The Flower Pot Men

Emerging from the mid-'60s pop outfit the Ivy League, this British ensemble took shape under songwriting partners John Carter and Ken Lewis. They composed, produced, and recorded "Let's Go to San Francisco," then assigned the track to Deram, which scored an international hit just as the Summer of Love faded. The duo issued four additional singles, one of them credited to the name Friends; none charted, and the group disbanded in 1970. Although extremely derivative of the then-au courant West Coast sound (especially the post-surf Beach Boys), the group managed to produce some worthwhile tracks that revealed a talent for smooth pop in a variety of modes (folkish, progressive, psychedelic, etc.) albeit with little rock backbone.