Psychedelic Rock

Jake Perlstrom

The sixties was a decade of change. Major events such as the war in Vietnam and the JFK assassination were very large contributors to the countrywide societal shift in the U.S. Many people began to desire a new kind of lifestyle. The crew cut, shirt and tie, poster-boy way of living no longer appealed to a large number of people. All of these circumstances played major roles in developing one of the biggest movements in history: the hippie movement. Along with people changing their style, the music of the generation was exploding with new ideas and experimentation. The combination of hallucinogenic drugs, new technology and the yearning for change melded together and gave birth to one of the greatest styles of music in history: psychedelic rock. There are a multitude of characteristics that give psychedelic rock a unique and unprecedented sound; one of these is instrumentation. With technology reaching new heights, opportunities for experimentation with new sounds became more open. In the film, Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii, Roger Waters (bassist and vocalist of Pink Floyd) talks about how great it is to have all the electronic goodies at their disposal. Bands like Pink Floyd and The Grateful Dead took sound effects to new levels with the use of sampling, looping, panning, phasing and lots of reverb. An example of the use of this technology would be Set Controls for the Heart of the Sun by Pink Floyd from the album A Saucerful of Secrets. Along with the increase of technological additives, the characteristics of specific instruments started to change. Guitarists started to use

cool new effects, such as Jimi Hendrixs use of the wah-wah pedal, which gave his music and guitar playing a very distinct sound. The strong presence of keyboard playing, especially the organ, is an important element of the psychedelic sound. Light My Fire from The Doors debut self-titled album, is a fantastic example of keyboard use. There were also some major Eastern influences on the psychedelic instrumentation. Instruments such as the sitar and the tabla were used in lots of recordings, use of such instruments can be found in Within You Without You by The Beatles from their album Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. Music has always been a reflection of society. In this case, psychedelic rock is a response to the drug culture created by the hippie movement. LSD and marijuana were largely popular amongst the psychedelic musicians, along with a plethora of other drugs. While working on a TV documentary about the making of Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band, producer George Martin asked Paul McCartney, Do you know what caused Sgt. Pepper? McCartney replied, In one word, drugs. Pot. Martin protested, No, no. You werent on it all the time. Yes, we were. Sgt. Pepper was a drug album. (I Want to Take You Higher: The Psychedelic Era 1965-1969) Many artists of the time were open in their use of drugs, not only in interviews, but also in lyrics. Purple Haze by Jimi Hendrix is a direct reference to doing acid, and White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane makes reference to Lewis Carrolls Alices Adventures in Wonderland. The pills and unknown liquids that made you larger or smaller in the story have often been associated with the hallucinogenic effects of LSD and psilocybin mushrooms.

Since drugs were so prominent in the psychedelic culture, the musical response had to adhere to the need for mental stimulation not only through sound, but through visuals as well. To meet the visual need, the use light shows came in to play. Pink Floyd was one of the first bands to harness the power of multi-sense stimulation, thanks to their early association with light artist Mike Leonard. A continuously shifting light show was projected on to the stage and pulsated to the music. This made it hard to see their faces, which was an element to the Floyds act that stayed with them through the years. (Take You Higher) After Pink Floyds introduction of visual art culminating with the music, the ideas for light shows exploded. Nowadays a concert doesnt feel complete without the use of lights and visuals. This is another example of how much the psychedelic era has placed such a large influence on the modern day world. Without all the events that led up to, and were a part of, the psychedelic era, the music of today would not be the same. The melodic, harmonic and technological experimentation will always go down as one of the most influential music genres in history. The downfall of psychedelic rock was mostly because of the deaths of famous musicians, such as Syd Barrett, Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix. Although they are no longer with us, their music will forever live on.

Bibliography
S. Borthwick and R. Moy, Popular Music Genres: an Introduction (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2004), ISBN 0-7486-1745-0, pp. 52-4.

R. Rubin and J. P. Melnick, Immigration and American Popular Culture: an Introduction (New York, NY: New York University Press, 2007), ISBN 0-81477552-7, pp. 162-4.

J. Henke, (1997). I Want To Take You Higher: The Psychedelic Era: 1965-1969. Hong Kong: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Adrian Maben (2003). Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii: Director's Cut (DVD). Universal Music & Video Distribution.

Discography
Pink Floyd. (1968). Saucerful of Secrets. Columbia (EMI), Tower, Capitol. The Doors. (1967). The Doors. Elektra EKS-74007. The Beatles. (1967). Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. Parlophone (UK), Capitol (US) Jimi Hendrix. (1967). Are You Experienced? Reprise (RS 6261) Jefferson Airplane. (1967). Surrealistic Pillow. Gold