Lyrics acapulco gold rainy daze6/27/2023 "We used to make up different stories all the time just for fun!" "It's one of those things I've never asked Mark," says Bunnell. The oft-repeated explanation of how they became the Strawberry Alarm Clock begins with Weitz turning to the Billboard Hot 100, closing his eyes and putting his finger down on the Beatles' "Strawberry Fields Forever." Which may or may not be true. But with the signing came the realization that other groups were working under variations of Thee Sixpence, so finding a new name became a priority. On the strength of the song's local success, the band was quickly signed to Uni Records, a then-new subsidiary of MCA. "He played 'Incense and Peppermints' like it was the biggest hit in the country!" enthuses Bunnell of the Santa Barbara DJ. And thanks in large part to KIST music director Johnny Fairchild who flipped the single over, they soon found themselves with a regional #1 record. In April 1967, "The Birdman of Alkatrash" b/w "Incense and Peppermints" by Thee Sixpence was issued locally on All-American (there are rumors of an early pressing where Peppermints is misspelled). This was the moment that Carter mentioned an idea he had for a song title: "Incense and Peppermints." In the meantime, their producer, Frank Slay, contacted John Carter (co-writer of the minor hit "That Acapulco Gold" for psych group the Rainy Daze) to ask if he was working on anything new. Without giving it much thought, they also laid down a bouncy untitled instrumental written by Weitz and King for the B-side. This time, t he plan was to record "The Birdman of Alkatrash" - a garage-punk nugget written and sung by their new keyboardist Mark Weitz - as the A-side of their next 45. Their manager, Bill Holmes, also owned All-American Records, the small-time label for which the band recorded.īy the time they went into Original Sound studios in early 1967, Thee Sixpence had already issued several singles, including covers of "Fortune Teller" and "Hey Joe," without garnering much attention. The members of the group initially included vocalist Michael Luciano, guitarist Ed King, vocalist/guitarist Lee Freeman, guitarist Steve Rabe, bassist Gary Lovetro, and drummer Gene Gunnels. In the mid-sixties, the suburban Southern California music scene revolved around teenagers, and Thee Sixpence - a talented British Invasion/garage/surf cover band - ruled the teen clubs and pizza joints from Glendale to Santa Barbara.
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