1967 – The Nice – Psychedelic or Prog +

The Nice, Keith Emerson’s first musical vehicle produced the weird pscych / prog album titled The thoughts of Emerlist Davjack, probably one of the worst titles invented.  The album was rated at #69 in the Best Ever Albums charts for 1967 and whilst it may bring fond memories to some, it sounds like a band looking for the lost chord or several of the lost chords, leading to a great prog future – call it ELP if you like.

Kaleidoscope – the UK band – released an album titled Tangerine Dream in 1967.  The album failed to make the UK Charts or any charts at the time.  Notwithstanding the album was rated at #59 on the Best Ever Albums charts for 1967 – a small mystery as there are many other far better psychedelic albums way down below in the charts.  Maybe the cover of the album, an imitation of the Beatles’ Rubber Soul brought it luck or even confusion with Kraut-rock allstars Tangerine Dream.

Rated at #56 The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band‘s second album Part One achieves a significant status.   The band was located in Los Angeles adding to the psychedelic influences in that city.   The group created music that possessed an eerie, and at times sinister, atmosphere, and contained material that was bluntly political, childlike, and bizarre [Courtesy of Wiki].  The following track Shifting Sands demonstrates that eerie floating feeling of the truly lost.

The Incredible String Band was a Scottish folk psychedelic group, but more so folk than psychedelic, with oriental leanings and tunings.  Their album, curiously titled, The 5000 Spirits or the layers of an Onion was rated at #40 in the Best Ever Album charts for 1967.  The album made it to #25 on the UK charts but failed to make an appearance in the Billboard Top 200.  The following track  – The Mad Hatter’s Song – from the album shows both Indian and psychedelic infleunces.