The Psychedelic Rock Files
By Jerry Lucky

A book like this was long overdue: An all encompassing work that neatly and comprehensively covers all aspects of the phenomenal Psychedelic scene of the mid-sixties and all its tangential spin-off effects on both music and culture. 

Author Jerry Lucky’s (Progressive Rock and Progressive Rock Files, CG Publishing) erudite and exhaustive thesis on the history and evolution of the Psychedelic era kicks off the book and sets the tone for the quality and care taken to describe and study all facets relating to the environment and music that spawned one of popular music’s most exciting musical genres. This book is an invaluable resource with incredible attention to detail that goes beyond the mere where-and-when questions and delves deeper to answer the how-and-whys (How did the scene start? Why San Francisco?). Lucky also smartly juxtaposes the two main driving centers of the movement, San Francisco and London, and offers an interesting parallel perspective between psychedelia on the West Coast and in the UK.

The author goes so far as to trace back the origin and source for the coining of the actual word “psychedelic” as well as detailing the prime catalysts and determining factors and events that allowed communal ideals and drug, music and sexual experimentation to revolutionize music and create a scene that would reverberate in cities not only throughout North America but across the Atlantic as well. 

Everything you need to know about the historic venues, the tripped out light shows and the legendary poster art is exposed, discussed and put into perspective with relation to its impact on the scene. The main course of this Psyched-out feast is a day-by-day, almanac-style log of significant dates and events that are chronologically displayed and cover the years 1965 through 1971, including complete date lists from all performances at the Fillmores, the Avalon and selected dates at London’s famed Marquee Club. Rounding out the trip is a scholarly inquiry into the definition of Psychedelic music and an excellent A-Z listing of pertinent and genuine Psych era artists.

This is a serious but fun examination and is essential reading for those who were there and are looking back for the intimate details on how it came together and subsequently fell apart. For others not able to experience the scene firsthand, it paints a vivid picture and offers extensive information that qualifies it as the first book to read if looking to explore what was one of popular music’s defining scenes.