Plain and Fancy: Noah - Noah (1970 canada, elegant psych pop)

Sunday, February 6, 2022

Noah - Noah (1970 canada, elegant psych pop)

Not to be confused with several groups called 'Noah' before or after, Dutch immigrant Barry "Buzz" Vandersel started his first band, Buzzy & The Belvederes at 14 years old. With himself handling bass and his cousins Peter and Marinus Vandertogt on guitars and drums, the Trenton, Ontario kids recruited Paul Clapper as lead vocalist and began playing around the local area through the mid '60s.

They were eventually noticed by manager Al MacMillan from Nimbus 9 Productions. The first thing he did was chang their name to Tyme And a Half. He had enough confidence in their writing he let them write their two singles that year, both dripping of flower power - "It's Been A Long Time" b/w "Magic Island," and then "Cassandra" b/w "It's Happening Here."

Jack Richardson took a personal interest in the band, and helped land them a deal with RCA Victor, who suggested another name change, and Noah was born. Their self-titled debut was on the store shelves in the summer of 1970. All the members had a hand in writing the songs, with Peter Vandertogt and Clapper handling the majority of it. "Summer Sun" became the first single under the new name, but Clapper wasn't happy with the direction the music was going - less poppy than previously, so he quit prior to the band setting off on the road to promote the album.

At the age of 23, Vandersel passed away in the fall of 1975, and members went on to other projects, or eventually got out of the business all together.

by Jaimie Vernon