Up In The Clouds On A EUPHONIOUS VOYAGE 3

"You are sad ", the Knight said in an anxious tone. "Let me sing you a song to comfort you."

"Is it very long?" Alice asked, for she had heard a good deal of poetry that day.

"It’s long ", said the Knight, "but very, VERY beautiful. Everybody that hears me sing it -
either it brings the tears into their eyes, or else..."

"Or else what? " said Alice, for the Knight had made a sudden pause.

"Or else it doesn’t, you know. The name of the song is called 'HADDOCKS’ EYES.'"

"Oh, that’s the name of the song, is it? " Alice said, trying to feel interested.

"No, you don’t understand ", the Knight said, looking a little vexed.  "That’s what the name is CALLED."

"The name really is 'THE AGED AGED MAN.'"

"Then I ought to have said, 'That’s what the song is called?'" Alice corrected herself.

"No, you oughtn’t. That’s quite another thing! The song is called 'WAYS AND MEANS', but that’s only what it’s CALLED."

"Well, what IS the song, then? " said Alice, who was by this time completely bewildered.

"I was coming to that," the Knight said. "The song really is 'A-SITTING ON A GATE', and the tune’s my own invention."

So saying, he stopped his horse and let the reins fall on its neck. Then, slowly beating time with one hand, and with a faint smile lighting up his gentle foolish face, as if he enjoyed the music of his song, he began.

Through The Looking Glass ~ Lewis Carroll 

Your ports of entry (link to musical files and PDF CD booklet at bottom of post) ... 

1 Jack In The Box (radio ad) 

Jack In The Box

 
2 Never Like This - FAMILY
“Never Like This” appeared on Family’s debut album Music In A Doll’s House, co-produced by Dave Mason (Traffic) & Jimmy Miller (producer for the Rolling Stones, Traffic, Blind Faith). The Leicester band’s LP was released on July 18, 1968, and is every bit as much pop psych as it is progressive, though the band is still commonly identified with the latter style.

Interesting to note, The Beatles White Album had the working title Music In A Doll’s House, but when Family beat them to the record stacks, the fab four went with the obvious. Oddly, Family’s long player debut did not contain their engaging first single “Scene Through the Eye of a Lens”. 

Never Like This

3 No Good Without You - VINCE MALONEY SECT
Australian native Vince Maloney (Melouney) is most commonly associated with the earliest incarnation of The Bee Gees, a band for which he played lead guitar from 1967- 1969. Prior to his Bee Gee days however, Maloney was at the creative center of his own act, The Vince Maloney Sect.

The Sect released this sizzling fuzz psych single on Australia’s Kommotion label in 1966, backed with “She’s A Yum Yum”. They quickly followed with a domestically released four song EP containing “No Good Without You” just prior to Maloney’s invite from the Gibb brothers. After his stint as a Bee Gee, Maloney created the band Fanny Adams and released a seven song LP on MCA/Kapp in the early 70’s. 

No Good Without You

4 Daniel The Postman - AVENGERS
Wellington’s Avengers didn’t emerge organically in their homeland of New Zealand, but were instead created by promoter Ken Cooper as a house band for his club. Their original repertoire featured a typical mix of covers by UK outfits, though by 1967, the creative impulses of the manufactured band began to blossom.

In 1967, they release the famed single “Everyone’s Gonna Wonder”, which shot into the NZ Top Ten. With that under their belts, they confidently released a string of successful domestic singles, along with their debut LP Electric Recording.  A year later, the band released the more consistently psych album Medallion, from which this little ditty is derived. Though during their heyday they never scored a hit outside the country, many of their songs were covered by post-punk bands in the 80’s and 90’s. 

Enjoy this video created by The Avengers to promote "Daniel The Postman"

Daniel The Postman

5 Whitchi Tai To - TAICONDEROGA
This one-off single was released on the Beacon label in the UK in 1969 by an admittedly “high-as-a-kite” group of talented youngsters: Dave Blackman (vocals), Dave Searle (bass), Ray Defaults (lead guitar), Brian Robertson (rhythm guitar) and Malcom Mortimor (drums).

They spent the better part of their short career performing under the name Train, then inexplicably went with Taiconderoga when venturing into the studio to cut this Brewer & Shipley cover. Unlike that duo’s tepid approach however, Taiconderoga powers through with a full throttled, Native American-infuenced, dark psych interpretation. Mortimor went on the perform with Gentle Giant and Ian Dury. Robertson changed his name to James and would become co-founder of The Damned and Lords of the New Church.

Whitchi Tai To

6 Colours of Darkness - THE YOUNG IDEA
The Young Idea was a British song writing duo consisting of Tony Cox and Douglas MacRea-Brown, who recorded for Columbia records from 1966-1968. While it was their song writing skills which opened doors, their label preferred the band focus on cover versions for single releases.

Young Idea’s sound emphasized the sort of orchestrated pop found on records by Paul & Barry Ryan and The Twice As Much, though like those groups, they occasionally experimented on their B-sides. “Colours of Darkness” was the flip of their Beatles cover “With A Little Help From My Friends”, and part of a handful of vibrant pop-psych adventures released during their brief lifetime. In 1968, their singles, minus “Colours”, were collected for an LP which proved to be their final release.

Colours of Darkness

7 Vision Is A Lonely Word - SAFFRON
This preposterously rare single by the enigmatic Saffron has been attributed to Saffron Summerfield, a folk artist who toured extensively across a swath of small clubs in the UK during the late 60’s and early 70’s. Summerfield subsequently joined Trader Horne for a few years before venturing out in the mid-1970’s with her own record label called Mother Earth.

Vision Is A Lonely Word

8 Gingerbread Man - TOMMY JAMES & THE SHONDELLS
Tommy James and The Shondells had been saddled with the “bubble gum” label after a series of catchy singles (“Hanky Panky”, “I Think We’re Alone Now”, “Mirage”) proved particularly AM-friendly. James loathed the tag however, and began tweaking the band’s sound with a more psychedelic appeal.

In 1968, the group released Mony, Mony, and while it still had a decidedly youthful sound, as evidenced by the title track, the album did venture into more pop psych terrain. “Gingerbread Man” was released as the B-side for their cover of Question Mark & The Mysterians’ “Do Something To Me”; a single which topped out at #38 on Billboard’s Top 100. 

Gingerbread Man

9 Can’t You See I’m Dreamin’ - DANA GILLESPIE
Gillespie has enjoyed an impressive lifespan in the entertainment world, starting out with a string of recordings produced by everyone from Jimmy Page to David Bowie to Mick Ronson. By the late 60’s she was a feature film actress, finally returning to the music business as an acclaimed blues performer.

In 1967, she recorded the engaging album Foolish Seasons for Decca Records. Oddly, the label decided to release the disc in the US only, bypassing her native UK. Besides the bouncy Carnaby-styled “You Just Gotta Know My Mind” and “Can’t You See I’m Dreamin’”, the eclectic record contains two Billy Nicholls covers and a goth oddity titled “Dead”. 

Can’t You See I’m Dreamin’

10 Calm Me Down - HUMAN EXPRESSION
Fronted by the song writing team of Jim Foster and Jim Quarles, this young LA quartet focused on an impressive series of self-penned tracks for their early records. The band’s first two 45’s were released on the regional Accent label and mixed by Wally Heider, later credited as being one of those responsible for creating the San Francisco sound.  

The blistering punk psych anthem “Calm Me Down” was issued as the flip side of their second 45 rpm in the winter of 1966. After it failed to chart, Foster’s father, the manager of the group, thought it might be advantageous to look outside the ensemble for new material. In early ‘67, he brought them two demo’s by a young Mars Bonfire for consideration. The band was impressed with “Sweet Child of Nothingness”, but took a pass on the other track which they considered to be a clunker, “Born To Be Wild”. It proved to be their final record.

Calm Me Down

11 Little Toy Soldier - RIOT SQUAD
The first incarnation of the Riot Squad had pretty much dissolved in 1967 with the majority of the band trotting off to form the group Pepper. Undaunted, co-founder Bob Evans retained the name and set upon reconstructing a new Riot Squad, adding Rod Davies, Croack Prebble, and the still relatively unknown David Bowie.

The band was immediately smitten with Bowie, quickly adopting the young vocalist’s suggestions that their performances adopt a more theatrical approach. In addition to his aesthetic contributions, Bowie brought the band some unreleased recordings which had been given to him upon a recent visit to Warhol’s Factory. From the batch, the song “Waiting For The Man” was recorded by The Riot Squad, as well as a sexually twisted, Velvet-styled Bowie composition titled “Little Toy Soldier.” Unfortunately, nothing from these sessions was officially released until 2012.

Theater of The Disturbed

Little Toy Soldier

12 Cuantos Que No Tienen y Merecen - Congregación
The Congregación was a South American fusion band that incorporated Latin rhythms with Chilean rock during the early 1970’s. Their crowning achievement was the controversial album Congregación Viene, released in 1972 on IRT. Challenging for a conservative culture, the record explored a wide range of religious, philosophical and political criticisms utilizing different styles. In 1973, the leader of the group was forced to flee his homeland as a result of a brutal military coup. He eventually settled in Argentina and formed the band Awankana, and then later, Senchi.

Cuantos Que No Tienen y Merecen

13 Of Cabbages and Kings (radio promo)

Of Cabbages and Kings (radio promo)

14) Progress Suite Epilogue - CHAD & JEREMY 
During the mid-sixties, Chad & Jeremy released a string of finely crafted folk-pop that included  “Yesterday’s Gone” and “A Summer Song”. By 1966, they had seven Top 40 hits racked up in the states, but the duo’s tastes were changing. According to Chad, “Jeremy and I were both fed up with being told what to do and what to record so we struck out on our own. Fortunately for us, Gary Usher was a sympathetic producer and happily came along for the ride.”

In September 1967, Chad & Jeremy released their epic Of Cabbages And Kings, a psychedelic oeuvre addressing the growing turbulence engulfing the world. The Columbia album was elaborately arranged by Chad Stuart and takes its name from Carroll’s Through The Looking Glass, a book that launched a thousand pop psych records. It was reported at the time that this was one of the most expensive LP’s ever produced. 

Progress Suite Epilogue

15 Black Butter Present - STRAWBERRY ALARM CLOCK
The Sixpence were a Glendale, CA outfit who recorded mostly covers of tracks popularized by UK outfits (hence the British sounding name). By 1967, these flowers of fancy saw the writing on the wall and changed their name to Strawberry Alarm Clock, thinking it sounded more in tune with the times.

Later that same year, the aural canker sore “Incense & Peppermints”  was released on Decca’s US imprint UNI. Proving timing is everything, the mediocre record hit just as the media was defining the “love generation”, and as a result, is often used today as an audio milestone for the 1960’s. While pop-psych was clearly just a convenient vehicle for the band, they did release an interesting track or two, of which the 1968 “Black Butter Present” can be included. 

Regrettably, the band believed the publicity shoot to be "clothing optional".

Black Butter Present

16 I Need You - CHRIS AND CRAIG
After meeting during an audition for the ABC program The Happeners, Chris Ducey and Craig Smith recorded briefly as the duo Chris and Craig on Capitol Records. While the label only released one 45 in 1966 (“Isha” b/w “I Need You”), the two recorded a batch of poppy, psych songs that are still in the process of trickling out. Part of the continuing fascination with the pair has much to do with the eclectic history and travels of Smith.

After Chris and Craig’s demise, the two joined The Penny Arkade, and with the help of producer Mike Nesmith, put together a unique folk rock LP titled Not The Freeze. Unfortunately, the Penny Arkade fizzled, though Craig Smith found success as a songwriter for many top acts, including The Monkees, Glen Campbell and Andy Williams. It was the royalties from these writing endeavors which helped finance his notorious trips (literally and figuratively).

In 1968, Smith ventured to Peru, Tibet, Afghanistan and India seeking spiritual enlightenment. Upon his return to the US, friends and associates were reportedly mortified by his appearance and behavior. Former partner Chris Ducey remarked that Smith had gone “totally looney tunes”, and the artist found himself estranged from the music industry. Unfazed, he changed his name to Maitreya Kali and produced two odd, homemade albums which eventually made record collectors very rich.

An excellent book was released about Craig Smith entitled Swim Through The Darkness. You can purchase it here.

I Need You

17 Me - AQUARIAN AGE
Along side Pink Floyd, the band Tomorrow is often recognized as one of the first and most important psych bands to originate in the UK. The group was headed by Keith West, and featured future Yes guitarist Steve Howe, as well as John Alder on guitar and keyboards and John Wood on bass. After the release of their debut album, the band was blind-sided by West when he abruptly departed for a solo career.

Angry, but undaunted, Alder and Wood rose from the ashes as Aquarian Age and recorded the 1968 single “10,000 Words In A Cardboard Box” for Parlophone Records. The song is reportedly a blistering attack on Keith West for his abandonment of their former band. In addition, Aquarian Age recorded a handful of songs with former Tomorrow mates, including the hilariously lascivious “Me”. 

Nothing builds self confidence like acquiring a whole new wardrobe from Woolworths

Me

18 Days Of Pearly Spencer - DAVID MCWILLIAMS
McWilliams was an Irish tune smith who melded baroque pop with folk and added a dash of psychedelia as the 60’s progressed. He made a moderate impact in the UK and various spots in Europe, though worldwide fame would remain elusive. While he was certainly competent, there was nothing that made him shine in a genre where lots of artists already excelled. You have to hand it to him though, he was definitely prolific, releasing three albums in under a year!

“Days of Pearly Spencer” appeared on McWilliams second self-titled album, and was inspired by the performer’s encounter with a homeless man. The megaphone effect heard during the song’s chorus was achieved by having the vocals called in from a phone booth located near the recording studio. “Pearly Spencer” has been covered dozens of times, including a version by torch song artist Marc Almond (Soft Cell).

Days Of Pearly Spencer

19 Bend Me, Shape Me - THE MODELS
“Bend Me, Shape Me” was written by Scott English and Larry Weiss, a duo responsible for quite a few records in the mid to late 1960’s, including “High Ho Silver Lining” by The Attack. When they began shopping “Bend Me” around, there were a couple early takers: Ohio’s The Outsiders (“Time Won’t Let Me”) and California’s The Models.

The Outsiders were first to bat, placing it on their third LP Outsiders In (January 1967). By this point however, The Outsiders time had come and gone and the album failed to chart, leaving the song in relative obscurity. Enter LA’s all-girl garage band The Models. Discarding the Box Tops-like approach of The Outsiders, The Models dressed the song up in an electric fuzz, Blue Cheer, psychedelic maxi and accessorized it with black go-go boots.

Sadly, their MGM 45, backed by a baroque pop song also penned by English & Weiss, suffered the same fate as the Outsider’s version. It would take a third go around by Arlington Heights, IL band The American Breed for the song to enjoy success.
 

Bend Me, Shape Me

20 The Wind Blows Your Hair - SEEDS
During the Web of Sound sessions, the Seeds completed an initial version of “The Wind Blows Your Hair” flavored with a mid- tempo, raga flavor. Lead singer and song writer Sky Saxon held off on its inclusion however, feeling the musical approach was not quite right.

As 1967 proceeded, The Seeds began recording tracks for their third album Future and attempted another run through of “Wind”. This time they increased the tempo and added a sense of musical foreboding (the version included here). The new version was a definite improvement, but the band was warned about the occult references and it was suggested the song not be included on the now readied album.

Feeling the record was too strong to be abandoned, Saxon reworked the lyrics and polished up the arrangement. In November of 1967, the more commercially viable version of “Wind” was released as a single backed by Saxon’s “Six Dreams”.

Not particularly good at overcoming minor obstacles, The Seeds frequently were no shows at their own gigs

The Wind Blows Your Hair

21 Tio Minuter - PARSON SOUND
Lyrically and musically, it is often pretty easy to accurately date music from the pop-psych era. On the edges of the genre however, where bands like The Silver Apples, US 69 and Sweden’s Parson Sound reside, time stamping becomes a little more challenging.

Parson Sound were a Stockholm avant-garde, psych group who recorded from 1966-1968. Utilizing multi-tape phasing, electric cellos, and electronically channeled vocals, they created a sound cacophony which hinted at future genres such as Krautrock and Industrial Rock. There were no official releases during their brief history. 

Tio Minuter

22 Madman Running Through The Fields - DANTALIAN’S CHARIOT
The musical riptides were churning dramatically in 1967 and musical experimentation flowed into the mainstream with the help of the psychedelic movement. Zoot Money, founder of the soul/jazz outfit Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band, was one such musician who was ready to make a radical change as the world “turned on” around him. Along with future Police guitarist Andy Summers, he scrapped his band and created the enigmatic Dantalian’s Chariot.

Within just a few short months, they released what has now become one of the classic tracks of the pop-psych movement “Madman Running Through The Fields.” The song was written by Money and Summers (spelled “Somers” on the label), and was the lead track for an album that was shelved before seeing the light of day. Months after the single was issued, their label unceremoniously gave them the ax. Summers would join Soft Machine and then Eric Burdon & The Animals, the latter taking their own stab at “Madman” in 1968. Some of the psychedelic tracks recorded by Dantalian’s Chariot would also show up on a 1968 LP credited to Zoot Money’s Big Roll Band. In 1996, a CD replicating the long lost album was finally made available.

We currently have a stack of unsold records "this high"!

Madman Running Through The Fields

23 The Cheat - LORD SUTCH
David Sutch began his long, though hitless, career in the UK music business in the early 60’s. His first records were mostly novelty songs that revolved around the horror genre, several produced by the equally offbeat wunderkind Joe Meek. For Sutch, rock ‘n’ roll was a celebration of the outrageous, and his oddball approach to music was matched on the concert stage, where he performed under the name “Screaming Lord Sutch”. His over-the-top theatrics and unique songs would essentially point the way for artists like Alice Cooper.

As the 60’s progressed, Sutch would found his own pirate radio station, rub shoulders with the creme de la creme of British rock, and run for Parliament multiple times. He also managed to squeeze out a few singles including the Lee Hazelwood cover “The Cheat” (CBS Records) in May of 1966.

If you are going to drink, drink in style

The Cheat

24 Lilac Hand of Menthol Dan - JOHN’S CHILDREN
John’s Children started as a mod outfit in 1965, but devolved into a somewhat silly and cacophonous pop psych band by 1966. Their first release was the 7” single “Smashed Blocked” for EMI (White Whale in the US). Somewhat surprisingly, the odd record became a regional hit in a number of American markets, moving White Whale to approach them for a follow-up LP. Unwisely, the cheeky band responded with a collection of strange songs punctuated with military-styled shouting and audience cheers copied from the film Hard Day’s Night. The title Orgasm didn’t make it any more endearing to the label.

Enter Marc Bolan. Along with the young dandy’s lead guitar talents, the future glam star contributed a batch of new songs, including “Lilac Hand.” Reinvigorated, John’s Children hit the studio and put together a number of demos. Unfortunately, it was only months before irreconcilable differences between the band’s manager and Bolan caused the new recruit to abruptly exit. “Lilac Hand of Menthol Dan” (also known as “Dan The Sniff”) would remain in the can until 2002.

Catasaurus Rex

Lilac Hand of Menthol Dan

25 At Shadow’s Eye - TIME
As 1967 was unfolding, a group of ambitious music students from the University of Illinois joined forces, relocated to Buffalo, NY and began exploring an avant-garde style rarely heard in that neck of the woods. The music had an eclectic sound, possibly due to none of them having ever performed rock music before. In addition, one of their early influences was The Velvet Underground, with whom they had a brief encounter.

Sometime in 1968, the group ventured into a Toronto recording studio and cut an album’s worth of material featuring unique time signatures and mysterious lyrics. According to band member Lynn David Newton, “At Shadow’s Eye” was based on a frightening nightmare experienced by lead singer Tom McFaul.

At Shadow’s Eye

26 Gemini - DEL SHANNON
The grandiose orchestration of Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band greatly colored the musical map followed by other artists. One of the more interesting forks in the road however, was that followed by Chad & Jeremy, Gary Lewis and Del Shannon. Using the same strings and brass as The Beatles, their approach utilized pop psych trappings that emphasized sunshine pop.

In late 1967, Liberty Records execs, still dazzled by the Monterrey Pop Festival, were urging bands on their roster to expand into a more musically psychedelic realm. One result was Shannon’s critically praised 1968 album The Further Adventures of Charles Westover. The record contained many highlights including the enchanting “Gemini”... which would eventually be released as a single in May of 1968.

Gemini

 
SOUND CLIPS AND PDF CD BOOKLET ARE LOCATED HERE
Witchi here!