or better or worse, we here at Stylus, in all of our autocratic consumer-crit greed, are slaves to timeliness. A record over six months old is often discarded, deemed too old for publication, a relic in the internet age. That's why each week at Stylus, one writer takes a look at an album with the benefit of time. Whether it has been unjustly ignored, unfairly lauded, or misunderstood in some fundamental way, we aim with On Second Thought to provide a fresh look at albums that need it.

In Richie Unterberger’s 1998 book Unknown Legends of Rock n’ Roll, The Outsiders were referred to as "not just the finest Dutch group of the 60s, but the finest group from a non-English speaking country, period." Vocalist Wally Tax, guitarist Ronny Splinter, bassist Frank Beek, and drummer Lennart "Buzz" Busch more than substantiate Unterberger’s claim on this, their second and final album. Drawing influence from SF Sorrow era Pretty Things, The Yardbirds, The Doors, as well as Jacques Brel, The Outsiders created one of the more enjoyable albums of their era. Not quite as good as The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society or Odyssey and Oracle (which were released in the same year), but a classic nevertheless.

The two best songs on the album, "Daddy Died on a Saturday" and "Prison Song" showcase Wally Tax’s skill as both a lyricist( a great feat considering the fact that English was his second language) and singer. "Daddy Died on Saturday" is your typical poor boy falls in love with a rich girl, her dad disapproves, so the boy poisons him, and they live happily ever after tale. Reminiscent of some of the songs John Entwistle wrote for The Who around the same period. "Prison Song" starts as a quiet folk song, builds up into a proto-punk stomp, before ultimately turning into a carbon copy of The Doors’ "The End" (without the oedipal climax). Other highlights include the anarchic "Doctor" and the proto-Clinic "The Bear" (is it any wonder why there is a song named CQ on Internal Wrangler?).

The Outsiders’ previously mentioned influences are ever present during the course of the album. It’s hard to listen to "Misfit", "Happyville", or "Wish You Were Here With Me Today" without being reminded of the Pretty Things or the Yardbirds or "You’re Everything on Earth" without being reminded of Jacques Brel. Likewise, "Zsarrah" and "I Love You No. 2" could very easily pass as Doors outtakes (well, they could if Jim Morrison sang with a thick Dutch accent). Then, of course, you have "Prison Song" which manages to mix all four of the influences.

This album is absolutely essential to anyone with any interest in sixties rock. It also works as an excellent supplement to either one of the Nuggets boxes (especially the second one which includes an Outsiders’ track). Also, try to check out the double disc CQ Sessions bootleg which includes alternate takes of every song (including the superior second take of "Prison Song") as well as a few unreleased tracks.