The Beginning and the end

Sometimes it is hard to catch the story told in the lyrics of a song. If it is about a relationship, the natural tendency is to assume that the song is about a love affair. That is not always the case.

The Blues Magoos formed in 1964, originally calling themselves The Trenchcoats. By 1966 they were one of the mainstays of the Greenwich Village scene in New York. After a couple of flops on minor labels, the group signed with Mercury Records. They recorded their first album, Psychedelic Lollipop. That album included a song celebrating the band’s first step to the big time. That song was released as a single in February, 1967, reaching number 5. That song was We Ain’t Got Nothing Yet.

Ace Flash and the Dynamos formed in 1972, made up of musicians who had been in other bands in the UK. By the time they recorded their first album, the band’s name had been shortened to just Ace. That album, Five a Side, included a song calling out one of the band members for wanting to leave, possibly causing the breakup of the band. That song, How Long, was a top 20 hit in the UK and hit number 3 in the US.