The Paisleys were formed in Minneapolis, and their sole album was produced by Warren Kendrick,
who produced a bunch of other garage rock and psychedelic recordings in Minneapolis in the mid-'60s to early '70s (most notably for the Litter). The Paisleys actually helped Kendrick build the studio in which Cosmic Mind at Play was recorded, and only a couple of thousand copies were pressed when it was released in 1970. The legitimate 2003 CD reissue of the album on Sundazed added six bonus tracks, all but one of them previously unreleased, from 1968-70 demos, outtakes, and live recordings.
During the counterculture years, concept albums were in vogue. Any band that had the gumption to create such progressive noise was usually thought to possess supernatural faculties. That said, the
Paisleys command a pile of handclaps for laying down their own brain-bending voyage of adventurous twists and turns. “Cosmic Mind At Play” was to be the Minnesota band’s one and only album, which is a real pity because they seemed to have a lot going for them. Not a big-budget production, the disc bestows a definitive homegrown finish that sporadically splatters trickles of scruffy garage rock residue onto the psychedelic canvas. Archetypal hippy dippy psychobabble also blankets the album, as topics like spirituality, liberation and freedom are addressed.
But a lighthearted persona still persists, making it evident the Paisleys didn’t take themselves too
seriously. For example, the jolting pulsations of “Now” features the sound of somebody sucking on a joint, while “Musical Journey” entails snippets of a car advertisement and the voice of a sports commentator announcing the score of a baseball game. Although a trippy tie-dye vibe dictates “Cosmic Mind At Play,” a variety of moods actually enter the picture, running the gamut from edgy power pop stylings to the classical ambience of “Wind.” Contrary to the greater percentage of their peers carousing similar terrain, the Paisleys didn’t saturate their songs with overblown jamming.
Relying on basic instrumentation to get their point across, the band was clearly influenced by the
punchy rhythms and melodic sensibilities of the Beatles and the Who. Stunning harmonies, combined with catchy guitar riffs and inspired keyboard workouts further charge the album to heavenly heights. However, enough originality seeps through the grooves of “Cosmic Mind At Play,” allowing it to stand its own ground among numerous other concept confections of the era.
To put it cruelly, the Paisleys were exactly the kind of band roasted by the Mothers of Invention so
unmercifully on We're Only in It for the Money. Their Cosmic Mind at Play album abounds with naive cosmic clichés of late-'60s psychedelic music, performed with sincerity and respectable instrumental competence. A lightweight (though not totally embarrassing) effort that put the electric keyboard more to the fore than many similar bands did; it found a greater audience when it was reissued for collectors on LP in the 1980s.
The Paisleys – Cosmic Mind At Play
Label: Sundazed Music – SC 11112
Format: CD, Album, Reissue
Country: US
Released: 2003
Genre: Rock
Style: Psychedelic Rock
TRACKS
01. Cosmic Mind At Play 2:07
02. Rockin' 2:03
03. Now 3:12
04. Smokey Windows 1:39
05. Diddley 4:36
06. Wind 5:19
07. Musical Journey 18:42
BONUS TRACKS
08. Something's Missing 2:59
09. Medley: Comin' On / City Of Light / Home Again 7:26
10. The Fool With The Jewel 3:22
11. Step Quietly And Quickly 2:09
12. Elf In A Magic Bottle 6:08
13. In Dreams / (Untitled Hidden Track) 6:41
LINE - UP
Bass, Vocals – Dick Timm (tracks: 1-10, 13)
Drums, Vocals – Bob Belknap (tracks: 1-5), Greg Payton (tracks: 10, 13), Mike Cornelius (tracks: 6-9)
Lead Guitar, Vocals – Brad Stodden (tracks: 1-9), Dick Timm (tracks: 11), Rick Youngberg (tracks: 10, 12, 13)
Piano, Vocals – Bill Smith (tracks: 1-9, 12, 13)
NOTES
Track 13 includes a hidden track after "In Dreams", it plays like this:
"In Dreams": 0:00-5:03
"(Silence)": 5:03-5:11
"(Untitled Hidden Track)": 5:11-6:41
Original album issued as Peace LP 70P-1, 1970.
Tracks 1-9 recorded 1969-1970 at Audio City Recording Studios, 3009 E. Lake Minneapolis, MN.
Tracks 10-13 recorded 1968 by Richard Timm.