angeles-based producers had emulated the Beach Boys' orchestrations following their May 1966 releasePet Sounds, though the group's continued association with sunshine pop through singles such as "Good Vibrations" (October 1966) and "Heroes and Villains" (July 1967) were limited to "the spirit of the sound", according to Murray.[3][nb 4]
Following the breakthrough of the Mamas & the Papas and the Association in 1966, numerous soft pop acts emerged, includingthe Cyrkle, Harpers Bizarre, Spanky & Our Gang, and the 5th Dimension.[4] According to Unterberger, a vacuum "filled by [a] brigade of sunshine pop acts, mostly from Southern California" followed the dissolution of many of "the foremost good-time folk-pop-rock bands".[23]
Sunshine pop permeated pop culture of the late 1960s, with Priore offering examples includingthe Turtles' 1967Pepsi advertising jingle, an Association soundalike group featured in a scene from the 1969 filmThe Love God?, and theme songs for the television programsTo Tell the Truth andNanny and the Professor.[24] The Yellow Balloon andthe Parade are further cited by Priore as "[t]wo of the most dedicated sunshine pop acts".[25] The former emerged from songwriter-producerGary Zekley's re-recording of "Yellow Balloon" (1967), a song initially attempted byDean Torrence ofJan & Dean, while the Parade, formed by producer and Zekley collaboratorJerry Riopelle, achieved a 1967 hit with "Sunshine Girl".[25][26]
Most sunshine pop acts struggled to achieve sustained commercial success. An exception was the 5th Dimension, who performed material penned by Jimmy Webb andLaura Nyro.[3] Identified by Stanley as a "soft rock innovator", Webb's "Up, Up and Away" (May 1967) was his first hit for the 5th Dimension, reaching number 7 in the U.S.[27] Folk-rock groups also experienced chart success by integrating material written by external songwriters into their repertoire of covers and originals, includingthe Sunshine Company, who enjoyed a top 40 hit withSteve Gillette's "Back on the Street Again" (1967).[23] Murray cites them, alongside the Yellow Balloon, as exemplifying numerous Los Angeles groups that emerged from collaborations between professional songwriters and local "scenesters" seeking commercial opportunities.[3]Peter, Paul and Mary’s 1967 single "I Dig Rock and Roll Music" parodied Donovan and the Mamas & the Papas, achieving chart success during the same period.[23]
While Los Angeles musicians with extensive resources developed ambitious pop records, groups in other regions attempted to replicate the style with more limited means, such as the Free Design in New York.[3] In Spain, the style emerged in 1968 through groups such asPic-Nic, Granada Los Ángeles, and Los Iberos. From 1969 through the 1970s, Spanish artists like Los Yetis, Solera, Módulos, Nuevos Horizontes, and Vainica Doble contributed to a proliferation of locally produced soft pop music.[28]
After his success with the Association, Boettcher maintained an active career through collaborative projects and studio work, forming the band the Ballroom and recording an unreleased album forWarner Bros. before joiningColumbia Records through Gary Usher,[3] a producer and songwriter who had been central to the development of the California sound.[4] Their partnership included work on Usher'sexperimental pop studio project Sagittarius, while Boettcher simultaneously organized a collective of Los Angeles session musicians and songwriters for his own group, the Millennium.[3] Released in mid-1967, Sagittarius' debut record "My World Fell Down", featuringBruce Johnston, Terry Melcher andGlen Campbell sharing lead vocals, charted in the upper-reaches of theBillboard Hot 100, though it reached the top 5 on regional charts in San Francisco and Chicago.[29] Between recording sessions for the two projects,[30] Boettcher also co-produced the 1968 debut album by Mississippi folk groupEternity's Children withKeith Olsen, whose single "Mrs. Bluebird" achieved modest chart success.[3]
In 1968, many musicians and songwriters shifted toward heavier,extended rock compositions, while others, such asthe Left Banke andthe Zombies, embraced softer approaches distinct from prevailing trends. In Stanley's description: "Seriousness – an element of pop which had periodically surfaced [...] was now seen to trump everything else."[31] By then, the Beach Boys had faced an abrupt commercial decline that sustained after aligning their style closer to the more contemporaneously successful sunshine pop acts they had influenced, showcased onFriends (June 1968).[14] In July, Columbia issued Sagittarius’Present Tense and the Millennium'sBegin, costly productions which failed to achieve mainstream success amid growing preferences for harder rock, reducing Boettcher and Usher's industry prominence. Although Boettcher's late-1960s efforts saw limited commercial success, they ultimately became some of the most popular records in collectors' markets.[3][nb 5]
Soft rock persisted into the 1970s but became increasingly detached from rock's evolvingalbum-oriented direction and progressive musical developments. The approaches signaled byPet Sounds,Sgt. Pepper, and Webb's extended pop song "MacArthur's Park" (1968) were largely abandoned as self-contained authorship and avoidance of orchestral arrangements became artistic expectations among a wide contingent of young listeners.[32] Stanley describes what he terms "the new school of soft rock", epitomized by singer-songwriterHarry Nilsson, as "scholarly, engaging, super-melodic, [and] as fond of Broadway and booze as [...] the Beach Boys and the Beatles".[31] Webb enjoyed further success with hits penned forRichard Harris ("MacArthur Park") and Glen Campbell through 1969 before transitioning into a more subdued singer-songwriter approach in his career.[33][nb 6]
The Carpenters emerged as a defining soft rock act of the early 1970s, achieving a string of hits written by songwriters such asPaul Williams, Bacharach, andLeon Russell.[35]Fleetwood Mac's 1977 albumRumours attained ubiquitous airplay on American radio, cementing a new form of soft rock that was further distanced from "theba-ba-bas of its sixties forebear", according to Stanley.[36]
Major rock critics of the 1960s had largely overlooked many artists later associated with sunshine pop, contributing to its initial obscurity. Murray observes that while critics occasionally embraced the Beach Boys, they often dismissed contemporaries such as the Mamas & the Papas and the Association, "even though those bands and many of their sunshine-pop peers were as innovative and sublime in their way as Brian Wilson."[3] During the 1990s, renewed interest in soft pop emerged through bands such asSaint Etienne (co-founded by Stanley),the High Llamas, and theWondermints, alongside record collectors and critics who reassessed the style now termed sunshine pop.[37]
Sunshine pop record collecting culture was initially centered in Japan during the early 1990s.[2] Concurrently, a short-lived musical movement in Tokyo's district sought to revive aspects of the genre.[38] Soft Rock FanzineVANDA,Soft Rock A to Z,Acts such asPizzicato Five andFlipper's Guitar became leading proponents ofShibuya-kei (渋谷系),[38] with the sunshine pop groupRoger Nichols & the Small Circle of Friends serving as a central influence.[39] While incorporating contemporaryelectronic elements, the movement retained the upbeat characteristics of 1960s Californian pop. Parallel developments occurred internationally, with groups likeStereolab andBroadcast exploring analogous stylistic fusions.[38][nb 7] Abbott suggests that Japan's receptiveness to sunshine pop stemmed partly from compatibility between its softer vocal styles and Japanese linguistic cadences, as well as the country's longstanding embrace of American vocal harmony traditions since the early 1960s.[2]
Following a growing appreciation for sunshine pop amongindie rock music circles, record labels such as Collector's Choice andSundazed played significant roles in reissuing obscure sunshine pop recordings during this period.[3] In 2004,Rhino Records released the multi-artist anthologyCome to the Sunshine: Soft Pop Nuggets from the WEA Vaults, cited by Murray as "a good place [for listeners] to start".[3] By 2008, further compilations includedSunshine Days (Varese Sarabande) in the U.S., spanning five volumes;Ripples (Sequel/Sanctuary) in Britain, comprising eight volumes;The Melody Goes On (M&M) in Japan, released in two volumes; andThe Get Easy Sunshine Pop Collection (Universal/Boutique) in Germany.[2]
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