They only released two albums, Charmed I'm Sure, and the topic of this post, American Beauties, which was their sophomore full length, released in 1994 on Get Hip Records. Some groups have an amazing ability to inhabit a sixties pop template years after the fact. I did a post a while back on The Beatifics, a terrific band from Minneapolis, or a band with an advanced degree pop smarts like Champaign, Illinois products Velvet Crush.
I wouldn't say anything groundbreaking on American Beauties, but The Blow Pops have created an album chock full of catchy pop songs that sound like mystery 60's songs that were found on reels in some recording studio vault 20 years after the fact.
When I was a teenager, that was a seemingly tangible musical fantasy. I used to pray that there would be lost Who songs or Beatle songs that would suddenly appear out of mothballs, songs of the caliber of the Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy anthology, or the peerless Revolver. Usually I was listening to those very albums when I thought like this, with the special sort of enthusiasm you have when you fall in love with music for the first time. You're enjoying the music, but you wish there was more!
Unless Neal DeGrasse Tyson is correct about the existence of multiverses, albums like American Beauties are the next best option, the closest thing to an archaeological musical breakthrough we can reasonably expect. If you like The Beatles (I know there must be a few of you out there), Hollies, Byrds, Raspberries, you really can't go wrong with these guys. They make it seem so easy, like pushbutton pop.
Tim Buckley: Guitar, Vocals
Jack Rice: Bass, Vocals
Mike Jarvis: Vocals, Guitar
Nick Randazzo: Drums
Hearing songs like All Night Long, I'm not entirely surprised that Mike Jarvis was at one time a member of Green, the 80s-90's Chicago pop band led by Jeff Lescher. (Their 1st album was reissued by Lion Productions a few years ago)
An essential pop album, which I listened to a lot in the 80's.
Unfortunately, The Blow Pops albums have been out of print for awhile. If you see them being sold for a reasonable price, I would not hesitate. A saving grace is that three of the four members of The Blow Pops have released several more excellent albums of pop music as The Lackloves. The Blow Pops had a reunion back in 2009, but not much has been heard from either band in a while. But they certainly have put together an impressive catalog of pop pearls, well worth your investigation/investment.
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