Joey Levine wrote “Try It” for the Standells and went on to compose, produce and sing on numerous pop hits for the Third Rail (including “Run Run Run” and the excellent flip “No Return”), the Ohio Express, Jet Stream and other acts. Before the hits came this one-shot record as Joey Vine, released on Hercules Records in the U.S. and Immediate in the U.K.

I’d like to know who was backing him on these songs. Though likely studio musicians, the group has a sharp garage sound on “The Out of Towner”, with a catchy guitar hook, solid drumming, and good harmonica fills. Vine gives a good vocal on the A-side, then does a close Dylan imitation on the flip, “Down and Out”.

Though Joey Levine wrote both songs, Gallico Music published “The Out of Towner” while Pentagon Music BMI published “Down and Out”.

Hercules Records had three singles, all in 1965, all produced by Charles Calello and distributed via Jamie/Guyden. Besides Joey Vine’s there were also Hercules 101, the Victorians “C’mon Dream (Chris Andrews) / “Catrina” (Donnie Frio) and Hercules 102, Joy Leonard “Baby I Wanna Back Track” (Lou Christie, Twyla Herbert) /”Don’t Feel Sorry For Me” (Rosemarie McCoy, Dorian Burton).

Of these three only Joey Vine’s was licensed for release in the UK by Immediate in October, 1965. How that happened is uncertain – the only other Jamie/Guyden product to be picked up by Immediate was a Barbara Lynn single whose r&b sound would have obvious appeal in England.

Background on Joseph Levine is available at http://home.comcast.net/~bubblegumusic/levine.htm and at http://www.wfmu.org/LCD/22/bubblegum.html

Hercules discography compiled by Davie Gordon on Spectropop.