Breakdown #4: The Pozo-Seco Singers
Every month I break down a different recording of “Silver Threads and Golden Needles” for your enjoyment (and mine)
Whenever I travel by plane, I am confronted with the semi-terrifying reality that, when flying, everything is completely out of my control. To calm my nerves before takeoff, I always turn to the comfort of John Denver’s “Leaving on a Jet Plane.” While it is one of the more popular songs in Denver’s catalogue, his original version never charted. It was a cover by the New York folk revival trio Peter, Paul and Mary that would popularize the song. I favor Denver’s version, but I recently learned that another trio cut a version of “Leaving on a Jet Plane” the same night Peter, Paul and Mary recorded their version. However, it never saw the light of day.
A bit of background:
They were The Pozo-Seco Singers. Hailing from Corpus Christi, Texas, the trio comprised of Lofton Kline, Susan Taylor, and Don Williams formed in 1964 after meeting at a hootenanny at Del Mar College. In 1965, they signed to Edmark records and cut the first version of “Time”, a song written by Michael Merchant and their fellow member Williams' original “Hello Blues and Down the Road I Go.” While Williams' song was chosen as the A side, it was the B-side recording of “Time” that DJs across Texas preferred. It also caught the attention of famed music manager Albert Grossman, who signed the trio to Columbia Records. After signing with Columbia, “Time” hit #47 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts in 1966. That same year, Columbia released their album named after the same hit song. The Pozo-Seco singers had, at best, a fleeting fame. In fact, the title of a documentary about the group released in 2021, focusing on the career of Susan Taylor, was titled “Nobody Famous.” It is in this documentary that Taylor, who now goes by Taylor Pie, recounts how The Pozo Seco singers decided to cut “Leaving on a Jet Plane.” After having dinner with John Denver in New York, the trio were supposed to record his song in studio. Taylor admits, that the group might have had one to many drinks and by time they got in the studio she was having trouble staying on pitch. It was only later that they discovered Peter, Paul and Mary were cutting a version that same night.
In 1968, Kline left the group and, after a short-lived replacement, Williams and Taylor continued as a duo. The duo, now called Pozo-Seco, released one more album titled Shades of Time in 1970 before disbanding that year. Both Taylor (who now goes by Taylor Pie) and Williams found homes as solo artists on Jack Clements' JFI records. Pie, now serves as CEO and A&R for PuffBunny Records. Williams, who passed away in 2017, was a big star in the late 70s and 80s and is often referred to as “the Gentle Giant of country music.”
So, what’s so special about this version?
The Pozo-Seco Singers bring us the most nautical version of “Silver Threads and Golden Needles.” How fitting for a group originating from a costal city. The bass bobs like a boat out on the sea. It appears on The Pozo-Seco singers debut 1966 album “Time.” Taylor leads the verses, with Williams and Kline adding subtle accompanying hums. Like The Springfields, The Pozo-Seco Singers lay on a sprinkle of tambourine. However, The Pozo-Seco Singers stray away from heavy string orchestrations and filling drums. The trio almost convince you that this is another Lomax American folk standard.
Silver Threads And Golden Needles Lyrics
(The Pozo-Seco Singers version)
I don’t want your lonely mansion
With a tear in every room
All I want’s the love you promised
Beneath the haloed moon
But you think I should be happy
With your money and your name
And hide myself in sorrow
While you play your cheating game
Silver threads and golden needles
Cannot mend this heart of mine
And I dare not drown my sorrow
In the warm glow of your wine
But you think I should bey happy
With your money and your name
And hide myself in sorrow
While you play your cheating game
Silver threads and golden needles
Cannot mend this heart of mine
And I dare not drown my sorrow
In the warm glow of your wine
You can’t buy my love with money
For I never was that kind
Silver threads and golden needles
Cannot mend this heart of mine
Silver threads and golden needles
Cannot mend this heart of mine