Wendy & Bonnie Genesis CD

Re-Issue;1969;5 Bonus Tracks

Personnel: Larry Carlton (guitar); Michael Lang , Mike Melvoin (piano, organ); Jim Keltner (drums).
Liner Note Author: Irwin Chusid.
Recording information: United Recording, Los Angeles, CA (11/1968).
Arranger: Gary McFarland.
San Francsico sisters Wendy and Bonnie Flower (allegedly their real last name) released their lone album, GENESIS, in 1969. A dreamy soft-psych/folk-rock affair, it centered on the teenage sisters' vocal harmonies and ethereal songs. A flop at the time, it became a collector's item over subsequent decades before it was finally reissued in 2001. The 2008 deluxe edition includes a whole extra disc of rarities, including alternate takes and demos, crucially adding to the too-short legacy the one-shot duo left behind.
Wendy & Bonnie's only album is a nice, if not truly necessary, relic of the late 1960s. It's the sort of unconventional yet accessible project that might have had trouble finding its way into release in any other era, but managed to at least get issued, even if it was largely undiscovered until cult listeners unearthed it decades later. The sisters' harmonies have the sweet-sour major minor blend typical of many San Francisco rock artists of the time, yet with a more homespun, intimate flavor than those of many a heavily produced band. Their songs have the sort of slightly askew lyrics that, again, were prevalent in their time and place, glowing with anticipation of an era of greater love and less social constraints, and also imbued with a certain innocent naïveté. ("The Paisley Window Pane" is a particularly priceless songtitle.) There are sometimes jazzier accents to their singing and chord progressions than there were in most psychedelic or harmony pop/rock groups; "The Paisley Window Pane" sounds like it might have absorbed lessons from José Feliciano's cover of "Light My Fire." The 2001 CD reissue on Sundazed adds several bonus tracks, including a garage-psych acetate ("The Night Behind Us") from their earlier rock group Crystal Fountain, and four acoustic home demos of songs that were not on the LP. ~ Richie Unterberger

Rolling Stone (p.127) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[T]he holy grail for fans of SF pop-pscyh....[A] sweetly sad 1968 lost gem..."
Mojo (Publisher) (6/02, p.169) - "...A unique beauty...Drifting, mystical, Latin-flavored: somebody once called it 'stoner samba'. The melodies and harmonies are unfailingly strong and atmospheric.."