TRICYCLE 1969 MYSTICAL SITAR TRIPPY ORIG. PSYCH LP HEAR

$

25

WHAT WE HAVE HERE IS…

TRICYCLE "Tricycle"

Original 1969 LP on the UNI label, STEREO ABCS-674

Cover:  VG++, very crisp gatefold marred only by tiny piece of tape on front and light ringwear on back

Vinyl:  SUPER CLEAN, plays VG++ to EXCELLENT

Tricycle’s self-titled 1969 album is actually excellent pop psych that always unfairly seems to get lumped in with bubblegum pop.  True, the Kasenetz-Katz team wrote many of the songs here, but the way Tricycle pull ‘em off is just way too trippy for the Beagles/Bugaloos set, that’s for sure.  Think of it as a close cousin to the Queen’s Nectarine Machine – still too hokey to be considered a legit mind-fryer, but it sure does make for a pretty good sugar high.  And like the Nectarine, Tricycle’s best songs are always the longest ones – where the band gets a chance to stretch out and pile on the studio effects.  With the longest musical intros since a late 80’s Cure album.  If you were a DJ trying to hit a post on one of these songs, let’s just say you’d have plenty of time for a traffic report, a weather update and a couple of bad Nixon jokes before the vocals come in.

People who label Tricycle’s album as bubblegum probably noticed they covered “Simon Says” – obviously, that’s all they did was notice it.  If they would’ve heard it, they would’ve quickly realized that Tricycle completely dismantle it, and turn it into a seismic acid funk head trip that sounds like some unholy cross between the Tea Company and A Saucerful of Secrets.  With nary a shred of Joey Levine, thank God.  It starts with 10 seconds of ominous noise, followed by a massive chunky acid funk riff and some clangin’ cowbell.  Gotta have cowbell.  They slow it down, sludge it up, and stretch it out, finding time to fit in a blistering acid guitar solo that pans back and forth like the final seconds of “Interstellar Overdrive.”  And don’t think these Trike kids weren’t up on their Floyd – the song ends with a flurry of those weird vocal noises that Roger Waters used to summon up when he wasn’t kicking someone out of the band.  Total time:  5:15.  Bubblegum my a**.

“It’s A Game” is even better – a great mystical hookah tent stutterstep rhythm section carries it at first, but the big Jack Bruce falsetto wail lets you know that the Tricycle are channeling Cream, not Floyd, this time out.  But this is still a trippier, more mystical parallel universe Cream, where Eric Clapton went to India instead of George Harrison, and George stole Eric’s wife.  Total time:  4:30. 

There’s more Cream-style harmonies in “Poor Old Mr. Jensen” (total time:  5:50), but this time the sound is even more mystical – almost dreamlike, and you can’t help but compare it to Mandrake Memorial.  And if you’re still clinging to the concept that Tricycle might be a bubblegum band, just try to imagine the four Bugaloos singing this:

“Morning labors gather today,

Poor old Mr. Jensen has passed away.

Silently raindrops fall to the ground,

Leaving the trace of sadness all around.

All the people pray for poor old Billy Jensen,

Placing a wreath round his head.

Silently and sadly walking in procession,

What do they care now he’s dead?”

Okay, Sid and Marty Krofft, I’d like to see you make that sound believable coming from the mouth of some giant day-glo colored puppet creature.  And if you can, I’m setting my alarm clock for Saturday morning.  Don’t want to miss the Tricycle Kids Bubblegum Fun Time Show.    

 hear it!

The less exciting stuff

Media mail shipping with delivery confirmation starts at $4.00 in the US, with each additional record only $1 additional shipping.  ALL DOMESTIC ORDERS REQUIRE DELIVERY CONFIRMATION, WHICH IS AN EXTRA 75 CENTS.  Air mail shipping to Canada starts at $10 US, each additional record $2 shipping.  Air mail shipping everywhere else in the world starts at $16 US, with each additional record only $3 shipping.  ALL FOREIGN ORDERS REQUIRE CERTIFICATE OF SHIPMENT, WHICH IS AN EXTRA $1.10.  I accept payments through Paypal. 

I try to grade as best as I can, and I list as many blemishes/imperfections I can find (writing, ringwear, scuff marks, etc.) – Also, please note that I DO listen to these albums – I may not listen to every track, but my grades are based on LISTENING, not just looking at it, since chances are you’ll be listening to the record you buy, not just looking at it.  Most of the albums I sell are the ones I’ve enjoyed for years – and I treat my records with kid gloves.  But sounds speak louder than words, so check out the sound clips below – they’re from the actual record you’re bidding on. 

SHIPPING AND PACKAGING

Listen, I buy a bunch of records too (when I’m not getting outbid at the last second, which is more often than not) – and I know what it’s like to get a rare, one-of-a-kind album packaged dangerously in a flimsy bubblewrap package.  I hate that too.  So rest assured, I ALWAYS package albums with stiff cardboard reinforcements, same for 45s.  And yes, the records are removed from the sleeves (for albums).  I ship out once a week, every Friday, because I have a regular day job.  But I’d be willing to give that up if you’d all be so kind as to bid my items up to stupidly high amounts. 

And finally, I include delivery confirmation on all shipments inside the US.  This is my proof of shipment, and also helps us to track your package if it doesn’t arrive when it should.  I will email you within 2 days of shipment and give you the confirmation number at that time.  Insurance is always optional, but for larger orders, it’s highly recommended.   I DO NOW REQUIRE THAT ALL FOREIGN BUYERS PAY AN ADDITIONAL $1.10 FOR PROOF OF SHIPMENT.  IT'S A NOMINAL FEE AND THE CHEAPEST WAY FOR ME TO PROVE THAT I ACTUALLY SHIPPED YOUR PACKAGE AND DIDN'T JUST POCKET YOUR MONEY AND SKIP TOWN.  For more security and international tracking, you may request GLOBAL PRIORITY MAIL - but bear in mind the cost of this service is upwards of $30.  For expensive items, however, it may be well worth it.  Unfortunately, there isn’t a cost-effective way of tracking parcels to foreign countries yet, and shipping times vary depending on your country’s postal system.   Italy in particular seems to be really bad at delivering packages quickly, or delivering packages at all, now that you mention it.  I will always email you when your package ships, but once it’s on its way, please don’t ask me when it will arrive because I don’t know.  If the world’s postal systems can ever agree on a universal tracking system that’s affordable, I’ll be the first to use it.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN…

I will always leave positive feedback for successful transactions, and would appreciate the same in return.  All I ask of you is the following – please pay for your items within 14 days of the close of auction.  Compared to other sellers, that’s a generous amount of time, so if you don’t pay within 2 weeks, then I have to assume something’s wrong.  You’ll get an Ebay payment reminder at that point, and possibly a decapitated horse head in your bed.  If, after 30 days, you still haven’t forked up the cash, I’ll relist the item and yell at you if I ever see you in town.