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A songwriting assignment from Dean Torrence led to a rich musical career for Los Angeles pop- genius Gary Zekley. Zekley - a man whose body of work stands up to any of the precocious Brill Building bunch from five years earlier - originally penned the song "Yellow Balloon" for Jan and Dean, but also recorded the tune himself. When Zekley's version went Top Thirty in April of 1967, he assembled a band, called the Yellow Balloon (natch), with the likes of lead singer Alex Valdez and multi-talented drummer/vocalist Don Grady, already a TV superstar as Robbie, Fred MacMurray's oldest kid on My Three Sons. The Yellow Balloon album itself, is a day-glo gem- a wispy bridge spanning the lush yet trippy studio wizardry of Sagittarius and the mindbending delights of The Beach Boys' Smile-era recordings. Sundazed's Yellow Balloon disc contains 20 tracks, including the complete original stereo album, vintage single-only sides, a Zekley demo, both ultra-rare Don Grady singles, and a 20 page booklet stuffed with striking color outtakes of the group's photo sessions, acquired from the original band members-all of whom were interviewed by West Coast studio-expert Domenic Priore for the liner notes-and a penetrating on-disc interview with the late Gary Zekley, himself. Lush, plush and gorgeous!!!
