Magic Mushrooms
I'm All Ears/pain
Formed at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, and allegedly named by the legendary beat/poet Allen Ginsberg, the Magic Mushrooms' minimal yet essential output has been held in high regard ever since their debut 45 - the astounding proto-psych 'It's-A-Happening' issued on A & M in September '66 - was comped on the original grandaddy of all comps, Nuggets, way back in '72. Sadly, their tenure at A & M was to be short-lived once label boss Herb Alpert cottoned on to the slightly-delic connotations of the band's name, and they were dropped like a hot roach clip! 2 more 45s followed: September '67 saw the release of the killer soul-inflected 'Look In My Face' for Philips (backed by the excellent 'Never Let Go'), then in '68 they released the good-time-y 'Municipal Water Maintenance Man' on local label East Coast (who had earlier issue the MONSTER 'Polka Dotted Eyes' by The Snaps!). Flip 'Let The Rain Be Me' had a nice sunshine pop vibe, but the writing was on the wall by this point, and the group folded not long after... Meanwhile, between that 1st and 2nd 45, the group went into A & R Recording in New York on 2nd December '66 to cut the two tracks on offer here. Why they were never issued til now is a mystery - both sides are as strong as anything they'd put out...an acetate first surfaced about 10 years ago, but these versions are taken straight from the original master tape (thanks to Dave Brown at Distortions) for maximum sound quality! Comes with 2 double-sided postcards and snazzy jukebox title strip!