Released on the
Sidewalk
imprint of
Tower Records
, manufactured by
Capitol
, this is an excellent '60s album from a
Dick Clark
/American International motion picture,
Psych Out
. There is only one track from
Sky Saxon
's
Seeds
, and their
"Two Fingers Pointing on You"
sounds exactly like, you guessed it,
"Pushin' Too Hard."
The band made a career out of reinventing that one tune, and they do not disappoint here, lifted from their
Future
album on
GNP Crescendo
. Although
the Storybook
actually have a photo on the back cover, they appear to be a vehicle for
Ronald Stein
who is credited on this
Dean Stockwell
/
Susan Strasberg
film for "Original Music and Adaptation." The first tune on the disc is by
, written by
S.A.Clock
(
Strawberry Alarm Clock
). It sounds very much like
the Alarm Clock
"Barefoot in Baltimore."
"Rainy Day Mushroom People"
and
"The World's on Fire,"
a three-minute-and-thirty-one-second version, are
's other contributions to side one; these songs are also on their album
Incense & Peppermints
. A longer version of
"The World's on Fire"
ends side two of this soundtrack. In between is one song by a band called
Boenzee Cryque
. That tune lists five songwriters, but it is actually a whacked-out version of
Jimi Hendrix
"Purple Haze"
with the stop from
Vanilla Fudge
"You Keep Me Hanging On."
Very '60s and, actually, quite fun, despite the fact the
track is the weakest cut on this surprisingly good disc. Four more tracks by
lead off side two. Titles like
"Psych-Out Sanctorum,"
"Beads of Innocence,"
"The Love Children,"
"Psych-Out"
-- the third time the film title is used in the name of a song -- all sound like their titles suggest -- either clones of
the Strawberry Alarm Clock
or
the Clock
itself under an assumed name. The epic eight-minute-plus version of
by
kicks in to end it all. Despite the cheesey cover, this is a far more listenable record than, say,
For Children of All Ages
Peanut Butter Conspiracy
, and that was a band that took itself seriously. The genre calls for a bit of irreverence.
delivers that with studied enthusiasm. ~ Joe Viglione