The Rubble Collection, Vol. 6 - The Clouds Have Groovy Faces

Other than the fifth Rubble collection, The Electric Crayon Set, the following The Clouds Have Groovy Faces is considered the best of these compilations by enthusiasts of '60s freakbeat and psychedelic garage rock. More psych than freakbeat, this sixth volume opens with the wistfully trippy “Lovely People” by The Fairytale, a sing-along that blends Kinks-inspired harmonies with an Up with People vibe. The Poets’ “I Am So Blue” is a lovelorn breakup ballad with a percussion section that’s nearly as infectious as the catchy chorus. An obscure band that simply went by the name Pudding bestows what could be the definitive version of The Who’s “Magic Bus”—its version was mysteriously released nearly a year before The Who’s original. The Attack provides the outstanding cut “Neville Thumbcatch.” With a French horn punctuating lofty vocal harmonies, a fantastical spoken-word narrative in the verses, and a triumphant chorus that makes very little sense—this is English psychedelia at its most inventive. Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman cowrote and produced The End’s heady “Shades of Orange.”