Turtles

The Turtles are an American pop, psychedelic and folk-rock band defined by a good-natured, joyously melancholic and occasionally cheeky sound. A precursor to the bubblegum pop of the late 1960s and a foil to the more self-consciously hip and "serious" acts of the era, the Turtles produced at least a dozen memorable, radio-friendly chart singles but remain best known for 1967's "Happy Together".

The band – originally a surf rock group called The Crossfires – was formed in 1965 in Westchester, California (a suburb of Los Angeles) by Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman. With the help of DJ and club owner Reb Foster, the Crossfires signed to White Whale Records, and, adhering to the prevailing musical trend, re-branded themselves as a folk-rock group called "The Tyrtles", the intentional misspelling inspired by The Byrds. However, the trendy spelling did not survive long. As with the Byrds, the Turtles achieved breakthrough success with a Bob Dylan cover. "It Ain't Me Babe" reached the Billboard Top Ten in the late summer of 1965 (see 1965 in music) and was the title track to the band’s first album. The...