A lovely album, thanks for linking to this article in my comment on Jimmy Webb’s Rosencrans Avenue. I’ve added the album to my 2024 Substack Discoveries Spotify playlist for further listening
Mark Eric was amazing in his short recording career. I was 14 when the album was released, and not much got by me at the time (and certainly not after 50 added years), so you can imagine my jaw dropping to the ground when I first saw pictures of him, and started digging less than a year ago!
That's a great....nay, beautiful, way to describe it! As much as I've come to adore the album (and fascinated by its creator), I'm confounded, even ticked, that I was in the dark for decades about him/it!! I was 14 in '69, on all things surf, Brit Invasion, records, music biz, et al, and grew up loving Brian and his work even more as I matured (I like to say "Brian's my spirit animal"!!), and ONLY JUST heard about Mark in, like, early '23!
Puttering around somewhere on the net, and came across one of his pix, and discovered he had barely a web presence, but recorded an album. I uncovered a song or two, and then read brief snippets of his bio. "How in the world did he escape my ear for 5 decades?" I wondered.
Anyway, after procrastinating a few weeks (I knew this would be an ordeal), I finally dug in, and set out to have it be the one-stop, be-all for all things Mark Eric on the 'net! I was finding this morsel here, that tidbit there...exasperating!
Wow! I never knew Tandyn's story before. I'm so fascinated by all these obscure artists out there. It makes you really wonder how many there are, and as Tandyn's brother alluded to, want to stay kept a secret forever and fade into obscurity. There's just something so intriguing about it. So many of these obscure figures have been quietly influencing pop culture for decades.
Here's a span of several months, very Brian-forward, that I'm very proud of....mainly for putting the pieces together as a...."wait a minute; didn't......I mean, right after, and didn't he, right after that?" kinda way. The facts were out there....I just had to piece them together. Enjoy:
Here's one, too....more "minor" figures in the larger rock'n'pop pastiche ca. '70s and '80s. Plus, this one tells you a lot more about me, which, frankly, is really only "important" to know my POV, and my starting-off point. In this Lisa album, you'll discover original Sparks bassist, and eventual Beach Boys orbit-spinner, Earle Mankey (engineer)....he engineered Lisa's debut album (and several subsequent BBs albums), produced by a rock'n'roll living legend:
Sadly Mark passed away in 2009. We were friends in the 1970’s then reconnected 30 years later. His real name was Mark Alan Malmborg. He was a vibrant and talented artist. I’ll share this article with his sister. It’ll mean a lot to her. Cherie
Thanks so much, Cherie, for the note, for subscribing, and for passing the article along to his sister! I'll add Mark's passing date to the article. I must say once I heard of him for the first time about a month ago, I became increasing fascinated by him and his music....especially as ANY information about him is so agonizingly non-existent on the web!
That's why it was so much fun digging for every nugget....I'd find something here, I'd stumble upon something there! So, my goal became to have this article be the one-stop shop for all things Mark Eric!! I think once people get to know Mark, his personality and his music, they'd see what a gifted person he was, and how his music was an important link at a key time in music and society at the turn of that '60s/'70s decade!
Cherie, if you and/or Mark's sister are game to share more info on Mark and his life, I'd love to hear them and print them here, as a companion piece to this article. It wouldn't have to be an interview per se...just info about him that you think would fill in the many things about him we don't know!
The acting jobs some sites put forward that he might've done seem light in their evidence, and so much of it is unable to be corroborated anywhere else. And, of course (if I may be so bold), photos would be incredible! Thank you again for your note, Cherie, and if any of the above is comfortable for either you or Mark's sister, please let me know by e-mail.
Another beautifully written piece and thank you so much for the shout-out. I love how well you compiled and narrated the small amount of information available. Some serious digging skills you’ve got there!
It would be so cool if the artist himself were to find out about this article. Can’t be that hard to contact him, right? 😅
Thank YOU, Andy, and you're most welcome! That was fun!
It's all about the extra digging! I thought I had it all wrapped up Saturday; then, Sunday, I happened to poke around a little bit more with some creative web-searchin', and a couple more things popped up!
I'm hoping the article will "pull him out," if he's still with us! It's happened before! 1979's Starjets (from N. Ireland) on Epic Records (it's out from behind the paywall, too!): https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/audio-autopsy-what-grounded-the-starjets My article drew out a member (Paul Bowen), and he kindly offered a couple A's to my Q's!
Same happened with A COUPLE members of Australia's Taxiride and their 1999 album: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/audio-autopsy-1999-what-drove-aussie Guitarist/singer Jason Singh said to me: "Thanks, Brad...you reminded me how good we used to be!" Still chokes me up! MY talent did THAT after YOUR talent thrilled ME? We're FB friends, now!
So, Mark, if you're out there, to quote Pepe LePew (in a French accent): "Come out, come out, wherever you are! I am looking somewhere to find you!"
Love your encouragement, Andy....thank you! Needless to say, the responses from Jason and Paul (and whomever I contact on social media via DMs, etc)---I go back into the article and add those conversations, so you can read them now! I don't just keep them to myself! Wanted to get that in there!!
Interesting stuff indeed - just for grins I looked it up on Chordify (link below). Written in 4/4 time, 167 BPM, EMaj - probably not the relative minor C#m, but ya never really know - some non diatonic chords here and there either way. Odd little note on chordify that the tuning was non standard, hard to say what that means. FWIW
Wow, Michael....thanks! Not a player (despite what my homies keep callin' me!), it would never have occurred to me to "look there"! Like Homer's donuts....."Mmmmm, Chordify, what CAN'T it do?!" I'll add the link to the piece, and thanks again!
If you really want to peer into the abyss... that non standard tuning note in Chordify sent me back in my memories to music theory class - “standard” tuning is now A4 (the A note above middle C) equals 440hz. In the past it was all over the place, often depending on what country the composer was from, kinda settling at one point at 432hz. The “Midsummer” piece is for some reason (perhaps known only to the recording engineer) tuned at A4=449hz. When there was debate over tuning (and there still is actually) the switch from 432hz to 440hz was thought by some to be satanic in nature, though that’s probably more like only saying “The Scottish Play” in the theater.
Thanks for sharing this, Brad. It's a great story and another example of someone who should have made it in the music industry with that talent. I am quite taken with Night of the Lions, and my immediate feeling was this is movie-esque and he could have been a film composer. In particular, the sound reminded so much of some of the screwball and madcap crime caper and road race movies of that time. I'm glad to hear that his album is a collectors' item!
Great thoughts, Ellen, and your comments make me wonder what a few more years of technical upgrades, musical growth, etc could've done to his overall sound, and how his songwriting might've grown, into the '70s....even, as you say, into film composing. These lost talents (like Mark Eric and Tandyn Almer) are just so agonizing to wonder about in the "land of what might've been"!
There are so many examples, as I keep finding with my posts. Fanny had to stop because they never got paid. Zombies and Badfinger similar story. Joe Cocker was biggest solo artist in US, had a successful tour, and yet owed the record label a fortune. It's because the artist took ALL the risk and only got a percentage of the reward, and that only after the label deducted any expense they possibly could against the revenues, paid all the contracted talent, and took their hefty cut. If the number ended up negative, the artist was in hock to the label. Many cases of royalties never being paid as well. Plus the label pressuring the artist to pay off the debt by signing over copyright. It's a wonder anyone stayed in that industry!
Which probably means that Mark and Tandyn saw it for what it was and bailed out -- and good for them. A loss for us, but like to think they chose a happier path.
Yeah, those label-greed stories are prevalent, no doubt, but I've gotten the feeling that, in Tandyn's and Mark's cases, their slow decline and disappearance from the biz was more personally driven....like, I think Tandyn had some possible emotional issues (I'd have to research...I was more driven to wring from the 'net all I could about his career!), and I can't recall about Mark, but seems to me he left us too early, but again, I'd have to search, and there just ain't that much out there!
But, your assertion about the littered-with-biz-injustices along the rock highway certainly cast a pall over the industry, and ended far too many careers (or, made them far too difficult to build)!
A lovely album, thanks for linking to this article in my comment on Jimmy Webb’s Rosencrans Avenue. I’ve added the album to my 2024 Substack Discoveries Spotify playlist for further listening
Mark Eric was amazing in his short recording career. I was 14 when the album was released, and not much got by me at the time (and certainly not after 50 added years), so you can imagine my jaw dropping to the ground when I first saw pictures of him, and started digging less than a year ago!
I stumbled on this album on a Beach Boys fan group. I feel like it's a longingly nostalgic wave goodbye to the sweet socal pop of the 60s. Love it.
That's a great....nay, beautiful, way to describe it! As much as I've come to adore the album (and fascinated by its creator), I'm confounded, even ticked, that I was in the dark for decades about him/it!! I was 14 in '69, on all things surf, Brit Invasion, records, music biz, et al, and grew up loving Brian and his work even more as I matured (I like to say "Brian's my spirit animal"!!), and ONLY JUST heard about Mark in, like, early '23!
Puttering around somewhere on the net, and came across one of his pix, and discovered he had barely a web presence, but recorded an album. I uncovered a song or two, and then read brief snippets of his bio. "How in the world did he escape my ear for 5 decades?" I wondered.
Anyway, after procrastinating a few weeks (I knew this would be an ordeal), I finally dug in, and set out to have it be the one-stop, be-all for all things Mark Eric on the 'net! I was finding this morsel here, that tidbit there...exasperating!
Pretty much the same for Tandyn Almer...whose coupla articles we've written shouldn't be missed....especially for someone who's a Beach Boys fan! Here's the main one, with another linked within: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/toytown-psychedelia-songwriter-tandyn
Would love to hear your thoughts after reading that, and others! It's been fun having you FR&B! Don't be a stranger!!
Wow! I never knew Tandyn's story before. I'm so fascinated by all these obscure artists out there. It makes you really wonder how many there are, and as Tandyn's brother alluded to, want to stay kept a secret forever and fade into obscurity. There's just something so intriguing about it. So many of these obscure figures have been quietly influencing pop culture for decades.
Here's a span of several months, very Brian-forward, that I'm very proud of....mainly for putting the pieces together as a...."wait a minute; didn't......I mean, right after, and didn't he, right after that?" kinda way. The facts were out there....I just had to piece them together. Enjoy:
https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/tina-turner-1966-phil-spectors-river
Here's one, too....more "minor" figures in the larger rock'n'pop pastiche ca. '70s and '80s. Plus, this one tells you a lot more about me, which, frankly, is really only "important" to know my POV, and my starting-off point. In this Lisa album, you'll discover original Sparks bassist, and eventual Beach Boys orbit-spinner, Earle Mankey (engineer)....he engineered Lisa's debut album (and several subsequent BBs albums), produced by a rock'n'roll living legend:
https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/video-to-vinyl-1976-lisa-hartman
Sadly Mark passed away in 2009. We were friends in the 1970’s then reconnected 30 years later. His real name was Mark Alan Malmborg. He was a vibrant and talented artist. I’ll share this article with his sister. It’ll mean a lot to her. Cherie
Thanks so much, Cherie, for the note, for subscribing, and for passing the article along to his sister! I'll add Mark's passing date to the article. I must say once I heard of him for the first time about a month ago, I became increasing fascinated by him and his music....especially as ANY information about him is so agonizingly non-existent on the web!
That's why it was so much fun digging for every nugget....I'd find something here, I'd stumble upon something there! So, my goal became to have this article be the one-stop shop for all things Mark Eric!! I think once people get to know Mark, his personality and his music, they'd see what a gifted person he was, and how his music was an important link at a key time in music and society at the turn of that '60s/'70s decade!
Cherie, if you and/or Mark's sister are game to share more info on Mark and his life, I'd love to hear them and print them here, as a companion piece to this article. It wouldn't have to be an interview per se...just info about him that you think would fill in the many things about him we don't know!
The acting jobs some sites put forward that he might've done seem light in their evidence, and so much of it is unable to be corroborated anywhere else. And, of course (if I may be so bold), photos would be incredible! Thank you again for your note, Cherie, and if any of the above is comfortable for either you or Mark's sister, please let me know by e-mail.
Another beautifully written piece and thank you so much for the shout-out. I love how well you compiled and narrated the small amount of information available. Some serious digging skills you’ve got there!
It would be so cool if the artist himself were to find out about this article. Can’t be that hard to contact him, right? 😅
Thank YOU, Andy, and you're most welcome! That was fun!
It's all about the extra digging! I thought I had it all wrapped up Saturday; then, Sunday, I happened to poke around a little bit more with some creative web-searchin', and a couple more things popped up!
I'm hoping the article will "pull him out," if he's still with us! It's happened before! 1979's Starjets (from N. Ireland) on Epic Records (it's out from behind the paywall, too!): https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/audio-autopsy-what-grounded-the-starjets My article drew out a member (Paul Bowen), and he kindly offered a couple A's to my Q's!
Same happened with A COUPLE members of Australia's Taxiride and their 1999 album: https://bradkyle.substack.com/p/audio-autopsy-1999-what-drove-aussie Guitarist/singer Jason Singh said to me: "Thanks, Brad...you reminded me how good we used to be!" Still chokes me up! MY talent did THAT after YOUR talent thrilled ME? We're FB friends, now!
So, Mark, if you're out there, to quote Pepe LePew (in a French accent): "Come out, come out, wherever you are! I am looking somewhere to find you!"
That’s awesome. It’s so rewarding when the artists you write about acknowledge the hard work behind the keyboard. Well done! And keep ‘em coming!
Love your encouragement, Andy....thank you! Needless to say, the responses from Jason and Paul (and whomever I contact on social media via DMs, etc)---I go back into the article and add those conversations, so you can read them now! I don't just keep them to myself! Wanted to get that in there!!
Interesting stuff indeed - just for grins I looked it up on Chordify (link below). Written in 4/4 time, 167 BPM, EMaj - probably not the relative minor C#m, but ya never really know - some non diatonic chords here and there either way. Odd little note on chordify that the tuning was non standard, hard to say what that means. FWIW
Chordify just taught me how to play along with "Mark Eric - A Midsummer's Day Dream (Mix)"! https://chordify.net/chords/mark-eric-a-midsummer-s-day-dream-mix-soft-rock-yui825-aor
Wow, Michael....thanks! Not a player (despite what my homies keep callin' me!), it would never have occurred to me to "look there"! Like Homer's donuts....."Mmmmm, Chordify, what CAN'T it do?!" I'll add the link to the piece, and thanks again!
If you really want to peer into the abyss... that non standard tuning note in Chordify sent me back in my memories to music theory class - “standard” tuning is now A4 (the A note above middle C) equals 440hz. In the past it was all over the place, often depending on what country the composer was from, kinda settling at one point at 432hz. The “Midsummer” piece is for some reason (perhaps known only to the recording engineer) tuned at A4=449hz. When there was debate over tuning (and there still is actually) the switch from 432hz to 440hz was thought by some to be satanic in nature, though that’s probably more like only saying “The Scottish Play” in the theater.
Ref:
https://producerhive.com/editorial/432hz-vs-440hz/
Thanks for sharing this, Brad. It's a great story and another example of someone who should have made it in the music industry with that talent. I am quite taken with Night of the Lions, and my immediate feeling was this is movie-esque and he could have been a film composer. In particular, the sound reminded so much of some of the screwball and madcap crime caper and road race movies of that time. I'm glad to hear that his album is a collectors' item!
Great thoughts, Ellen, and your comments make me wonder what a few more years of technical upgrades, musical growth, etc could've done to his overall sound, and how his songwriting might've grown, into the '70s....even, as you say, into film composing. These lost talents (like Mark Eric and Tandyn Almer) are just so agonizing to wonder about in the "land of what might've been"!
There are so many examples, as I keep finding with my posts. Fanny had to stop because they never got paid. Zombies and Badfinger similar story. Joe Cocker was biggest solo artist in US, had a successful tour, and yet owed the record label a fortune. It's because the artist took ALL the risk and only got a percentage of the reward, and that only after the label deducted any expense they possibly could against the revenues, paid all the contracted talent, and took their hefty cut. If the number ended up negative, the artist was in hock to the label. Many cases of royalties never being paid as well. Plus the label pressuring the artist to pay off the debt by signing over copyright. It's a wonder anyone stayed in that industry!
Which probably means that Mark and Tandyn saw it for what it was and bailed out -- and good for them. A loss for us, but like to think they chose a happier path.
Yeah, those label-greed stories are prevalent, no doubt, but I've gotten the feeling that, in Tandyn's and Mark's cases, their slow decline and disappearance from the biz was more personally driven....like, I think Tandyn had some possible emotional issues (I'd have to research...I was more driven to wring from the 'net all I could about his career!), and I can't recall about Mark, but seems to me he left us too early, but again, I'd have to search, and there just ain't that much out there!
But, your assertion about the littered-with-biz-injustices along the rock highway certainly cast a pall over the industry, and ended far too many careers (or, made them far too difficult to build)!