Harmonic Staying Power

In what has proved to a classic case of gilt by Association, the folk-rock band of that name has sold 70 million or more albums since its 1965 debut. On Sunday afternoon, the members will showcase their trademark six-part harmonies during one of those ever-affordable free concerts at Conejo Community Park in Thousand Oaks.

That’s right--six-part harmonies. And too many bands don’t even have one decent vocalist.

The Association was a SoCal group that got in at the ground floor of the folk-rock rage, which really took off when the Byrds electrified Bob Dylan songs. Band members practiced and then practiced some more before saturating the area with live shows. Their first successful single to attract a national audience was “Along Comes Mary,” which was followed by such familiar hits as “Never My Love” and “Cherish.”

The band did all those things that successful ‘60s bands did, including appearing at the Monterey Pop Festival and on “The Ed Sullivan Show” and “American Bandstand.” While most of their contemporaries faded away, the Association has continued to tour the world.

One of the two original members, Russ Giguere, discussed the latest.

So everything is cool for the band and no one has forgotten the words to “Along Comes Mary”?

Everything is just excellent. We just go around the world and do concerts. Personally, I don’t sing the words to “Along Comes Mary.” I’ve always sung background on that one. . . . If someone asked me what the words were, I don’t think I could tell you because I’ve never sung them. I do the “ooo-ooo-bop-doo-wah” stuff.

Seventy-million records? That’s a lot.

It’s more like somewhere between 70 and 90 million now. Here’s the thing: We’ve become standards. We just happened to be there at the right time and people liked it. Three of the “100 Most Played Songs of All Time” are ours. The second-most-played song of all time is “Never My Love.” The 22nd is “Cherish,” and the 62nd, I think, is “Windy.” The only other people that have more songs than we do are the Beatles, Roy Orbison and Simon & Garfunkel--and that’s it.

What was it like being a rock star in those silly ‘60s?

It was fun. It was always fun, but it’s even more fun now. You don’t take anything for granted. You get over that. I’m a lot looser and goosier and the shows are a lot more fun. One thing, I’m not worried about being cool anymore.

How would you describe Association music?

At the time, I just thought we were another rock ‘n’ roll band, but now when I look back, it’s this weird sort of art rock ‘n’ roll. It’s very hard to bag it. We definitely did some good ol’ rock ‘n’ roll, and we did some ballads, and some of that other stuff was strictly art. So I can’t really classify it.

All right, I have to ask you this: Were the words to “Along Comes Mary” about that pernicious weed?

I would think so. I didn’t write that song--it was written by a guy named Tandyn Almer--but I would think so. . . . Even though we had a couple of local singles before that, it was our first national hit. It was a one-of-a-kind song. I love those kinds of songs.

So the band actually had a plan that worked?

Yeah, I’d say we spent five or six months to get everything really honed. By the time we got signed, we had 15,000 or 20,000 on our fan list, and we played L.A. so thoroughly even before we had a record. We worked all the folk clubs like the Icehouse and the Troubador and the Golden Bear down in Huntington Beach. And we did every junior college and even some high schools. We gave ourselves two years to get a top 20 record. And it only took us a year and a half, so we were within our framework.

How did the band happen to become the first rock band to play the Greek Theatre?

Not only were we the first rock ‘n’ roll band to play at the Greek Theatre, we were the first rock band to play in almost every major venue in the United States. I think that was because we played real serious music. There’s some musical value there and some thought behind it, and it’s not overly simplified.

Tell me a Monterey Pop Festival story.

We opened the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967. That was great. We were on the road so much that we never got to see anybody else unless they played with us. That was a three-day festival and we stayed all three days and all three nights and saw everybody from the orchestra pit. It was just the coolest. We saw Jimi Hendrix from about 40 feet away, and that was cool. But the best band at the festival was Moby Grape. They were unbelievable. I’ve never seen a better stage band. Ever.

Tell me an Ed Sullivan story.

That was fun. You’d run it through once for the technical staff, then Ed would come in from his limo for the last two minutes right before the show started. He was real straight but real fun. I think he liked us. He was very fatherly.

How has the music biz changed over the years?

It’s much more competitive now. It’s gotten gi-gi-gigantic, but we’re not involved in all the competitiveness with all those young guys. We are what we are and we do what we do.

Who goes to see the Association?

Everybody. We get young people who want to hear vocal harmonies. Then there are people our age--40s and 50s--people of all ages.

DETAILS

The Association at Conejo Community Park, Dover and Hendrix avenues, Thousand Oaks, Sunday, 5 p.m.; free; 381-2747.

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A master of all things stringed, David Lindley could probably coax a tune out of a tennis racket. The diminutive yet dexterous plucker will headline a show at the Ventura Theatre tonight, with local rockers Naked Hearts initiating the proceedings.

Lindley is well known for his long career as Jackson Browne’s featured sidekick before he got his own band, El Rayo-X. Long an advocate of world music, Lindley has traveled the planet seeking that perfect groove, and his performances combine acoustic and electric influences from American folk music, blues and bluegrass, along with African, Arabian, Asian, Celtic and Turkish sources. With a serious collection of stringed instruments, Lindley plays items that few could identify, let alone spell, such as a Kona and Weissenborn Hawaiian lap steel guitar, a Turkish saz and chumbus, a Middle Eastern oud and an Irish bouzouki.

A SoCal local, Lindley won the Topanga Canyon Banjo and Fiddle Contest five times as a teenager. In 1967, he founded Kaleidoscope, the first world music rock band. Then he spent a decade with Browne before starting El Rayo-X, a reggae-flavored rock band, in 1981. This will be his first local appearance in years.

On stage, Lindley usually wears something bright and scary, seemingly on a mission to keep polyester alive. He’s a funny guy, and the one-liners will be flying almost as fast as his fingers.

DETAILS

David Lindley, Naked Hearts at the Ventura Theatre, 26 Chestnut St., tonight at 8:30; $27; 653-0721.

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In their heyday back in those silly ‘60s, the Chambers Brothers solidified their reputation as one of the great live bands of all time with a hypnotic mix of gospel, blues and rock with not one but four great singers: Willie, Joe, Lester and George. These days, Willie Chambers is the last brother standing, and he’ll return to Ventura on Saturday night at the newly remodeled Ban-Dar.

Willie’s last gig at Nicholby’s back in June didn’t do so well--the fans stayed away in droves even though it was a stellar performance featuring all the band’s biggies, ranging from “People Get Ready” and “Midnight Hour” to their most famous rock ‘n’ roll anthem, “Time Has Come Today.”

The Chambers Brothers have been playing around this area since the ‘60s, when they appeared several times at the Earl Warren Showgrounds in Santa Barbara. In the ‘80s, the band played at the Ventura County Fairgrounds, and in the ‘90s, three brothers were on hand as the band headlined the Ojai Bowlful of Blues.

This will be the third appearance for the Willie Chambers Band in the last few years; the last two shows were at Nicholby’s in Ventura. This may be the make-or-break show for Chambers as to local gigs. The guy’s a legend, plus he can sing better than everybody; and the Ban-Dar, under new ownership, is still trying to carve out its niche among local music fans.

DETAILS

The Willie Chambers Band at the Ban-Dar, 3005 E. Main St., Ventura, Saturday, 9 p.m.; $12 advance or $15 at the door; 643-4420.

Bill Locey can be reached by e-mail at blocey@pacbell.net.