1967: What a Year for...

Despite their Anglo name and trappings, the Buckinghams were a pop-rock group from Chicago, who most of you have probably heard of, and are also probably familiar with at least one of their hits. You know, songs like "Kind of a Drag," "Don't You Care," "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy," "Hey Baby (They're Playing Our Song)," "Susan," - actually that's all of them! They had 5 hits, and they had them all in 1967. What I gather happened, was that they got in a fight with their producer Jim Guercio. See, he wanted to add more horns and a bit of a jazz feeling, while the band preferred to rock out. Well Jim packed up his horns and jazz feel, and apparently a shitload of hits and took them across town to a group known as The Chicago Transit Authority and then as just plain Chicago. So that was it for the Buckinghams, who, to this day play around the world with their 5 1967 hits, but wouldn't trade their rock n roll souls for all of Chicago MOR hits. I say God Bless the Buckinghams!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hq1fpN1qWv8

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

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyfJfxLr3RU