Sagittarius LP

[Magic Transistor Radio]

I discovered the song 'My World Fell Down' from this LP from a Nuggets box set. This song is amazing!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=leiSufV_nYI

The vocalists include Bruce Johnston and Glen Campbell.

Anyone with info on this lp would be grande.

[shelter]

Sagittarius was one of Gary Usher's studio projects. They released two albums, 'Present Tense' and 'The Blue Marble' (which includes a cover of 'In My Room'). Both have been reissued on CD, with bonus tracks, by Sundazed. 'My World Fell Down' is indeed a superb song. It was originally recorded by The Ivy League, but the Sagittarius version is much better. Another song that I love from the first album is 'Another Time'. Absolutely stunning. I don't really care that much for the rest of the Sagittarius material. I think most of it is pretty cheesy.

[Jason]

My World Fell Down is indeed a great tune, and one of the best non-hits of the 1960s. The rest of the Sagittarius stuff is anticlimactic at best. If it weren't for the Gary Usher and, to a lesser extent, Curt Boettcher fans/apologists, these two LPs would be out of print and My World Fell Down a perennial compilation favorite.

[Andrew G. Doe]

My World Fell Down is indeed a great tune, and one of the best non-hits of the 1960s.

[koff] Charted at #70 in 1967. 

[Dunderhead]

My World Fell Down is indeed a great tune, and one of the best non-hits of the 1960s. The rest of the Sagittarius stuff is anticlimactic at best. If it weren't for the Gary Usher and, to a lesser extent, Curt Boettcher fans/apologists, these two LPs would be out of print and My World Fell Down a perennial compilation favorite.

Wrong. Glass from PT is much better than My World Fell Down. It's an uneven LP, but there's some great material on it, I love "I'm Not Living Here" too, and the cd release has some awesome bonus cuts (Get the Message and Lonely Girl especially)
Seriously, Glass is one of my favorite songs from the 1960s.

I have a soft spot for The Blue Marble. There aren't any songs on it that are really great, but the production is really nice and has some great use of the moog.

[Jason]

I certainly respect your opinion, even though you obviously don't reciprocate.

I tried to like the Sagittarius stuff. I really did. It just didn't do it for me at the end of the day.

[roll plymouth rock]

The 45 has the smile-like middle section that really ties the song together imo

[SG7]

I like some of Curt's other productions more like The Ballroom and his work with the Association is amazing.

[oldsurferdude]

My World Fell Down is indeed a great tune, and one of the best non-hits of the 1960s. The rest of the Sagittarius stuff is anticlimactic at best. If it weren't for the Gary Usher and, to a lesser extent, Curt Boettcher fans/apologists, these two LPs would be out of print and My World Fell Down a perennial compilation favorite.

Wrong. Glass from PT is much better than My World Fell Down. It's an uneven LP, but there's some great material on it, I love "I'm Not Living Here" too, and the cd release has some awesome bonus cuts (Get the Message and Lonely Girl especially)
Seriously, Glass is one of my favorite songs from the 1960s.

I have a soft spot for The Blue Marble. There aren't any songs on it that are really great, but the production is really nice and has some great use of the moog.

I bought both albums when they were released. I'm not allowed to tell you if I liked them or not but I really remember "Glass" very well. I told my friends about it.

[roll plymouth rock]

I like some of Curt's other productions more like The Ballroom and his work with the Association is amazing.

Curt actually started working with Gary Usher because he heard My World Fell Down and isn't on that track

[exposedbrain]

It took me a while to get into this album, but it grew on me. Song For a Magic Frog is one of my favorites on this

[Mike's Beard]

The first album is great, the second one not so. Usher couldn't sing and on Blue Marble he handles most of the leads.

[willy]

It took me a while to get into this album, but it grew on me. Song For a Magic Frog is one of my favorites on this

Me too — a gorgeous love song albeit in a spiked Kool Aid kinda way 

[Vega-Table Man]

It took me a while to get into this album, but it grew on me. Song For a Magic Frog is one of my favorites on this

I have to agree. The lyrics to that song are easy to make fun of, but the recording is simply gorgeous.

[Menace Wilson]

If you like Sagittarius, also check out "Magic Time: The Millennium/Ballroom Sessions."  Contains the complete "Begin" album, a lost classic. 

[roll plymouth rock]

I'd also say check out Eternity's Children - S/T, Friar Tuck & His Psychedelic Guitar, Tommy Roe - It's Now Winters Day....all prime examples of Boettcher productions in the mid-late 60s there

[Dunderhead]

The best Usher production is Notorious Byrd Brothers. That's one of the best 60s LPs.

[Jason]

The best Usher production is Notorious Byrd Brothers. That's one of the best 60s LPs.

Seconded.

[exposedbrain]

The best Usher production is Notorious Byrd Brothers. That's one of the best 60s LPs.

Seconded.

Thirded.

[roll plymouth rock]

The best Usher production is Notorious Byrd Brothers. That's one of the best 60s LPs.

Seconded.

Thirded.

I'll four it. There was just a 33 1/3 book about NBB released too, pretty good read!

[kwan_dk]

The first album is great, the second one not so. Usher couldn't sing and on Blue Marble he handles most of the leads.

I really don't agree. The Blue Marble is indeed spotty but I think Usher's voice could work quite well with the right songs. I'm a major fan of his aborted Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt collection of songs that he started working on after the Sagittarius albums. I like those recordings way better than the Sagittarius stuff.

[Dunderhead]

The first album is great, the second one not so. Usher couldn't sing and on Blue Marble he handles most of the leads.

I really don't agree. The Blue Marble is indeed spotty but I think Usher's voice could work quite well with the right songs. I'm a major fan of his aborted Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt collection of songs that he started working on after the Sagittarius albums. I like those recordings way better than the Sagittarius stuff.

Yeah, that one has become a real favorite of mine. I've read that Usher wanted to publish a book to go along with the album, I'd love to get a copy of it.

Tracking down Usher productions has become something of an obsession for me. He produced a group called The Peanut Butter Conspiracy, which though not incredible, is quite decent. He also worked with Chad & Jeremy on two albums, they seem to have been a real pet project of Usher's, but I really don't care for them. He also put together a really weird spoken word album, The Astrology Album, which tells all about the different signs.

If anybody knows any other good Usher related projects from the later half of the 60s, please share.

[oldsurferdude]

PBC's "The Great Peanut Butter Conspiracy" was a favorite in the 60's as was TNBB. They both had the Usher stamp on them. TGPBC is available on CD along with portions of a second album. "Living Dream-The Best of the Peanut Butter Conspiracy" on Sundazed(2005). Booklet hastext, pics, and old posters(oldposterdude?).

[Myk Luhv]

Do people really think Usher or Boettcher's albums are consistently good? I get liking Begin because that is a fairly consistently good album but... I think that's gotta be the exception to the rule; otherwise, those guys were way singles-oriented and all the better for it, I think. They generally couldn't sustain an album of material, no matter how stylish it sounded.

[kwan_dk]

If anybody knows any other good Usher related projects from the later half of the 60s, please share.

You should definately check out the album he produced for the Ship in 1971. It's a kind of concept album about traveling at sea that has a very mellow vibe and tight harmonies. It's for sale on Itunes newly remastered.

Here's some info on the groups website:

http://www.theshipmusic.com/ship_album.html