Various - Alice in Wonderland and Other Rainy Day

by Tommy Gunnarsson

published: 22 / 2 / 2015

Various - Alice in Wonderland and Other Rainy Day

Label: Charly Records
Format: CD X2

Evocatively packaged but hit and miss double compilation of lost Southern US 60’s pop, garage and psychedelic bands

Review

I remember when I got the reissued and expanded 'Nuggets' CD box set for Christmas in the late 90s. A whole new world of music opened up in front of my eyes (or ears, rather), and for many months ahead my room was filled with the sound of the Sonics, Strawberry Alarm Clock, the Gestures, the Knickerbockers etc. But even though I really adored those four discs, there were songs that I always decided to skip while listening to it. Those were the songs that were too much...too loud, too chaotic, too psychedelic. My favourite tracks were rather the ones that had a great pop feeling to them, with the Sonics being a unique exception (as they undoubtedly were both too loud and too chaotic, but I couldn't help but to love them). And ‘Nuggets’ wasn't the only collection of psychedelic pop songs from the 60s. Twelve ‘Pebbles’ compilations were released from 1978 to 2007, and there were also additional compilations bearing the ‘Nuggets’ name released during the 1980s and 1990s, focusing on different aspects of the 60’s pop, garage and psych scene. Now Charly has released a new two-disc compilation called ‘Alice in Wonderland and Other Rainy Day Girls’ – The great lost southern popsike trip”, which compiles rare tracks from southern US labels like Sun and SSS International. Apart from being the home of country, places like Nashville and Florida actually had a vivid psych pop/garage scene in the 60s, and this new album sets out to bring this fact to the world's attention. And you can't complain about its ambition! The packaging is really great, with an extensive booklet with info about the scene and the bands, just like the legendary ‘Nuggets’. But when it comes to the musical contents, I'm not as convinced. There are far too many tracks here that can be place in my aforementioned “too much”-category. There are a lot of screaming and distorted, psychedelic guitars. But, bear in mind that this is purely my taste, and if you like your 60s’ pop drug-infused and raw, this will be definitely for you! There are some great pop songs on here as well, like the title track (‘Alice in Wonderland’ by the Berkeley Kites), but they are too few for me. But hey, who cares? This is a great addition to any collection of the great music scene of the 60s, and it's a great idea to dig deeper into the regional music vaults. Please keep them coming!