Editorial Reviews

The second volume in Sundazed's Garage Beat '66 series follows much the same format as its predecessor: 20 garage rockers from all over America, though generally from the rawer end of the spectrum rather than the poppier side. There's a slightly higher concentration of names that'll be at least somewhat known to some of the less specialized listeners, though, including the Guess Who (their 1966 single "Believe Me"), the Remains, the Barbarians (with their crude Merseybeat-influenced debut 45, "Hey Little Bird," which was their best recording), the Litter, the Five Americans (with their 1964 single "I'm Feeling O.K."), We the People, the Spiders (who evolved into Alice Cooper), the Ugly Ducklings (with a previously unreleased version of "I'm a Man"), and the Sonics. That alone is enough to make it a better than average '60s garage compilation, and the sound quality (mastered, unusually for a garage anthology, from original sources) and detailed track-by-track annotation by Ugly Things publisher Mike Stax are other bonuses. As for the rarer, less-anthologized items here, some of these tend toward the more run-of-the-mill garage rock of the era, though the Bold's lewd "Gotta Get Some" (which recalls Paul Revere & the Raiders' toughest moments) and the weird ringing guitar of the Go-Betweens' "Have You for My Own" are ear-catching. The Jynx's 1965 cover of Them's "Little Girl" isn't nearly as exciting as the original, but does possess historical interest for featuring future Big Star member Chris Bell on lead guitar. Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

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