Montage -

Montage was an American chamber-pop/psych band from New York that released a self-titled album on Laurie Records in 1969. Keyboardist Michael Brown hailed from The Left Banke and would later surface in Stories and The Beckies.

Members: Michael Brown (keyboards), Bob Steurer (vocals), Vance Chapman (vocals, drums), Mike Smyth (guitar, vocals), Lance Cornelius (bass, vocals)

Background

Montage was the second-recorded group project of keyboardist/songwriter Michael Brown (b. Michael David Lookofsky; April 25, 1949). The son of violinist/arranger Harry Lookofsky, Brown emerged in The Left Banke, a Brooklyn baroque-pop quintet that charted with the 1966/67 ballads “Walk Away Renee” and “Pretty Ballerina,” the joint title tracks of their debut album. He formed a second Left Banke for the standalone single “And Suddenly,” then returned to the proper band for “Desiree,” an epic sweeping ballad. He left midway through the sessions for their 1968 second album, The Left Banke Too.

For Montage, he assembled four performers with no prior recording credits. They linked with Laurie Records and cut the April 1968 single “I Shall Call Her Mary” backed with “An Audience With Miss Priscilla Gray,” both co-written by Brown and his prior Left Banke collaborator, Tom Feher. In July, Laurie issued another Brown/Feher song (“Tinsel and Ivy”) as the b-side of “Wake Up, Jimmy (Something’s Happening Outside),” a co-write with Bert Sommer, Brown’s “And Suddenly” collaborator.

Montage (album)

Montage released their self-titled album in June 1969 on Laurie.

The album continues the ornate, tightly structured songwriting of Michael Brown, featuring chamber-style arrangements and airy, high-register vocals. Brown wrote the bulk of the material with lyricists Tom Feher and Bert Sommer, his prior collaborators from the Left Banke. Recorded in 1968, the album displays his most refined songwriting outside his former band.

Brown composed every song except “She’s Alone,” “Grand Pianist,” “Men Are Building Sand,” “The Song Is Love,” and “Wake Up, Jimmy,” co-written with Sommer. Feher co-wrote the remainder, including “Desiree,” first cut by the Left Banke in 1967 and reimagined here with brighter textures and swifter pacing.

Brown plays all keyboard parts, weaving harpsichord and piano into swift, string-laced miniatures. “I Shall Call Her Mary” opens with pastel vocal layers and Brown’s light piano phrases. “She’s Alone” sets a solitary lead vocal against orchestral lines in an uneasy, slow bloom. “Grand Pianist” sums the album’s mission, pairing delicate rhythmic shifts with close harmonies and a mid-song swell that surges before retreating. “Tinsel and Ivy” applies a soft string backdrop to a detailed piano part. “An Audience With Miss Priscilla Gray” and “My Love” lean vaudeville, the former buoyed by bounce and brevity, the latter driven by harpsichord and winds. “Wake Up, Jimmy” closes with sharp pace shifts and falsetto interludes across three compact minutes.

A1. “I Shall Call Her Mary” (2:21) – Bright opening track with layered vocals and pastel piano voicings
A2. “She’s Alone” (2:56) – Sparse and orchestrated; vocal lead isolated over string arrangement
A3. “Grand Pianist” (2:25) – Tense-sweet contrast with tight piano lines and soaring harmonies
A4. “Men Are Building Sand” (2:10) – Less detailed than prior tracks; chorus features intentionally bent tones
A5. “Desiree” (2:44) – Left Banke redux with lighter production and quicker delivery

B1. “The Song Is Love” (1:42) – Quick, sunlit tune with soft rhythmic motion
B2. “Tinsel And Ivy” (2:25) – Slow ballad with refined string backdrop and cool-toned piano
B3. “An Audience With Miss Priscilla Gray” (1:59) – Brisk, theatrical short piece with vaudeville leanings
B4. “My Love” (2:56) – Harpsichord-driven with well-blended brass and strings
B5. “Wake Up, Jimmy (Something’s Happening Outside)” (3:08) – Final track with tempo shifts and falsetto backing vocals

Sessions occurred at Allegro Sound Studios in New York with Brown producing and Bruce Staple engineering.

The album was issued in a unipak-style gatefold sleeve with collage artwork and photography by Michel Goldberg.

Laurie released two pre-album singles in 1968: “I Shall Call Her Mary” backed with “An Audience With Miss Priscilla Gray,” followed by “Wake Up, Jimmy” backed with “Tinsel and Ivy.”

After Montage

Michael Brown regrouped with Left Banke singer Steve Martin for one final 1969 single, “Myrah” backed with “Pedestal.” He then teamed with singer Ian Lloyd in Stories for the 1972/73 albums Stories and About Us, but left before their hit with “Brother Louie.” In 1976, he cut one album in The Beckies.

Bert Sommer launched a solo career with the 1969 Capitol released The Road to Travel.

Discography: