Kaleidoscope (UK band)

Kaleidoscope
Kaleidoscope at Islington Assembly Halls 17 November 2013. Centre: Peter Daltrey
Background information
Also known as	Fairfield Parlour, I Luv Wight
Origin	London, England
Genres	Psychedelic rock, folk rock, acid folk
Years active	1967–1970 & 2013-
Labels	Fontana, Vertigo
Website	Kaleidoscope/Fairfield Parlour
Members	Eddy Pumer Steve Clark Danny Bridgman Peter Daltrey

Kaleidoscope is an English psychedelic rock band from London that originally were active between 1967 and 1970. The band's songs combined the elements of psychedelia with lyrics. The band were also known at various times as The Sidekicks, The Key, I Luv Wight and Fairfield Parlour.

Having performed since 1963 under the name The Sidekicks, they became The Key in November 1965, before settling upon the name Kaleidoscope when they signed a deal with Fontana Records in January 1967 with the help of the music publisher Dick Leahy. The group consisted of Eddy Pumer on guitar, Steve Clark on bass and flute, and Danny Bridgman on drums and the vocalist Peter Daltrey, who also played various keyboard instruments. Most of the band's songs were compositions of Pumer's music and Daltrey's lyrics. While the group did not achieve major commercial success in its time, it retains a loyal fan-base and its recordings are remembered in high regard.

The band's first single "Flight from Ashiya" (b/w "Holidaymaker") was released on 15 September 1967 by Fontana Records, a little earlier than the band's first album Tangerine Dream. The song was telling about an impending plane crash. The single got critical acclaim and quite an amount of radio airplay but failed to reach the charts. Years later, the song has appeared on many compilation albums, including Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964–1969, the second box set of the Nuggets series and Acid Drops, Spacedust & Flying Saucers: Psychedelic Confectionery. Two months later, Tangerine Dream - also produced by Dick Leahy - was released. The album included "Flight From Ashiya", "Please Excuse My Face" and "Dive into Yesterday" which are now considered some of the band's best songs. Meanwhile the band were aired performing live on several BBC radio shows. A new single was released in 1968 called "Jenny Artichoke" (b/w "Just How Much You Are") that was inspired by Donovan's, "Jennifer Juniper". After the release the band traveled around Europe, and when in Netherlands supported Country Joe and the Fish at the Amsterdam Concert Hall.Faintly Blowing, again produced by Leahy, was released later, in 1969 by Fontana Records. This time the band's sound was heavier but the tracks still included psychedelic elements with notable lyrics but it failed to reach the charts. After the failure of Faintly Blowing, they released two more singles and, after a radio session in BBC Maida Vale Studios, the band took a new name to avoid confusion with the US group.