There is only about twenty seconds left in the running time of "Crystal Blue Persuasion" when it finally comes to life. After three minutes of suspect and highly unconvincing psychedelic chamber pop, the former garage rockers put their true skills to good use. It's the sort of wildly energetic jam that can only come from years of chaotic rehearsals as the players familiarize themselves with one another. Though agonizingly brief, Tommy James and the Shondells suddenly become a force.
The bulk of "Crystal Blue Persuasion" sounds like it came from wishing to re-do previous chart topper "Crimson and Clover". Yet, for all that was wrong with its predecessor, at least it had a melody that simply begged to be fleshed out into a proper song. Try as they might to be a cool hippie adjacent act, they came across as a an average fifties' doo-wop act. Not much had changed here though the Spanish guitar playing, probably played by lead guitarist Eddie Gray, is inspired. Listening to it repeatedly, it's as if the remainder of the group had become resentful and wanted in on the action. Holding off until they couldn't take it any longer, the Shondells explode into a coda of recklessness. But even here they don't quite get it right: as I say above, this passage is just twenty seconds which isn't nearly enough time to settle into a nice groove. (I like to think that they'd stretch it out in concert which they did indeed do but they still failed to go far enough for my taste)
I must say I feel a little guilty knocking Tommy James and the Shondells because I admire them for giving it a try. They refused to get stuck in the trap of garage rock — which many of their contemporaries failed to avoid —: but in attempting to push past their roots they proved to be in over their heads. It's a no win situation and I appreciate that. Still, those final moments of "Crystal Blue Persuasion" hint at a path that they could have gone down successfully, one that used their terrific ensemble playing in some fine jam rock. Baroque pop was suited to them and only made them seem even more amateurish than when they were putting out "Hanky Panky" and "I Think We're Alone Now".
The other thing worth mentioning here is that this more or less marks the end of the garage rockers as a chart fixture. D.I.Y. rock wasn't going anywhere but the era of suburban teenage bands practicing in the garages and rumpus rooms of split level houses all over North America had passed. Adolescents would either go over-ambitious (heavy metal, prog rock) or far too simplistic (punk) or, worst of all, into the boring and predictable realms (power pop, obvisouly). Garage rock's major advantage was in how it was malleable enough for bands to become whatever they wished to be. Great musicians could thrive but so too could those of more limited capabilities. Results could vary just as much as with any other genre but that's not the point: what matters is that groups could stumble their way into creativity, whether through excellent songwriting, formidable playing or just going all out with a group of chums just for the hell of it.
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