An Early Stereo Hit by The Association Evokes Memories of the 1960s

Former Michigan resident Scott Westerman serves as founder and CEO of Ramirez & Clark, overseeing the Florida publishing company that offers a platform for independent authors. Possessing a background in telecommunications and podcasting, Scott Westerman, formerly of Michigan, is also a fan of classic pop music and maintains the site RockAndRollRevisited.com.

In a “31 Days of Faves” blog article, he brings focus to the 1968 song “Everything That Touches You” by The Association. The mid-tempo song epitomizes the tightly layered harmonies of a group that formed the soundtrack to the lives of many teens of the 1960s. The group had six members whose voices were arranged by producer Bones Howe.

The song was recorded at the outset of the stereo era, and Howe arranged their voices fully on the left or right channels. While this may sound antiquated to contemporary ears, the limitations were overcome by the sheer technical mastery of the vocals. As Mr. Westerman describes it, these recordings deserve a contemporary remix of the type that Brian Wilson was able to accomplish with his classic Beach Boys 1960s stereo albums.