By the mid-1960s, the vanguard of pop music were pushing the boundaries of their art, and psychedelic rock was the next horizon. The Beatles broke ground with Revolver and Sgt, Pepper. The Beach Boys crafted Pet Sounds, and their single Good Vibrations is probably the ultimate embodiment of psychedelic rock. So, it was only natural for the rest of the pop music world to jump on the bandwagon, right? If you can’t be original, then at least try and imitate the best.
In this episode, “Let’s Get Psychedelic,” we get a little trippy with some of the more memorable psychedelic one-hit wonders. The peak of this musical trend only lasted a few years, from 1966 to 1968 before it petered out and artists moved on to more lasting and less constraining musical expressions. In fact, listening to these tunes by the Strawberry Alarm Clock, the Lemon Pipers, and Iron Butterfly may sound a bit dated, maybe even corny. But they’re a snapshot in time, and an influence on the evolution of rock music.