“Baby Doesn’t Know” / “No Place Or Time” (Thames 105) August 1966
This is a 45 I’ve had for years but have never written about it despite doing some research at the time of purchase. I’ve even pencilled notes on the plain white sleeve but for some reason it got filed away in the box until May 2014 when I remastered both sides for ’Trash Can Radio.’
Checking the internet, collector Jeff Lemlich of ’Savage Lost’ has got the scoop on the band. He confirms that they were all pre 15 year old teenagers from Miami Beach, Florida. They got talent spotted by Steve Palmer who owned Thames Records and he offered them the chance to record some songs with producer Jim Sessody.
The Echoes Of Carnaby Street | No Place Or Time | (Thames) 1966
Palmer brought The Echoes Of Carnaby Street a couple of Travis Fairchild songs to record which they did with some success. Both ’Baby Doesn’t Know’ and ’No Place Or Time’ are guitar/organ beaters. Travis Fairchild was the leader of The Cleffs Of Lavender Hill.
Producer Jim Sessody had some success in the late 70s engineering records by Aerosmith, The Records and The Romantics among others.
Sessody was also involved with The Legends, who were based in Milwaukee WI and then later Florida.
CARNABY IN MIAMI These Mod Rockers Swing
By TERRY JOHNSON KING Special Writer to The Miami News | The horde of back-to-school teens who gathered Thursday at Richards 163rd St. store found something besides clothes and price tags. They found the Echoes of Carnaby Street, a swinging quintet that — closer to Mods than Rockers — dress as though they were just off the famous street after which the combo leader’s mother named them.
For awhile it appeared that this group might not make it. All age 14 and students at Nautilus Junior High, they lost a member early in the summer when his parents made him go away to summer camp. Another defected when his family bought a boat.
But nobody’s irreplaceable: they simply recruited from the Nautilus Junior High unemployment lists, and were back in business.
Original sparkplug of the group was Mark Resnick, son of the owner of the Monte Carlo Hotel where, incidentally, they got their start.
“No, I did not hire them just because my son is involved,” Dad Resnick maintains. “I am not what you would call indulgent when it comes to business.”
Mark got his first guitar four years ago. “We were at Lookout Mountain, and Mother won some money. So she bought me a guitar.”
About the same time Eddie Marcus had received a set of drums and the two began making rhythmic noises together. They’ve toyed with various combos — a lead singer, a boy with a toy organ, but no monkey – although right now there are just the five: Mark, Eddie, Jeff Laibson, Russell Frehling and Sammy Weiselberg.
Jeff, who played classical piano for seven years, switched to the beat for the group. “My family feels this is good experience,” he said. “They go along with my wanting to play jazz piano.” And Sammy augments Mark’s strings with his bass guitar.
The combo started as the Tidal Waves, playing club dates and one-night stands at the Shelbourne (also operated by Mark’s dad), the Sea Isle, Barcelona, Florida Bandstand, Surfside Community Centre and Dinner Key Auditorium.
As the Tidal Waves they’d begun to make a modest name for themselves. They cut a record and discovered to their ebbing enthusiasm that another Tidal Wave was rolling in from California with another emerging hit record. That’s when Mom Resnick togged them out in the Carnaby Street tag.
the Carnaby Street tag
Between them, they have about $4,000 of equipment of which they’ve paid only half. (The mortgage is held by Mark’s father who bank-rolled the endeavour with an easy-payment plan).
“We started seriously making money about a year ago,” Eddie said. “And we spend it on necessities: clothes, busses, movies and food.”
Mark added, optimistically, “As soon as we have enough money to open a hank account we’re going to have some, too,”
The team is a self-assured group, and the boys are able to laugh at their occasional public lapses. “Like the time we were playing Surfside,” Eddie said. “And the manager called us on when we least expected it — and Mark was in the rest room. We spent a disorganized couple of minutes.”
Sammy recalls the time they were doing a show at Dinner Key. “I turned on my amplifier,” he said, “and it caught fire. As they introduced us a big cloud of smoke came out.”
The recently released record was one they did with the encouragement of Steve Palmer of Florida Bandstand. “He took us to Criteria,” Jeff said, “and we made the arrangement. Then we rehearsed every day for a week. The drummer from the Canadian Legends took an interest in us and coached us — and the arranger from the Lavender Hill group wrote the music.”
He was to have written the words, too, but when he didn’t get around to doing the second tune Mark wrote them himself — and Mark’s song came out so well they tabbed it the “A” side of the record.
Of the group, Jeff Is the only one from a music family. His brother sings — currently at the Monte Carlo, to make it a family affair — and his father plays piano. “But I’d like to he an accountant when I grow up, because I like math. Only I don’t do well in it.”
The others, all average students, have varied aims, none of them related to music. “I’d like to be a lawyer,” Eddie said; Sammy is interested in science and thinks he’d like to be a plastic surgeon, and Mark wants to be a hotel owner,
And even if their interests switch, the young tycoons can very likely finance any sort of career with the fruits of their present labour. (Miami News, 08/12/66)
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