The Oxfords

Of all the bands on the surprisingly fertile '60s rock scene of Louisville, KY, the Oxfords were one of the most musically talented, and the first to take on the British Invasion with both barrels, both in sound and image. Although it is not quite as evident from the band's sole 1970 LP alone, it was also an exploratory and adventurous combo, starting with early Kinks- and Beatles-derived singles before moving into sophisticated soft pop and finally a funky jazz-rock inclination that is startlingly prescient for its era. Its recorded legacy isn't nearly as long as it should have been, nor is it as well-known as it deserves to be, at least among devotees of the era's pop music. The group genesis can be dated to a swap that took place between two high-school bands in 1964. Jay Petach, one year into the guitar, led the Spectres. It featured classmates Bill Tullis and Bill Turner on vocals and bass, respectively, and friends Danny Marshall and Glenn Howerton on rhythm guitar and drums. The Spectres' main competition on the scene was the Oxfords, who included drummer Jim Guest. In 1965, a difference of opinion between Guest and the remaining four Oxfords caused a rift within the band. Guest asked the Spectres to join him in a reconstituted version of the Oxfords, while Howerton joined the four exited members in a new combo called the Rugbys. By 1966, bassist Ray Barrickman had replaced Turner and guitarist Ronnie Brooks took Marshall's place in the band. They entered the studio and recorded a version of Burt Bacharach and Hal David's "(There's) Always Something There to Remind Me," which found its way to Nashville producer Buzz Cason. He liked it and went to Louisville to help the Oxfords finish it, as well as finding them a deal with Bell Records. That autumn, Barrickman...