The Serpent Power were an American

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

and

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers suc ...

group active in the

1960s File:1960s montage.png, Clockwise from top left: U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War; the Beatles led the British Invasion of the U.S. music market; a half-a-million people participate in the 1969 Woodstock Festival; Neil Armstrong and Buzz ...

Career

Ιn 1966, San Francisco-based poet David Meltzer and his wife Tina, who was a singer, recruited local musicians Clark Coolidge (

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one mem ...

, also composer), Denny Ellis (

lead guitarist 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 featured ...

), John Payne (

keyboardist A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...

), Jean-Paul Pickens (

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

player) and David Stensen (

bassist A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a Bass (instrument), bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboar ...

), and started playing gigs at clubs and events in the Bay area, such as the North Beach's Coffee Gallery, Gino & Carlo's, and others.Serpent Power, The
, Bad Cat Records Ellis and Stensen were already experienced musicians, having previously played on tracks of the

Lovin' Spoonful Loving may refer to: * Love, a range of human emotions * Loving (surname) * '' Loving v. Virginia'', a 1967 landmark United States Supreme Court civil rights case Film and television * ''Loving'' (1970 film), an American film * ''Loving'' ( ...

. Ed Denton, the manager of Country Joe and the Fish, caught one of their shows and brought them to Joe's label,

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City. It was a primarily classical label at its peak in the 1950s and 1960s, but also has a catalogue of recordings by a n ...

, where they were signed as The Serpent Power, releasing their debut, eponymous album in 1967. The LP was considered by ''

Forced Exposure ''Forced Exposure'' was an independent music magazine founded by Jimmy Johnson and Katie The Kleening Lady (Goldman) (zine). It was published sporadically out of Boston from 1982 to 1993, edited by Jimmy Johnson and Byron Coley. It was printed on ...

'' magazine to be a "true representation of the San Francisco area sound in the psychedelic era,"The Serpent Power review
, ''

'' with "great male/female vocal harmonies, interesting but unusual lyrics and excellent guitar work." It was one of the first rock albums to introduce the influence of

Middle-Eastern music The various nations of the region include the Arabic-speaking countries of the Middle East, the Iranian traditions of Persia, the Jewish music of Israel and the diaspora, Armenian music, Kurdish music, Azeri Music, the varied traditions of Cyprio ...

, establishing the genre of

raga-rock Raga rock is Rock music, rock or pop music with a pronounced Music of India, Indian influence, either in its construction, its timbre, or its use of Indian musical instruments, such as the sitar and tabla. In addition, rock music from the 1960s ...

. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' magazine included ''The Serpent Power'' in its list of the 50 best albums of 1967. The Serpent Power, ''The Serpent Power''
, ''

'', 19 September 2017

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

suggested the group was "the Bay Area's version of the

Velvet Underground Weave details visible on a purple-colored velvet fabric Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabri ...

.Consumer Guide Reviews: ''The Serpent Power''
by

Their music was described as "minimalist folk-rock with noise," while "all but a few" songs were said to be "graced by excellent tunes." Shortly after the album was recorded and while the band was rehearsing in the studio for their next one, Ellis, Stensen, and Payne left and were replaced by Bob Cuff from the group The Mystery Trend on lead guitar along with Jim Moscoso on bass. But their first album failed to chart or generate decent sales and the band broke up soon after, in 1968.

Aftermath

After the break-up of the band, David and Tina Meltzer formed a duo act and in 1969 released the album ''Poet Song''. The following year they recorded a second LP, titled ''Green Morning'', but

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

did not release it until 1998. In 1984, Tina Meltzer composed and recorded on her own a children's album, titled ''Faces (New Songs for Kids)''. Tina died in 1995 from

ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...

.Legendary Beat Poet David Meltzer up for an award
, ''Berkeleyside'', 7 June 2012 In September 2011, David Meltzer married poet Julie Rogers. He died at his home in

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

after suffering a stroke, on December 31, 2016.David Meltzer, SF Beat generation poet and musician, dies
by John McMurtrie, ''

The San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The pa ...

'', 2 January 2017 In 2007, an album with previously unreleased tracks, which had been recorded while preparing the group's second LP, was issued, titled ''Ourobouros'', containing extended improvisations.

Discography

*''The Serpent Power'' :

; Catalog number: VSD-79252; 1967 :(All tracks composed by David Meltzer) :Side A: :1. "Don't You Listen To Her" - 2:20 :2. "Gently, Gently" - 2:36 :3. "Open House" - 3:31 :4. "Flying Away" - 4:26 :5. "Nobody Blues" - 3:49 :Side B: :1. "Up And Down" - 3:37 :2. "Sky Baby" - 2:31 :3. "Forget" - 3:34 :4. "Dope Again" - 0:47 :5. "Endless Tunnel"- 13:13 *''Ourobouros'' :

Locust Music Locust Music was a Chicago-based independent record label founded in 2001 in music, 2001. See also

* List of record labels Record labels established in 2001 American independent record labels Companies based in Chicago {{US-independent-r ...

; Catalog number: LOCUST 81; 2007 :Side A: :1. "Ourobouros Part 1" :2. "Ourobouros Part 2"

Career

Aftermath

Discography

See also

References

Further reading