Strange Lights: YOUR FRIENDS - "Sun-Burned Idol" b/w "Rustic Patterns" (Sola, 14

by Achille Brunet

Your Friends was a garage/psych rock band from Phoenix, Arizona. Members were Michael Roe (bass and songwriter), Stephen Lewis (drums), Gary Gilbert (Vox organ), John Jeffords (vocals), and Tom Jonas (lead guitar).

Members attended Camelback High School in Phoenix. Stephen Lewis came from Scottsdale and graduated Judson School and Mesa Community College. John Jeffords came from Phoenix.

John Jeffords in 1962.

(the only sixties pic of a band member I found)

Your Friends probably formed sometime around 1966. The earliest gig of I found was in October. The band played on the grounds of St. Joseph Hospital for the Country Fair in company of other local High School rock combos.

In February 1967, the band played at the VIP in presence of label owner and promoter Jack Curtis, owner of Mascot and mostly remembered for producing the first sessions of pre-Alice Cooper band the Spiders.

Your Friends then opened in March 1967 for The Turtles at the agricultural building with the Spiders, the Bittersweets (of "In The Night") and the Young Men (of "Go!" that recently had a noticiable local success thanks to the A side "Two Many Times").

(The Arizona Republic - March 11, 1967)

(The Arizona Republic - Sept 23, 1967)

The band played a show hosted by KRUX in Sept 1967, where they shared the bill with Bobby Vee, the Spiders that had just changed their name to Nazz, Violet Wing (dedicated article soon) and Superfine Dandelion—among others.

Armed with this success, the band was sponsored along with Floyd And Jerry by Vox at the Totem Department Store in Nov 1967.

(The Arizona Republic - Nov 2, 1967)

The band recorded their single at Loy Clingman's record studio in Phoenix probably in late 1967/early 1968. Clingman produced quantity of Phoenix artists at Viv-Debra Recording Studios, including the first Floyd & Jerry songs with the Door Knobs, and later set up his own studio. He also recorded Nazz's single "Lay Down And Die, Goodbye" in 1967.

Loy also penned the A side of the single, "Sun-Burned Idol", a decent garage pop track with a religious theme.

But Garage/Psych fans will be more drawn to "Rustic Patterns", a fine original penned by Mike Roe which is rather dark number with a cool organ break by Gary Gilbert.

The single was pressed by Phoenix custom pressing plant Wakefield Manufacturing established by Sydney Wakefield and released as the last single on the Sola label that also put out the great single "People" by The Outcasts.

The single most likely came out in early 1968 and the band seemingly disbanded around that time, a member started to sell his guitars in February and April that year.

Gary Gilbert joined the Generation Gap (of "Too Far Gone", dedicated article coming next month) in November 1968 in replacement of ex-leader and organist Glenn Rosner (aka Gage Garnier) that had left "to get into his own thing".

John Jeffords was later in Phoenix band Jett Back in the 1970s and the band later relocated to Detroit.