Kaleidoscope are an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

psychedelic rock band from London that originally were active between 1967 and 1970. It is not to be confused with the American psychedelic folk band of the same name. The band's songs combined the elements of

psychedelia Psychedelia refers to the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic music and style of dress during that era. This was primarily generated by people who used psychedelic ...

with whimsical lyrics. The band were also known at various times as The Sidekicks, The Key, I Luv Wight and Fairfield Parlour.

History

Having performed since 1963 under the name The Sidekicks, they became The Key in November 1965, before settling upon the name Kaleidoscope when they signed a deal with Fontana Records in January 1967 with the help of the music publisher Dick Leahy. The group consisted of Eddy Pumer on

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

, Steve Clark on bass and flute, and Danny Bridgman on drums and the

vocalist Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

Peter Daltrey Peter James Daltrey (born 25 March 1946 in Bow, East London, England) is an English musician. He has been the lead singer and chief songwriter for the bands Kaleidoscope and Fairfield Parlour. He is also a solo artist. Biography After the d ...

, who also played various keyboard instruments. Most of the band's songs were compositions of Pumer's music and Daltrey's lyrics. While the group did not achieve major commercial success in its time, it retains a loyal fan base and its recordings are still held in high regard. The band's first single "Flight from Ashiya" (b/w "Holidaymaker") was released on 15 September 1967 by Fontana Records, a little earlier than the band's first album ''

Tangerine Dream Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music band founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The group has seen many personnel changes over the years, with Froese having been the only constant member until his death in January 2015. The best-known lineup ...

''. The single, with its lyric about an impending plane crash, got critical acclaim and quite an amount of radio airplay but failed to reach the charts. The song has subsequently appeared on many compilation albums, including '' Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964–1969'', the second box set of the

Nuggets Nuggets may refer to: Music * ''Nuggets'' (series), a series of compilation albums by Elektra Records, continued by Rhino * '' Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, 1965–1968'' * '' Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from ...

series, and ''Acid Drops, Spacedust & Flying Saucers: Psychedelic Confectionery''. Two months later, ''Tangerine Dream''—also produced by Dick Leahy—was released. The album included "Flight From Ashiya", "Please Excuse My Face" and "Dive into Yesterday," now considered some of the band's best songs. Meanwhile, the band performed live on several

BBC radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering ...

shows. A new single was released in 1968 called "Jenny Artichoke" (b/w "Just How Much You Are"), inspired by Donovan's, "

Jennifer Juniper "Jennifer Juniper" is a song and single by the Scottish singer-songwriter Donovan, released in 1968. It peaked at number 5 in the UK Singles Chart, and at number 26 in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. AllMusic journalist Matthew Greenwald noted that ...

". After the release the band traveled around Europe, supporting Country Joe and the Fish at the Amsterdam Concert Hall while in

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. '' Faintly Blowing'', also produced by Leahy, was released in 1969 by Fontana Records. This time the band's sound was heavier, but the tracks still included psychedelic elements with striking lyrics but it failed to reach the charts. After the failure of ''Faintly Blowing'', they released two more singles.

Fairfield Parlour

By the end of the decade, failing with their last single "Balloon", the band moved on with their new manager, DJ David Symonds, whom they met during the BBC sessions, under the name Fairfield Parlour, with the same lineup. Although now called a

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. In ...

band, their music did not change much, still including fairy-tale lyrics with psychedelic harmony. The band's first single as Fairfield Parlour, "Bordeaux Rosé", was released on 17 April 1970 on the

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition where a person has the sensation of movement or of surrounding objects moving when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. This may be associated with nausea, vomiting, sweating, or difficulties w ...

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed ...

. It got a considerable amount of radio airplay, but failed to chart. After releasing several singles, the album '' From Home to Home'' was released on 14 August 1970 with Symonds' production. While the band was getting ready to release the album, they again used another name for themselves, I Luv Wight, as they were asked to record the theme song for the

Isle of Wight Festival The Isle of Wight Festival is a British music festival which takes place annually in Newport on the Isle of Wight, England. It was originally a counterculture event held from 1968 to 1970. The 1970 event was by far the largest of these early ...

, "Let the World Wash in", which was released a week after the album ''From Home to Home''. They made the opening for the festival as Fairfield Parlour. The band's fourth album, '' White Faced Lady'', which they financed independently, was recorded in

Morgan Studios Morgan Studios (founded as Morgan Sound Studios) was an independent recording studio in Willesden in northwest London. Founded in 1967, the studio was the location for recordings by such notable artists as Jethro Tull, the Kinks, Paul McCartney, ...

in London. Attempts at finding a record company failed and the album was shelved until 1991 when it was released under the name Kaleidoscope on an independent label. The band's last appearance in the early days was at a concert in Bremen, Germany, in 1972. In 2003, the Kaleidoscope and Fairfield Parlour's BBC radio sessions, recorded between 1967 and 1971, were released as ''Please Listen to the Pictures'' on the independent label Circle.

Band members

*Eddy Pumer –

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featu ...

and organ (born Kenneth Edmund Pumer, 7 October 1947,

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...

, South East London, died 21 September 2020) *Steve Clark – bass and flute (born in 1946, died 1 May 1999

Chelsea Bridge Chelsea Bridge is a bridge over the River Thames in west London, connecting Chelsea on the north bank to Battersea on the south bank, and split between the City of Westminster, the London Borough of Wandsworth and the Royal Borough of Kens ...

, South West London) *Danny Bridgman – drums (born Daniel Bridgman in 1947) *

– lead vocals and organ (born Peter James Daltrey, 25 March 1946, Bow, East London)

Discography

Singles

as Kaleidoscope * "Flight from Ashiya" / "Holidaymaker" (Fontana TF 863, 15 September 1967) * "A Dream for Julie" / "Please Excuse My Face" (Fontana TF 895, 26 January 1968) * "Jenny Artichoke" / "Just How Much You Are" (Fontana TF 964, 6 September 1968) * "Flight from Ashiya" / "(Further Reflections) In the Room of Percussion" (Fontana 267 906 TF, 1968, Netherlands only) * "Do It Again for Jeffrey" / "Poem" (Fontana TF 1002, 14 March 1969) * "Balloon" / "If You So Wish" (Fontana TF 1048, 25 July 1969) * "Nursey, Nursey" (free with ''

Bucketfull of Brains ''Bucketfull of Brains'' (also known as ''BoB'') was a London-based music magazine, founded in 1979 and published until 2015 . An associated record label was launched in 2010. History ''Bucketfull of Brains'' was founded by Nigel Cross in 1979, a ...

'' magazine) (BOB.23, 1 May 1989) as Fairfield Parlour * "Bordeaux Rose" / "Chalk on the Wall" (Vertigo 6059 003, 17 April 1970) * "Emily" / "Sunnyside Circus" (Vertigo 6059 032, 1970, Australia only) * "In My Box" / "Glorious House Of Arthur" (Vertigo 6059 017, 1970, France promo-only) * "Just Another Day" / "Caraminda" / "I Am All the Animals" / "Song for You" (Vertigo 6059 008, 24 July 1970) * "Eyewitness" / "Epilog" (Odeon OR-2903, 1970, Japan-only) * "Bordeaux Rose" / "Baby Stay for Tonight" (Prism PRI 1, 19 March 1976) * "Bordeaux Rose" / "Overture to White Faced Lady" (Decca Y-11212, 1976, Australia only) as I Luv Wight * "Let the World Wash In" / "Medieval Masquerade" (Philips 6006 043, 21 August 1970)

Albums

as The Sidekicks * ''The Sidekicks Sessions 1964-1967'' (2003) as Kaleidoscope * ''

'' (Fontana (S)TL 5448, 24 November 1967) * '' Faintly Blowing'' (Fontana STL5491, 11 April 1969) * '' White Faced Lady'' (The Kaleidoscope Record Company KRC 001 CD, 14 February 1991) * ''Please Listen to the Pictures'' (Circle Records CPWL/CPWC 104, 1 September 2003) as Fairfield Parlour * '' From Home to Home'' (Vertigo,1970)

References

External links

Peter Daltrey's Facebook Page

Kaleidoscope Books

Band Soundcloud

Band Instagram

Peter Daltrey Photography

Norwegian Kaleidoscope website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaleidoscope (UK band) English psychedelic rock music groups Musical groups established in 1967 Vertigo Records artists