Examining the Dark Side of the Psychedelic Music Movement

The psychedelic music movement came to a peak during the Summer of Love in the late 1960s. Today, its influence is still felt, particularly in experimental music and rock music as a whole. It was a surreal, creative time; but it wasn’t without its downfalls. 

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A big element of psychedelic music was the growing use of psychedelic drugs, particularly LSD. And when the patent for the substance expired in 1963 for about three years, it more or less became legal. And just about everyone was doing it.

I’m not interested in yuking anyone’s yum, here. Paul McCartney of The Beatles said that LSD opened his eyes in a big way. Other artists from that era noted that LSD was a life-changing thing for creatives and common folk alike. That being said, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows for even the biggest acts of the time.

Plenty of Greats of the Psychedelic Music and Countercultural Movement Had Dark Run-Ins With LSD

Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane had her own dark story about LSD. A major part of the psychedelic music movement, Slick produced still-famous songs like “White Rabbit” through the use of acid. Slick herself said that she “never freaked out on acid.”

One story points to the contrary. One night, police were called to her home after getting a report of a “drunken woman” firing a shotgun within her own house. When the cops showed up, Slick threatened them with the gun before an officer was able to get it away from her. The incident could have been much worse, and some attribute the spectacle to Slick’s acid use.

There’s also the case of Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac. If his name isn’t super familiar to you, that’s probably because he was only with the band for about three albums. The end of his time with the band came after a drug-fuelled evening in Germany in which he “never really came back”, according to Mick Fleetwood.

Allegedly, Green attended a large party with some strangers at a mansion, where basically everyone was partaking. According to guitarist Jeremy Spencer, Green went into the basement of the home and emerged in tears, upset, and not entirely there.

“Peter Green and Danny Kirwan both went together to that house in Munich,” said manager Clifford Davis. “Both of them took acid, as I understand. Both of them, as of that day, became seriously mentally ill. It would be too much of a coincidence for it to be anything other than taking drugs, as of that day.”

There’s also the tale of Pink Floyd’s Syd Barrett, one that is far too sad to recall in a short article.

Moral of the story: Moderation is key for inspiration, kids.

Photo by Sulfiati Magnuson/Getty Images

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