Psychedelic, refers to a mental state characterised by a profound sense of intensified sensory perception sometimes accompanied by severe perceptual distortion and hallucinations and by extreme feelings of either euphoria or despair. It is also used to describe an object or person which has vibrant colours or personality and gives off a vivid aura which immediately attracts attention. The concept is derived from the Ancient Greek words 'psykhe'(mind) and 'deloun'(to reveal), which essentially translates to 'mind-revealing'.
Music has always been both a barometer measuring and responding to society’s problems and possibilities, and the twentieth century was a period that witnessed the emergence of a diverse range of musical styles and genres, each seemingly in reaction to the dominant sociopolitical concerns of the day. Psychedelic music itself, meanwhile, was characterised by its instrumental experimentation, distinguished from other forms by “long improvisatory passages and electronically produced sound effects resonated with stroboscopic lighting to bring about a freedom of feeling. It started in sixties and was mainly as form of protest against dominant social problems faced by people of that era. The music was rebellious and spread especially among the youth. While folk music concentrated on the impact of lyrics, psychedelic music was always more about the use of instruments like flutes, sitars, tabla, didgeridoo, bagpiper, electric guitar and many more. The use of distortion and feedback was also highlighted by psychedelic music. Breaking from the traditional rules and exploring new methods of recording was also a core part of this genre of music. There was always something about psychedelic music that allowed the listener to transcend his thoughts and achieve a sort of parallel universe; which was something a lot of people wished for in troubled times.
One of the first uses of the term psychedelic in the folk scene was by the New York based folk group 'The Holy Modal Rounders in' 1964. Folk guitarist John Fahey recorded several songs in the early 1960s in which he experimented with unusual recording techniques including backward tapes and novel instrumental accompaniment including flute and sitar. Similarly, another folk guitarist sandy Bull's early work incorporated elements of folk, jazz and Indian and Arabic-influenced dronish modes. His 1963 album Fantasias for Guitar and Banjo explores various styles and could also be accurately described as one of the very first psychedelic records. Folk artists who were particularly significant in the psychedelic movement included the Scottish performers Donovan, who combined influences of American artists like Bob Dylan with references to flower power, and the Incredible String Band who incorporated a range of influences into their acoustic instrument-based music, including medieval and eastern instruments.
The Beatles introduced many of the major elements of psychedelic sound to mainstream audiences in the mid-1960s, for example with 'I Feel Fine'(1964), which used guitar feedback. George Harrison introduced the sitar on 'Norwegian Wood' from the 'Rubber Soul' album and the song 'Rain' employed backmasking. However, the first use of the term psychedelic rock is attributed to the Austin, Texas band called '13th Floors Elevators, whose early tours are still influencing the psychedelic scene in San Francisco.
In Britain the most influential band in the psychedelic music genre were 'The Yardbirds.' Jeff Beck, their guitarist started adding up-tempo improvised 'rave-ups'. Some of their songs include 'Shape of Things'(1966). Also in 1966 the UK Underground scene based in North London supported new acts with psychedelic influences, including 'Pink Floyd', 'Traffic' and 'Soft Machine'. The same year saw the debut albums of rock bands 'Cream' and the 'Jimi Hendrix Experience' which featured solo improvisation sections using heavily distorted and sound processed electronic guitars, which went onto become a key feature of psychedelic music.
Psychedelic rock reached its peak in the last years of the decade. The Beatles released 'Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', including 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' and the Rolling Stones responded later that year with their only psychedelic album 'Their Satanic Majesties Request'. Pink Floyd produced 'The Piper at the Gates of Dawn'. In America, the Monterey Pop festival helped make stars of Jimi Hendrix and the Who, whose single 'I Can See for Miles' delved into psychedelic territory. Key recordings included Jefferson Airplane's 'Surrealistic Pillow' and the Doors' 'Strange Days'. All these acts climaxed in 1969, when the biggest psychedelic festival was held called 'Woodstock', which saw performances by Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Carlos Santana. People still talk about Woodstock even after forty five years as if happened yesterday!
After the Beatles, the psychedelic scene spread globally and began to influence pop music as well. It began to incorporate the sounds of sitars , fuzz guitars and tape effects. The Beach Boys were a distinctive influence for their vocal harmonies. Their 1966 single 'Good Vibrations' was one of the first pop song to incorporate psychedelic lyrics and sounds, making use of a Tanneria. Other American pop-oriented bands that followed were 'Electric Prunes','Strawberry Alarm Clock and 'Blue Magoos'. Early bubblegum pop acts like 'the Monkees' and' The Lemon Pipers' also started using psychedelic elements. Scottish folk singer Donovan transformed to electric music, which gave him the pop hit 'Sunshine Superman' which went onto be the earliest overtly psychedelic pop record. Pink Floyd's 'Arnold Layne' and 'See Emily Play' helped set the pattern for psychedelic pop in Britain.
Pop-oriented psychedelia was also popular among emerging bands in Australia and New Zealand. In Sydney a band called the Easybeats recorded their international hit Friday on my Mind in 1966. A similar path was pursued by the Bee Gees formed in Brisbane whose first album called Bee Gees 1st was recorded in London in 1967, which contained folk, rock and psychedelic elements heavily influenced by the Beatles. The most successful New Zealand band 'The La De Das', produced the psychedelic pop concept album 'The Happy Prince(1968) based on the Oscar Wilde children's classic but failed to break through in Britain and the wider world.
Music has always been both a barometer measuring and responding to society’s problems and possibilities, and the twentieth century was a period that witnessed the emergence of a diverse range of musical styles and genres, each seemingly in reaction to the dominant sociopolitical concerns of the day. Psychedelic music itself, meanwhile, was characterised by its instrumental experimentation, distinguished from other forms by “long improvisatory passages and electronically produced sound effects resonated with stroboscopic lighting to bring about a freedom of feeling. It started in sixties and was mainly as form of protest against dominant social problems faced by people of that era. The music was rebellious and spread especially among the youth. While folk music concentrated on the impact of lyrics, psychedelic music was always more about the use of instruments like flutes, sitars, tabla, didgeridoo, bagpiper, electric guitar and many more. The use of distortion and feedback was also highlighted by psychedelic music. Breaking from the traditional rules and exploring new methods of recording was also a core part of this genre of music. There was always something about psychedelic music that allowed the listener to transcend his thoughts and achieve a sort of parallel universe; which was something a lot of people wished for in troubled times.
One of the first uses of the term psychedelic in the folk scene was by the New York based folk group 'The Holy Modal Rounders in' 1964. Folk guitarist John Fahey recorded several songs in the early 1960s in which he experimented with unusual recording techniques including backward tapes and novel instrumental accompaniment including flute and sitar. Similarly, another folk guitarist sandy Bull's early work incorporated elements of folk, jazz and Indian and Arabic-influenced dronish modes. His 1963 album Fantasias for Guitar and Banjo explores various styles and could also be accurately described as one of the very first psychedelic records. Folk artists who were particularly significant in the psychedelic movement included the Scottish performers Donovan, who combined influences of American artists like Bob Dylan with references to flower power, and the Incredible String Band who incorporated a range of influences into their acoustic instrument-based music, including medieval and eastern instruments.
The Beatles introduced many of the major elements of psychedelic sound to mainstream audiences in the mid-1960s, for example with 'I Feel Fine'(1964), which used guitar feedback. George Harrison introduced the sitar on 'Norwegian Wood' from the 'Rubber Soul' album and the song 'Rain' employed backmasking. However, the first use of the term psychedelic rock is attributed to the Austin, Texas band called '13th Floors Elevators, whose early tours are still influencing the psychedelic scene in San Francisco.
In Britain the most influential band in the psychedelic music genre were 'The Yardbirds.' Jeff Beck, their guitarist started adding up-tempo improvised 'rave-ups'. Some of their songs include 'Shape of Things'(1966). Also in 1966 the UK Underground scene based in North London supported new acts with psychedelic influences, including 'Pink Floyd', 'Traffic' and 'Soft Machine'. The same year saw the debut albums of rock bands 'Cream' and the 'Jimi Hendrix Experience' which featured solo improvisation sections using heavily distorted and sound processed electronic guitars, which went onto become a key feature of psychedelic music.
Psychedelic rock reached its peak in the last years of the decade. The Beatles released 'Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', including 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' and the Rolling Stones responded later that year with their only psychedelic album 'Their Satanic Majesties Request'. Pink Floyd produced 'The Piper at the Gates of Dawn'. In America, the Monterey Pop festival helped make stars of Jimi Hendrix and the Who, whose single 'I Can See for Miles' delved into psychedelic territory. Key recordings included Jefferson Airplane's 'Surrealistic Pillow' and the Doors' 'Strange Days'. All these acts climaxed in 1969, when the biggest psychedelic festival was held called 'Woodstock', which saw performances by Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Carlos Santana. People still talk about Woodstock even after forty five years as if happened yesterday!
After the Beatles, the psychedelic scene spread globally and began to influence pop music as well. It began to incorporate the sounds of sitars , fuzz guitars and tape effects. The Beach Boys were a distinctive influence for their vocal harmonies. Their 1966 single 'Good Vibrations' was one of the first pop song to incorporate psychedelic lyrics and sounds, making use of a Tanneria. Other American pop-oriented bands that followed were 'Electric Prunes','Strawberry Alarm Clock and 'Blue Magoos'. Early bubblegum pop acts like 'the Monkees' and' The Lemon Pipers' also started using psychedelic elements. Scottish folk singer Donovan transformed to electric music, which gave him the pop hit 'Sunshine Superman' which went onto be the earliest overtly psychedelic pop record. Pink Floyd's 'Arnold Layne' and 'See Emily Play' helped set the pattern for psychedelic pop in Britain.
Pop-oriented psychedelia was also popular among emerging bands in Australia and New Zealand. In Sydney a band called the Easybeats recorded their international hit Friday on my Mind in 1966. A similar path was pursued by the Bee Gees formed in Brisbane whose first album called Bee Gees 1st was recorded in London in 1967, which contained folk, rock and psychedelic elements heavily influenced by the Beatles. The most successful New Zealand band 'The La De Das', produced the psychedelic pop concept album 'The Happy Prince(1968) based on the Oscar Wilde children's classic but failed to break through in Britain and the wider world.
