It was time for Almer’s two swan songs in L.A.
In his years at A&M, Almer rubbed shoulders with a lot of musicians, but the one relationship that worked out was with Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys. It didn’t start well, though. The two got into an argument in the A&M parking lot which escalated into a fistfight; the police had to break it up. Despite that, Almer collaborated with Brian Wilson for his last two successes.
The song is about a hooker, but the band’s manager played with the lyrics to keep it open to potential release as a single.
Purely in terms of having a hit, Almer had his one shot with the Association in 1966, and now he would have his second and last hit collaborating with Brian Wilson. This sold well in 1974 and marked the end of Almer’s decade in L.A. The lyrics are typical Almer with that stream-of-consciousness touch.
Almer had paralyzing stage fright, and he preferred staying out of the spotlight. By 1974, he had run out his string in Los Angeles, so he packed his bags and took Amtrak to Washington, DC. In the Eighties and Nineties, he wrote songs for “Hexagon”, a local musical review. He rented a basement room from a saxophone teacher at Northern Virginia Community College and used their practice rooms. Sometimes he would bury himself in a practice room playing piano for four days at a clip without sleep. The tapes from these sessions are still being cataloged. He may have written nearly 300 songs in his Washington years.
He joined Mensa, had a few girlfriends and lived a happy life on the royalties from his songs and the Slave Master bong; there was no bitterness about his years in the music business. Occasionally he would drive a taxi or build computer circuit boards, but his money usually went for a new keyboard or a used car. He continued to live a largely anonymous life in a basement apartment in McLean, Virginia.
His health finally failed him – his chain smoking took a toll – and he died last year at age 70. His debut album from 1969 was finally released last year and is gathering attention.
That’s it for tonight. Next week it’s September 1969. Cue the Rockumentary theme!