Pour A Little Sugar On It: The Chewy, Chewy Sounds Of American Bubblegum 1966-1971 celebrates the sugary collection of bubblegum music.
Bubblegum music is a sugary-sweet genre that sprang to life when The Monkees were crafted for TV, echoing the Beatles’ charm but with a clear commercial twist aimed at raking in profits and winning over the hearts of the youngest listeners. This bubblegum pop scene thrived on catchy, corny tunes with safe, non-threatening lyrics, perfectly tailored to its youthful audience. Though the craze was brief, this collection showcases some of the best and most obscure tracks that epitomize bubblegum music at its finest, offering a nostalgic trip back to its playful and infectious melodies.
Bubblegum music is often traced back to the breakout success of two iconic 1968 songs: “Simon Says” by the 1910 Fruitgum Company and “Yummy Yummy Yummy” by the Ohio Express. Tommy James of the Shondells asserts that he inadvertently created bubblegum music a year earlier, in 1967, with his hit “I Think We’re Alone Now.” Producers Jerry Kasenetz and Jeffry Katz are credited with coining the term “bubblegum” for this genre. They chose the name while discussing their target audience, deciding that their music was tailored specifically for teenagers and young kids, creating an instantly recognizable sound characterized by catchy melodies, simple lyrics, and an upbeat, playful vibe.
Featuring The Archies, The Monkees, Ohio Express, 1910 Fruitgum Co., The Lemon Pipers and Crazy Elephant.
The venture’s runaway success encouraged numerous other backroom songwriting/ production teams to step forward, with the New York-based Kasenetz-Katz partnership coining the term “bubblegum” as shorthand for the manufactured pop process.
In the late summer of 1966, manufactured pop quartet The Monkees – a Beatles-inspired concept inevitably nicknamed the Prefab Four – made their TV and vinyl debut. Overseen by industry veteran Don Kirshner, whose Brill Building-honed team supplied most of the songs, The Monkees were aimed at the pre-teen market effectively disenfranchised by the increasingly sophisticated nature of mid-60s pop.
The Monkees appeared to be the quintessential prototype for a bubblegum band on paper. They were, after all, a prefabricated, fictional rock ‘n’ roll group—an entirely manufactured commodity designed to sell records and TV advertising time. Their catchy, polished songs and youthful appeal fit the bubblegum mold perfectly. However, there’s an ongoing debate about whether The Monkees can be classified as a bubblegum band. While their origins and commercial intent align with the bubblegum ethos, their music often showcased sophistication and artistic merit that transcended the simplistic, sugary formula typically associated with the genre.
Kasenetz-Katz hit big with such names as Ohio Express, 1910 Fruitgum Co., And Crazy Elephant, while Don Kirshner and his favored producer Jeff Barry – both sidelined when The Monkees rose against their puppet masters – returned with cartoon pop group The Archies and the biggest-selling single of 1969, ‘Sugar, Sugar’.
The Archies’ “Sugar, Sugar” skyrocketed to become the best-selling hit of 1969, sparking a wave of artists to embrace the bubblegum pop style. This song’s tremendous success also gave rise to “cartoon rock,” a brief but notable trend where Saturday morning cartoon series prominently featured pop-rock songs with a bubblegum flavor. Despite the catchy tunes and colorful characters, most of these songs failed to make a significant impact on the pop charts when released as singles. One notable exception was The Banana Splits’ theme song, “The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana),” which managed to reach number 96 on the Billboard Top 100 and number 94 on the RPM charts. This fleeting era of cartoon rock left a lasting impression, illustrating the crossover appeal of bubblegum music and its ability to captivate both young audiences and the broader pop music scene.
Hit singles, cult collectibles and obscure album tracks.
‘Pour A Little Sugar On It’ examines the bubblegum phenomenon in forensic detail, with all of the aforementioned acts joined by hits from The Lemon Pipers, Tommy Roe, Tommy James & The Shondells, The Cuff Links, The Box Tops, Lou Christie, Andy Kim and others as well as numerous cult 45s (The Rasberry Pirates, Cartoon Candy Carnival, The Four Fuller Brothers, etc).
Also featuring some unlikely names who occasionally left their fingerprints in the sticky stuff (The Electric Prunes, The Beach Boys, Sparks, Velvet Underground), ‘Pour A Little Sugar On It’ is housed in a 3-CD clamshell box that includes a 48-page booklet with rare photos and the stories behind all 91 tracks.
Four-hour, 3CD, a 91-track anthology of late 60s American bubblegum pop.
DISC ONE
1 SIMON SAYS – 1910 Fruitgum Co.
2 YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY – Ohio Express
3 A LITTLE BIT ME, A LITTLE BIT YOU – The Monkees
4 BANG-SHANG-A-LANG – The Archies
5 MR. SUN, MR. MOON (album
version) – Paul Revere & The Raiders
6 GIMME GIMME GOOD LOVIN’ – Crazy Elephant
7 CHERRY, CHERRY – Neil Diamond
8 BABY I LOVE YOU – Andy Kim
9 LOVE IS A WORD – Everyday Hudson
10 GROUPIE – The Four Fuller Brothers
11 I’M GONNA MAKE YOU MINE – Lou Christie
12 IF YOU’RE THINKIN’ WHAT I’M THINKIN’ – Dino Desi & Billy
13 THE JOKER WENT WILD – Brian Hyland
14 BOPPA DO DOWN DOWN – The Third Rail
15 TRACY – The Cuff Links
16 ALICE LONG (YOU’RE STILL MY FAVORITE GIRLFRIEND) – Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart
17 EVERYBODY KNOWS YOU’RE NOT IN LOVE – The Electric Prunes
18 FAIRY TALES CAN COME TRUE (HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT LUCY) – San Francisco Earthquake
19 LET ME BRING YOU UP – Ron Dante
20 LATIN SHAKE – Lt. Garcia’s Magic Music Box
21 MARATHON MARY – The Globetrotters
22 LOOP DE LOOP – Salt Water Taffy
23 FLY ME TO HAVANA – The Grass Roots
24 ME AND YOU AND A DOG NAMED BOO – Lobo
25 I’D LIKE TO TALK TO YOU – Mark Eric
26 JENNIFER TOMKINS – Street People
27 LOOKY LOOKY, MY COOKIE’S GONE – The Rasberry Pirates
28 BILLY’S GOT A GOAT – Patty Flabbies’ Coughed Engine
29 FEELIN’ SO GOOD (S.K.O.O.B.Y- D.O.O.) – The Archies
DISC TWO
1 I THINK WE’RE ALONE NOW – Tommy James & The Shondells
2 GREEN TAMBOURINE – The Lemon Pipers
3 THE GROOVIEST GIRL IN THE WORLD – The Fun & Games
4 WHO LOVES THE SUN – Velvet Underground
5 JINGLE JANGLE – The Archies
6 DOUBLE GOOD FEELIN’ – Gary Lewis & The Playboys
7 PEPPERMAN – Arnim-Hamilton
8 FA LA FA LEE – Halfnelson (Sparks)
9 WHAT’S YOUR NAME – The Music Explosion
10 INDIAN LAKE – The Cowsills
11 HOW SHE BOOGALOOED IT – The Beach Boys
12 SHE’S THE KIND OF GIRL – The Peppermint Trolley Company
13 CHEWY CHEWY – Ohio Express
14 CRY LIKE A BABY – The Box Tops
15 BOUNCING ALL OVER THE WORLD – The Globetrotters
16 SHE SOLD ME MAGIC – Lou Christie
17 GIRL ON THE SUBWAY – The Cherry People
18 MOVE IN A LITTLE CLOSER, BABY – Mama Cass
19 MONTEGO BAY (album version) – Bobby Bloom
20 CANDY APPLE COTTON CANDY – Ruthann Friedman (Art Podell & Nick Woods)
21 THE MARCH OF THE JINGLE JANGLE PEOPLE – San Francisco Earthquake
22 VALLERI – The Pineapple Heard
23 WOULD YOU BELIEVE – Mortimer
24 SUNSHINE GIRL – The Parade
25 BANANA MAN – The Knack
26 GO LIGHTLY – The Goggles
27 HOW DO YOU KNOW – Ron Dante
28 GINGERSNAP – Jamie
29 MR. PEACOCK – Orange Colored Sky
30 ARCHIE’S PARTY – The Archies
31 JAM UP JELLY TIGHT – Tommy Roe
DISC THREE
1 SHAKE – Shadows Of Knight
2 QUICK JOEY SMALL (RUN JOEY RUN) – Kasenetz-Katz Singing Orchestral Circus
3 JELLY JUNGLE (OF ORANGE MARMALADE) – The Lemon Pipers
4 GOODY GOODY GUMDROPS – 1910 Fruitgum Co.
5 THINGS (GOIN’ ROUND IN MY MIND) – Merrell Fankhauser & H.M.S. Bounty
6 WHO’S YOUR BABY? – The Archies
7 JUDY IN DISGUISE (WITH GLASSES) – John Fred & His Playboy Band
8 EVERYTHING IS MICKEY MOUSE – Cartoon Candy Carnival
9 HOW DO YOU LIKE THOSE APPLES – South Amboy Port Authority
10 KEEP ON – Bruce Channel
11 SOPHIA – San Francisco Earthquake
12 RED ROVER, RED ROVER – The Puddle (aka The Bunch)
13 LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE – The Peppermint Trolley Company
14 MAKE YOUR OWN SWEET MUSIC – The Golden Gate
15 BRAND NEW KEY – Melanie
16 SUNSHINE, RED WINE – Crazy Elephant
17 ALLEY POND PARK – Culver Street Playground
18 LET THE GOOD TIMES IN – The Love Generation
19 SUZANNE ON A SUNDAY MORNING – Rick Nelson
20 BUBBLE GUM AND BRACES – Bobby Sherman
21 MR. BUS DRIVER – Neal Dover
22 WIWWIAN WEVY – Pastrami Malted
23 NINNY BOP BOP – Bonnie & The Clydes
24 LOVING YOU MAKES EVERYTHING ALRIGHT – The Marshmellow Highway
25 DON’T LET LOVE PASS YOU BY – Ron Dante
26 CHEER ME UP – The Globetrotters
27 THANK YOU GIRL – Street People
28 CAN YOU TELL ME HOW TO GET TO SESAME STREET? – The Free Design
29 THE RAPPER – The Jaggerz
30 JENNIFER RAIN – The Goggles
31 SUGAR, SUGAR – The Archies
Discover more from Sandbox World
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.