The Paisley Underground was a California based sixties revivalist scene from the early to mid Eighties. The leading bands were The Three O'Clock, The Rain Parade, The Long Ryders, The Dream Syndicate and The Bangs....who became The Bangles. Meanwhile in the South R.E.M. were getting off the ground, always busy denying their folk-rock roots.
I was only ever vaguely aware of all this via The Whistle Test and the NME but there were some great songs. 'Jet Fighter Man' is not one of them but it IS great bubblegum and Michael Guercio's voice is quite startling! The Rain Parade's 'You are my Friend' is much better and Steve, when I talked about 'regal psychedelia', this is what I meant! Fans of 'Listen to the Flower People' by the mighty 'Tap will hopefully know where I'm coming from...perhaps! The Rain Parade certainly made their intentions clear, their debut album labouring under the title 'Emergency Third Rail Power Trip'....man!
The Rain Parade- You are my Friend
Of the other bands The Long Ryders were much more muscular and rootsy, The Dream Syndicate were more of a Velvets type thing and The Bangles went pure pop. Not a major musical scene but influential enough for Prince to produce a psychedelic album, 'Around the World in a Day'.
Meanwhile in the UK we got C86 three years later with its attendant half baked revivalist tendencies but more of that some other time....
Buy The Three O' Clock
Buy The Rain Parade
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment