Lost 45s: The Critters

[audio:http://www.paulcollegio.net/juke/juke0412/45.mp3]

In 1966, this New York group came off very much like a Lovin’ Spoonful Jr., scoring a minor hit with a cover of John Sebastian’s ‘Younger Girl’ and then chalking up their only Top 20 single with the very Spoonful-esque original ‘Mr. Dieingly Sad.’ The group’s soft harmonies and pop folk-rock were in a considerably lighter vein than their Kama Sutra labelmates, though. Much of their material was self-penned, though they also benefited from compositions by Jackie DeShannon and Brill Building tunesmiths Pete Anders, Vinnie Poncia, and Doc Pomus. Recording quite a few singles and an LP for Kama Sutra from 1965 to 1967, their gentle pop/rock was rather lightweight, with the exception of their best singles. After a final Top 40 hit in 1967 (‘Don’t Let the Rain Fall Down on Me’), principal songwriter Don Ciccone was drafted, and the group struggled on with a couple albums for the Project 3 label before splitting.

I just think this is a fabulous song because of the couplet ‘…you’re so mystifyingly glad./I’m Mr. Dieingly Sad.” So many of my navel-gazing friends and fans of The Clientele everywhere desperately need to know this song.