Liz Damon's Orient Express was an American soft rock band from Hawaii, featuring lead singer Liz Damon, two female backup singers and a rotating backup band. The name apparently derived from the original backup band being entirely Asian. Their only song to make the Top 40 was "1900 Yesterday",^[1] which made it to No. 33 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and No. 15 on the Canadian charts in early 1971. Most impressively, it peaked at No. 4 on Billboard's Easy Listening survey.

Members

Damon's backup singers on the 1970 album At the Garden Bar, Hilton Hawaiian Village were her sister Edda Damon and Sydette Sakauye. In the early 1970s, Sakauye left and was replaced by Meri McPherson. While the Damon sisters and McPherson were constants, their backup band underwent numerous personnel changes.

The band was the house band at the Garden Bar at the Hilton Hawaiian Village for 18 months and recorded its first album, At the Garden Bar, Hilton Hawaiian Village in 1970. Originally released on Makaha Records, it was then picked up by White Whale Records, who released it as an eponymous album and also released "1900 Yesterday" as a single. White Whale Records was under financial distress at the time (embroiled in a years-long dispute with their marquee band, The Turtles, and unable to develop any further acts other than a few one-hit wonders) and folded shortly after "1900 Yesterday" became a hit.

Liz Damon's Orient Express released Burt Bacharach's "Loneliness Remembers What Happiness Forgets" for the Anthem label in late 1971, and it became their second and last US chart single. The song was originally recorded by Allison Durbin in 1969, and was subsequently recorded by Dionne Warwick in 1970.^[2] English alternative rocker Morrissey covered the song in 2019.

The group released three more albums during the 1970s, consisting mostly of covers. In 1979, the group released a comedy album. During the late 1970s, the band moved to Las Vegas, Nevada where they performed until their breakup in the mid-1980s.

Only Liz Damon's Orient Express is available in print today, having been reissued on CD in 2003 by Rev-Ola Records, with liner notes by Steve Stanley.^[3] "1900 Yesterday" appears on some compilations of 1970s mellow music.

Discography

References