Previously posted March 29, 2019
VA - Good Day Sunshine, Rays of Sunshine Pop (A Butterboy Compilation) CD1+CD2+CD3
Sunshine Pop is a retrospective term for a more cheerful or wistful style of Pop which emerged in the mid 1960s as "soft pop". Influenced by Easy Listening, Jingles, and Psychedelia, the genre largely consisted of lesser-known artists who imitated more popular groups like The Association, The Mamas & The Papas, and The 5th Dimension. The music usually contains light production, catchy melodies, and prominent vocal harmonies. Common instruments are acoustic guitars and/or piano accompanied by Western Classical Music instruments like harpsichord, glockenspiel, and flute.
The style should not be conflated with "sunshine/happy music" or "Beach Boys-esque music" - though influential, the Beach Boys almost never worked in the genre. Sunshine pop is typically inflected with jazzy chords and soft Bossa nova rhythms, and despite its name, may inspire melancholy and a sense of longing for the past. Fruits, colors, and/or cosmic concepts were also recurrent subject matter. Sometimes, the music may resemble Psychedelic Pop with less surreal atmospherics, Bubblegum with more sophistication, or a merge of Folk Pop and Psychedelic Folk. Some song examples are "Windy", "Monday, Monday", and "Up, Up and Away", those of which served as a template for artists like The Free Design, The Peppermint Rainbow, The Sugar Shoppe, Harmony Grass, and The Yellow Balloon.
Los Angeles-based songwriters/producers like Roger Nichols, Jimmy Webb, and Paul Williams had a major hand in shaping many sunshine pop acts. Building on the "California Sound" formulated by the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson and the Mamas and the Papas' John Phillips, Curt Boettcher became one of the most pivotal figures of sunshine pop, producing quintessential psyche pop crossover albums like Eternity's Children, Begin, and Present Tense. In the 1980s and 1990s, sunshine pop found a resurgence in Japan, strongly influencing many prime Shibuya-kei players. This revitalized interest in sunshine pop eventually reached Europe and the United States, and the genre was revived among indie musicians. (RYM)
I could easily fill many more CD's but here are 75 examples of Sunshine Pop that I hope you will enjoy.
=========================================================
ALL
Sunshine Pop is a retrospective term for a more cheerful or wistful style of Pop which emerged in the mid 1960s as "soft pop". Influenced by Easy Listening, Jingles, and Psychedelia, the genre largely consisted of lesser-known artists who imitated more popular groups like The Association, The Mamas & The Papas, and The 5th Dimension. The music usually contains light production, catchy melodies, and prominent vocal harmonies. Common instruments are acoustic guitars and/or piano accompanied by Western Classical Music instruments like harpsichord, glockenspiel, and flute.
The style should not be conflated with "sunshine/happy music" or "Beach Boys-esque music" - though influential, the Beach Boys almost never worked in the genre. Sunshine pop is typically inflected with jazzy chords and soft Bossa nova rhythms, and despite its name, may inspire melancholy and a sense of longing for the past. Fruits, colors, and/or cosmic concepts were also recurrent subject matter. Sometimes, the music may resemble Psychedelic Pop with less surreal atmospherics, Bubblegum with more sophistication, or a merge of Folk Pop and Psychedelic Folk. Some song examples are "Windy", "Monday, Monday", and "Up, Up and Away", those of which served as a template for artists like The Free Design, The Peppermint Rainbow, The Sugar Shoppe, Harmony Grass, and The Yellow Balloon.
Los Angeles-based songwriters/producers like Roger Nichols, Jimmy Webb, and Paul Williams had a major hand in shaping many sunshine pop acts. Building on the "California Sound" formulated by the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson and the Mamas and the Papas' John Phillips, Curt Boettcher became one of the most pivotal figures of sunshine pop, producing quintessential psyche pop crossover albums like Eternity's Children, Begin, and Present Tense. In the 1980s and 1990s, sunshine pop found a resurgence in Japan, strongly influencing many prime Shibuya-kei players. This revitalized interest in sunshine pop eventually reached Europe and the United States, and the genre was revived among indie musicians. (RYM)
I could easily fill many more CD's but here are 75 examples of Sunshine Pop that I hope you will enjoy.
=========================================================
ALL
or
ALL
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Track list
CD1
01 Beatles - Good Day Sunshine :02:13 1966
02 Cowsills - The Rain, the Park and Other Things :02:58 1967
03 Harmony Grass - What a Groovy Day :03:33 1969
04 Peppermint Rainbow - Will You Be Staying After Sunday :02:32 1969
05 Sundowners - Always You :02:19 1969
06 Eternity's Children - Mrs. Bluebird :03:19 1968
07 Sunshine Company - Back on the Street Again :02:29 1987
08 Ballroom - Spinning, Spinning, Spinning :02:43 1967
09 Montanas - You've Got to Be Loved :02:53 1967
10 Pyramid - Summer of Last Year :03:08 1967
11 Van Dyke Parks - Come to the Sunshine :02:57 1966
12 Love - Orange Skies :02:55 1966
13 Bee Gees - Kilburn Towers :02:18 1968
14 Sagittarius - Would You Like to Go :02:34 1968
15 Collage - Rainy Blue Memory Day :02:19 1968
16 Cryan' Shames - We Could Be Happy :02:36 1966
17 Tommy James and the Shondells - Crystal Blue Persuasion :04:03 1968
18 Mercy - Love (Can Make You Happy) :03:14 1969
19 American Breed - To Put Up With You :02:33 1968
20 Parade - Kinda Wasted Without You :02:10 1968
21 Critters - Mr. Dieingly Sad :02:48 1966
22 Love Generation - Let the Good Times In :02:17 1968
23 Harpers Bizarre - Come to the Sunshine :02:34 1967
24 Brass Ring - Disadvantages of You :02:26 1967
25 Fun and Games - Close to Carmel :02:39 1968
CD2
26 Salt - A Whole Lot of Rainbows :02:54 1968
27 Settlers - Major to Minor :02:59 1967
28 Association - No Fair at All :02:38 1967
29 Yellow Balloon - Yellow Ballon :02:17 1967
30 Millennium - It Won't Always Be the Same :02:58 1968
31 Tradewinds - Mind Excursion :02:10 1966
32 Beach Boys - Deirdre :03:30 1970
33 Oliver - Good Morning Starshine :03:39 1969
34 Every Mother's Son - Come on Down to My Boat :02:34 1967
35 Chicago - Up Sunshine :02:29 1970
36 Don Scardino - Movie Day :02:16 1968
37 Turtles - You Know What I Mean :02:02 1967
38 It's a Beautiful Day - Hot Summer Day :05:52 1969
39 Danny Hutton - Roses and Rainbows :02:04 1965
40 Keith - 98.6 :03:07 1967
41 Spanky and Our Gang - Sunday Will Never Be the Same :03:00 1967
42 Flower Pot Men - You Can Never Be Wrong (Single B-Side, 1968) :02:37 1967
43 Lesley Gore - Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows :01:38 1963
44 Oxfords - My World :03:10 1968
45 Groop - A Famous Myth :03:27 1969
46 Hobbits - Sunny Day Girl :02:34 1967
47 Cyrkle - Red Rubber Ball :02:23 1966
48 Kytes - End of the Day :02:31 1968
49 Shannons - Mister Sunshine Man :02:27 1968
50 R.E.M. - Shiny Happy People :03:46 1991
CD3
51 Tuneful Trolley - Sunny Days :01:59 1968
52 Autumn - Sun Sunshine :02:45 1971
53 E-Types - She Moves Me :02:32 1965
54 New Colony Six - Can't You See Me Cry :02:37 1968
55 Free Design - Kites Are Fun :02:42 1967
56 Flying Machine - Hey Little Girl :03:02 1971
57 Peanut - Home of the Brave :02:51 1965
58 Association - Windy :02:56 1967
59 Harpers Bizarre - Come Love :01:56 1967
60 Toast - Summer of Miranda :02:56 1970
61 Visions - Keepin' Your Eyes on the Sun :02:12 1969
62 Sunset Love - Reach Out :02:40 1968
63 Garden Club - Little Girl Lost and Found :03:03 1967
64 Cherry People - And Suddenly :02:05 1968
65 Velvet Underground Who Loves the Sun :02:48 1971
66 Eighth Day - Raining Sunshine :02:38 1967
67 Looking Glass - Sliver and Sunshine (How Wonderful is Our Love) :02:03 1966
68 Denny Doherty & Jimmie Haskell - To Claudia on Thursday :03:09 1971
69 Arbors - A Symphony for Susan :02:38 1966
70 Street Corner Society - Summer Days, Summer Nights :02:08 1967
71 Roger Nichols and His Small Circle of Friends - The Drifter :02:33 1968
72 Sugar Shoppe - Save the Country :03:00 1969
73 Fortunes - Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again :02:52 1971
74 Johnny Rivers - Summer Rain :03:52 1968
75 Seekers - Georgy Girl :02:18 1966
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02 Cowsills - The Rain, the Park and Other Things :02:58 1967
03 Harmony Grass - What a Groovy Day :03:33 1969
04 Peppermint Rainbow - Will You Be Staying After Sunday :02:32 1969
05 Sundowners - Always You :02:19 1969
06 Eternity's Children - Mrs. Bluebird :03:19 1968
07 Sunshine Company - Back on the Street Again :02:29 1987
08 Ballroom - Spinning, Spinning, Spinning :02:43 1967
09 Montanas - You've Got to Be Loved :02:53 1967
10 Pyramid - Summer of Last Year :03:08 1967
11 Van Dyke Parks - Come to the Sunshine :02:57 1966
12 Love - Orange Skies :02:55 1966
13 Bee Gees - Kilburn Towers :02:18 1968
14 Sagittarius - Would You Like to Go :02:34 1968
15 Collage - Rainy Blue Memory Day :02:19 1968
16 Cryan' Shames - We Could Be Happy :02:36 1966
17 Tommy James and the Shondells - Crystal Blue Persuasion :04:03 1968
18 Mercy - Love (Can Make You Happy) :03:14 1969
19 American Breed - To Put Up With You :02:33 1968
20 Parade - Kinda Wasted Without You :02:10 1968
21 Critters - Mr. Dieingly Sad :02:48 1966
22 Love Generation - Let the Good Times In :02:17 1968
23 Harpers Bizarre - Come to the Sunshine :02:34 1967
24 Brass Ring - Disadvantages of You :02:26 1967
25 Fun and Games - Close to Carmel :02:39 1968
CD2
26 Salt - A Whole Lot of Rainbows :02:54 1968
27 Settlers - Major to Minor :02:59 1967
28 Association - No Fair at All :02:38 1967
29 Yellow Balloon - Yellow Ballon :02:17 1967
30 Millennium - It Won't Always Be the Same :02:58 1968
31 Tradewinds - Mind Excursion :02:10 1966
32 Beach Boys - Deirdre :03:30 1970
33 Oliver - Good Morning Starshine :03:39 1969
34 Every Mother's Son - Come on Down to My Boat :02:34 1967
35 Chicago - Up Sunshine :02:29 1970
36 Don Scardino - Movie Day :02:16 1968
37 Turtles - You Know What I Mean :02:02 1967
38 It's a Beautiful Day - Hot Summer Day :05:52 1969
39 Danny Hutton - Roses and Rainbows :02:04 1965
40 Keith - 98.6 :03:07 1967
41 Spanky and Our Gang - Sunday Will Never Be the Same :03:00 1967
42 Flower Pot Men - You Can Never Be Wrong (Single B-Side, 1968) :02:37 1967
43 Lesley Gore - Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows :01:38 1963
44 Oxfords - My World :03:10 1968
45 Groop - A Famous Myth :03:27 1969
46 Hobbits - Sunny Day Girl :02:34 1967
47 Cyrkle - Red Rubber Ball :02:23 1966
48 Kytes - End of the Day :02:31 1968
49 Shannons - Mister Sunshine Man :02:27 1968
50 R.E.M. - Shiny Happy People :03:46 1991
CD3
51 Tuneful Trolley - Sunny Days :01:59 1968
52 Autumn - Sun Sunshine :02:45 1971
53 E-Types - She Moves Me :02:32 1965
54 New Colony Six - Can't You See Me Cry :02:37 1968
55 Free Design - Kites Are Fun :02:42 1967
56 Flying Machine - Hey Little Girl :03:02 1971
57 Peanut - Home of the Brave :02:51 1965
58 Association - Windy :02:56 1967
59 Harpers Bizarre - Come Love :01:56 1967
60 Toast - Summer of Miranda :02:56 1970
61 Visions - Keepin' Your Eyes on the Sun :02:12 1969
62 Sunset Love - Reach Out :02:40 1968
63 Garden Club - Little Girl Lost and Found :03:03 1967
64 Cherry People - And Suddenly :02:05 1968
65 Velvet Underground Who Loves the Sun :02:48 1971
66 Eighth Day - Raining Sunshine :02:38 1967
67 Looking Glass - Sliver and Sunshine (How Wonderful is Our Love) :02:03 1966
68 Denny Doherty & Jimmie Haskell - To Claudia on Thursday :03:09 1971
69 Arbors - A Symphony for Susan :02:38 1966
70 Street Corner Society - Summer Days, Summer Nights :02:08 1967
71 Roger Nichols and His Small Circle of Friends - The Drifter :02:33 1968
72 Sugar Shoppe - Save the Country :03:00 1969
73 Fortunes - Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again :02:52 1971
74 Johnny Rivers - Summer Rain :03:52 1968
75 Seekers - Georgy Girl :02:18 1966
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Thanks for this BB - it's one of those movements thats American centric, I can't think of any UK groups in this genre. (someone will probably prove me wrong!)
ReplyDeletePickettywitch...maybe? But yes the Americans were all over this one....and Bubblegum.
DeleteMaybe the weather in the UK negates any "sunshine" pop!
DeleteHey! I remember seeing that yellow thing up in the sky when I was young.
ReplyDeleteDr Robert did you notice track #1?
Just a little gentle ribbing! Actually what I meant was that it seems that many US groups made a career out of that particular genre whereas with The Beatles it was one of the many genres that they employed.
ReplyDelete