PsychepediA

From: Los Angeles, CA, USA

Not much is known about this obscure L.A. area outfit that released one single ('Visions' b/w 'Migada Bus') on the Media label in the summer of 1967as the Looking Glasses. It should be noted that an alternate version of the outstanding A-side with different lyrics titled 'Kathy's Dream' was also issued on the same label and catalog number under the shorter "Looking Glass" moniker a few months earlier. The latter, more polished version was also subsequently reissued by the group on the Independence label in the fall of '67, but under the band name the Clouds.

Members of the group included Marty Gish (vocals, keyboards, tambourine), Lou Naktin aka Lou Maxfield (lead guitar), Jerry Berke (rhythm guitar), Gene Dorns (bass) and Mike Astor (drums). In 1968, the band changed their name again to the Odyssey and released another, less impressive single on the White Whale label. About a year later, the group changed monikers again and backed up Tom Muncrief as the Sonoma on a psyched-up, strung-out version of Ervin Drake's 'It Was A Very good Year'. I final name change occurred in the summer of 1970 when the band released another single ('Two Of Us' b/w 'Chesterfield Blues') on the White Whale label, this time as Shake. The promo side of this 45 is a decent Beatles cover, but it's the outstanding pop-psych flip written by Berke that really stands out as what should have been an easy Top 40 hit if the record company would have promoted it better.

If you have any further information on this group, please e-mail to paulmaze@techwebsound.com.

Artist information sources include: The book, 'Fuzz, Acid, and Flowers Revisited' by Vernon Joynson.