Psychedelic One-Hit Wonders Trivia Quiz

Answer: Blues Magoos

Blues Magoos formed in 1964 as The Trenchcoats. In 1966 they changed their name to Bloos Magoos and finally Blues Magoos to better identify with the psychedelic trend. After some deals with minor labels, Mercury Records signed the band in 1966. The band's first Mercury LP was "Psychedelic Lollipop".

It was one of the first records to actually have the word psychedelic on the sleeve. "The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators" and The Deep's "Psychedelic Moods" were the only other known bands in 1966 to use the word on the cover of an album. Blues Magoos was the house band at Chess Mate Coffeehouse, a venue that also featured bands like Southbound Freeway.

At the height of their chart popularity The Blues Magoos opened for The Who and Herman's Hermits. Discouraged by the inability to follow up with another top ten hit, the band went through membership changes until calling it quits in 1972.

The only member to stay with the group from inception to their demise was Emil "Peppy" Thielhelm (aka Peppy Castro) on vocals and guitar.

Answer: Ed King

The working title of "Incense and Peppermints" was "The Happy Whistler". Keyboard player Mark Weitz and guitarist Ed King were denied songwriting credit because they didn't write the melody or the lyrics. The song was built on an instrumental by Weitz with a bridge by King.

Although "Incense and Peppermints" is the song the band is associated with, they managed to chart four Top 100 songs. The group went through several personnel changes. One alumni of the group is Steve Bartek, who later joined Oingo Boingo and orchestrated film scores with Danny Elfman. Strawberry Alarm Clock made appearances in two films.

The first is in the 1968 Jack Nicholson movie "Psych-Out" and the second is the 1970 Russ Meyer film "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls". Ed King went on to join Lynyrd Skynyrd. Randy Seol was the original drummer and Greg Munford sang "Incense and Peppermints" in the studio but was never a member of the band. Various members reunited during the 1980s to perform oldies concert tours.

Answer: Australia

The Easybeats are from Australia. They formed in Sydney in late 1964. All five founding members were from families who had migrated to Australia from Europe after WWII. The band was signed to EMI's Parlophone label and began to receive national attention.

Their concerts were often marked by fan hysteria which was dubbed "Easyfever". Lead singer Stevie Wright's energy and antics such as dancing and performing back-flips were part of their appeal. Rhythm guitarist George Young and Stevie Wright composed most of their early material, then lead guitarist Harry Vanda teamed up with Wright and became the nucleus of the band's creative endeavors. "Friday On My Mind" was co-written by Vanda and Young.

In 1966 their manager convinced the United Artists label to sign The Easybeats in the US.

They then toured Europe and America with The Rolling Stones. Rumored drug abuse along with contractual and financial complications caused an early end to the band.

Answer: The Great Society

The line-up of the original Great Society co-founded by former model Grace Slick featured her husband Jerry on drums, his brother Darby Slick on guitar, David Minor on vocals and guitar, Bard DuPont on bass and Peter van Gelder on saxophone. In 1965 Grace and Jerry saw a show by The Jefferson Airplane and were motivated to start their own group.

Their first gig was at the Coffee Gallery in San Francisco's North Beach section in 1965. They eventually got picked to open for the Jefferson Airplane on some dates.

The only hit single The Great Society released was "Somebody to Love", written by Darby. The band was being courted by Columbia to sign a record deal when Grace decided to accept an offer to replace vocalist Signe Toly Anderson in The Jefferson Airplane.

She took "Somebody to Love" and her own composition "White Rabbit" with her. Without a strong lead singer the Great Society broke up 1966. Grace and Jerry also divorced. Fifty Foot Hose and Moby Grape were other early San Francisco Bay Area psychedelic bands and The Holy Modal Rounders were New York based.

Answer: Piece of My Heart

Janis Joplin was not in the original lineup of the band. The group formed in 1965 with the original members of the band being Sam Andrew and James Gurley on guitars, Peter Albin on bass and Chuck Jones on drums. Lead singer Janis Joplin was recruited by the band's manager, Chet Helms, in June of the following year.

Helms was also active in the promoting business which helped the band get exposure. Their first album was titled "Big Brother and the Holding Company" and it sold fairly well but produced no hits.

Their second album was titled "Cheap Thrills" and the single "Piece of My Heart" became Janis' first big hit. Unfortunately for the band she left and formed a new backing group, the Kozmic Blues Band. Albin and Getz became members of Country Joe and the Fish. Janis later created the Full Tilt Boogie Band and finally went solo.

She enjoyed success with the other songs listed either as a member of one of the other bands or as a solo artist.

Answer: The Electric Prunes

The group started in the San Fernando Valley. The founding members were Ken Williams on guitar, James Lowe handling lead vocals, Michael Weakley playing drums and Bassist Mark Tulin. They called themselves The Sanctions and later Jim and the Lords. David Hassinger, a resident engineer at RCA studios, suggested they needed a new name.

The band came up with name The Electric Prunes as a joke but somehow it stuck. Their membership changed many times including one lineup with Kenny Loggins. The Prunes' third album, "Mass in F Minor", was a psychedelicized rendition of the Mass produced by David Axelrod.

The song "Kyrie Eleison" from this LP was used in the Mardi Gras drug-trip scene in "Easy Rider". The band broke up during the recording of this project so Axelrod completed the album using Canadian band The Collectors. Nomad and the Nightmares covered "I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night" in the eighties. Human Beinz were a Youngstown, Ohio, group who had a top forty with a cover of the Isley Brothers' song "Nobody But Me".

Answer: The Chambers Brothers

The Chambers Brothers group was formed in 1954 in Los Angeles, California, by four brothers from Mississippi; George, Willie, Lester and Joe Chambers. They toured throughout southern California but did not achieve national recognition until their 1965 appearance at the Newport Folk Festival. Shortly afterwards they recorded their debut album "People Get Ready". Joe & Willie Chambers penned their first major hit in 1968, "Time Has Come Today".

They were unable to follow the success of the song and split in 1972.

The band reformed a short time later and continued to tour. Sly and the Family Stone had two number one hits and appeared at Woodstock. The Cowsills were not a Psychedelic band, but had hits during the era such as "The Rain, The Park & Other Things".

The Charlatans were a psychedelic rock band with a rebellious attitude and look that played a role in the development of the San Francisco music scene in the sixties.

Answer: Itchycoo Park

The group was founded in 1965 by members Marriott, Lane, Kenney Jones, and Jimmy Winston. They gradually progressed from playing small local venues to London clubs. Their first album on Decca, "Small Faces", was released in 1966. The band rose in popularity on the success of the LP, becoming regulars on British pop TV shows such as "Ready Steady Go!" and "Top of The Pops".

Their mid-1967 single on Immediate records, "Itchycoo Park", was the first of the band's two singles that charted in the US. It was also the first British record to use flanging, the technique of playing two identical master tapes simultaneously but altering the speed of one of them.

When asked about the inspiration for the song, Laine related that it was a place he used to go to in Ilford. "Itchycoo Park" was followed by "Tin Soldier", but when the song topped at 73 on the US Hot 100 chart their label stopped promoting them in America. "Have I the Right" was by the Joe Meek-produced band the Honeycombs. "Sorrow" was by The Merseys and "Easy Livin'" was recorded by Uriah Heep.

Answer: Status Quo

Status Quo began as a rock and roll band in 1962. Francis Rossi and Alan Lancaster were members of the same orchestra and formed a band they called The Scorpions. They changed their name to The Spectres and ultimately to Status Quo in 1967. In January 1968 they released the psychedelic "Pictures of Matchstick Men" which became their only major hit single in sixties in the US.

They still enjoy a large and loyal fan base in the UK. They've also developed a big following in Europe. Ozzy Osbourne covered "Pictures of Matchstick Men" for the soundtrack to the Howard Stern movie "Private Parts".

The Troggs are best known for "Wild Thing". The Silkie did a cover of the Beatles tune "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" and Vanity Fare had a hit with "Hitching a Ride".

Answer: Iron Butterfly

San Diego based Iron Butterfly has soldiered on despite numerous lineup changes through the years. They released their debut album, "Heavy", in 1968 after signing with ATCO Records. "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" was their second album. The 17:10 album version was cut to 2:53 for the single release.

The band was scheduled to appear at Woodstock but to the disappointment of the band their plane was delayed. When they were touring in the sixties a newly-formed Led Zeppelin opened for them. A year to the day later Iron Butterfly opened for Led Zeppelin. Canned Heat did a version of "Going Up the Country", Friend and Lover had success with "Reach Out of the Darkness" and The Sunshine Company's psychedelic contribution was "Happy".