Say I wanted to host a party with a '60s hippie theme. What kind of music should I play? Jefferson Airplane? Strawberry Alarm Clock?
Maybe some Grateful Dead?
You can thank me by “copping” a “lid” of “grass” for me.
Kenny Rogers. Really!
Do you want the happy, sunshine, flower power hippies, or the psychedelic, stoned hippies?
Sunshine and flower power –
Donovan
Mamas and Papas
Lovin’ Spoonful
The Association
Van Dyke Parks
Friend and Lover
Psychedlic and stoned –
Jimi Hendrix
Cream
Steppinwolf
Jefferson Airplane
The Doors
Or, if you want to split the difference, just get The Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and the soundtrack from the movie *Woodstock *and cover all your bases.
Shouldn’t the Hair soundtrack be in there somewhere?
Alice’s Restaurant.
Don’t forget Crosby, Stills and Nash.
Early Pink Floyd
Love
Country Joe and the Fish
A particular Norman Greenbaum song.
A particular Scott McKenzie song.
Steppenwolf - Born to Be Wild
And when the party’s over and you want everyone to leave just playthis.
Going up the Country by Canned Heat is the hippie ballad.
No. That’s Broadway’s version of “hippie.” “Incense & Peppermints” & “If You’re Going…” are also pretty fake.
kunnilou’s list is a good start. “Hippie” music includes folk/rocky stuff & psychedelia. Some groups, like the Airplane & the Dead*, evolved through both styles.
Kenny Rogers’ brother Leland ran Houston’s crazed International Artists label. I wouldn’t recommend investing in these oddities–but Rhapsody has Psychedelic Sounds of the Thirteenth Floor Elevators. Absolutely essential here in Texas…
Beatles? I’d pick Revolver & Rubber Soul before Sgt Pepper. Electrified Dylan would also work.
- I’ve got a soft spot for the Dead’s “country” albums–American Beauty & Workingman’s Dead. Someone else mentioned Buffalo Springfield–their varied output included some early country rock. So add in some Flying Burrito Brothers & the Byrds’ Sweetheart of the Rodeo if you like that kind of thing. (We did, back in the day.)
ETA: Rhapsody is a good source for browsing/cheap music. I just noticed they have The Holy Modal Rounders! You can thank me later…
Janis Joplin.
Fair enough, but is “fake hippie” necessarily bad for a party with a 60s hippie theme?
Well, if somebody is having a party on the theme of “look at those silly hippies, weren’t they stupid?”–sure. That party sounds like quite a drag, though. The joke would get old really fast.
If somebody just wants some interesting music from the era, there’s lots of good stuff out there. Loud or soft, disturbing or soothing–you name it…
Don’t forget the Moody Blues – “Legend of a Mind”, “Ride My See-Saw”, “Tuesday Afternoon”, “House of Four Doors”, etc.
Also It’s A Beautiful Day – pretty much anything from the LP of that name, but also “Essence of Now” from Marrying Maiden.
Definitely anything from Sunshine Superman by Donovan, or Surrealistic Pillow by Jefferson Airplane.
I should just lend you my iPod.