The Bees was an American
garage rock
Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...
and
psychedelic
Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...
band from
Covina,
California, that was active in the mid-1960s, and was best known for the 1966 paranoiac anthem "
Voices Green and Purple
"Voices Green and Purple" is a song by the Bees, an American garage rock and psychedelic band from Covina, California who were active in the mid-1960s. It has been mentioned as an innovative example of early protopunk and has become highly prize ...
". The song has been mentioned as an innovative example of early
protopunk
Proto-punk (or protopunk) is rock music played mostly by garage bands from the 1960s to mid-1970s that foreshadowed the punk rock movement. The phrase is a retrospective label; the musicians involved were generally not originally associated wi ...
.
The Bees, who recorded "Voices Green and Purple" are not to be confused with another band of the same name who were also active in the Los Angeles area at the time, who recorded on the
Mira and Mirwood labels.
The group who recorded "Voices Green and Purple" released it as a
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
on the Liverpool label backed with "Trip to New Orleans" in October, 1966.
[- "Optical Sound: The Technicolor Tales Behind the Various Nuggets" (track-by-track liner notes). Rhino Records R2 75466] "Voices Green and Purple" has been cited by rock historian Mike Stax as an influential example of "acid punk".
The song begins at a medium tempo, but then speeds up into a fast-paced thrash in the refrains. As Stax describes: "...when the song comes unglued the for the panic-stricken choruses, these guys were in uncharted waters."
According to music critic
Richie Unterberger, "The psychedelic touch was added not just by the florid and deranged lyrics, but by the choruses, where the tune disappeared, the drums sped up, and the scrawling guitars made ascending shards of noise."
The single came wrapped in a paper jacket adorned with the kind of scrawled lettering and defaced imagery suggestive of later "D.I.Y." punk
fanzine
A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...
s.
Original copies of the single are extremely rare and are considered some of the most valuable collectibles from the garage era.
The song became a favorite of collectors after it was re-issued on Pebbles Vol. 3. It was also included on 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 ...
4-CD box set many years later.
In Mike Markesich's ''Teenbeat Mayhem,'' based on the balloting of a panel of noted writers and garage rock experts, the song is rated as a ten out of ten, and in the section listing the 1000 greatest garage rock recordings of all time, it is ranked at #13.
Discography
*"Voices Green and Purple" b/w "Trip to New Orleans" (Liverpool 45-LIV-62225, rel. October, 1966)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bees
Garage rock groups from California
Psychedelic rock music groups from California