8 Great Psychedelic albums

[bob_32_116]

Ironically, the big hit single for The Archies, Sugar Sugar, was cowritten by Jeff Barry and Andy "Rock Me Gently" Kim, who both involved in producing and writing songs on Changes, the last original era Monkees album (the one where the group was reduced to just Mickey and Davy)>

There was also an album put out by "Dolenz, Jones, Boyce & Hart", Boyce and Hart being the songwriting team of Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart who wrote several of the Monkees' hits. I have no idea what the album was like or whether it was any good, but I do remember that it had very dazzling cover artwork and purported to be what music of the future would sound like. Somehow I don't think it would have contained disco or punk rock; those trends were not predicted at the time..

[mogrooves]

Bobby Hart

Has a new book out, Psychedelic Bubblegum, which looks interesting.

The Monkees.

Happened to catch an episode the other day and Nesmith mentioned the generally-neglected LA band Hearts and Flowers, whose second LP can reasonably be listed here.

[hippypants]

It's always hard for me to figure out what is psychedelic at times unless there's an exact definition or list somewhere. But I always thought The Mothers of Invention's Freak Out fit the mold. I know Zappa always said he didn't use drugs, but I don't think that matters.

I always thought the 1st Blood, Sweat, & Tears album had a bit of that psych in it.

I never thought much of the first Jefferson Airplane album, but it's actually very good. I prefer it over Surrealistic Pillow, generally speaking.

Always thought the 1st and 2nd Fever Tree albums were sort of pysch.

Bubble Puppy

Nazz Nazz - maybe

The Nuggets compilation

Yeah, I enjoyed most of CJ and the Fish's albums, they had an eclectic mix.

I always thought Love's Four Sail was a pretty decent follow up to Forever Changes.

T. Rex-- A Beard of Stars and some of their early efforts were pretty great.

[progeezer]

I never thought much of the first Jefferson Airplane album, but it's actually very good.


I always thought Love's Four Sail was a pretty decent follow up to Forever Changes.

"Takes Off" is a great album, and Signe Toly Andersen, had she not become pregnant, might have changed someone else's life dramatically, but for the grace of whatever.

"Come Up The Years", the song that opens the album, is one of the few songs that bring back so many memories for me that I still tear up whenever I hear it.

I pull that cd out frequently just to listen to "Years", "It's No Secret" & "Runaround", and then put it away again.

"Forever Changes" and "Four Sail" were 2 entirely different bands other than AL.

IMO, Fayad, Stoyanovich (sp?) and the other guy in the new band were a plummeting step down from the personnel on the first 3 (incl Stuart & Cantrelli).

When you talk about that band, you get my attention everytime.

[JJ88]

The original UK version of 'Surrealistic Pillow' was actually a mish-mash of that and the first album 'Takes Off'! 'Come Up The Years' was on this UK version...it's my favourite song on 'Takes Off'. An underrated album.

'Four Sail'...I do love the song 'August' on there.

[Reid]

Sun Ra - Cosmic Tones For Mental Therapy

[arturs]

Given this is a prog board, I'm surprised no one has mentioned Steve Howe's first major band... I bought the Tomorrow LP around 1980 with a big ugly cutout hole in it for $1.99 (it was a cheap post-Yes-fame reissue) and played it to the death. Could not get *any* one of my teenage friends into it at all. The only comment I ever got was "you listen to some weird shit...".

[GuitarGeek]

Sun Ra - Cosmic Tones For Mental Therapy

Well, if we're going to go in that direction, then you might as well go whole hog, and mention The Magic City, The Heliocentric Worlds Of Sun Ra I and II, My Brother The Wind I and II, Nothing Is..., Space Is The Place (both the album originally released on Blue Thumb and reissued on Impulse!, as well as the soundtrack to the movie of the same title), Black Myth/Out In Space, and all three of the Ann Arbor Jazz and Blues Festival recordings.

[JJ88]

Given this is a prog board, I'm surprised no one has mentioned Steve Howe's first major band... I bought the Tomorrow LP around 1980 with a big ugly cutout hole in it for $1.99 (it was a cheap post-Yes-fame reissue) and played it to the death. Could not get *any* one of my teenage friends into it at all. The only comment I ever got was "you listen to some weird shit...".

For me, that's a hit-and-miss album, but it has some great things on it. I think the reissue was another of those 'Harvest Heritage' releases...I've only ever had the 90s CD. I'd like to hear the mono mix of this album, I don't like the fact there's some fake stereo on this CD.

[arturs]

For me, that's a hit-and-miss album, but it has some great things on it. I think the reissue was another of those 'Harvest Heritage' releases...I've only ever had the 90s CD. I'd like to hear the mono mix of this album, I don't like the fact there's some fake stereo on this CD.

Tomorrow definitely has filler in it, but the classics such as My White Bicycle, Revolution, and Real Life Permanent Dream are as close to perfect psych pop as anything I can think of. Their version of Strawberry Fields is really good too.

[Dana5140]

Oh, oh, oh! Classic! "Cosmic Sounds of the Zodiac."

[philsunset]

Oh, oh, oh! Classic! "Cosmic Sounds of the Zodiac."

Oh how cheesy but I have to admit listening to it way back "under the influence". Another good piece of cheese would be "The Wozard of Iz."

[No Pride]

The Nice haven't been mentioned yet, what up with that? Their first two albums were as much psych as they were proto-prog imo.

[Dana5140]

Zodiac and Wozard were all brainchilds of Mort Garson... he did other cool discs as well:

Undecided Man (with Paul Revere & The Raiders from The Spirit of '67, arranged and conducted orchestra) (CBS, 1966)
Hollyridge Strings - The Beatles Songbook Vol.4 (Capitol Records, 1967) co-arranger/conductor (with Perry Botkin, Jr.)
The Zodiac: Cosmic Sounds (Elektra Records, 1967)
Symphony For Soul - Total Eclipse (Liberty Records LP-9353 1967)
Sea Drift (with Dusk 'Til Dawn Orchestra) (Elektra, 1967)
Hollyridge Strings - The Beatles Songbook Vol.5 (The Hollyridge Strings play Magical Mystery Tour) (Capitol Records, 1968) arranger/conductor
The Wozard of Iz: An Electronic Odyssey (A&M Records, 1968)
Electronic Hair Pieces (A&M Records, 1969)
Signs of the Zodiac (12 LP) (A&M Records, 1969) U.S. #147[11]
Arthur Prysock - This is My Beloved (Verve Records, 1969) composer/conductor
Didn't You Hear? (film soundtrack LP) (1970)
Black Mass Lucifer (1971)
The Little Prince: Narrated by Richard Burton (1974)
Ataraxia: The Unexplained (Electronic Musical Impressions of the Occult) (RCA Records, 1975)
Plantasia (Homewood Records, 1976)
Julie Knows—Sung by Randy Sparks, Columbia 4-43138. Garson credited with arrangement and conducting.

[strawberrybrick]

The Nice haven't been mentioned yet, what up with that? Their first two albums were as much psych as they were proto-prog imo.

Yep, the debut especially (with O'List) is a classic.

[mogrooves]

I forgot Traffic's Mr. Fantasy, classic Brit psych.

[Trane]

Yep, the debut especially (with O'List) is a classic.

Not big on Ars Longa, but Thoughts Of is certainly Emerson's most brilliant album.... Love the version of America with O'List's searing guitar answering Emo's organ

[philsunset]

I forgot Traffic's Mr. Fantasy, classic Brit psych.

I recommend the mono UK version.

[No Pride]

Not big on Ars Longa, but Thoughts Of is certainly Emerson's most brilliant album.... Love the version of America with O'List's searing guitar answering Emo's organ

On the US versions, "America" is on Ars Longa Vita Brevis. I do like that album (despite the awful mix), especially "Happy Freuds;" very melodic tune!

[Trane]

On the US versions, "America" is on Ars Longa Vita Brevis. I do like that album (despite the awful mix), especially "Happy Freuds;" very melodic tune!

yes it is. But that version is without O'List's guitar

What I meant to sayis that the version I speak of is included as a bonus on the Thoughts Of CD issue


And yes, I find Ars' production very muddy.

[No Pride]

yes it is. But that version is without O'List's guitar

No, he's on it. I'm guessing that session was a leftover from the first album, since it's the only track from ALVB that he is on.

[hippypants]

Saw one of those unauthorized Pink Floyd docs last night, and they were one of the first bands that reminded me of psych. I think the first album I bought by them was Ummagumma. I know they had mixed feelings over it, but I still enjoy it.

[Yves]

I was familiar with only a few of the albums mentioned here. This thread has made me discover great albums by Love, Vanilla Fudge, Spirit.... Thanks!

[Scrotum Scissor]

I pull that cd out frequently just to listen to "Years", "It's No Secret" & "Runaround", and then put it away again.

"Forever Changes" and "Four Sail" were 2 entirely different bands other than AL.

I agree that there truly are some outstanding tunes on Takes Off, most of which have Balin as the lead.

And seeing how Forever Changes remains my very fave rock/pop album of all time, I probably shouldn't feel as well about Four Sail as I happen to do. They're really THAT different bands, still there's something altogether quite enticing about that refined hard rock approach of Lee's newfound songwriting there; "Robert Montgomery", "August" and the somewhat overexposed yet solid "Singing Cowboy".

Even Out Here has some sublime material on it; "Stand Out", "Listen to My Song", "Nice to Be", "I Still Wonder", "Instra-Mental", "Run to the Top" and the dead sad "Gather Round". I must admit to not having listened to this version of the band for nearly 20 years, though - which made those songs all the more strange to rediscover when I caught Lee on his (their) final tour in 2004 or thereabout.

[Dana5140]

Steve Miller's "Children of the Future" was excellent, too.