Great news for psych fans. The original line up of the 13th Floor Elevators is reforming for a gig in Texas in May.

This report from Pitchfork, online magazine.

13th Floor Elevators, the seminal psychedelic band helmed by Roky Erickson, are set to reunite at the Levitation festival in Austin, Texas, which takes place May 8-10. It's the first time the surviving original members—Erickson, Tommy Hall, John Ike Walton, and Ronnie Leatherman—will have performed together since 1967. "Special guests" are promised for their set.

"When we were going on we weren’t very appreciated, but now the young people dig us," Hall told the Austin Chronicle. "With the younger generations’ knowledge and their use of weed for good purposes, they understand the information. Once we have these ideas, it should change us physically."

13th Floor Elevators will close the festival on May 10. As previously reported, Tame Impala, Spiritualized, the Flaming Lips, Mac DeMarco, the Jesus and Mary Chain, Primal Scream, DIIV, Lighting Bolt, Metz, HEALTH, Thee Oh Sees, and many more are also set to perform.

[pitchfork.com]

Watch the original lineup perform "You're Gonna Miss Me":

Thanks for posting Silver Dagger

a happy surprise to see the 13th Floor Elevators perform again with Erickson in the line-up.

Tommy Hall sounds as spaced as ever. Has kept up his jug playing? Who will play lead guitar?

Great news! I saw Roky at a club in Chicago two years ago. The show was good
But the sound was terrible. The club was virtually a cement basement - so what
Can you expect.

There aren't that many real true great rock'n'roll voices around, and I'm not even
sure if I should count Roky in there;
but I kinda like him so I'm looking forward to a tape from this event!

Never even heard of them!

<<There aren't that many real true great rock'n'roll voices around, and I'm not even
sure if I should count Roky in there>>

You should, because his high-pitched throaty screaming was a major influence on the vocal stylings of such singers as Janis Joplin and Robert Plant.

<<Never even heard of them!>>

Then you should see this documentary on Roky Erickson.





The complete documentary is here....

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stonehearted
<<There aren't that many real true great rock'n'roll voices around, and I'm not even
sure if I should count Roky in there>>

You should, because his high-pitched throaty screaming was a major influence on the vocal stylings of such singers as Janis Joplin and Robert Plant.

Well, don't get me wrong, I'm a long time fan;
I'm a proud owner of this (at least in Germany)hard to get single.
Doug Sahm was also a fan, by the way.

Sad story on Stacy Sutherland : [theragblog.blogspot.com]

Sad story indeed, makes me want to make some comments on Americans and weapons...

Here's a review of the single seen above, taken from "Who Put The Bomp" fall 75 issue:

More from "WPTB":

If anyone's interested in a definitive and detailed bio on the 13th Floor Elevators, Eye Mind is an excellent read.



Speaking of the sad and tragic story of Stacy Sutherland, there's a horrific story of how he was tortured by the sadistic Texas police. As psychedelic warriors, they were targeted by local lawmen as well as the FBI and made to be scapegoats. One time they were busted by a raid in one of their homes in the middle of a mescalin trip and had to come down in a deep Southern Texas jail. Once after having been arrested while on an LSD trip, the cops were toying with him as they drove him around in a police car, taunting him by telling him that they were going to kill him. What they ended up doing was tossing him off a bridge and into a canal, at night, while he was still tripping, and he had to swim some distance to get to safety. According to accounts in the Eye Mind biography, the kitchen where he died was said to be haunted by his spirit right up until the house was demolished in 2000.

My first thought re their reuniting was, "Why?" My second question is, "Why?" Outside of money I can't think of any other reason. They were interesting muscially and out there for their time, but that was then, this is now. Of course, if they can get Iron Butterfly to share the bill with them, ya never know.... When's the last time you sang along to "In a Gadda Da Veda, Baby"?

Why? Because they're finally getting some love, decades later. FWIW, I still listen to the Elevators regularly. As for the money, I can't imagine that. The pay for this one-off is all that great, when one takes into account rehearsal and time spent getting their chops up to speed.

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stonehearted
If anyone's interested in a definitive and detailed bio on the 13th Floor Elevators, Eye Mind is an excellent read.

Thanks for the tip. Will definitely pick up a copy of this. 13th F.E. are one of those bands I know very little about (apart from Rocky Erickson's mental health issues). I have one compilation of theirs and find myself coming back to it again and again.

My interest was piqued again by the very apt use of 'Kingdom of Heaven' in the brilliant True Detective.

Thanks 2000 LYFH for the sad story and stonehearted for the book tip.


"Live 13th Floor Elevators" the story behind one of my vinyls:
Live is a 1968 studio album by the psychedelic rock band 13th Floor Elevators. In an interview the band cited that the live album was essentially made up of studio outtakes that were overdubbed with phony cheering and applause.

I'll probably go to this, anybody else?

Yes. Sounds like a one-time opportunity.

I've seen Roky three times in the past few years, twice he was excellent. The last tour he did, with his son's band, supported by the Black Angels, they did mostly Elevators tunes. I suspect some of those musicians might support on this.

Others on this thread have given the background to the rather amazing story of this band. Roky Erickson is one of the few people who have traveled to the farthest reaches of schizophrenia and made it "back,"functioning, back with his family, earning a living. Really one of the few.

To watch this man perform, to look into his eyes and realize where he has been, what he has seen and what he knows, is a truly amazing experience.

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Roll73

Quote
stonehearted
If anyone's interested in a definitive and detailed bio on the 13th Floor Elevators, Eye Mind is an excellent read.

Thanks for the tip. Will definitely pick up a copy of this. 13th F.E. are one of those bands I know very little about (apart from Rocky Erickson's mental health issues). I have one compilation of theirs and find myself coming back to it again and again.

My interest was piqued again by the very apt use of 'Kingdom of Heaven' in the brilliant True Detective.

see this first

[www.youtube.com]

(the trailer for the documentary telling the story of Roky and the Elevators)

Incredible String Band is an another band I also like from the same era...

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