The Family Tree - Miss Butters (Reissue) (1968/2007)

Bob Segarini had cut his teeth in California band, The Brogues who released a couple of R&B garage singles in the mid-sixties. When The Brogues decided to go their separate ways, Segarini along with Brogues bassist Bill Whittington decided to form a new band together. Along with drummer Newman Davis and keyboard player Mike Olsen this band would become The Family Tree. Mike Olsen who would later change his name to Lee Michaels and score a big hit with "Do You Know What I Mean" in 1971.
The band were picked up up by Mira records and released their first single, the Segarini penned "Prince Of Dreams" in September 1966. An LP was planned but Mira eventually lost interest. By early 1967 Segarini was the only original member left in the Family Tree, now a quintet with J. "Jimmy" DeCocq (keyboards), Mike Dure (guitar), William "Kootch" Trochim (bass) and Vann Slatter (drums). Along with the change of personnel, the band had also changed labels and were now signed to RCA Victor records. Their first release for RCA was the single "Do You Have The Time?" which revealed a more melodic, anglophile edge, to the band. All of which would serve as a taster for their first (and only) album, which would appear nine months later. Miss Butters was released in 1968 with little fanfare or hype and slipped by the general public, capturing very little attention along the way. The album, it self, was a concept album, at a time when that was still a very novel thing, and the boasted intelligent, beautifully crafted pop songs bolstered by polished, thoughtful production and imaginative arrangements.
The theme of the album is very loose, as is often the case with concept albums. The song titles suggest that it is based on the life of an elderly spinster, with each song representing a chapter in her life. The album is split into four sections of separate songs; The Early Years, It Is Better To Have Loved, The Effect Of It All and The Underture. The album was written solely by Segarini, produced by Rick Jarrard with orchestral arrangements by George Tipton who were both simultaneously working on a similar project; Harry Nilsson's "Aerial Ballet" also for RCA Victor.
Slippin' Thru My Fingers was chosen as a single to promote the album but didn't result in any significant sales. With one last throw of the dice, the non-LP single She Had To Fly / He Spins Around, was released. Once again the single contained two great songs but failed to set the world alight.
Family Tree were never going to bring home the same amount of dollars as The Mamas & The Papas or The Monkees so they were subsequently dropped by RCA in 1969.