Planetary Pebbles is an extensive series of compilation albums that is a sub-series to the main Pebbles series, and was circulated through AIP Records. The complete series compiled over 80 songs of extremely rare and obscure psychedelic and garage rock musical artists from the 1960s that were previously nearly impossible to collect, even in the music artists' individual home countries. Planetary Pebbles is the third to branch out from the original series, with Best of: The Pebbles Series and Essential Pebbles series preceding it. [1]
Pebbles is an extensive series of compilation albums in both LP and CD formats that have been issued on several record labels, though mostly by AIP. Together with the companion Highs in the Mid-Sixties series, the Pebbles series made available over 800 obscure, mostly American "Original Punk Rock" songs recorded in the mid-1960s — primarily known today as the garage rock and psychedelic rock genres — that were previously known only to a handful of collectors. In 2007, the release of the Pebbles, Volume 11: Northern California CD marked the final album in the Pebbles series. The following year, Bomp! marked the 30th anniversary of the original Pebbles album with a spartan, limited-edition, clear-vinyl reissue complete with the original pink cover insert.
AIP Records is a record label that was started by Greg Shaw's Bomp! Records in 1983 to continue the Pebbles series. AIP stands for "Archive International Productions". The first 10 volumes in the Pebbles series had been released by BFD Records of Kookaburra, Australia in 1979–1980 and have been kept in print by AIP for many years. Including those in the companion Highs in the Mid-Sixties series – which concentrated on American regional music scenes – there are over 50 LPs covering some 800 obscure, mostly American "Original Punk Rock" songs recorded in the mid-1960s – primarily known today as the garage rock and psychedelic rock genres – that were previously known only to a handful of collectors.
Psychedelic rock is a diverse style of rock music inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelic culture, which is centred around perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music is intended to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs, most notably LSD. Many psychedelic groups differ in style, and the label is often applied spuriously.
Among the three compilation albums to be released between 1997 and 1999 as a part of the series, there was an arrangement to specific regions. The first issue, Surfbeat Behind the Iron Curtain, Volume 1 , was distributed in 1997 and featured artists east of the Iron Curtain, arguably the rarest material in any Pebbles series. It is followed by Exito A Go Go, a compilation dedicated to Latin rock. The series concludes with a return to eastern Iron Curtain bands, but with a more dedicated approach to compiling only those musical artists. [2] [3]
Surfbeat Behind the Iron Curtain, Volume 1 is a compilation album featuring underground garage and surf rock musical artists east of the Iron Curtain that were recorded between 1963 and 1966. It is the first installment of the Planetary Pebbles series, which was a sub-series to the Pebbles series, and was released on AIP Records, on August 12, 1997.
The Iron Curtain was the name for the non physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. The term symbolizes the efforts by the Soviet Union to block itself and its satellite states from open contact with the West and its allied states. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were the countries that were connected to or influenced by the Soviet Union, while on the west side were the countries that were allied to the United States or nominally neutral. Separate international economic and military alliances were developed on each side of the Iron Curtain.
Latin rock is a term to describe a music subgenre consisting in melting traditional sounds and elements of Latin American and Caribbean folk with rock music. However, it is widely used in the English-language media to refer any kind of rock music featuring Spanish or Portuguese vocals. This fact lead into a controversy about the scope of the terminology.
