Hear The Grass Grow b/w Bring Your Love Back

The Eighth Day emerged from the Vancouver music scene in 1969, although the four-piece lineup came together after guitarist and songwriter Ron Grant and vocalist Dave Jensen moved to Ontario. Grant had moved from Toronto to Victoria, British Columbia, where he met Jensen. The two played together in several high-school bands before moving to Vancouver and spending roughly three years working the city’s bar circuit.

Looking for wider opportunities, Grant and Jensen moved east to Ontario. There they recruited drummer Roger Collier of Guelph and bassist Terry Danyleyko from the Lakehead region, now Thunder Bay. By October 1969 the four musicians had been together for only about eight months, placing the formation of the complete lineup early that year. Contemporary reports continued to identify The Eighth Day with Vancouver even after Toronto became their operating base.

The lineup consisted of Ron Grant on lead guitar, Dave Jensen on vocals, Roger Collier on drums and Terry Danyleyko on bass. Grant was the group’s leader and principal songwriter. Their stage repertoire mixed original material with songs associated with the Doors, Cream and Jefferson Airplane.

The Eighth Day moved quickly through the Canadian club circuit. By July 1969 RPM Weekly described them as a Vancouver group that had successfully established itself in the Ontario scene. They played two weekend engagements at the Cove in Long Beach, Ontario, on July 4 and 16, while other contemporary reports placed them on an extensive Canadian tour. By October they had performed throughout Ontario and the Prairie provinces during their first eight months together.

Their booking was handled by Samy-Jo of the Top ‘10’ Talent Agency, which mounted a fall promotional campaign aimed particularly at high-school and college audiences.

The band’s first recording came through Toronto producer Greg Hambleton. The session produced two Ron Grant compositions, ‘Hear The Grass Grow’ and ‘Bring Your Love Back’. Early promotion did not always agree on which song would be the A-side. ‘Bring Your Love Back’ was initially given considerable attention before ‘Hear The Grass Grow’ became the lead side. Both songs were published by Hambleton’s Bluenose Music.

At the same time, GRT of Canada was expanding beyond tape manufacture and distribution and establishing its own Canadian record label. In August 1969 RPM described The Eighth Day as a Vancouver group now based in Toronto and reported that they had signed an exclusive recording contract with GRT of Canada Ltd., placing them among the first Canadian acts scheduled for release on the new label.

The single was scheduled for release on August 12, 1969, as part of GRT’s Canadian sales meeting in Toronto. The company marked the launch of its record operation with a Lake Ontario cruise it called the Record Launch.

Issued as GRT GR 901, ‘Hear The Grass Grow’ backed with ‘Bring Your Love Back’ was one of GRT of Canada’s earliest domestic releases. An August GRT advertisement paired GR 901 with the Magic Cycle’s ‘Groovy Things’ as the company introduced its first Canadian records, although only the Eighth Day single carried the GRT label itself.

‘Hear The Grass Grow’ received an important boost from the Maple Leaf System, the network of Canadian radio stations established to encourage airplay for Canadian recordings. During the system’s August 28 conference call, the record was chosen as its second selection with 56 votes.

The airplay spread quickly. CJCH in Halifax had the record listed by late September and CKLC in Kingston followed in early October. By early October RPM reported that ‘Hear The Grass Grow’ had charted in Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Saskatoon, with further airplay and sales reported through Edmonton and the other western markets. GRT’s Ed LaBuick told RPM that more than 9,000 copies had already been shipped.

The Canadian response led GRT to announce that arrangements had been completed for an American release through the Cadet Concept label. No physical U.S. pressing has yet been traced, however, so the surviving evidence confirms the plan rather than an actual commercial issue.

GRT was already preparing a follow-up. In late September 1969 The Eighth Day entered Sound Canada Studios in Toronto with producer Stan Klees and recorded four or five new Ron Grant compositions. Session musicians were added to give the recordings a larger sound. ‘Hold Me’ was reported as having the inside track as the probable next A-side, although GRT had not yet made a final selection.

Those recordings are one of the unresolved parts of The Eighth Day’s history. No second commercial single by the group has been traced, and the Sound Canada material appears to have remained unreleased. At least four or five additional Ron Grant compositions were therefore recorded while GRT was still actively planning another Eighth Day release.

The band came to an end soon afterward. Jensen left in early 1970 and began recording under the name David Jensen. His first Quality Records single, released in April 1970 as Quality 1957X, paired ‘You’re My Life’ with ‘I Want You’, both written and produced by Greg Hambleton. ‘You’re My Life’ had already been recorded in 1969 by the Christopher Edward Campaign and was published by Hambleton’s Bluenose Music.

-Robert Williston