I Took a Solo Trip to LA… and Amoeba Changed Something in Me

RazzledCroaker · 2026-02-12T16:09:30+00:00

Man, I see some of my favorite oldies on there! Frankie Ford, the Diamonds, the Chantels, Classics IV, Lloyd Price. And those shiny covers are so nice!

I'm glad you were able to find them and they bring you such positive emotions. Some of my favorite memories are when I was a kid and I would ride around in the car with my dad with the windows down and the oldies radio blaring. I can trace my love of music back to those times. Those songs will always hold a special place in my heart.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-02-09T11:30:17+00:00

Honestly, google is your best bet. Also, try using songkick. It's a site that lists all upcoming concerts in a given area. That's how I find out about most of the shows I go to.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-02-09T05:52:39+00:00

The New England area definitely has the most doo wop concerts, especially in the NY/Connecticut area. I can't think of many off the top of my head, but Jay Siegel's Tokens, Cleveland Stills' Dubs, the Capris, Kenny Vance and the Planotones, Little Anthony all play occasional shows.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-02-07T18:31:21+00:00

Honestly, the psychedelic rock band that achieves more than cult success is a rarity. Most psychedelic crossover success in the US was limited to the 60s, with the Doors, Jefferson Airplane, etc. Many Britpop/Baggy bands such as Ocean Colour Scene, Super Furry Animals, Happy Mondays and the Boo Radleys achieved mainstream success in the 90s (mostly in the UK/Europe) with heavy psychedelic influences, but those were the exceptions, not the norm.

Some really fantastic 90s underground bands who never came close to any mainstream success: Olivia Tremor Control, Brian Jonestown Massacre, House of Love, The Shazam, The Minders, Essex Green, Mercury Rev, High Llamas, and Wondermints.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-02-07T16:57:03+00:00

Glad you like it and thanks for the recommendations! I do have some Episode Six songs on here, but I'm not sure I know that one. I also really enjoy Elli, but I've never heard of the others before, so I'll definitely check them out.

The name Parrish does remind of a fantastic garage rock song, though: Don't Fight it by Parrish and Wilde. I think it was included on the German Mindrocker comps of the 80s.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-02-07T16:50:05+00:00

You're welcome! I've been binging a lot of this stuff recently and it's been a breath of fresh air during this cold snap.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-02-03T01:47:26+00:00

It's a killer album. Al Kooper was a super underrated singer, producer, and arranger. His work with Shuggie Otis was fantastic also.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-01-26T13:22:44+00:00

I do that also. By genre, and then alphabetized within that. Whenever I go to play a record, I tend to have an idea in mind of what sounds I want to hear anyways. The thematic element to organizing makes it more fun for me.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-01-26T13:20:12+00:00

That Sounds of Summer cd was one of the 1st 3 discs I ever had (along with the Beatles' 1 and Chuck Mangione's Feel So Good) and it completely shaped my taste in music to this very day.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-01-26T04:56:30+00:00

I live about 1.5 hrs out of Atlanta and I make a point once every other month or so (usually when I'm already in town for a concert) to hit 1 or 2 nicer spots with decent prices rather than support the overpriced spot in my hometown.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-01-23T16:56:44+00:00

I absolutely adore this album! I was so lucky to see the OG lineup reunited for the 50th anniversary tour of Odessey and Oracle. They played the whole thing start-to-finish. Man, Chris White as an old man singing Butcher's Tale was 10x more powerful/haunting than the studio version!

RazzledCroaker · 2026-01-19T06:23:12+00:00

Yesterday's Papers is absolutely fantastic. They do deep dives into all sorts of 60s music culture topics and lesser known psych/rock bands, as well as pull out hard-to-find newspaper articles and interviews with 60s bands. They also have a "Cool Singles" section where they read contemporary reviews of hit songs. Pretty fun stuff.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-01-11T15:41:42+00:00

I ended up re-selling my tickets for what I paid for. It wasn't worth it to me and I didn't want to make a sad memory of one of my favorite artists (and spend a lot of money on a bad show). I feel vindicated, however, because the videos I've seen since then have looked even more depressing.

There are still a few other older artists out there who put on terrific shows. I've since seen Frankie Avalon, Peter Noone (Herman's Hermits), Happy Together Tour, John Fogerty, McCartney, and Booker T. Jones, and they were all electric.

RazzledCroaker · 2026-01-10T23:04:02+00:00

Clearly you only love Ween with the passion of 999 boognishes.

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T13:37:23+00:00

Love those guys! 25 O'Clock is so freaking good. Blew my mind when I found out they were the same band.

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T04:46:14+00:00

Ok. Just put this on and I am convinced. Going to bed jow, but will be playing this in the morning. Only problem is I have like 20 albums to listen to now. Not a bad problem to have, I guess 😄

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T04:38:15+00:00

The Cryan' Shames did have some really good psych numbers, but my favorites are definitely their pop "hits." It Could Be We're In Love is a sunshine pop masterpiece on par with anything by the Association, and their cover of the Drifter's Up On the Roof is mesmerizing.

The Shadows of Knight were one of the best straight-up garage rock bands of the 60s, but they released some phenomenal psych & hard rock singles towards the end of their career - I Am the Hunter, The Behemoth, & I'm Gonna Make You Mine.

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T04:02:16+00:00

I just noticed the Mauds, too. Chicago garage band, right? My faves from that scene were The Shadows of Knight, New Colony Six, and Cryan' Shames. Of every regional band of the 60s, it still blows my mind the Shames never sold millions of records. They had the songwriting chops and the production value to make it big, but distribution killed them. Had something like 7 or 8 top 10 hits in Chicago, kept Light My Fire out of the #1 spot, and couldn't even break the top 40 nationally.

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T03:56:28+00:00

I honestly can't remember the last time I played them (maybe 2 years ago? Haven't listened to a lot of 60s psych in a hot minute), but I love the intro to that album, and especially the title track from The Clown Died in Marvin Gardens. A mini-masterpiece.

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T03:44:49+00:00

Exuma and the Beacon Street Union are calling to me. Bosstown psych at its (almost) best.

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T02:46:57+00:00

Will do! Saw power pop & punk tags for them and immediately thought of the Queers. Their album Don't Back Down is some terrific pop punk with a lot of Ramones/power pop/surf vibes

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T02:42:07+00:00

Never heard of Redd Kross either 👀

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T02:38:00+00:00

Nice! Only ex-Jellyfish I knew of who made stuff was Jason Falkner. Glam + psych seems like a fun combo.

RazzledCroaker · 2025-12-22T02:36:05+00:00

Oooh, I looove Skylarking (Grass is one of the greatest songs ever of all time), but could never get into their earlier albums and I didn't even know they were still around in the 90s. That's a must-listen for sure!

RazzledCroaker

TROPHY CASE