The Letter/Neon Rainbow
With 16-year-old Alex Chilton growling out lines like "Gimme a ticket for an aeroplane" and crooning trippy electric pop gems like "Neon Rainbow," Memphis' Box Tops -- heirs to the blue-eyed soul of the Rascals and the Righteous Brothers -- could do it both ways. Under the watchful eye of legendary producers Dan Penn and Chips Moman, the Box Tops blistered the charts with seven Top 40 hits, sprinkled throughout four wonderful albums -- all laced with enough Memphis soul and gentle psychedelia to cement the band's stature as rock & roll legends.