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Chapter 7
The Summer of Love and Psychedelic Rock (1967-1969)
Outline
I. The hippie movement
a. West Coast Counterculture
i. Drugs
ii. Intense perception
iii. Timothy Leary
iv. Ken Kesey
v. Poets and writers
II. Anti war stance
i. Vietnam war
ii. Military draft
iii. Broken promises by politicians
iv. Sit-ins
III. The music
a. Influences
i. Country
ii. Blues
iii. Folk
iv. Jazz
b. The American bands
i. Grateful Dead
ii. Jefferson Airplane
iii. Moby Grape
iv. Janis Joplin
v. Jimi Hendrix
vi. The Doors
vii. Love
viii. Frank Zappa
ix. 13th Floor Elevators
x. Credence Clearwater Revival
c. SPOTLIGHT: Jefferson Airplane
i. Two Top Ten hits
ii. Professional musicianship
iii. Singer Grace Slick
d. Promoters
i. Bill Graham
e. The British bands
i. Pink Floyd
ii. The Who
iii. Moody Blues
IV. The 1960s music festivals
a. The Human Be-In
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b. Monterey International Pop Music Festival
c. The Isle of Wight Festivals
d. The Woodstock Music and Art Fair
e. Altamont Speedway Festival
i. Hells Angels
V. Studio craft
a. The studio as a creative tool
VI. Bands that experimented with advanced studio techniques
a. Jefferson Airplane’s After Bathing at Baxter’s
i. Explored psychedelia in music
ii. Largely given free reign over production
b. Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds
i. The album as a cohesive work
ii. Using non-rock musical sources
iii. Modeled after the Wall of Sound
c. Beatles’ Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band
i. The album as a cohesive whole
ii. Studio experimentation
iii. Non-Western instruments
iv. Space-age studio effects
v. Adventurous lyrics
vi. The alter ego concept
VII. British Blues Revival
a. Bands
i. John Mayall
ii. Cream
iii. Spencer Davis
iv. Fairport Convention
v. Pentangle
Suggested Activities and Discussion Topics
1. Recreational drug use. It is worthwhile to mention that, in every instance, careers stall
when band members are under the influence of hard drugs like heroin, cocaine, and
narcotics. Even Harvard doctors, like Timothy Leary, can be wrong. Jefferson Airplane’s
“White Rabbit” is an ode to recreational drug use.
2. Jefferson Airplane is the only hippie San Francisco band to have any hit records, and
they had two. SEE: Suggested Listening. Note the strong musicianship; the players were
of professional caliber. And Grace Slick’s vocals and sex appeal were not lost on fans.
3. Jimi Hendrix. “Purple Haze” showcases his use of feedback as a song-sculpting
medium. He was first to do this.
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4. Feedback occurs when a magnetic pickup on a guitar picks up the vibration of a string
and the vibrations from the speakers in an amplifier. The sound “feeds back” in an
uncontrollable loop. Hendrix was adept at controlling it and shaping it.
5. The Music Festivals. Monterey, Woodstock, and Altamont. There are several levels on
which to gauge the success of the festivals, but it is widely agreed that Altamont was a
failure. The Rolling Stones hired Hells Angels to provide crowd control. That proved to
be a disastrous choice. One audience member was murdered and one member of the
Jefferson Airplane was knocked unconscious by a one of the ‘security’ team.
Monterey was successful. Otis Redding, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, and the
Who were introduced to America. Janis Joplin’s rendition of “Ball and Chain”
established her blues status in one stroke.
Jimi Hendrix provided a defining moment at Woodstock with a feedback-laden
national anthem. From a financial standpoint, the Woodstock festival was not an
immediate success. It was, however, considered a successful cultural experiment in that
so many counter-culture individuals lived together for three days in relative harmony
under very difficult conditions.
6. Studio craft. The Beatles threw down an industry challenge with the innovative Sgt.
Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. It was the first album with the lyrics printed on the
sleeve. It was one of the first albums to be conceived as a cohesive whole. It was music
not to be danced to, but listened to. There was precious little of what could be considered
rock and roll music on the album. This album provided the impetus for art rock.
“Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” has marvelous lyrics, providing surreal
imagery—some say L.S.D.-inspired—and the suggestion to “picture yourself…” in
various scenarios. The listener is invited to read along and immerse himself in the album
experience. (As of this writing, Beatles songs are not available on iTunes).
The members of the Beatles assumed alter egos on this album.
Creative Exercise: Ask the students what sort of alter ego they might develop to provide
freedom of expression.
7. The Doors managed to sound sinister without the trappings of heavy metal. The band
did not even use a bass player on live performances. Their sound is not over whelming, it
is somewhat subdued, sometimes sounding like a jazz trio in a lounge. The level of
musicianship is very high and this little trio is very effective. SEE: Suggested Listening.
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Chapter 7 – Suggested Listening
Artist
Song/iTunes Preview
Representative Style
Grateful Dead
“Dark Star”
Their first record
“A Touch of Grey”
Their only hit record
Jefferson Airplane
“Somebody to Love”
Outstanding vocal
performances by Grace
Slick; superb musicianship
from every band member;
hippie anti-establishment
themes
“White Rabbit”
Janis Joplin
“Ball and Chain”
A hit at the Monterey Music
and Pop Festival
“Me and Bobby McGee”
Her only #1 hit, which came
post mortem
Jimi Hendrix
“Hey Joe”
His 1st hit and the song that
gained him notice
Jimi Hendrix
“Purple Haze”
The stunning hit from his
first album; using feedback
as a compositional element;
‘blues on acid’
“All Along the
Watchtower”
A wonderful Dylan cover
The Doors
“Light My Fire”
An enormous success, and
one of the first lengthy
songs played on pop radio
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“Love Me Two Times”
Simultaneously sinister and
‘poppy’
Frank Zappa
“Don’t Eat the Yellow
Snow”
These tracks exemplify
Zappa’s eclectic, surreal,
‘Dadaistic’ combinations of
styles from simple doo-wop
to intricate jazz; loaded with
piercing sarcastic social
commentary
“Dancin’ Fool”
“Valley Girl”
Creedence Clearwater
Revival
“Proud Mary”
An enormous hit
“Born on the Bayou”
The “swamp rock” style
created by guitarist and
singer, John Fogerty
Pink Floyd
“Arnold Lane”
Psychedelic silliness from
the Syd Barrett era; their 1st
single
“Money”
Post-Barrett, sophisticated,
taped samples; slower
tempo; Higher production
values
“Another Brick in the Wall”
1st single released in the
U.S.; #1 in the in 1980
Moody Blues
“Go Now”
A jazzy blues cover; their
1st record on the charts
“Tuesday Afternoon”
Hit their stylistic stride;
philosophical meanderings
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“I’m Just a Singer in a Rock
and Roll Band”
Sent a message to fans who
looked to the group for
answers to life’s questions
Beatles
N/A on iTunes