A Midsummer's Day Dream＜限定盤＞

Mark Eric (whose real name is Mark Eric Malmborg) wasn't the most original composer of his day, and yet years after its 1968 release his long out-of-print one-off soft pop LP for Revue (a UNI/MCA subsidiary) commands a fairly high price from soft pop collectors who've managed to nab themselves a copy. The reason? A Midsummer's Day Dream is treasured by collectors as one of the more perfect blends of soft pop and surf pop, with appropriately accenting vibraphones and French horns, pseudo-studio jazzy/soft pop melodies, "bah bah bah" harmonies, and moody string arrangements reminiscent of Curt Boettcher's productions of Sagittarius and the Millennium. Eric's charming, somewhat imperfect falsetto (in a somewhat obvious homage to Brian Wilson) hints at a subterranean layer of loneliness throughout. His self-penned, broken-hearted Beach Boys-style ballads (think Pet Sounds/Friends) are, in fact, the perfect vehicle for his faltering upper-register voice. Highlights include "California Home" (about a homesick airplane flight away from L.A.); an end-of-summer lament, "Where Do the Girls of the Summer Go"; and "Don't Cry Over Me," with its gorgeous blend of harmonic filigree and sophisticated studio sheen. Eric -- who as an actor appeared on TV's The Partridge Family as the pal of Snake (a biker played by a pre-Meathead Rob Reiner) -- apparently never recorded another album. ~ Bryan Thomas