Honey Ltd. The Complete LHI Years
LITA 102 (CD | LP | Digital)
Available: July 23rd
PRE-ORDER NOW!
Light In The Attic is excited to announce the release of the latest gem from Lee Hazlewood’s LHI imprint, Honey Ltd. The Gorgeous and talented girl group from Detroit, Michigan had all the makings of a hit band, yet they disappeared after releasing just one album in 1968, a vinyl rarity that now regularly fetches upwards of $2,000. Fans of The Ronettes, The Shangri-Las and Pentangle are in for a treat – Honey Ltd.’s music blended social commentary with harmony-drenched, psych-soul pop.
* Photo courtesy of Temmer Darigan
Laura Polkinghome, Marsha Jo Temmer and sisters Joan and Alexandra Sliwin are the girls with the angelic voices. Hailing from Detroit, the four members of Honey Ltd. grew up in a culture of soul music and dance shows, yet forming a band was never part of the plan. It simply happened after they sung together in a Wayne State University cafeteria and found they’d silenced the room. In 1967 they had formed a group known as the Mama Cats and were playing shows with local singer Bob Seger. By 1968, against a backdrop of rioting in Detroit, they’d hauled over to Los Angeles to give music a go, and it’s there that they hitch-hiked to an audition with Lee Hazlewood on Sunset Boulevard. At the time, Lee Hazlewood Industries was in its prime: the money flowed and the roster swelled. “I think Lee just sat there for a while and listened, looking at us,” Temmer recalls. “He said, ‘Yeah, I think we can do something.’ You know – immediately!” Before long, LHI had the band in the studio with crack session music unit The Wrecking Crew.
These were not enlightened times for girl groups. The group were re-named Honey Ltd. by Hazlewood, and were put to work on an album without even realizing it. The band were under the impression they were simply recording singles. As a result, the band were unphased by Honey Ltd’s commercial failure.
* Photo courtesy of Temmer Darigan
The parent label, however, did notice the album’s failure but the girls continued on. By the end of 1968, the band joined Bob Hope on the USO tour and headed to Thailand to perform for soldiers. In 1969, Alex married and quit the band, their tenure on LHI was effectively terminated and the remaining members regrouped as country-rock group Eve. But like their music, the girls’ outlook remained resolutely sunny.
“Its all a karmic equation, isn’t it?” Temmer recalled. “So many things to experience and learn and humbly let go of in this journey. Our friendship is based on love – we love each other… always have… always will.”
- First time ever reissued
- Remastered from the original mono tapes
- Comprehensive liner notes by Jessica Hundley interviewing all four band members, including unseen photos
- 180 gram LP housed in gatefold tip-on jacket and includes 18×24 fold-out poster (repro of original Billboard advert)
- First pressing of CD and LP include die-cut Honey Ltd. sticker (shown above)
- ON-LINE ONLY: First 150 pre-orders get limited pressing on Royal Blue wax! Don’t sleep!
- LP SUBSCRIBERS ONLY: Limited pressing of 150 on Red Velvet wax!
Pre-order Honey Ltd. The Complete LHI Years now from LightInTheAtti.net!
Diana Darby’s I V (intravenous) is a brand new album of songs that have passed through seven years of fire in a real life, retaining what Pitchfork called “minimal, whispered rendition(s)” of “powerfully fatalistic evaluations of hope.”
