Considering some of the competition — acts music fans may have heard of, such as the Beatles, the Who and the Rolling Stones — John Sebastian’s Lovin’ Spoonful pulled off a pretty remarkable achievement in the mid-1960s.

Culled from two albums, of their first seven singles, each one reached the Top 10.

“It was a tough bull ring,” Sebastian said regarding the pop-music scene at the time, a statement that reflects his clear pride at the achievements of the band for which he was the lead singer and chief creative force.

In a phone interview from his home in Woodstock, N.Y., Sebastian, who’ll turn 66 later this month, said he will perform songs from his Spoonful days, as well as his long solo career when he stops at Bothell’s Northshore Performing Arts Center on March 12.

Those mid-’60s hits include still-familiar sounding songs such as “Do You Believe in Magic,” “Summer in the City” and “Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind.” Sebastian has described those songs as a direct response to the fabled British Invasion.

“We were grateful to the Beatles for reminding us of our rock-and-roll roots, but we wanted to cut out the English middlemen, so to speak, and get down to making this new music as an American band,” he said.

Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000 and even seemingly having been situated near the epicenter of the ’60s musical revolution, Sebastian claims he wasn’t all that involved in the era’s famed counter-culture movement.

“Honestly, I was pretty far removed from my surroundings,” he said. Sebastian described the moment of Lovin’ Spoonful’s commercial success as “intense,” but also insisted he “had his head down.”

“I was just busy, I was really trying to keep up with the demand for material,” he said.

While some songwriters are reluctant to pick a favorite from among their compositions, Sebastian said he has a soft spot for “Do You Believe in Magic,” the Spoonful’s first big hit. Still, at least in terms of commercial success, “Magic” isn’t Sebastian’s biggest song.

By 1976, the Lovin’ Spoonful had long since broken up. Sebastian had been involved with a few movie soundtracks, most notably for Francis Ford Coppola and Woody Allen. But it was the theme song to the TV comedy “Welcome Back, Kotter” that provided Sebastian by far his biggest hit in a long while.

“I was just glad to have a job at the time,” Sebastian said. “I was so out of style it was ridiculous.”

Yet, “Welcome Back,” Sebastian said, has become the most lucrative song he’s ever written over the years, with samples of the tune most recently showing up in promos for Jay Leno’s return to “The Tonight Show.” Sebastian has no regrets that his biggest hit is a TV theme song.

“It was just delicious to have success at a time when I hadn’t had any success at all,” he said.

Since the days of the Spoonful and even “Welcome Back,” in a sense, Sebastian has moved full circle. His first group wasn’t the Spoonful, but the Even Dozen Jug Band. Although that style of music — along with folk or country — easily can be heard in many Spoonful songs, Sebastian has concentrated on it in recent years, recording CDs with mandolin player David Grisman.

What exactly is jug-band music?

“It is essentially an African American form of blues before electricity… but it encompasses a lot more than blues in style,” Sebastian said.

While he continues to tour and record, Sebastian readily admits he’s a long way from his heyday with the Lovin’ Spoonful. He doesn’t seem to mind.

“Being in the limelight isn’t what it used to be,” Sebastian said, adding he’s really not interested in being on the front of “People” magazine.

“I’m just as glad to be a face in the crowd,” he said, stating he’s content to hang around Woodstock and play on the weekends with neighbors like Levon Helm.

“I have the respect of musicians I respect,” Sebastian said.

Tickets for Sebastian’s Northshore Center show are $35 for adults, $30 for seniors and $15 for youths. Tickets are available online or by calling (425) 408-7988 from noon to 4 p.m. Monday-Friday.

The Northshore Performing Arts Center is located on the Bothell High campus at 18125 92nd Ave. N.E.