The Poppy Family
| Company type | Band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1968 |
| Founder | Susan Pesklevits (Susan Jacks) |
| Defunct | 1973 |
| Headquarters | Vancouver , Canada |
| Products | Psychedelic pop music, singles, albums |
The Poppy Family was a Vancouver-based Canadian band specializing in psychedelic pop, gaining worldwide recognition during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Career
In the mid-1960s, seventeen-year-old Susan Pesklevits encountered Terry Jacks on the national teen television program Music Hop, where she regularly performed. She invited Jacks to join her on rhythm guitar for a live broadcast. Subsequently, with Craig McCaw joining on lead guitar, Susan formed a trio for live shows. The group adopted the name Poppy Family after discovering it in a dictionary, inspired by various types of flowering plants. Susan and Terry wed in 1967, and Craig McCaw brought Satwant Singh into the ensemble to play tabla drums, completing their distinctive sound.
The band’s composition included Susan Jacks as lead vocalist and percussionist, Terry Jacks handling rhythm guitar and vocals, Craig McCaw on guitar and sitar, and Satwant Singh playing tablas and drums. Their first album yielded the international hit "Which Way You Goin' Billy?", which reached No. 1 in Canada, topped the Cashbox chart, and peaked at No. 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100. This album also featured "That's Where I Went Wrong", which achieved No. 9 in Canada and No. 29 in the US, both securing positions within the Top 10 of the Adult Contemporary charts.
Following Expo '70 in Japan, Satwant Singh and Craig McCaw departed from the group, leading to the second album Poppy Seeds being recorded primarily with session musicians. During this phase, Terry’s involvement lessened significantly. The album included successful tracks such as "Where Evil Grows" (No. 6 Canada, No. 45 US), "Good Friends?" (No. 10 Canada), "Tryin'" (No. 12 Country Canada), and "I'll See You There" (No. 1 AC Canada). Both "Where Evil Grows" and "Good Friends?" also appeared on the US Adult Contemporary chart. Earlier Canadian singles included "Beyond the Clouds" (1968) and "What Can The Matter Be?" (1969).
At their height of popularity, Susan and Terry featured on Bobby Darin’s 1970 television special The Darin Invasion, which was filmed in Canada, along with other variety programs such as Rollin' on the River with Kenny Rogers and The George Kirby Special. Due to Terry’s reluctance to tour, he often lip-synced harmonies during performances while Susan delivered live vocals, maintaining a group presence but limiting their expansion.
The track "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" earned two 1970 Gold Leaf (Juno) Awards alongside two Moffatt Awards. The Juno Awards serve as Canada’s counterpart to the Grammy Award. This single sold over 3.5 million copies globally and received an RIAA Gold certification.
By 1972, the Poppy Family name was retired as Terry had already begun releasing solo singles starting in 1970. Both Susan and Terry went on to produce solo albums—Susan’s titled I Thought of You Again and Terry’s Seasons in the Sun. Susan departed from their marriage early in 1973 prior to these album releases.
The song "Where Evil Grows" has been featured in Season 2, Episode 4 of Killing Eve as well as in the 2020 movie Sonic the Hedgehog, notably during a scene where Dr. Robotnik (portrayed by Jim Carrey) dances to it.
Studio albums
| Release Year | Album Title | Highest Chart Positions |
Record Label | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN | US | |||
| 1969 | Which Way You Goin' Billy? | 22 | 76 | London |
| 1971 | Poppy Seeds | 16 | — | |
Compilation albums
| Release Year | Album Title | Record Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | A Good Thing Lost | W.A.R. |
Singles
| Release Year | Single Title | Highest Chart Rankings | Associated Album | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN | CAN AC | CAN Country | US | US AC | AUS | NZ | UK | |||
| 1968 | "Beyond the Clouds" | 75 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Which Way You Goin' Billy? |
| 1969 | "What Can the Matter Be" | 53 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Which Way You Goin' Billy?" | 1 | 5 | — | 2 | 6 | 95 | — | 7 | ||
| 1970 | "That's Where I Went Wrong" | 9 | 8 | — | 29 | 7 | 61 | 20 | — | |
| "Shadows on My Wall" | — | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Year | Single | CAN | CAN AC | CAN Country | US | US AC | AUS | NZ | UK | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "You Don't Know What Love Is" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "—" | "" |
See also
External links
- Article at thecanadianencyclopedia.ca - Susan Jacks
- Article at thecanadianencyclopedia.ca - Terry Jacks
- Entry for Susan Jacks
- Entry for Terry Jacks
- 1968 establishments in British Columbia
- 1973 disestablishments in Canada
- Musical groups established in 1968
- Musical groups disestablished in 1973
- Musical groups from Vancouver
- Canadian country music groups
- London Records artists
- Canadian psychedelic rock music groups
- Psychedelic pop music groups
- Female-fronted musical groups