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<\/p>\nThe Cowsills story is as much the story of a family as it is of a pop group. The two are inextricably entwined. And both are marked by soaring highs and crushing lows, triumphs and tragedies. The joy and innocence of the Cowsills\u2019 music stands in sharp contrast to the painful, dark undercurrents that were an inescapable part of the mix. But ultimately, the Cowsills story is a positive and hopeful one: the story of a family that sticks together. And 57 years after their recorded debut, the Cowsills are making some of the best music of their lives. Their first new album in 30 years, Rhythm of the World<\/i> was released on September 30. Ahead of the album release, I spoke to Bob, Paul and Susan Cowsill about the rain, the park, the ups, the downs, the music and other things. The following is a substantially longer version of my feature published in Record Collector <\/i>Magazine \u2013 bk<\/p>\n
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The Cowsills\u2019 time at the top of the pop world was dazzling and brief. The \u201cfamily band\u201d featuring siblings Bill, Bob, Barry, John, Paul and Susan plus \u201cmini mom\u201d Barbara scored four Top 40 singles in the U.S., including their million-selling debut, \u201cThe Rain, The Park and Other Things\u201d. And their time in the spotlight made the group a prominent fixture of pop culture. They appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show<\/i> and countless other television variety programs of the day, toured the world and served as the real-life inspiration for The Partridge Family. But unlike that TV group, The Cowsills were a real band. They wrote songs, sang in glorious harmony, and played their own instruments both live onstage and in the studio. They even produced their own recording sessions.<\/p>\n
It all seemed a recipe for long-term success. But in a very real sense, the rot set in almost from the very start. For better and (mostly) worse, the Cowsills\u2019 career trajectory was tightly controlled by the patriarch of the family, William \u201cBud\u201d Cowsill.<\/p>\n
Bud and Barbara married young. A career U.S. Navy man, Bud was away for long periods; seemingly, whenever he returned home for a brief break, Barbara got pregnant. Eldest son Bill Jr. was born in 1948; twins Bob and Richard followed in 1949. Paul was born in 1951. Barry was born in 1954, John in \u201856, and Susan in 1959.<\/p>\n
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While the family was still living in Canton, Ohio, Bill and Bob taught themselves how to play guitar. They quickly discovered that their innate musical abilities included perfect vocal harmony. \u201cFrom Mom, we got the ability, the DNA strands to sing a melody,\u201d Bob says. \u201cWe\u2019re sure of that. From Dad, we got\u2026 other things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bob Cowsill notes that he and Bill started making music when they were mere seven- and eight-year olds. Then he adds with a laugh, \u201cWe were going to work about ten years before anything would happen.\u201d But he says that around \u201cyear eight,\u201d Bud Cowsill started to notice.<\/p>\n
Bud had no musical skills of his own. \u201cHe knew<\/i> music,\u201d says Susan, \u201cbut he could not do<\/i> music.\u201d A born hustler, Bud nonetheless saw an opportunity in his sons\u2019 musical skills. So he encouraged them to put together a group. They needed look no further than their own household: brother Barry quickly became proficient on drums. And when younger brother John learned to play drums, Barry shifted to bass guitar.<\/p>\n
Bill and Bob had already been performing locally as a duo, but once they had established their family foursome, the Cowsills took on more of a rock aesthetic. The band proved its mettle playing faithful covers of the hits of the day. Once the family relocated to Newport, Rhode Island, the group scored a regular gig at the local marina, Bannister\u2019s Wharf. Even though in 1965 its most senior member Bill was a mere 17 years old (Barry was 11), the foursome impressed local audiences with their tight musicianship and peerless vocals. \u201cWe brothers were quite good,\u201d says Bob. \u201cThat was our claim to fame: we could [cover] The Beatles; we could do them all.\u201d<\/p>\n
In Newport, Bill established a lifelong friendship with Robert \u201cWaddy\u201d Wachtel. Bob says that Waddy\u2019s band was the local Rolling Stones to the Cowsill brothers\u2019 Beatles. Wachtel would go on to become a regular fixture of Cowsills recordings throughout their 1960s run. \u201cWaddy is family,\u201d Susan says today. \u201cHe\u2019s a brother.\u201d<\/p>\n
And while playing at a local Newport club called Dorian\u2019s, the group caught its first big break. \u201cIn the audience one night was a guy from the Today Show<\/i>,\u201d Bob recalls. \u201cThis was back in the days when Hugh Downs and Barbara Walters were the co-hosts.\u201d The Cowsills were invited to travel to New York City and perform on the live broadcast. \u201cNo one knew who we were,\u201d Bob admits. \u201cBut they gave us 20 minutes. We were singing crazy cover songs and just being young.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Little sister Susan wasn\u2019t yet a group member \u2013 she was all of five or six at the time \u2013 but she has vivid memories of The Cowsills\u2019 television debut. \u201cWe all went up for the day,\u201d she says. \u201cIt was a big day. And Barbara Walters was very<\/i> cranky.\u201d<\/p>\n
Through that Today Show<\/i> appearance, The Cowsills came to the attention of singer Johnny Nash. New York-based Nash, who\u2019d score a worldwide hit seven years later with \u201cI Can See Clearly Now,\u201d had recently launched an independent record label, JoDa, with business partner Danny Sims. Though the Black-owned label\u2019s primary focus was soul music, they signed the Cowsills foursome and released a single. \u201cEveryone on the label but us was Black,\u201d Bob says. \u201cWe were kind of an experiment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both sides of the record \u2013 \u201cAll I Really Wanta Be is Me\u201d and the flip, \u201cAnd the Next Day Too\u201d \u2013 were original songs composed by brothers Bill and Bob. \u201cThat record was when we first heard ourselves on the radio,\u201d Bob recalls. \u201cOur local station in Providence, WPRO, put it up against another newcomer, and the kids voted.\u201d The Cowsills\u2019 debut single crushed the competition, which Bob hastens to mention was another artist debut, \u201cThe Sounds of Silence\u201d by Simon & Garfunkel.<\/p>\n
Though popular locally, the JoDa record didn\u2019t sell in great numbers. \u201cThey dropped us after that bombed,\u201d Bob says. But it was a start.<\/p>\n