My Top 1000 Songs #964: The Truth Is Not Real

[I've been writing up my Top 1000 songs on a daily basis--you can see them all in descending order by hitting the All My Favorite Songs tag.]

Sagittarius were a short-lived late 60s pop-psych studio creation, the brainchild of songwriter/producer Gary Usher (best known for producing a lot of early surf records, writing a few early Beach Boys songs, and producing the Byrds' best album). For 1968's Present Tense, Usher teamed up with sunshine pop singer Curt Boettcher and various friends and studio musicians. The record leans towards twee sunshine pop, lovely but maybe a little sugary for those who don't enjoy the genre. (Though essential for those who do.) 

But a few songs venture more boldly into trippy psychedelia, most notably "The Truth Is Not Real," which sounds like a great lost Moody Blues song, but a little more drugged-out and Floyd-adjacent. It's oh-so-60s, but the sparse percussion, phased vocals, and stereo panning make it an overlooked headphones-friendly psych gem. (See also J.K. & Co.'s "Fly" for a like-minded great-lost-psych-nugget.)