The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators

Last updated

The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators
13th Floor Elevators-The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators (album cover).jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 17, 1966 (1966-10-17)
RecordedJanuary 3 October 11, 1966
StudioSumet Sound, Dallas
Genre
Length34:31
Label International Artists
Producer Lelan Rogers
The 13th Floor Elevators chronology
The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators
(1966)
Easter Everywhere
(1967)
Singles from The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators
  1. "You're Gonna Miss Me" / "Tried to Hide"
    Released: January 1966
  2. "Reverberation (Doubt)" / "Fire Engine"
    Released: 31 October 1966

The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators is the debut studio album by the 13th Floor Elevators. The album's sound, featuring elements of psychedelia, hard rock, garage rock, folk, and blues, is notable for its use of the electric jug, as featured on the band's only hit, "You're Gonna Miss Me", which reached number 55 on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Tried to Hide" as a B-side. Another single from the album, "Reverberation (Doubt)", reached number 129 on the Billboard's Bubbling Under chart.

Contents

Background

The October 1966 back cover of the album uses the words "The Psychedelic Sounds of: The 13th Floor Elevators", which is purported to be the first use of the word "psychedelic" in reference to the music within. [4] Two other bands also used the word in titles of LPs released in November 1966: The Blues Magoos' Psychedelic Lollipop , and the Deep's Psychedelic Moods .[ citation needed ]

In 2009, the original mono version was released as part of the "Sign of the 3-Eyed Men" box set. The set also featured a new, alternate stereo version which retained the band's original intended track listing, as well as false starts on some of the tracks (the International Artists label had altered the track listing without the band's consent when the album was first released). Both versions on the box set featured different bonus tracks, some that were previously unreleased.[ citation needed ]

Music and lyrics

The album contains elements of garage rock and R&B, and its overall mood is described as "skewed". The tracks are described as exhibiting a "dark, eerie quality." The vocals of Roky Erickson have been likened to "banshee wailing," and have been described as sounding like "yelp[ing] and [howling] like a man possessed." According to Stephen M. Deusner of Pitchfork, "Erickson's wild-man vocals create an atmosphere where unfettered mayhem reigns." [5] Tommy Hall's amplified jug sounds are described as "alien." Deusner assessed that Hall "provided the psychedelic sound that evokes the chemical weightlessness of a trip. It's the wiggedly-wiggedly of a dream sequence, the sound of your hands melting or of a dimensional door squeaking open [...] [translated] into an aural sensation." [6]

Mark Deming of AllMusic said: "while the sensuous twists of the melodies and the charming psychobabble of the lyrics make it sound like these folks were indulging in something stronger than Pearl Beer, at this point the Elevators sounded like a smarter-than-average folk-rock band with a truly uncommon level of intensity." [7] Music historian Jeff Gold said the album is "roaring, intense [and] at times frightening," adding that it "does come close to conjuring the rollercoaster run of emotions of the drug trip." He described the tracks "Fire Engine" and "Reverberation" as "ominous", and the track "Splash 1" as "almost delicate". [8] Pitchfork wrote: "Erickson's psychedelia was not passive aural wallpapers-- all pretty shapes and colors to listen to while tripping-- but an active force of social, musical, and psychological change." [5]

The album's lyrics have been described as "spaced out," and Stephen M. Deusner of Pitchfork said the album's lyrics were "awash in narcotic philosophy." [8] [5] The lyrics to the song "Splash 1 (Now I'm Home)" reflect a mystical connection between Erickson and a woman, inspired by a meeting with Janis Joplin. [9]

Release

The song "Splash 1 (Now I'm Home)" was released in 1966 as a single from The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators. It was a minor regional hit in Texas but became a bigger (albeit still relatively minor) regional hit a year later when covered by the Clique. It has also been covered by Bongwater and The Mighty Lemon Drops. [9]

Artwork

The album's interior sleeve notes espouse the supposed benefits of psychedelic drug use. The album's back cover reads: "The quest for pure sanity... forms the basis of this songs on this album." [6]

Critical reception and legacy

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [10]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [11]
The Great Rock Discography 7/10 [12]
Pitchfork 9.1/10 [13]
Spin Alternative Record Guide 8/10 [14]

The album was included in Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die . [3]

In 2005, Pitchfork gave the album a score of 9.1 out of 10 in a retrospective review. Staff writer Stephen M. Deusner wrote: "What makes these songs so kick-ass is that it's the sound of someone going right off the page of the rock script-- like so many B-movie auteurs of the '60s, he's doing whatever he wants with no one to tell him that's not how it's done. As a result, very few of the songs on I Have Always Been Here Before depend for their impact on the listener's knowledge of Erickson's mental health at the time. This is perhaps the singer's true achievement, which this compilation generously spotlights: even when he was suffering, his strange music sounds wholly idiosyncratic and spiritually curious, the sound of a man who won't let the world's ugliness diminish his enjoyment of life or hinder his search for something solid and secure." [15]

Ryan Bort of Paste wrote: "It’s hard to think of any one record that has influenced an entire genre as much as the 13th Floor Elevators’ seminal debut influenced psych rock. Since its release in 1966, countless bands have tried to imitate the album’s sound, and every psych-oriented group from The Jesus and Mary Chain to The Black Angels are in some way indebted to The Elevators and their visionary frontman Roky Erickson. Though they would continue to record and tour following the release of The Psychedelic Sounds..., nothing they did came remotely close to having the impact and ferocious psychedelic energy of their debut and its incendiary single and leadoff track, 'You’re Gonna Miss Me.'" [16]

Mark Deming of AllMusic gave the album four and a half stars out of five. He wrote: "The 13th Floor Elevators were trailblazers in the psychedelic rock scene, and in time they'd pay a heavy price for exploring the outer edges of musical and psychological possibility, but along the way they left behind a few fine albums, and The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators remains a potent delight." [17]

Track listing

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."You're Gonna Miss Me" Roky Erickson 2:24
2."Roller Coaster"Erickson, Tommy Hall5:00
3."Splash 1 (Now I'm Home)"Erickson, Clementine Hall3:50
4."Reverberation (Doubt)"Erickson, T. Hall, Stacy Sutherland2:46
5."Don't Fall Down"T. Hall, Erickson3:00
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Fire Engine"T. Hall, Sutherland, Erickson3:22
7."Thru the Rhythm"T. Hall, Sutherland3:05
8."You Don't Know" Powell St. John 2:38
9."Kingdom of Heaven"St. John3:05
10."Monkey Island"St. John2:38
11."Tried to Hide"T. Hall, Sutherland2:46
Total length:34:31
2005 Charly Records bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
12."Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" Bert Russell, Jerry Wexler, Solomon Burke 5:15
13."Before You Accuse Me" Ellas McDaniel 2:33
14."I'm Gonna Love You Too" Joe B. Mauldin, Niki Sullivan, Norman Petty 1:53
15."You Really Got Me" Ray Davies 6:17
16."Roll Over Beethoven" Chuck Berry 2:46
17."The Word" John Lennon, Paul McCartney 2:49
18."Gloria" Van Morrison 3:55
19."She Lives (In a Time of Her Own)"Erickson, T. Hall3:03
20."We Sell Soul"Erickson3:21
21."You're Gonna Miss Me"Erickson3:25
Original band track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."You Don't Know (How Young You Are)"St. John2:38
2."Through the Rhythm"T. Hall, Sutherland3:05
3."Monkey Island"St. John2:38
4."Roller Coaster"T. Hall, Erickson5:00
5."Fire Engine"T. Hall, Sutherland, Erickson3:22
6."Reverberation (Doubt)"T. Hall, Sutherland, Erickson2:46
7."Tried to Hide" (false start)T. Hall, Sutherland 
8."Tried to Hide"T. Hall, Sutherland2:43
9."You're Gonna Miss Me"Erickson2:24
10."I've Seen Your Face Before (Splash 1)"C. Hall, Erickson3:50
11."Don't Fall Down"T. Hall, Erickson3:00
12."The Kingdom of Heaven (Is Within You)"St. John3:05

This version was included in the "Sign of the 3-Eyed Men" box set on CD 4 with the following bonus tracks.

No.TitleLength
13."You Don't Know (How Young You Are)" (alternate backing track) 
14."Roller Coaster" (alternate backing track) 
15."Don't Fall Down" (alternate backing track) 
16."Don't Fall Down / band introduction" (Larry Kane show) 

Personnel

Production

See also

References

  1. "The 13th Floor Elevators – The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators (International Artists, 1966)". Spin . March 28, 2013. Retrieved July 24, 2016.
  2. Masley, Ed (September 19, 2008). "10 essential garage-rock albums". AZCentral. The Arizona Republic . Retrieved November 8, 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 Dimery, Robert; Lydon, Michael (March 23, 2010). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (Revised and Updated ed.). Universe. ISBN   978-0-7893-2074-2.
  4. Hicks, Michael (2000). Sixties Rock: Garage, Psychedelic, and Other Satisfactions. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press. p. 60. ISBN   978-0-252-06915-4.
  5. 1 2 3 Deusner, Stephen M. "13th Floor Elevators / Roky Erickson: The Psychedelic Sounds of... / I Have Always Been Here Before". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  6. 1 2 Dickson, Jamie (2005). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Universe Publishing. p. 96.
  7. The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Eleva... | AllMusic , retrieved March 30, 2025
  8. 1 2 Gold, Jeff (2012). 101 Essential Rock Records. Gingko Press Inc. p. 60.
  9. 1 2 Unterberger, Richie. "Splash 1 - The 13th Floor Elevators | Song Info". AllMusic . Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  10. Deming, Mark. "The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators - The 13th Floor Elevators : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  11. Larkin, Colin (2011). "13th Floor Elevators". Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press. ISBN   9780857125958 via Google Books.
  12. Strong, Martin C. (2004). "13 Floor Elevators". The Great Rock Discography (7th ed.). Canongate Books. p.  1539. ISBN   1-84195-615-5.
  13. Deusner, Stephen M. "Album Reviews: 13th Floor Elevators / Roky Erickson: The Psychedelic Sounds of... / I Have Always Been Here Before". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  14. Cohen, Jason (1995). "Roky Erickson and 13 Floor Elevators". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. pp.  133–134. ISBN   0-679-75574-8.
  15. Deusner, Stephen M. "13th Floor Elevators / Roky Erickson: The Psychedelic Sounds of... / I Have Always Been Here Before". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 17, 2025.
  16. "The 50 Best Garage Rock Albums of All Time". Paste Magazine. Retrieved June 11, 2025.
  17. The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Eleva... | AllMusic , retrieved August 17, 2025

Further reading