The Outsiders - Time Won't Let Me / Album #2 (1966) @ Flac

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Members:

Tom King , Sonny Geraci,  Al Austin, 

Bill Bruno, Jim Fox ,Merton Madsen, 

Richard D'Amato, Ricky Baker, Ronnie Harkai

The Outsiders were an American rock and roll band from Cleveland, Ohio, that was founded and led by guitarist Tom King. The band is best known for its Top 5 hit "Time Won't Let Me" in early 1966, composed by King along with Chet Kelley. The song peaked at No. 5 in the US in April, but the band also had three other Hot 100 top 40 hit singles in 1966 and released a total of four albums in the mid-1960s.

Leading up to the success of "Time Won't Let Me," the Outsiders had an advantage over the numerous American bands that formed in the wake of the British Invasion in that they had been active in the Cleveland scene for years, starting in 1958 as a rhythm & blues combo called the Starfires. Often the band played six shows a week. 

They were founded that year by guitarist and saxophonist Tom King who at the time was only fifteen. King and Kelley proved to be a formidable songwriting team, and the band was also adept at handling covers of R&B standards. King also headed the band's horn section and served as the arranger and sometime producer.

By early 1965 the band's membership consisted of King on rhythm guitar, Bill Bruno on lead guitar, Mert Madsen on bass, and Jim Fox (later of James Gang) on drums. Later that year, Fox departed for college and was replaced by Ronnie Harkai, who would play on "Time Won't Let Me." Also in 1965 they brought in Sonny Gerachi, later in Climax, to handle the lead vocals. 

So the Outsiders were a continuation of the Starfires; Tom King, Sonny Geraci, Mert Madsen, Richard Kriss, Al Austin, and drummer Jim Fox (later of James Gang, who left to enter college in 1965 and was replaced by Ronnie Harkai) were the members of the Starfires when the name was changed to the Outsiders in 1965. All (except Fox) performed on the original recording "Time Won't Let Me" by "The Outsiders". Lead vocals were provided by Sonny Geraci, who also sang lead on the 1972 hit, "Precious and Few" by his later band, Climax.

The group was under contract with Pama Records, which was owned by King's uncle, Patrick Connelly, and in late 1965 that they recorded "Time Won't Let Me" for the label. 

As they recorded it, the song is a simple, catchy, and danceable tune. Its basic arrangement was augmented by a horn section, yet was applied in an unobtrusive manner as not to not detract from the band's fundamental sound, which on this occasion featured a signature riff from a twelve string electric guitar. Sufficiently impressed upon hearing it, Capitol Records signed the band on the strength of the song, and shortly thereafter King changed the band's name from the Starfires to the Outsiders, possibly at the urging of the new label. One account of the change was that King and Kelley had become "outsiders" within the family as a result of the label switch. 

The song also features an electric organ with a vibratto, heard in the verses.In the song, the lead singer states that he cannot wait forever for his girl, even though she wants him to, because time won't allow him to wait. This song is an example of Garage Rock because of the rejection of love and sexual relationships. The song also features a complex counterpoint melody in the other vocals in the Coda section, where the scream trumpet is heard before the song's fade.

After that at various times a total of eight former Starfires were members of the Outsiders at one time or another performing on various studio sessions and traveling on the road. The band was signed to Capitol Records on the strength of their late 1965 recording of "Time Won't Let Me" (written by King and his brother-in-law, Chet Kelley), leaving a local recording label headed by King's uncle, Patrick Connelly (Pama Records); at this time, the band's name was changed. (Most of the band's original songs were written by King and Kelley, although another songwriter, Bob Turek was working with the band by 1967). Reasons for the name change were unclear, although most sources state that it was at the insistence of their new record label. One popular story about the new name was that King and Kelley had become "outsiders" within the family as a result of the label shift. "Time Won't Let Me" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc.

The Outsiders promoted their hit single with about a year of nationwide touring, as "Time Won't Let Me" stayed on the national charts for 15 weeks (although their music was released in other countries, the band never toured overseas). The band first toured with Paul Revere and the Raiders and then with Chad and Jeremy. Later, the Outsiders were part of a six-week tour of one-night stands headed by Gene Pitney, and which included seven or eight other acts, among them Len Barry, B.J. Thomas and Bobby Goldsboro. Afterwards, the Outsiders joined a four-week tour with several garage rock and psychedelic rock bands.

The most recent album by the Outsiders, called 30 Years Live was released in 1996 and reissued in 2006; only two of the original members, King and Nims were on board. The performances were taken from two live concerts in 1991 in Cleveland, Ohio and Las Vegas, Nevada.

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