What Makes A Song Psychedelic |
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- Опубликовано: 5 окт 2024
- Matt discusses 9 different criteria that makes a song psychedelic. Music supporting these criteria include songs by Jefferson Airplane, the Doors, Rolling Stones, Velvet Underground, Youngbloods, Strawberry Alarmclock, Byrds, Bob Dylan, Booker T. and the MGs, Fever Tree, etc.
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I think that defining a song as psychedelic is mostly an "I know it when I hear it" situation.
Couldnt have put it simpler or better
As Aldous Huxley stated in his book "The Doors of Perception," the term "psychedelic" (derived from "psyche" (mind/soul/spirit) and "delos/delic" (clear, manifestation, or openness) ) refers to "mind opening." Thus, broadly speaking, one can definitely have (non-psychotic) "psychedelic" experiences without drugs. Whatever "opens the doors of perception" is psychedelic.
Interesting. Keeping the focus on mysic, under that specific definition, there is a much broader variety of songs which could count as "psychedelic" then.
Anything that helps the listener realise something could be psychedelic
The visual aspect of what was going on in the 60s seems like an essential influence on psychedelic music. The light shows, the concert posters, the clothes, the album sleeves etc. To use an analogy, the 1960s was when music went from monotone to technicolour.
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That was the development of the counter-culture, which grew organically from the need to create an environment conducive to the trip. The trip in the sense of making live a holistic adventure. There was the generation gap, but also the culture gap. Color tv became the must-have item and with that the expansion of channels like PBS which was more of a creative venue as opposed to the Formulaic approach of the Commercial networks. It was clear that TV would not be a good source for psychedelic tripping because the content was chopped up. Although TV has had a lot of promise, it has been dominated by top-down control of content and culture-creation. Record albums were the best because you could choose your own programs and they would run uninterrupted. The rise of the postwar middle class meant teens had money to create these new markets. When you got into an alpha brainwave groove, you didn't want to have anything ruin the vibe. Then, with the advent of cassette recorders, and longer tape times, it was even better. Reel to reel was great but not as accessible to the average hipster.
Number 10 would be: the listener gets Higher from the music. Not "wrecked", not "wasted" - those are post-Psychedelic terms - but Higher. The purpose of Psychedelic music is to raise the consciousness of the listener, to share the musician's Trip with them in the hope that it will be beneficial and liberating. The Underground definition of "Psychedelic", unlike those dictionary descriptions, was "A feast for the senses". It was a unifying connection to every other Head on the planet. When Jimi Hendrix asks "Are you Experienced?" he is well aware that at that time the code word for Acid was "The Experience". The true power of Psychedelic music can't be fully understood by anyone who wasn't part of that time. The energy, the Vibe, that powered it is gone but it changed the world enough that with effort and luck you can still catch an echo of it.
My first excursion into Psychedelic music was the 13th Floor Elevators from Austin, TX. I believe they were the first band to describe themselves as "psychedelic," 1965. I highly recommend them to any fan of Psychedelica.
That stupid "love jug" ruins it, for me!! Use it on 2 or 3 songs, that's fine but, to put it in EVERY BLOODY SONG is SOOOOO ANNOYING!!!
@@RedVynil Take that blood somewhere else pallie!
@@michaelcraig9449 Oh! Was that YOU making those stupid noises on those records?
Check out Moving Sidewalks, that is awesome.
@@michaelcraig9449 Pre-Z. Z. Top.
What I found psychedelic about your video was watching your beer evaporate without you drinking it. Hmmmm lol. Great video. 👍
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My favourite music of the 60’s is the psychedelic period. Great video. Electric music for the mind and body by Country Joe and the Fish was an attempt musically to simulate an LSD trip. Some excellent music produced in this period. Thanks again Matt.
* Yet everyone remembers them for the lame Viet Nam song, not typical for them at the time.
Oh YES! Section 43 is one of my all-time favourite tunes!
Often overlooked is the fact that Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters' acid-fueled bus odyssey happened in the summer of 1964, when we were still collectively reeling from the new British Invasion. this is 3 full years before 'Sgt Pepper' was released.
So, what were early acid heads listening to if 'psychedelic music' hadn't even been coined as a phrase, let alone pursued as a genre?
They were largely listening to bee-bop jazz and Indian ragas. So arguably, musicians like John Coltrane and Ravi Shankar were early purveyors of 'psychedelic' music.
The Grateful Dead (then; The Warlocks) were the aspiring bay area blues/jug band at ground zero of the above. Not that this wasn't happening elsewhere in the USA at the time, but they were friends of Kesey and The Pranksters contingent. The Grateful Dead locked in on the extended jams, cultivated their ability to 'read the room' and improvise at the acid test events.
10. You know it when you hear it.
One of my favourite tracks from this era is Pink Floyd's Interstellar Overdrive. The fact it's an instrumental enhances the trip for me. It all comes from the woozy guitar effects. Lyrics would have only diluted the vibe
Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun
I agree , doesn't harsh your mellow@@allenf.5907
I'd include most of the LP 'Ummagumma also😉
I think the keyword is "disorienting".
I think the most important part is the uneven tempo, partly by effects, that give the music a floating feeling. Like a normal melody dissolved in acid. Second is the seemingly aimless and somewhat chromatic movement of solo melodies. Like it is going nowhere but still spiraling upwards or downwards.
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A more physical description is the Left PFC focuses and the right PFC unfocuses, so we are taught to focus on focusing with reading and writing, Psychedelic is letting go of the focus on focusing and allowing the unfocus to take control
So the music needs to be as unfocused as possible to help the switch,
A good term i use is it needs to be postively happily traumatic :)
then the persons world might turn upside down
I think if it sounds like you’re tripping when sober, then that’s it. Any song sounds psychedelic when you’re tripping.
8. Entrancement. You covered this one quickly but there could be more to it. In many traditional cultures, music was used as part of important ceremonies, often aiming to induce a trance state. Anthropologists think this was an important way to increase social cohesion. Similarly to psychedelic experiences, it could make people feel part of some greater whole.
This is a good addition- thank you!
For example, I noticed modern Afro-rock songs have these looping melodies and rhythms which I believe harken back to their tribal roots, probably passed down from earlier times when a whole tribe would participate in trance inducing ceremonies with singing and chanting based on those loops.
Sky Pilot by The Animals, specifically when the noodling guitar fuzz in the middle folds into a sound effect of a plane crashing. Pretty chilling
I would say some of Bob Dylan’s lyrics are surreal, but that he never made psychedelic records, though I wish he had! Thank you for yet another great episode, Matthew!
Hey David - thanks again for your comments!
Unfortunately because of the motorcycle accident there was no 1967 Dylan album; who knows, he might have made one then had he been able.
Blonde On Blonde is a good album to smoke pot to.
I think that surreal is a great way to distinguish Dylan's lyrics from psychedelic. Dylan was , supposedly - who really knows - smoking pot when he made 'Subterranean Blues through "Blonde on Blonde." When I heard the lyrics in the mid-sixties, Salvador Dali's paintings flashed into my mind. I guess maybe I was seeing surreal and listening surreal/psychedlelic.
Bob Dylan "and the these visions of Johanna are now all that remain", thats as psychedelic as "Dark Star Crashes , reason tatters" or "First I was transparent, then I is was effervescent, and finally i was absent"
Every song he ever played was a Jam, just like the Dead,
One doesn't need drugs to feel or understand psychedelic music or any music. If you are creative, have an open mind and a love of music, you will understand it and get it.
Very well stated.
I got into psychedelic music when I was 15 in 1966. Young, not stoned and looking for unusual sounds with exciting rhythm etc. Later, when stoned, it just adds to enjoyment and understanding of the music but didn't suddenly make the song psychedelic.
This Morning I Listened To In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida , Perhaps The Most Enjoyable Listen Of That Song, So Far... In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida Is About The Greatest Psychedelic Song, Ever! Yes; Some Morning Hybr, The Rainy Day Walk Under An Umbrella, Nature... Everything... Magically; Cheerful Morning-Mood... Was Now, Flashing Back To The Only Time I Ever Saw These Dudes Live In Concert; Great! We Chatted... They Were Very Friendly; They Liked My Crystal... Peace
The Moody Blues are the standard for me, so much sound it almost becomes 3D. That's what makes something psychedelic.
Agreed...Mike Pinder's mellotron can still "take me places" without a single illicit substance in my body. He was that good.
@@mark9058 The Moody Blues are most definitely a Psych band. They're credited with pioneering some of the timbres (specifically Mellotron) and imagery of Prog as well as Days Of Future Past being one of rock's first concept albums. They had a big influence on Prog bands but they were explicitly a Psych band, their music can be summarized as radio advertisement for the wonderful benefits of LSD and the members made it no secret that LSD was doing the writing. Prog is more along the lines of King Crimson or Van Der Graff Generator, both contemporary to the Moody Blues.
@@mark9058 I mean, you technically could label anything coming out at that time as truly Progressive, given that it all pushed boundaries and set the standard especially for rock music as we know it today. But I've just gotten used to people labeling a very specific combination of timbres and phrasing as sounding "Progressive", meaning essentially sounding like Yes, King Crimson, Genesis, Camel and the like, and I never got that out of the Moody Blues, it's definitely Progressive, again anything was at that time, but not "Progressive" in the sense that I laid out earlier where that meant you kind of sounded like "Progressive" bands. That's usually what people mean. Labelling it as "Psych" is definitely after the fact but I feel more accurate, so that's where I'm coming from, but to each his own.
Early donovan 66-69 was some excellent psych stuff...those magically beautiful days just spawned experimental music..excellent job Matt..great video..Thanks
Excellent and innovated tutorial! I have always felt that Donovan was one of the trend makers. Do another!
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Having a top 9 instead of a top 10 is rather psychadaelic, isn’t it?
So in that sense, you nailed it Matt!
Another gem of yours for which I thank you!
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I never thought of it that way but I'll take it!
I think this is as close as we're going to come for a good definition of psychedelic music. Thanks Matt.
Thanks Steve, though future updating may be needed!
I love your channel, Matt.
Right now is like the 60's all over again. We got the establishment doing terrible stuff like always, and newer bands being psychedelic too.
You had me at The Crystal Ship and then cemented it with White Rabbit. Great channel. New subscriber.
Welcome, Rich!
Well , a great group from the psychedelic era is The Chambers Bros. with their best and also most well known song being "Time Has Come Today " .
11 min. Freak Out Version 👍
Cookoo
There was another one that was pretty psych, "Love, Peace And Happiness". Other than those two, I'd never call them a psych band!
The album that really blew my mind was Odessey and Oracle the first time I heard I must of replayed it a thousand times it was nothing like I heard before and to this day it considered one of the greatest albums to come out of the 60’s and is The Zombies magnum opus.
Brady, that's a great example!
@@russseuffert803 it’s definitely on my top 10 favorite albums I’m the same way with Pet Sounds I can listen to it over and over it’s an amazing work of art.
Not that good, no promotion from EMI, the band broke up and could not promote it, overrated in my opinion
@@johnvanstone5336 The album might not be everyone’s cup of tea but I consider it a masterpiece I love it for the music that’s just my opinion .
An Excellent Choice, Brady. ☮
There’s a funny story that my dad used to tell me when he was back college back in the 90’s he had a cd copy of The Doors greatest hits and he had a roommate that would play his cd every night to point where he grew tired of The Doors I thought well I would get right along with that guy I’m a huge Doors fan🤣
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@@natashawalker1345 I’m 18 years old I’m only interested in the music not the stupid drug.
10. The music is released with colorful and/or trippy artwork that signals the artist’s interest in psychedelic imagery to represent their music.
Obviously this is not always the case, but it’s presence is a good sign that the music within will have psychedelic elements. Or at least that’s the intended message the artist or record company is sending.
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Good addition. I thought of including the imagery that accompanies the music but I wanted to keep focus on just the music.
In case they haven’t been mentioned…two psychedelic-sounding songs from the late 60’s that I loved.
The Lemon Pipers, Green Tambourine and Status Quo, Pictures of Matchstick Men.
And The Kinks, See my Friends is so underrated as far as an Indian sound goes
Psychedelic = Mind manifesting. It is music that turns your attention inward, allowing you to see how the music is showing you something about your mind while listening. By this definition, ANY music can be psychedelic if it meets this criterion.
As always, Matt, another fab video! "Psychedelic" to me has always felt like that brief period from late 1966 to early 1968, and I think your criteria helps differentiate it from other terrific 60's music style such as Baroque and Sunshine Pop (and I think we know there are examples where these styles and sounds seem to overlap), though I'd leave out criteria #9 as I don't think it's necessary. That said, "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" ticks all the boxes, and remains the #1 Psychedelic song of all time - I will leave the remaining 9 spots on the top ten to be advised by all the other viewers of "Pop Goes the 60s". Many thanks, Terry (from Australia).
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Microdose _what_ exactly? LOL. BTW, that's not a Type of substance, but rather an Amount of something! 🤦🏻♂️ FFS...
Thanks Terry!
Pink Floyd seems to meet most of your criteria as well as 90's era shoegaze. Great video.
I managed a record store in Houston from 1978 to 1983. Love your videos. Kind regards Scott AKA et2petty. Armenia City In the Sky-The Who, A Love Supreme-Miles Davis, Happenings Ten Years Time Ago-Yardbirds, Legend of a Mind-Moody Blues....etc
Thanks for watching, Scott! Much appreciated.
@@popgoesthe60s52 ruclips.net/video/GfkmPAACpJI/видео.html Madison Sq Grdn Night of the Hurricane
Legend of a Mind 👍
Songs that come to mind immediately: Beatles - 'She Said, She Said', Byrds - 'Eight Miles High', Beach Boys - 'Good Vibrations', Kinks 'Autumn Almanac' (for the tag) and Lovin' Spoonful - 'Six O'Clock'. Later there were bubblegum songs like 'Incense & Peppermints' and 'Green Tambourine'.
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Kinks' "King Kong", too.
Good vibrations is directly lsd
I like the psychedelic montage heading into the segment
Thank you! I love making those.
There's also a whole class of psychedelic music and that is music to 'trip' on - music that when you first heard it , it was so different than anything you ever heard before, like 'tripping' - personally the arc of 'trip' music for me began with with the song A Hard Day's Night to I feel fine to Norwegian Wood (discovering stereo headphones) to all of Revolver, Sgt Pepper, Magical Mystery Tour and the whole Notorious Byrd Brothers album, Procol Harum's Salty Dog, all Pink Floyd did....of course Ithycoo Park, the Zombies (de rigeur);;;so all criteria aside...could you 'trip' on it ;)LOL
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Indeed. It's like that famous opening chord on A Hard Day's Night was the starting gun for the entire psychedelic era
Joe Byrd and the Field Hippies - The American Metaphysical Circus. Now THAT'S a psych album.
I think any song that has a significant amount of phasing, distorted vocals, swirly swishy sounds and floating stereo is quintessential psychedelia. Itchycoo Park by the Small Faces, Armenia city in the sky by the who are the best examples
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No I don't consider Itchycoo Park psychedelia.
My dream is to see your documentary on the original mothers of invention (1965-1969)! Thanks for the content that you put out!
I would have liked to hear you make a distinction between the Westcoast jam- driven psychedelia of the Jefferson Airplane and Doors, etc, and the British psychedelia typified by studio trickery.
strings, and horns.
Pretty honest evaluations. Food for thought, and maybe a windowpane blotter.
This is a great breakdown, Matt! I’m glad that you mentioned recording engineers. I remember being amazed the first time I heard the mono pressing of ‘The Piper at the Gates of Dawn’. It is so much more of a psychedelic experience.
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Couldn't help but notice that Brotherhood record behind you. What a great album.
What works for your definition of psychedelia is that it applies to the three minute songs of the Syd Barrett Pink Floyd as well as the freak out longer jams of the Aoxomoxoa era Grateful Dead.
Very true. Song length certainly varies within this genre.
Great explanation! Spot on! 👍🏻
Any chance of doing an exploration of Lee Hazlewood with or without Nancy Sinatra ! Some great songs. Between the two of them for sure, somewhat psychedelic and I sure like the production, arrangement of songs and just the sound of the songs, thanks Matt 🏴🤘🇬🇧
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I agree - Some Velvet Morning is a good example. I would love to do them in the future.
You don't want to get me started on Lee Hazlewood! There is a reason he was called "the genius". I have been a major fan of his music since he first produced Duane Eddy, have every LP that he was associated with, and I totally disagree with his self-deprecating opinion that he couldn't sing.
A great album of the psychedelic genre would be The Seeds Future it’s a very underrated album.
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There's probably a sub-genre or songs that really aren't psychedelic, but have psychedelic flourishes to cash in on the trend. Cry Like a Baby might be one of them. One that I always thought was kind of faux psychedelic is "Susan" by the Buckinghams, which is a conventional pop song with a tacked on psychedelic section toward the end.
One of my favourite psychedelic lyrics is the Byrds's "Wasn't Born to Follow," written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin: "where the trees have leaves of prism and break the light in colours that no one knows the names of." I think of psychedelic as revealing everyday reality to be wondrous and infinitely complex.
Great lyric. I’ve never heard if Goffin and King took lsd but it sure sounds like it!
@@popgoesthe60s52 my recollection is that Goffin did, and it messed him up. I think that was in Ken Emerson’s book about the Brill building.
@@modernpolitics thank you David - I’ll track down that book.
Heh. The heavy "phlanged" guitar effects on that Byrds tune is extremely "trippy".
@@leeroth5604 Yeah, I think somebody said it was like the Carter Family meets the Jetsons. 😂 A really wild guitar song.
There is so much more than my reflex reaction but the two big things that come first to my mind are the swirly sound effects and, in view of the fact that the first songs to come to mind, 'Tomorrow Never Knows', 'Blue Jay Way' and 'It's All Too Much', seem to indicate to me that drone is important. I love a good droney piece that goes on for a bit.
You need to take drugs to get it? I'll take a couple aspirin, put on 'Within You Without You' and rocket right into fricken orbit. Oh I'm there! I'm there!
For greg's sake, I'm not bloody interested in bloody chemical refreshment aids. What the hell!!!
@@Amadeusthegreat100 - Pop really needs to clean up the spammers. I've already reported three or four of the names. DON'T REPLY so they don't get paid.
Very well done, well presented, and a worthy topic. I particularly agree with your points made in #9, notably that the song needs to stand on its own. Also that typically a band is not considered psychedelic, rather a song (track) is. That would make me believe that for the most part, a band would need to get its foot into the recording studio with traditional music, then if allowed to experiment, could proceed into psychedelia. Surely this wasn't always the case, but likely a trend. As you clearly state, it is entirely subjective, and there are sure to be differences of opinion on some tracks. I look forward to hearing your comments on Dylan's lyrics.
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Thanks for the feedback, Roger.
Would love an entire series on psychedelic music. You've just scratched the surface. There were other genres, including "acid jazz" and "free jazz" (e.g., late 60's Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, Pharoah Sanders, Sun Ra Arkestra), trippy fusion (Mahavishnu Orchestra, Chick Corea's Return to Forever). Plus: "I Hear a New World" (wild early 60's album by Joe Meek - CHECK IT OUT!).
I love the sound of that.
Sun Ra!!!
RA! RA! RA! (And electric-era MILES DAVIS, too!!)
Stellar episode, Matt 👏👏👏
Great video Matt.
When I'm tripping, I spend almost all of the time either hyperfocused on something or searching for somewhere else to be. My 10th criteria would have included restless, trance-like, or "ADHD" style song structures. This can be achieved with dynamic instrumentation and sudden breaks in mood (Strawberry Fields, Good Vibrations) and the use of drones and repetition (Venus in Furs, Tomorrow Never Knows).
Most people seem to overlook the "restless" facet of the psychedelic experience. Todd Rundgren's A Wizard a True Star captured it extremely well.
Those were times of the beginnings of serious awakening for so many. Drugs like pot and LSD (especially LSD) were an ultra profound experience as in the exposure of presumptions one had held previous to the experience. A realization that ‘we’ are “it” so to speak, and as such was unforgettable, not to mention challenging. The age of those participating were on the younger side of my age 27 in 1969 but we were drawn to the experience by the music and the spiritual culture from which it seemed to have spawned: a lifelong influence.
Thanks for your thoughtful in-depth approach to this important musical era !!
Thanks for commenting, Charles!
I lived through this period, I was 14 in 1967. One thing great about a lot of the music of that period was the aspiration to do something beyond commercialism. In fact a lot of time being overly commercial was disdained and some of the revered bands like The Grateful Dead or Jefferson Airplane had few top 40 hits. Also you wanted the lyrics to say something or try to! A lot of it was forgettable but a lot of the music was fantastic! Thanks.
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Great point, I feel the 60's were the opposite of today, in terms of music (go figure). The 1960s-70s was a great progressive and experimental period in music rather than the dreaded polished commercialization of a lot of music starting sporadically in the late 80s which basically sapped the soul of humanity, right out of the music.
#10 ambient sounds. Pink Floyd Saucerful of Secrets is probably the best 60's psychedelic recording to listen to while tripping. I've listened to it straight also. It holds up.
No. 10 "Raga Rock". The use of modal or non-Western scales. Jeff Beck was a big proponent in the Yardbirds.
Thanks Matt. Always a favorite & fascinating topic, I like the parameters youve laid down as they arent restrictive or confining, which goes to the core of the universality of Psych or Acid Rock. There were parallel tracks in the UK (Yardbirds - Jeff Beck in particular laying down the tracks for psych rock - distortion on Heart Full of Soul for eg, guitar sounding like a Sitar ) & the US (Byrds - cover of Dylans Tambourine Man) along with sub genres in the Folk-Rock & Underground (13th Floor Elevators etc) Psychedelic genres. The influence of Acid Jazz artists like John Coltrane & Myles Davis was also huge..... as was, again, the Beatles & George Martin in particular, notably on the track Ticket to Ride, though Martin had been using recording sciences tricks for some time before that on the Beatles recordings that became staples of the psychedelic era..... It was a lifestyle, an attitude, you didnt have to take drugs to appreciate it. Fashion exploded with shops like Granny Takes a Trip opening in London, a second location in LA... velvet frock coats, butterfly collared shirts, embroidered jeans, stage gear. Period pieces.... Great time to be alive, young.
I appreciate the comments, Scott!
Nice video, as this is a hair-splitting topic. I have always thought of the Electric Prunes' "I Had Too Much To Dream (Last Night)" from 1966 as highly psychedelic and Procol Harum's "A Whiter Shade Of Pale" from '67 mainly because of the lyrics. Surprisingly, Kenny Rogers' First Edition checked all of the psychedelic boxes with "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)" from '68. Crazy lyrics and instrumentation. A little-known psych gem is '67's "Shifting Sands" by the West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band.
Thanks for the comments, Alan! You mentioned some classics.
The first three you mentioned are probably my top three as well. Best all time psychedelic song title of all time has to go to Strawberry Alarm Clock for 'Rainy Day Mushroom Pillow". That must have been a fun day.
I agree with you and thanks for the reminder of Just dropped in to see what condition my condition was in. Loved whiter shade of Pale.
For me, psychedelia (whether music or another art form) is that which inspires you to enter a dream-like state. You don't need drugs, but for some, it helps.
Great video once again.
I also believe you don't need to take drugs to "go on a trip"
I never had and I'm always "tripping" with these songs.
And you're right, there is a fine line with the genres when it comes to psychedelic / garage / flower power.
My go to song is (a so and so production, to be honest)
Your Golden Touch by the Clockwork Orange
Thanks for the comments, Chris
Good criteria, to which I would add experimenting with song structure. Grace Slick's compositions starting with White Rabbit exemplify this in that they are through-composed, defeating typical verse-verse-chorus form. Her other outstanding examples of this are Rejoyce, Mexico and Lawman.
Also her outstanding tracks from Volunteers, Hey Frederick and Eskimo Blue Day. Some of her later post 60's songs show she was still capable of going back to that same headspace like Hyperdrive, Switchblade and even a little bit Babylon from the late 80's although that has an 80's style chorus awkwardly shoehorned into what is otherwise a trippy song with short story style verses.
A wonderful essay/vLog Matt to get the ball rolling on this brilliant Topic. Personally, I think that for Psychedelic music, you didn’t need to be on drugs to listen to it or perform it (certainly NOT to record if you listen to George Martin). Psychedelic rock requires only a “state of mind”. The lyrics and music can definitely evoke that state of mind but you don’t need to be on drugs. In fact on the 20th anniversary of the release of SGT Pepper back in 1987, an amount of a certain green leafy substance might have been inhaled (to find out what all the fuss was about) and the result was being oh so “far out and groovy” that all motor skills were gone and as a result the record was unable to be flipped over to side 2!. So no, one does not need drugs to experience the music, in fact it could be avoided :)
I also agree with you that the best music to come from the Psychedelic state of mind was the last half of the 60s. After that period, people had tuned in, turned on and dropped out to the point that Psychedelic rock bloated into what would become Prog rock (where unfortunately you probably did need to be on drugs, if only to tolerate 30 minutes of musical noodling and belly button fluff gazing in the non-ending solos).
But we will forever have that small, 5 year window of the last half of the 1960s. The time that gave us some of the best music of ALL time and in my view, most of it is yet to be beaten. I cannot wait for future instalments.
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Great comments, wonsworld - thank you!
thank you for calling out the snobbery with drugs, one of the main reasons I stay away from it all is the reason that the people kinda become assholes when on it or talking about it, even if they are being friendly, there is always a separation in their minds between us and them.
Agreed. The problem I have with the snobs is their inability to discuss the music from a perspective outside of themselves. As if that type of music was written only from them and only they can 'fully understand' it. Not very helpful when trying to have a deeper discussion.
Perfectly put. Most of the ones I've known have been out of commission for years, decades even.
Hi Matt! I think the Beatles' album "Rubber Soul" is the beginning of Beatles' psychedelic music. John Lennon said he took LSD hundreds of times taking it, and of course, marijuana also influenced their music. Those who took LSD, like "Hawkwind", when recording or performing (except for Lemmy, who only took amphetamines) showed that they could perform and keep the energy flowing during their performances.
I agree, I think you can even find early signs The Beatles were heading towards this direction on Beatles For Sale and in Ticket to Ride.
who are you?
Are you the same persona as William Pool, Maryann Perez, Natasha Walker, or Pete Trips? Why are you spamming almost every message on this thread.? I checked out one of your webpages and all it was, was a webpage you could subscribe to, with absolutely nothing going on anywhere on site. I don't get it. Why bother to message almost everyone here unasked to, when all you have is bad grammar, empty promises, and weird blank webpages. Wonders never cease.
Lemmy also partook of the constant stream of acid punch!
A challenging topic Matt. I think your 9 categories check all the relevant boxes on the subject. Full disclosure. I never tried the "Dreaded Lysergic'. Mushrooms was as close as I ever got. Under its influence, everything seems psychedelic. Once we rolled a cassette tape and jammed . We thought we'd reached a new level in our growth as a band. In reality it was abysmal. Psychedelia is a state of mind and thus difficult to quantify. You just know it when you hear it. Gotta split the scene man, RNB
Thanks for the comments, Rick!
One of my favorite things to listen to is the hours long mixes on RUclips of Grateful Dead improvisations. Bending the rules of music theory and time keeping is on the right track.
Birthday Greetings Matt ✌️ Interesting breakdown & presentation of these 9 defining Psychedelic criterias(-On the subject of #9, a good example of this is the Altamont concert, where everybody went to get F***ed Up and the music is secondary.) From reading some of the comments on your video on What Makes A Song Psychedelic, its all subjective, but I'll list some of my favorites that are for me Psychedelic: 1. Strawberry Fields Forever- The Beatles 2. Every Lion Hearted Christian Man -The Bee Gees 3. The Red Telephone -Love 4. Legend of a Mind -The Moody Blues 5. Passing The Time - Cream 6. Tomorrow Never Knows - The Beatles 7. The Stars That Play With Laughing Sams Dice -The Jimi Hendrix Expierence 8. Be Careful With That Axe Eugene -Pink Floyd 9. Its A Sin To Go Away - We All Together 10. Space Hymn -Lothar and the Hand People 11.The Red Sign Post - The Fifty Foot Hose 12. Within You Without You - The Beatles 13. New Rising Sun -Jimi Hendrix ( instrumental song from album Voodoo Soup) 14. Feelings - The Grass Roots 15.Tapioca Tundra -The Monkees 16. Some Velvet Morning - Lee Hazlewood & Nancy Sinatra 17. The End -The Doors 18. 2000 Light Years From Home -The Rolling Stones 19. Daily Nightly -The Monkees 20. Albatross -Fleetwood Mac 21. Combination Of Two Janis Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company 22. 3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds -Jefferson Airplane 23. Hello -Lee Michaels 24. Walking Through My Dreams -The Pretty Things 25. Heroes & Villains -The Beach Boys 26. Becks Bolero - Jeff Beck Group 27. Omaha - Moby Grape 28. Words - The Monkees ( Missing Links Version) 29. I Wont Hurt You - West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band 30. You Dont Love Me - Bloomfield, Kooper and Stills ( Super Session Album). - Im going to check out to check out Ode To Billy Joe from Booker T and The MG's , I didnt know that they covered this song. - Final Note on the subject of Tame Impala, one thing that catches my interest about this group is Not only that they are ( Kevin Parker) influenced heavily from The Beatles and are one of the few groups of today that are very Psychedelic -Im of the opinion that if John Lennon was alive today this is a guess of what his music would sound like... anyways Matt Happy B-Day and Cheers 🍺 - Looking Forward to more of your videos on Psychedelic themes and musical topics 👍
Thanks for the birthday wishes and song selection!
#PopGoesThe60s, Roger McGuinn once gave a great explanation for psychedelic music. He described it as music that sort of bleeds together. Kind of going with the idea that you mention of imitating the hallucinatory drug experience. Roger went on to add that instruments, melodies and vocals in psychedelia would all kind of flow into different sensory experiences, similar to how LSD altered the perception of human senses. That was one of the best explanations for psychedelic music I ever heard: music that bleeds together.
I was 6 and 7 when during the psychedelic era. Mostly it what I was hearing on the radio, and I thought at the time it all seemed perfectly normal, like that's what records should sound like. I came to appreciate some of the craft, especially on the British side, though I remember thinking Somebody to Love by the Airplane sounded so great. Great stuff Matt!
I'm going to love this series since I've always loved that music. Whether I was under the influence or not. If I was, it enhanced the experience. If I wasn't, I was transcended into that state through the music. It was a win - win situation, and there's nothing wrong with that!
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Well said, MusicManiac!
I had a funny experience while listening to music of a neo-psych band in the 1990's, Poisoned Elektric Head. The music listening to it late in the evening while already being tired had an effect on me that you could call psychedelic, although not being on some substances (never have been)....it made my brain experience the music other than I had expected, bit like a subconscious move in my head. I still recall it as interesting.
It is interesting the difference between the originators of a style and those jumping on the bandwagon for monetary or "being hip" reasons. As a guy in the SF Bay Area when it was happening it was easy to tell which is which.
Also there was a big difference between US and UK psychedelic music which I hope you explore later.
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There's an obvious difference between American and UK psychedelic music. The former is more acid rock, long instrumental solos. But British psychedelia tended to reflect childhood reveries, experiences, places and literature from childhood.
You're definitely right about the sitar, it's because the musical symbol of the '60s. As for topical music that came from folk music into folk-rock and yes Dylan used a lot of psychedelic imagery, some of it just for humorous effect which was evident is his talking blues songs and creative images from the Beat poets.
I've got to mention the 4 CD box set "Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond" from Rhino. The 100 page booklet has informative essays and plenty of photos from 1965-1969 to go with all the weirdness.
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Thanks for the substantive comment! That Nuggets box is great.
Defining psychedelia is no small task. There are so many theories. I used Richard Morton Jack’s book endless trip as the Bible. So much in there isn’t really psychedelic. Lots of pop, blues and garage. But that’s my litmus test. Though? I like the Charlatans. Their cover of Codeine is fire.
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Hey Matt. I've been listening to 60s psych music for 35+ years and I think you are spot on. What was considered psychedwlic in the 60s became a very broad category and included numerous styles. Your inclusion of the Carlatana is a erfect example. Many psych 'purists' wouldn't consider them psychedelic but they were. I think your 10th point could be personal interpretation, as you pointed out very well wirh how the Booker T song produces a personal psyxhede experience for you. Lookimg forward to your new explorations of this topic. Keep up the great work!
Hey Brian - thank you for commenting! More to come.
Forgot to include my introductio to psychedelic music was Incense and Peppermints by Strawberry Alarm Clock. Got a best of como of the band's music and the rest is history.
The Kinks "See My Friends" stands as a formidable ground zero for psychedelic music. No gimmickry. The drone,chanted vocals and serious otherworldly atmosphere point to the future. Months later I guess the Who cut "The Goods Gone" with a similar droning riff. And at the same time,Jeff Beck was experimenting with noise and Eastern tones with The Yardbirds.
A personal favorite. Incredible song.
The first raga guitar in Rock!
I can't explain my criteria, but I sure know it when I hear it
For me the word psychedelic immediately brings three songs , The Beatles' Tomorrow Never Knows, Jimi Hendrix' s version of All Along the Watchtower and The Rolling Stones' She's Like a Rainbow. Lots of others of course but for me these three do the job.
The whole Satanic majestic album from the Stones is so pyschedelic and trippy
@@niggato23 underrated psychedelic album
Wow. This is a harder question than I'd ever thought about before.
New Wave (c. 1977-1983) has the same fuzzy distinction. Sometimes a single instrument can identify the genre as you mention with the sitar. I consider anything with a mellotron is usually psychedelic. Anything with a farfisa organ is usually new wave. However, the way you expand the definition hit more of the marks than just the intrumentation and production. An expanded definition for other genres, like new wave, could certainly take from your example.
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Yes, I remember a time when EVERYTHING was called 'new wave' simply because it came from a distinct time period.
I'm glad you answered this question. I never knew what psych was. They can be so diverse in sound. And yes, if I can't get it (anything) w/o psych drugs, I don't want it.
Tommy James and the Shondells, "Crimson and Clover" was really psychedelic imo.
Cellophane Symphony 👍
Especially the extended version
The Blues Magoo’s song ain’t got nothing yet in my opinion is the greatest example of psych rock. Mike Esposito played that incredible solo in the song. Mike’s dad was a teacher at West Point where I grew up. Last I had heard Mike had a bicycle repair shop up around Wood Stock. Amazing time growing up around Pete Seeger Don McLean Dylan The Band and Orleans just to name a few. I got to meet Judy Collins back in 2019. I didn’t realize she was going out with Al Cooper around the time the Fillmore East opened. I also got to meet Harvey Brooks back in ‘76 who played bass on like a Rolling Stone. Harvey was sitting on his bass amp rolling up his cord. You could hear a pin drop. I had no idea what I was going to say. I said Harvey you’re the first guy I’ve put the needle down on a record and learned every note you’ve played on every record you’ve ever played on. He sat there for a moment then stood up and gave me a big bear hug. Brings back some great memories
I plan to do a video on the Blues Magoos in the future so stay tuned!
Re: Al Kooper, off topic
Very iteresting story about how Al was responsible for adding the "the organ answers" in Dylan's "Like A Rolling Stone".
ruclips.net/video/FZGN7T70rgY/видео.html
Interesting and well thought dissection of the "psychedelic" concept....I agree with al the 9 criteria and would humbly suggest as a 10th one the integration of the sonic experience with a visual one such as a non conformist cover/packaging/presentation (ie Sgt.Pepper's) or a visual component added like Pink Floyd used (light and colour show) in a live concert. Very interesting topic indeed, thanks Matt! I concur that music should be produced and consumed with a clear mind...the psychedelic "experience" should come/go from/to the soul/heart.
Yes, I did think of the artwork that often accompanied this music but I wanted to just keep the focus on the music. Probably a good part 2 video topic!
Some not-so-obvious movies meet this definition, and I don't mean Roger Corman movies like _The Trip_ and so on. You mentioned _The Graduate_ in your video about 1960s movies. (It didn't age well for you but it's my favorite movie of all time.) Remember that _The Graduate_ was released in 1967 and probably filmed late 1966 or early 1967 when LSD was prevalent, especially in California. I firmly believe that movie was influenced by psychedelics--especially the direction by Mike Nichols, camera angles and film editing. If you watch it again, and imagine being "under the influence," you might agree. Someone I know very well first saw this movie that way and was knocked out!
Tomorrow Never Knows was my first introduction to what I would label as mind bending. They really paved the genre. Then came the SF groups who were delighting in their power to influence. Thanks for your investigation into to the evolution of this music Nitch.
Don't forget the Brits.
On a history of rock documentary co produced by the BBC and PBS, Phil Lesh said someone at a record store pulled him in off the street to play him Tomorrow Never Knows and it it blew his mind.
@@allenf.5907 Only a few psychedelic brits
A music that takes you out of yourself and presents the listener with a hitherto unknown experience. I would class The Incredible String Band as psychedelic. Thanks Matt, great topic and breakdown.
trippy_psyche1
They're on Instagram
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My definition is a bit more generalized -- any piece of music that promotes, reflects or attempts to recreate a higher state of consciousness. Some drugs (opiates) don't do that, so I don't use that as a criteria. But as you say, all definitions are subjective, which is as it should be. I'm a big fan of psychedelic music and philosophy, though I've never taken a psychedelic drug myself.
I think cannabis had as much an influence on the scene as acid did
I like your definition. I was going to say it was music that simulated or enhanced a psychedelic experience. Part of that would be musical elements such as drone tones and trance-style music with ostinato motifs that vary slightly in an atmospheric sense.
Fun topic with a, chicken or the egg circular argument that never resolves. Good job, man!
Everything about music, including labeling music, is subjective. I believe I am the only person qualified to provide the correct answer (the mindset of every person who is obsessed with music). So, I will take this opportunity to provide the "correct answer". You know psychedelic music when you can "trip" without assistance from anything but the audio.
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@@RM-je5qw You don’t need to trip to enjoy psychedelic music…. But it doesn’t hurt lol
Personally, I can only tell the difference between music that’s good and stuff that sounds like 💩….lol
I did orange sunshine 1971. Nothing met that in tripping.
You're joking, right?
I've been a big fan of psych growing up. To me I feel like Eight Miles High was the one that just made that big difference to the history of rock. I'm a big fan of quaint English Hippy/Folk, and that Acid Folk sound of acts like Principal Edwards Magic Theatre... Basically anything that makes you want to lie in a warm field and stare off into the distance :) Everyone heard '10:30 Returns To The Bedroom'?
I have to chime in again on this one because I grew up listening to this kind of music, so here goes.
To me, melodic pop music presents an expression and impression of emotions. It is a short story or a glimpse of the artist saying musically "this is what it feels like", as if melody were an emotional photograph that has visual attributes. I think this applies even to "attitude" music.
Psychedelic music thereby takes me to an easy place in my imagination which allows the music to suggest that it is an actual memory. Psychedelic music is "haunting" and relatable.
I think smoking focuses the mind on the fantasy to the point of getting lost in the imagined place or emotional "path" or "picture" that the music is trying, deliberately by the artist, to enjoin the listener to. So the artist uses unusual sounds and expressions because the language is the other, unreal world of deep imagination as opposed to overly recognizable sentiments that are trite and common in pop music. Otherwise known as "Head Music" or "Pot Music", Psychedelic Music is a kind of thinking persons music.
The listener is supposed to recognize the sonic language and I think being high makes the mind focused enough to hear that intention. The high creates an attitude that the artist at first feels and then expresses to the stoned listener, who can relate. Otherwise not being high makes the picture seem a bit fuzzy and gimmicky, which it is. lol
Therefore, psychedelic music is the music of the unreal, "haunting" world.
Now that this is memory, I think I can get "there" without the smoke, as I don't do that anymore. lol
BTW, I think the two greatest instruments of psychedelic music are the Hammond organ and the Rickenbacker guitar.
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The way you expressed 'recognizing the sonic language' is important. There is a communication of sorts going on with this music that you have pinpointed. Thank you, Dan!
Tomorrow Never Knows, Time has come Today, Mind Gardens, Paper Sun, We Love You, Are you Experienced? and Interstellar Overdrive pretty much sum up what psychedelic music is to me. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. My favourite genre for sure.
Time Has Come Today 11:04 Freak Out Version 👍
@@erniericardo8140 Oh definitely. It's THE version.
How could I forget Dive into Yesterday by Kaleidoscope. Sublime. AND White Rabbit. ✌️✌️✌️
The Dukes of Stratosphear (1985 and a disguise for XTC)25'0 Clock is an incredible psychedelic album.
That album is a homage to very popular songs/bands
Almost to the point of a cliche. Good album, given the temporal displacement of the embellishments, but at times it sounds forced. I prefer the _United States of Existence_ from the same underground psychedelic revival period of the mid-late '80s.
Some people - think it's the best thing the band ever did.
@@LannieLord Y'know I'm with you. I bought the album in 1985 and never stopped listening to it. I's that kind of album...addictive.
I wish they did a TOUR as the Dukes. @@Uniblab8
Nothing to really add to the discussion... just feel this is such a great channel! Thank you for all you're doing... as one who grew up in the 60's... I find these episodes sorta soothing to my soul. Not sure if that makes any sense. Maybe it's the music reminds me of my youth... my mom and dad, my younger siblings, the places we lived... etc. To have your insights into it all it adds a visceral side or content with those experiences. Very cool... very, very cool! Blessings of all your efforts!
I accept blessings - thank you Ken!
Matt, have you heard about the CIA involvement in the 60s counter culture, particularly the laurel canyon hippie/freak scene?
Yes.
@@popgoesthe60s52 what's your take on that?
Great to see Matt again!