Groovy Sixties Quotes III - The Revenge Quiz

Answer: "I Hate You" - The Monks

Yup, it's Monk time. Five GI's that were stationed in Germany decided to stay after they were discharged. First they called themselves the Torquays but when success eluded them, they decided a radical change was in order. So they put on some frocks, shaved their scalps and called themselves The Monks.

But more importantly, they also changed their music: from a simple beat combo they turned into a howling, screaming and feedbacking force to be reckoned with. And, as you can probably guess, the world wasn't ready.

In '66 they released their one album "Black Monk Time"; but only in Germany cos in the US people were shocked by the lyrical content. In 1967 they split up. But in 2000 they reformed, and they're still gigging to this very day. Even though their drummer, Roger Johnston, died on November 8, 2004. Beware the Monks!

Answer: "Pushin' too Hard" - the Seeds

It has been said that The Seeds coined the term 'flower power'. Whether this is true, is hard to prove. One thing is for sure, Blues legend Muddy Waters once called them "America's own Rolling Stones".

Answer: "You're Gonna Miss Me" - the 13th Floor Elevators

The strange noise you hear in most of the Elevators' songs is an amplified ceramic jug, blown by Tommy Hall. In 1966 they scored their only hit with "You're Gonna Miss Me". In 1969 singer Roky Erickson was arrested for the possession of one joint. He pleaded insanity to escape a prison sentence. And there his story goes a bit "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest".

In the asylum he was subjected to electro-shock therapy and thorazine. Afterwards he was never quite the same again. These days he lives behind a porn shop in Austin, Texas, where he keeps 30 tv sets going at once to drown out the voices in his head.

But he still makes music occasionally.

Answer: "Mr. Pharmacist" - the Other Half

The Other Half was a little known San Franciscan psychedelic band. They released one album, "The Other Half", in 1968. Their guitar player, Randy Holden, went on to play with Blue Cheer, for their third album. In 1986 Mancunian weirdo's The Fall covered "Mr. Pharmacist" on their acclaimed "Bend Sinister" album.

Answer: "Spazz" - Elastik Band

The Elastik Band from San Francisco released only two singles during their existence. This 1967 single was quite politically unsound, even by the standards of the time when it was released. It berates a spastic person and tells him to try and act normal. And calls him a 'spazz'. And this was released on the big record label Atco. I mean, try and do something like that nowadays ... By which I don't imply it isn't a great single.

It's pretty cool musically and the lyrics are - bad taste not withstanding - pretty funny.

Answer: "Sure 'Nuff 'N' Yes I Do" - Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band

Don Van Vliet - or Captain Beefheart as he was known - gave up music after 1982's album "Ice Cream For Crow". Always a keen painter, Van Vliet wanted to concentrate on his 'real art'. He thought that the Art world wouldn't take him seriously as a painter if he continued making weird music.

It worked cos he got a lot of acclaim for his art. But in the 1990's he disappeared from view, when he was diagnosed as suffering from multiple sclerosis.

Answer: "Kill For Peace" - The Fugs

The Fugs operated out of the New York East Village book store Peace Eye, which was owned by core member Ed Sanders. Other members in this ever-shifting co-op included poet Tuli Kupferberg, Steve Weber and Peter Stampfel of the Holy Modal Rounders, and even Beat-poet Allen Ginsberg did a bit of collaboration every now and again.

Their lyrics were totally anti-establishment and very sexually liberated, especially for 1965. Sanders and Kupferberg kept at it, resurrecting the Fugs time and again. Their last album was released in July 2003. And when the Woodstock festival was revived in 1994, the Fugs organised 'The Real Woodstock Festival', cos they thought the organisers were selling out the legacy of the original festival and compromised its rebellious spirit.

They even got 'Country' Joe McDonald, who played at the original Woodstock festival, to perform.

Answer: "I'm the Urban Spaceman" - the Bonzo Dog Band

The Bonzo Dog Band - formerly Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band - were pretty succesful in the UK. In the rest of the world they were mostly known for their appearance in the Beatles movie "Magical Mystery Tour". The Bonzo's made a fusion of psychedelia, traditional British Music Hall and surreal humour. One might even say they were a big influence on the Monty Python team. Main Bonzo songwriter Neil Innes often collaborated with the Pythons.

He appeared in their movies "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" (1974) and "Live at the Hollywood Bowl" (1982).

In the latter he performs "I'm the Urban spaceman" and in the other one he's the minstrel serenading 'brave' Sir Robin. Innes also collaborated with Python Eric Idle on the elaborate Beatles pastiche The Rutles.

Answer: "Never Marry a Railroad Man" - Shocking Blue

The Dutch band Shocking Blue had an enormous hit with "Venus", which was covered by Bananarama, Tom Jones, Southern Culture On The Skids and The Chipmunks. Nirvana also covered a song by Shocking Blue: "Love Buzz, their very first single, which was released on Sub Pop records in 1988.

Answer: "Requiem Pour Un Con" - Serge Gainsbourg

Serge Gainsbourg was one of the most prolific French songwriters of the 60s. His mix of tongue-in-cheek lyrics, suave jazzy cool and really great tunes made him a superstar in Europe. His fame spread out more broadly when he released the single "Je t'Aime ... Moi Non Plus", a duet with Jane Birkin, in 1969.

The record was banned on most radio stations - even the Pope felt obliged to condemn it - which of course meant the song was a huge hit. Why all the commotion? Well, Gainsbourg and Birkin panted and moaned a lot while she declared her love for him and he retorts he loves her neither. "Je t'Aime ... Moi Non Plus" translates as "I Love You ... Nor do I". One of the lines of the funny song translates as "I come and I go between your kidneys ..." - it's more strange than dirty - but because no-one seemed to understand French in those days, the record became enormously infamous.

These days though, it's lost most of its bad reputation and it even gets played at wedding parties.