Five Man Electrical Band - Good-Byes And Butterflies 1970

The Five Man Electrical Band (originally The Staccatos) was a rock group from Canada's capital city of Ottawa, best known for their 1971 hit single "Signs".

"Signs" was written by Les Emmerson and reached #3 in the Billboard Hot 100. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the R.I.A.A. in August 1971.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Emmerson

Les Emmerson (born 17 September 1944 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) is the lead vocalist and guitarist for the band Five Man Electrical Band. He also recorded as a solo artist, charting in Canada with "Cry Your Eyes Out".

He is best known for the song "Signs", which was a hit for the Five Man Electrical Band in 1970 and also a hit for the band Tesla in 1990.[1] Both versions of the song sold approximately 1.5 million copies at the time of each release. In 2006, the song was sampled by Fat Boy Slim in the platinum-selling song, "Don't Let The Man Get You Down".[2] Particularly as a result of the Fat Boy Slim sampling, Emerson earns enough money from royalties on "Signs" that he can support an average lifestyle without working.[3]

"Cry Your Eyes Out" was released as a solo single on the Lion label, while Emmerson remained active with Five Man Electrical Band. The song reached a peak of #18 on RPM Weekly's Top Singles chart in September 1973.[4]

Emmerson remains based in Ottawa as of mid-2009


http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Pop_Encyclopedia/F/Five_Man_Electrical_Band.html

The Staccatos had emerged from the Ottawa scene in the mid-'60's with financial backing from journalist Sandy Gardiner. He helped launch their first release to gain any prominence called "Moved To California". They began to receive more notice with gigs in Toronto's Yorkville Village after the release of "Half Past Midnight" (1967) which became a national hit.

Around this time they hooked up with Coca-Cola Company to share half an LP recorded at Hallmark Studios with The Guess Who called 'A Wild Pair' on Jack Richardson's Nimbus Records. The album was a big seller prompting the band's U.S. label to release "Half Past Midnight" along with a commitment to record new material in L.A. Though they received a lot of hype in California from the record label, the group was seen as being 'too Beach Boy sounding' and The Staccatos records failed.

Taking a cue from their own 1968 2nd album, they soon changed their name to The Five Man Electrical Band in 1969 and commuted back and forth to Los Angeles recording sides for Capitol Records. The first single from this batch was "It Never Rains On Maple Lane".

When their deal with Capitol ended they signed to MGM Records who released "Moonshine (Friend Of Mine)" from the movie 'Moonshine War'. The record did little as did its follow-up "Hello Melinda Goodbye", though it featured a B-side called "Signs" which did garner some interest on L.A. radio. MGM flipped the record over and re-issued it but nothing happened.

In 1971 Five Man Electrical band signed with a little label owned by writer Jimmy Webb and producer Dallas Smith called Lionel Records. They re-issued "Signs" from the 'Goodbyes & Butterflies' (with a cover art switch due to a questionable marijuana-looking plant on the original jacket) and the single went to No.3 in the U.S. and No.4 in Canada selling more than 2 million copies worldwide.

Later in 1971 they released "Absolutely Right" which went to No.3 in Canada and Top-20 in the U.S. By 1973 they were exhausted and called it quits, though Emmerson continued recording as Five Man Electrical Band until 1975. After this, he remained in California and started a faltering label called Perfect Records. Following this he returned to Ottawa, resumed a solo career (with a brief stint in The Cooper Brothers).

In 1986 the band reformed for a one-off benefit concert which has lead into a fun Eastern Canada tour every year with no business pressures. The song "Signs" was even revived by hairspray band Tesla in 1990. Emmerson would later buy back the rights to the entire Five Man Electrical Band catalogue (having invested wisely in computer technology) and issued a 'best of' CD in the '90's.

Emmerson had a heart attack the day after his 56th birthday. A STENT procedure was performed on him in Ottawa in September 2000 to repair the heart problem.


Ted Gerow (keyboards)
Brian Rading (bass)
Rick 'Bell' Belanger (drums)
Les Emmerson (vocals, guitar)
Mike 'Bell' Belanger (2nd drums)


Tracks

01. Signs (4:01)
02. Safe And Sound With Jesus (3:28)
03. Dance Of The Swamp Woman (3:56)
04. Butterfly (4:53)
05. Hello Melinda Goodbye (3:15)
06. Moonshine (2:06)
07. Forever Together (2:29)
08. Mama's Baby Child (3:28)
09. Man With The Horse And Wagon (4:44)
10. All Is Right With The World Tonight (3:43)
11. Variations On A Theme Of Lepidoptera (2:44)

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