Swimtime U.S.A./ Swim Party

This is a very special rarity from the era of Surf music and Girl Groups, though its arrival in 1964 —the year of Beatlemania and the British Invasion— pretty much nixed its chances of airplay. Still, what makes it interesting is the group's members and songwriters, who were none other than Steve Barri and P.F. Sloan. This is one of several "fake" groups the duo formed as they attempted to get their material heard.\r\n

They finally achieved success in 1967 with their latest "fake" group, the Grass Roots. Yes, it was this duo who and some studio musicians who hit the chart with their tune "Where Were You When I Needed You!" After finding a real group to carry the Grass Roots torch, Sloan and Barri continued to provide songs, and Steve Barri continued as the group's producer into the 1970s.\r\n

Sloan was more known as a songwriter, and he penned a number of well known hits, both with and (often) without Barri, including:\r\n

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• Summer Means Fun (Bruce & Terry, 1964; Jan & Dean, 1966)\r\n
• Secret Agent Man (Johnny Rivers, 1966)\r\n
• Eve of Destruction (Barry McGuire, 1965)\r\n
• A Must To Avoid (Herman's Hermits, 1965)\r\n
• Let's Live For Today (Grass Roots, 1967)\r\n
• You Baby (Turtles, 1966)\r\n

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Steve Barri became a very successful producer, including work on big hits from the late 1960s and early 1970s with such acts (in addition to the Grass Roots) as:\r\n

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• Tommy Roe\r\n
• Hamilton, Joe Frank And Reynolds\r\n
• The Robbs\r\n
• Four Tops (their ABC hits)\r\n
• Del Shannon\r\n
• Cashman & West\r\n

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This promo copy comes with a vintage Reprise factory sleeve.