Nuggets: Talk Talk by The Music Machine

Before he became Patti Smith’s lead guitarist, Lenny Kaye compiled Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era. Released in 1972, the two-LP set covered American garage rock and psychedelia from the years 1965-1968 and was a major influence on punk rock. Rhino Records reissued an expanded version of the set in 1998, with 118 tracks in total. I’m profiling and rating each of these 118 tracks, working backwards.

Track 28: Talk Talk by The Music Machine
Release Date: 1966
From: Los Angeles, California
Rating: 8/10

TALK TALK – The Music Machine [1:56]
(Sean Bonniwell)
Personnel/SEAN BONNIWELL: vocals, guitar * MARK LANDON: lead guitar * DOUG RHODES: organ * KEITH OLSEN: bass * RON EDGAR: drums
Produced by BRIAN ROSS & MAURIE BERCOV for A.P.I.
Recorded in Los Angeles, CA
Original Sound single #OS-61 (9/66); Pop #15

The Music Machine formed in Los Angeles but originated in different parts of the country – drummer Ron Edgar was from Minnesota, bassist Keith Olsen came from South Dakota, and vocalist Sean Bonniwell hailed from California. The trio played folk as The Ragamuffins, before recruiting two new members and rebranding as The Music Machine.

I was aware of Olsen’s subsequent career as a producer, but The Music Machine are one of the most impressive bands featured on the box. ‘Talk Talk’ is the second of two tracks from The Music Machine on Nuggets – I’ve already covered ‘Double Yellow Line‘.

‘Talk Talk’ was the hit, but it’s not quite as strong as ‘Double Yellow Line’ for my money. It’s simple, and driven by personality more than musicality. It’s good though – it features some nifty key changes, and it’s surprisingly heavy for 1966.

Despite the success of debut single ‘Talk Talk’, The Music Machine’s career stalled. Their record company forced them to pad their debut album out with covers, unnecessary for a creative band. They also failed to make the bill for the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival.

Olsen, Edgar, and organist Doug Rhodes left to form the Millennium, whose 1968 album Begin has become recognised as a sunshine pop masterpiece. Bonniwell continued the band for a second record, The Bonniwell Music Machine, before going solo.

Bassist Keith Olsen enjoyed a successful career as a producer, notably working on Fleetwood Mac’s successful 1975 album with Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. It’s always interesting to see what happened to the band members who left the music industry – here are some excerpts from an interview with guitarist Mark Landon on his post-Music Machine life, taken from MinniePaulMusic.com:

I felt put upon, used, and financially cheated. I had received essentially nothing for my years of effort, living in hotels up and down the Sunset Strip, buying our manager’s old used car, when he bought a new Lincoln Continental and I had to pay it off on time because I had no cash. When the group broke up our other manager bought a beautiful new home at the top of Laurel Canyon and Mulholland Drive, overlooking Hollywood and moved in. I moved into the back seat of my car.

I was crazy about the blues and left rock behind after The Music Machine. In 1969 I joined Ike and Tina Turner with whom I toured and recorded for the next few years. I met Ike at a recording session with Albert Collins who he was producing. After Ike and Tina Turner, I formed my own blues/rock group called Freight Train. By the mid to late 70’s the scene was all about either disco or punk. There was no place to play the blues on the West Coast. When my house was burglarized and all my guitars, amps, and musical and recording gear was stolen, I walked away. I did not own a guitar again for 18 years.

I built a new 33 year career as a Hollywood film and TV makeup artist for which I am lucky enough to have been nominated for 5 Emmy Awards and won 2 Emmy Awards for makeup. I bought a guitar again in the mid 90’s.

https://minniepaulmusic.com/artists/k-to-n/music-machine-ron-edgar-keith-olsen/

Read More

• Nuggets Song by Song
• 1960s Album Reviews

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