

Before he became Patti Smith’s lead guitarist, Lenny Kaye compiled the 2 album set, 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 20/118: Tobacco Road by Blues Magoos
Release Year: 1966
From: The Bronx, New York
Aphoristic Rating: 8/10
TOBACCO ROAD – Blues Magoos [4:30]
(John D. Loudermilk)
Personnel/RALPH SCALA: vocals, organ * RONNIE GILBERT: vocals, bass * MIKE ESPOSITO: lead guitar * EMIL “PEPPY” THIELHELM: guitar, vocals * GEOFF DAKING: drums
Produced by BOB WYLD & ART POLHEMUS for LONGHAIR PRODUCTIONS
Recorded in New York, NY
Mercury single #72590 (6/66)
The Blues Magoos were formed in 1964, originally known as The Trenchcoats. Playing in clubs around Greenwich Village, they changed their name to the Bloos Magoos, before settling on the final spelling. They marketed themselves as a psychedelic band – their debut is titled Psychedelic Lollipop. But there’s plenty of garage band in their DNA as well.
On their second single, they covered John D Loudermilk’s ‘Tobacco Road’. It tells of Loudermilk growing up in Durham, North Carolina. It was covered by many bands in the 1960s, including Lou Rawls, Jefferson Airplane, and Rare Earth.
I’m often dismissive of the blues tunes on Nuggets, but this one works well – there’s a great hook at the end of the chorus where the instruments drop out. The organ and guitar interplay in the instrumental freakout isn’t virtuoso, but it’s engaging – not unlike something Pink Floyd on Piper from the Gates of Dawn.
The Blues Magoos’ best-known song is their third single, ‘We Ain’t Got Nothin’ Yet’, their first release for Mercury Records. It reached #5 on the Billboard Charts.
The Blues Magoos stuck around long enough to record six albums, including a 2014 reunion album, Psychedelic Resurrection. Emil “Peppy” Thielhelm (aka “Peppy” Castro) was the band’s only constant member. He later joined the cast of Hair and scored a top 40 hit in 1981 with ‘Breaking Away’, with his new band Balance.
Amazingly, for a 1960s band, the Blue Magoos’ original lineup was all alive until February 2024, when bassist Ronnie Gilbert passed away.
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Nuggets: Liar, Liar by The Castaways

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Nuggets II: Come On by The Atlantics

Nuggets: Psychotic Reaction by Count Five

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Nuggets: Hey Joe by the Leaves

Nuggets II: Nothin’ by Ugly Ducklings

Nuggets: Romeo and Juliet by Michael and the Messengers

Nuggets: Tobacco Road by Blues Magoos

Nuggets: Sweet Young Thing by The Chocolate Watchband

Nuggets: Time Won’t Let Me by The Outsiders

Nuggets: Night Time by The Strangeloves

Nuggets: Louie Louie by The Kingsmen

Nuggets: Let It Out (Let It All Hang Out) by The Hombres

Nuggets: Double Shot (Of My Baby’s Love) by The Swingin’ Medallions

Nuggets: Strychnine by The Sonics

Nuggets: At the River’s Edge by New Colony Six

Nuggets II: Bat Macumba by Os Mutantes

Nuggets II: Pictures of Matchstick Men by The Status Quo

Nuggets: Steppin’ Out by Paul Revere & the Raiders

Nuggets: You Burn Me Up and Down by We The People

Nuggets: Mr. Pharmacist by The Other Half

Nuggets: Johnny Was A Good Boy by Mystery Trend

Nuggets: Get Me to the World on Time by The Electric Prunes

Nuggets II: I Wish I Was Five by Scrugg

Nuggets: Sometimes Good Guys Don’t Wear White by The Standells

Nuggets: Just Like Me by Paul Revere & the Raiders

Nuggets II: How Does It Feel to Feel by The Creation

Nuggets: Open My Eyes by Nazz

Nuggets II: But You’ll Never Do It, Babe by The Boots

Nuggets II: The Bitter Thoughts Of Little Jane by Timon

Nuggets II: Sad by The (Australian) Playboys

Nuggets: Sit Down, I Think I Love You by The Mojo Men

Nuggets: Hold Me Now by The Rumors

Nuggets: Optical Sound by The Human Expression

Nuggets II: It’s My Fault by The Rattles

Nuggets: Beg, Borrow, And Steal by The Rare Breed

Nuggets: I Think I’m Down by the Harbinger Complex

Nuggets: Oh Yeah by The Shadows of Knight

Nuggets: Run, Run, Run by The Third Rail

Nuggets: The Little Black Egg by The Nightcrawlers

Nuggets: No Time Like The Right Time by The Blues Project

Nuggets: Complication by The Monks

Nuggets: Bad Girl by The Zakary Thaks

Nuggets: Live by The Merry-Go-Round

Nuggets: Last Time Around by The Del-Vetts

Baby, Please Don’t Go by The Amboy Dukes

Nuggets: She’s My Baby by The Mojo Men

Nuggets: Respect by The Vagrants

Nuggets II: Bad Little Woman by The Wheels

Nuggets: Let’s Talk About Girls by The Chocolate Watchband

Nuggets: The Witch by The Sonics

Nuggets II: Glendora by Downliners Sect

Nuggets: Pushin’ Too Hard by The Seeds

Nuggets: Blue's Theme by Davie Allan & the Arrows

Nuggets: My World Fell Down by Sagittarius

Nuggets: Maid of Sugar – Maid of Spice by Mouse and the Traps

Sugar and Spice by The Cryan’ Shames

Nuggets: Stop! Get A Ticket by Clefs of Lavender Hill

Nuggets: Shape of Things to Come by Max Frost & The Troopers

Nuggets: I See the Light by The Five Americans

Nuggets: Journey To The Center Of The Mind by The Amboy Dukes

Nuggets II: I’m Your Witchdoctor by Chants R&B

Nuggets: Run, Run, Run by The Gestures

Nuggets: Love's Gone Bad by The Underdogs

Nuggets: Out Of Our Tree by The Wailers

Nuggets: So What! by The Lyrics

Nuggets II: No Good Without You Baby by The Birds

Nuggets: No Friend of Mine by The Sparkles

Nuggets: One Track Mind by The Knickerbockers

Nuggets II: Dance Around the Maypole by Acid Gallery

Nuggets: Diddy Wah Diddy by Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

Nuggets: I Wonder by The Gants

Nuggets: Too Many People by The Leaves

Nuggets: I Need You by The Rationals

Nuggets II: Slaves Time by The Slaves

Nuggets: It’s Cold Outside by The Choir

Nuggets: Who Do You Love by The Woolies

Nuggets: Nobody But Me by The Human Beinz

Nuggets: I Live in the Springtime by The Lemon Drops

Nuggets II: Break It All by Los Shakers

Nuggets: Incense and Peppermints by Strawberry Alarm Clock

Nuggets: I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night) by The Electric Prunes

Nuggets II: My Life by Thor’s Hammer

Nuggets: Open Up Your Door by Richard & the Young Lions

Nuggets: Can’t Seem To Make You Mine by The Seeds

Nuggets II: One Third by The Majority

Nuggets II: Get Yourself Home by The Fairies

Nuggets II: The Train to Disaster by The Voice

Nuggets: Farmer John by The Premiers

Nuggets II: Why Don’t You Smile Now by Downliners Sect

Nuggets: She’s About A Mover by Sir Douglas Quintet

Nuggets: I’m Five Years Ahead of My Time by The Third Bardo

Nuggets: Going All the Way by The Squires

Nuggets: Are You A Boy Or Are You A Girl by The Barbarians

Nuggets: Psycho by The Sonics

Nuggets: 7 and 7 Is by Love

Nuggets: Codine by The Charlatans

Nuggets: What Am I Going to Do? by The Dovers

Nuggets II: Real Crazy Apartment by Winston’s Fumbs

Nuggets: Blackout of Gretely by GONN

Nuggets: I’m Gonna Make You Mine by The Shadows of Knight

Nuggets: Action Woman by The Litter

Nuggets: A Public Execution by Mouse

Nuggets: Why Do I Cry by The Remains

Nuggets: Falling Sugar by The Palace Guard

Nuggets: Bad Little Woman by The Shadows of Knight

Nuggets: Why Pick On Me by The Standells

Nuggets: Fight Fire by The Golliwogs

Nuggets: Little Girl by Syndicate of Sound

Nuggets II: Vacuum Cleaner by Tintern Abbey

Nuggets: Wooly Bully by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs

Nuggets: Primitive by The Groupies

Nuggets: Mirror Of Your Mind by We The People

Nuggets II: The Madman Running Through The Fields by Dantalian’s Chariot

Nuggets: Knock, Knock by The Humane Society

Nuggets II: No Presents For Me by The Pandamonium

Nuggets: Spazz by The Elastik Band

Nuggets II: When The Alarm Clock Rings by the Blossom Toes

Nuggets: (We Ain’t Got) Nothin’ Yet by the Blues Magoos

Nuggets II: I’m Just A Mops by The Mops

Nuggets II: Kicks and Chicks by The Zipps

Nuggets: Journey to Tyme by Kenny and the Kasuals

Nuggets II: You Can Be My Baby by The Red Squares

Nuggets: Story of My Life by The Unrelated Segments

Nuggets: Lies by The Knickerbockers

Nuggets: Moulty by The Barbarians

Nuggets: Mindrocker by Fenwyck

Nuggets: The Trip by Kim Fowley

Nuggets: (Would I Still Be) Her Big Man by The Brigands

Nuggets II: Flight from Ashiya by Kaleidoscope

Nuggets II: Touch by The Outsiders

Nuggets: Double Yellow Line by The Music Machine

Nuggets: Outside Chance by The Turtles

Nuggets II: Rosalyn by The Pretty Things

Nuggets: I Ain’t No Miracle Worker by The Brogues

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Nuggets: You Must Be A Witch by The Lollipop Shoppe

Nuggets: Little Bit O’Soul by The Music Explosion

Nuggets: Follow Me by Lyme & Cybelle

Nuggets II: Here Come the Nice by The Small Faces

Nuggets: Voices Green and Purple by The Bees

Nuggets: Dirty Water by The Standells

Nuggets: Don’t Look Back by The Remains

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I just did a dog walk listening to Easter and I have to say (as I always do) the guitar on Babelogue into Rock And Roll is some of the best playing on any record ever. And as for Till Victory. Space Monkey. What a player
Horses is the Smith album I know really well, but I do have her other 70s records too. Is it worth going further – I think there are quite big gaps after that?
Some of its great. I really like the covers album she did in the 00’s and People Have The Power, Dancing Barefoot are both great songs.
I thought Dancing Barefoot was 1970s. I know People Have The Power from a Bridge Street concerts album.
Halfway decent song. I remember reading a pulp fiction book by the same name years ago. I remember We Ain’t Got Nothin Yet and it still sounds good.
It’s an evocative title – I can see why it was reused.
I would have assumed I wouldn’t like a band with Blues in their name, but they were good.
I don’t believe I had heard the Blues Magoos’ rendition of “Tobacco Road” – not bad! I also agree with your the instrumental part has an early early Pink Floyd/Syd Barrett vibe. I knew “We Ain’t Got Nothing Yet.” It sounds like Deep Purple borrowed from it for their song “Black Night”!
Wikipedia says:
The Vox Continental organ riff, which also appeared in Liverpool Five’s “She’s Mine” (in the same year)[4] was closely based on guitarist James Burton’s riff to Ricky Nelson’s 1962 rock recording of the old George Gershwin standard “Summertime”,[5] which also inspired Deep Purple’s 1970 hit song “Black Night”.[6]
Not bad but I still prefer David Lee Roth’s version.
I didn’t know he covered it – although I guess I don’t really know his solo stuff.
This song has been covered a lot but I love this version. I’m listening through headphones and it’s terrific sounding as well. They were a tight band.