Drawn from a previous post, this is not part of my book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1).
An infinite number of tracks can each be THE greatest record ever made, as long as they take turns. Today, this is THE GREATEST RECORD EVER MADE!
In an alternate universe, "Sit Down I Think I Love You" was recorded by the Monkees, and perhaps a hit for them. The song's author, Stephen Stills, was one of many musicians and actors who auditioned to be a Monkee; stories differ about whether he was passed over for the role or if he declined it, but either way he recommended his friend Peter Tork for the gig, and I think everything worked out for the best as is.
Cheer up, Sleepy Steeeeeephen....
So instead of joining the Monkees, Stills helped to form Buffalo Springfield. I discovered the group's music about a decade after the fact, part of my teen embrace of the '60s in the mid '70s. "Flying On The Ground Is Wrong," "Bluebird," "For What It's Worth," and Neil Young's "Mr. Soul" were my gateway tracks at the time. I don't think I heard much (if any) of the rest of the Springfield's catalog until years later.
I did hear "Sit Down I Think I Love You," but not by Buffalo Springfield. The song was covered in 1967 by a San Francisco group called the Mojo Men, and their version was included on the seminal '60s garage/psychedelic/whatchamacallit 2-LP compilation Nuggets. I bought the Sire Records reissue of Nuggets as a cutout in 1979, specifically to score a copy of the Knickerbockers' Beatley "Lies," a track which had eluded my grasp until that point. I knew a couple of other great tracks on the album--"Liar, Liar" by the Castaways and "Dirty Water" by the Standells--before buying it, and I would discover much, much more in short order. The 13th Floor Elevators, the Electric Prunes, the Remains, the Cryan' Shames...yeah, Nuggets was huge for me.
Count the Mojo Men's "Sit Down I Think I Love You" among those discoveries. It's such a lovely pop song, seeming to draw inspiration from the Left Banke, the Beau Brummels, and the Mamas and the Papas, folk goes for baroque. Singin' drummer Jan Errico was one of the very few female players represented on Nuggets, and this track offers a lot of reasons to sit down and fall in love.
I don't remember when I finally heard the Springfield's original. I may have even seen a video of them performing it (or lip-syncing it) before I heard the record itself. It suddenly occurs to me that I don't think I ever owned any Buffalo Springfield LPs, just individual tracks on various-artists sets Do It Now, Heavy Metal, and The Super Groups. That's weird, because I was certainly interested in both Buffalo Springfield and Buffalo Springfield Again--I don't remember ever seeing a copy of Last Time Around--and you'd think I would have at least picked up the basic career summary Retrospective. I bought Rhino's 2001 four-CD Buffalo Springfield boxed set as soon as it was released.
Which version of "Sit Down I Think I Love You" is my favorite? I love both, probably about equally. And I would have loved to hear the Monkees have a run at it, too. A great song needn't have a definitive take. Sit down. Love will make you stand up and take notice.
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I compiled a various-artists tribute album called Make Something Happen! A Tribute To The Flashcubes, and it's pretty damned good; you can read about it here and order it here. My new book The Greatest Record Ever Made! (Volume 1) is now available, and you can order an autographed copy here. You can still get my previous book Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With The Ramones from publisher Rare Bird Books, OR an autographed copy here. If you like the books, please consider leaving a rating and/or review at the usual online resources.
This Is Rock 'n' Roll Radio with Dana & Carl airs Sunday nights from 9 to Midnight Eastern, on the air in Syracuse at SPARK! WSPJ 103.3 and 93.7 FM, streaming at SPARK stream and on the Radio Garden app as WESTCOTT RADIO. You can read about our history here.
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