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BIOGRAPHY
The Lemon Pipers lineup included Ivan Browne on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Bill Bartlett on lead guitar, R.G. Nave on keyboards, Steve Walmsley on bass, and Bill Albaugh on drums. Browne had been involved in music for some time before the Lemon Pipers came to be, starting his first band Ivan & the Sabers in 1961. By 1964, the group had become regionally popular in Ohio, and opened for some of the well-known recording artists of the day. In 1966, Browne left the Sabers and replaced Tony in Tony & the Bandits. In time, their name would be changed to the Lemon Pipers. Their debut release was "Quiet Please/Monaural 78" on the independent Carol label. “Quiet Please” was a fair garage rock offering that featured thick, bluesy guitar lines. Signing with Buddha Records in 1967, the Pipers were initially given complete artistic control on the condition that they made hits. The band promptly recorded and released their debut Buddha single, a Bartlett penned original entitled "Turn Around and Take a Look." The song did not have the right commercial formula, and barely cracked the charts, reaching only #132. Based on the label's next move, it can be surmised that the lack of chart success did not sit well with them. The band was soon presented with the demo of "Green Tambourine." The lyrics were written by Shelly Pinz, and reportedly inspired by an article about a one man band that performed outside a British bank. Producer and composer Paul Leka set the lyrics to music, and created the demo tape. The Lemon Pipers are said only to have agreed to record "Green Tambourine" after it was revealed that the label would drop them had they refused to do so. With solid promotion and production, "Green Tambourine" reached #1 on the national charts by February of 1968. In time, Leka and Pinz would embark on the task of writing more material for the group. Despite the strong sales of "Green Tambourine" however, further significant chart success was not to be. The follow up single "Rice is Nice" was certainly the most saccharine of the Leka/Pinz compositions crafted for the group, and only made #46. The Green Tambourine album presented the Lemon Pipers in a few different styles. While around half of the songs were in the psychedelic pop style of "Green Tambourine," the group also delved into folk-rock with the Byrdsy (“Ask Me If I Care”), heavy blues-rock (“Fifty Year Void”), and probed the dimensions of space rock in “Through With You." This latter category of psychedelic improvisation was to be explored further on the group’s subsequent album Jungle Marmalade, the band's strongest long player. The inability to issue "Ask Me If I Care" as a single might represent a missed opportunity for the band. Though not nearly as commercial as "Green Tambourine," the song arguably had more commercial potential than "Rice Is Nice," and certainly would not have alienated older listeners. The next single was the Leka/Pinz creation "Jelly Jungle (of Orange Marmalade).”Jelly Jungle" was a quality bubblegum single, but it stalled at #51. There would be no additional chart activity despite other fine singles, including a cover of the Goffin/King composition “I Was Not Born to Follow.” Despite not being cohesive, the group’s second album contained the Lemon Pipers most accomplished original material. In regards to the Lemon Pipers career as a recording unit, it could be argued that their albums lacked consistency, that is, the group was often forced to record material that was in opposition to their actual sound. As a live quintet, the Pipers favored a harder rock style epitomized by some of the band's original material. Even so, several of the Leka/Pinz songs were enjoyable lightweight forays into a psychedelic pop dream world. After only two albums, the Lemon Pipers retired their name in 1969. All in all, the Lemon Pipers deserve to be heard beyond their major hit song. They certainly had a diverse body of work in under two years of recording activity, and their recordings are worthy of study.