Perry Miller's Unexpected Knowledge Of British Race Car Drivers Dept.

In 1964, Perry Miller - a perfectly fine name - assembled his new showbiz I.D. from two outlaw cowboys, Jesse James and Cole Younger, and a British race car driver, Colin Chapman. Which is weird. Perry is one of those guys who can't help but inspire a little good-natured envy. Handsome, gifted with an immediately likeable voice, Perry enjoyed an easy Long Island childhood, half-hearted university studies interrupted and finally terminated by learning to play the music he loved, and folk club gigs in New York leading quickly to a recording contract. Some guys have all the luck.

Here's where it all started; a couple of super-swell solo albums that never get old. A much underrated vocalist, he gives the material the grit it needs, and his picking is accomplished. After these, he devoted himself to The Youngbloods [yay! - Ed.] for a few years before returning to a solo career that's active to this day. Way to go, Perry Miller.

(Don't know about you, but to me the second album, Young Blood, looks like the first. The City Boy cover hasn't dated at all.)