The Turtles
- Actor
- Composer
- Music Department
Starting out in the early 1960s as an instrumental band playing surf
music under a variety of names, The Turtles saw the impact that
"British invasion" groups were having on pop music and in 1964 decided
to go in that direction. They then veered toward folk-rock, a la
The Byrds, but soon veered off again toward a
more commercial sound, and had their first big hit with a cover of
Bob Dylan's "It Ain't Me Babe". Their next
song, the P.F. Sloan-written "Let Me Be",
didn't manage to break into the top 20, although its follow-up, 1966's
"You Baby", did (at #20). The band then went through a slew of
personnel changes, which resulted in their changing direction again to
a more "psychedelic" sound and outlook, resulting in their first #1
hit, the catchy "Happy Together", in 1967. Their next song, the more
driving (and lusher) "She'd Rather Be With Me", hit #3 in the US. The
group had several more hits, including "You Know What I Mean",
"Elenore" and "You Showed Me", before breaking up. Afterwards, members
Howard Kaylan and
Mark Volman put their own act together,
known as Flo and Eddie, and scored some minor hits, but their main
claim to fame was as the hosts of a quirky rock-n-roll radio show. They
later resurrected the band, calling it "The Turtles featuring Flo and
Eddie", and toured the US.
