I don't have plans and schemes and I don't have hopes and dreams

Continuing my trip back through the 1965 album charts.

28/11/65 : Mann Made - Manfred Mann


Our first visit with Manfred Mann - I'm expecting to find it bearable, but possibly a whole album might prove to be a too relentlessly upbeat. And bizarrely, it's not available on Amazon so I'm having to rely on YouTube.

Actually, it's not relentlessly upbeat - there's quite a few "broken relationship" songs on here. It's also more varied than I was expecting - venturing into jazz territory at times (with added flute, which no-one needs). I can't say I loved it - if anything, I thought it wasn't upbeat enough but there was nothing wrong with any of it and the sound quality was surprisingly good - it just wasn't really my sort of thing. They're a bunch of hep cats on the album cover though, ain't they? Mmmmm - jazzzzzz...

We're at #7 in the charts this week on their seventh week of an eleven week run, with this being as high as it got. The top five this week were TSOM, Mary Poppins, The Beatles' Help!, Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones with FIVE new entries in the charts which are Elvis (#8), The George Mitchell Minstrels (#14), Shirley Bassey (#15), The Kinks (#16) and Dudley Moore (#17) - and I'm pleased I got to avoid the first two!

Wikipedia tells us this is their second UK album and fourth US album (which feels like the wrong way round for a British band) and it's their last album with original members Mike Vickers and Paul Jones. I also learned that something that I must have suspected, but don't believe I ever actually 100% knew - Manfred Mann is a real person (and still with us at the age of 84). 

"Customers also listened to" - well, we'll never know but we can probably assume "no similar recommendations" given it's '65. I enjoyed the experience of meeting Manfred without particularly loving the album.

21/11/65 - Decent voice, average songs
05/12/65 - (Not very) interesting

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