TGIF Rock-n-Roll Oldies: Donovan 1966

Reaganite Republican ^ | February 18, 2011 | Reaganite Republican

[Reaganite Republican]

Donovan (Donovan Philips Leitch 5.10.46) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music in a way that had substantial commercial appeal. 

Donovan appeared in the UK early in 1965 with a series of live performances on the pop TV show Ready Steady Go!... and his popularity quickly spread from there.

After signing with the British label Pye Records in 1965, he recorded a handful of singles and two albums in the folk music vein with leading independent record producer Mickie Most, scoring a string of international hits.

His successful records in the 1960s included the UK hits "Catch the Wind" and "Colours" in 1965, while the next year "Sunshine Superman" went all the way to top the chart at #1 in the US.

Donovan was one of the leading British recording artists as he put-out a series of hit albums and singles between 1965 and 1970, and he even schooled Lennon and McCartney when he taught them his finger-picking guitar style in 1968...

Other classics from Donovan include "Atlantis", "In the Morning", "Jennifer Jupiter", and of course "Mellow Yellow".

Alas, Donovan's commercial fortunes waned after he parted ways with Mickie Most in 1969, and he left the music industry for a time. But he did continue to perform and record sporadically in the 1970s and 1980s.

But the musician enjoyed a bit of a revival in the 90s with the advent of the British 'rave' scene. He later in the decade did the '96 album Sutras with producer and long-time fan Rick Rubin and in 2004 released the all-new album Beat Cafe.

Donovan was last year nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2011... but seriously, what took them so long?

Donovan: Sunshine Superman - 1966

[Video -here-]

Donovan Official Site   Wikipedia

Previous RR Rock n Roll Oldies features -here-

[MeganC]

‘Mellow Yellow’ is such a cool song!

[al44]

Never forget the unforgettable “Intergalactic Laxative”, it’ll get you from here to Mars!

[kbennkc]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leI7sfmipuI

Hail Atlantis!

[ozark hilljilly]

“Jennifer Jupiter”,
_____

I always thought it was titled “Jenifer Juniper”. I actually liked that song...now, I don’t know, ain’t the same.
: (

[skeeter]

My personal favorite was his duet with Alice Cooper in ‘Billion Dollar Babies’.

[InvisibleChurch]

from Rikki Tikki Tavi

(Every)body who read the Jungle Book knows that Riki tiki tavi's a mongoose who kills snakes

(Well) when I was a young man I was led to believe there were organisations to kill my snakes for me

(ie the) church ie the government ie the school

(but when I got a little older) I learned I had to kill them myself

.

It sounds like he knew from an early age to depend on one's self to find an answer to problems as opposed to the govt and other agencies

[Frantzie]

Martin Socrsese had Atlantis playing just before Billy Batts got his beaten by Joe Pesci and DeNiro. aka go home and get you ****** shinebox.

Donovan “though Gods they were....” fades a little.

Billy Batts “ I done my ******* time...”

At the end of the beating a crazed and apologetic Joe says to a mortified and dazed Ray Liotta - “I didn’t want to get blood on your floor.”

[Jim Noble]

Take the elevator in the brain hotel...

[corkoman]

Donovan was a pioneer in recording techniques - very much under appreciated for a lot of processing that others used extensively. Hail Atlantis!

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

His kids will be familiar to 80s movie fans, Ione Skye and Donovan Leitch Jr. His son didn't have a big name in movies but still made a minor splash in a couple of films. His 1988, “The In Crowd” is still one of the most underrated 80s movies of all times.

[musicman]

I liked “Catch The Wind”.

(Was a GREAT Steven Bishop on the stairs playing guitar in Animal House kinda song....).

[kbennkc]

I liked “Catch The Wind”.

You can almost smell the reefer when a lyrisist runs out of ideas and writes: deedee dadee da da dee dee da da dee

[Reaganite Republican]

He’s awesome, and obviously I’m a fan

His stuff ages well, too- been listening to him for over forty years and still enjoy every tune he ever did!

[BlueMondaySkipper]

LOL As soon as i saw this thread I thought of Intergalactic Laxative. I was thinking that no one else would have heard it yet here you are.

Bravo

[musicman]

[Flycatcher]

Wow.

I had no idea that was Donovan singing with Alice. I always thought it was a redub of Alice sounding prissy...

[skeeter]

It always cracked me up, the mellow Mr Leach singing that demented song.

[Flycatcher]

Too bad Alice couldn't get Donovan to sing with him on the last song of that album: the wonderfully demented (but groundbreaking) "I Love the Dead."

Lol!

[j-damn]

When Donovan was firing on all cylinders he wrote &/or recorded some classics:

Catch The Wind
Wear Your Love Like Heaven
Season Of The Witch
The Trip
Hurdy Gurdy Man
Mellow Yellow
Sunshine Superman
Epistle To Dippy
Colours
The Fat Angel is even a great tune.