American Spring (originally called Spring but had to change name due to an European Progressive Rock band already having that moniker) is an American Pop duo consisting of sisters Marilyn and Diane Rovell. It was formed in the early seventies and ceased activities in 1978.
Both sisters have previously sung on the trio The Honeys (along with their cousin Sandra Glantz/Ginger Blake), a girl band which was formed in the late fifties and later got affiliated with The Beach Boys (mostly through Marilyn's relationship with Brian Wilson who also produced some of their songs). As surfing went out of vogue in the late sixties, Ginger left the band to resume solo activities and the remaining sisters formed Spring in the early seventies. Again, Brian produced some of their songs, and their self-titled debut (and sole) album was released in 1972, showcasing psychedelic pop mixed with Sunshine Pop which fitted the work of The Beach Boys' Sunflower. After the band changed their name to American Spring, they went dormant until 1977 where they recorded new songs along with Beach Boys bodyguard Rocky Pampling. However, personal issues related to the divorce of Marilyn and Brian caused American Spring to become inactive again.
While The Honeys have occasionally reformed over the last decades, American Spring remains inactive since. The material they recorded outside of their only album has been reissued on several compilations.
Discography:
- 1972 - Spring (later reissued as American Spring)
Their work contains examples of:
- Band of Relatives: Marilyn and Diane are sisters.
- The Cover Changes the Gender: "Good Time" is a song originally written and recorded in 1970 by The Beach Boys but that version was never released until their 1977 album The Beach Boys Love You. The song was first released by Spring in their self-titled album.The Beach Boys version has girlfriends named Penny and Betty while the Spring version has boyfriends named Eddy and Orion.
- Cover Version: Their sole album contains covers of The Beach Boys, Carole King, Pee Wee King, Tommy Roe, Delaney & Bonnie, and The Shirelles.
- Their cover of "This Whole World" also covers the nursery rhyme "Starlight, "Shine Bright".
- Face on the Cover: The first release of Spring's self-titled album features a strange sculpture of what appears to be Marilyn while the American Spring reissue features both Marilyn and Diane.
- Girl Group: Diane and Marilyn come from The Honeys which were originally a female counterpart to The Beach Boys. Once again, they mostly provided vocals on their sole album (though Diane wrote some songs which would later be recorded by The Beach Boys).
- Mundane Made Awesome: "Snowflakes", a serene yet groovy song about winter.
- Rearrange the Song: Some songs off the band's self-titled album were written by Brian Wilson for The Beach Boys and would later appear on albums such as The Beach Boys Love You (such is the case of "Good Time").
- Short-Runners:
- Special Guest: Their self-titled album features Beach Boys Brian Wilson and Carl Wilson, as well as The Beach Boys' then-manager Jack Rieley.
- Updated Re Release: Their self-titled album was rereleased in 1989, along with tracks recorded in the late seventies, under the title Spring...Plus.
- Vocal Tag Team: Marilyn and Diane would pass over vocals on a few of their songs.
