Jango Song Of The Day-The Leaves

Artist:The Leaves
Song:Hey Joe
Album:Nuggets From Nuggets: Choice Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era





Of course most fans indentify Hey Joe with legendary guitarist Jimi Hendrix. But you probably don't know that the song was a top 40 hit for the Los Angeles garage band The Leaves in 1966. Though singer songwriter Tim Rose claimed that Hey Joe was a traditional folk song, it was actually written by an obscure folksinger named Billy Roberts and he performed it in Los Angeles coffee houses. Roberts gave the song to his buddy Dino Valenti who would go on to form Quicksilver Messenger Service. David Crosby of The Byrds also performed it. The Leaves were formed by bassist Jim Pons while he was attending Cal State Northridge in Los Angeles. Other members were vocalist John Beck, guitarist Bill Rinehart, guitarist Tom Ray and drummer Robert Lee Reiner. They played Los Angeles clubs and Pat Boone spotted them and got them a record deal with Mira Records. They recorded Hey Joe but didn't like it. Rinehart left and the new version with guitarist Bob Arlin was a lot better and it reached #33 on the singles charts in 1966. None of their subsequent singles went anywhere and they even released an album on Capitol in 1967 before splitting up. The Nuggets comps have given new life to a lot of forgotten psychedelic classics and this single CD is a great intro for beginners. Jim Pons went on to join The Turtles and also with Frank Zappa when Flo & Eddie were there. He retired from music in 1973 and was a video director for the New York Jets for many years. He currently works for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Here's The Leaves performing Hey Joe on Where The Action Is 1966.