The Magic Mushrooms
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The Magic Mushrooms was an American psychedelic garage rock band in the 1960s.
The Magic Mushrooms were originally composed of 5 students from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. They were:
- Joe Lacavera (Drums),
- Stu Freeman (Vocals and Guitar),
- Ted Cahill (Lead Guitar and Autoharp),
- Dick Richardson (Keyboards) and,
- Charles Ingersol (Bass).
They came together shortly after they started their freshman year and practiced in the freshman commons until they started playing gigs. They named themselves the Magic Mushrooms after Allen Ginsberg suggested that name during an on-campus lecture in the fall of 1965. In the Spring of 1966, they were joined by Josh Rice (Vocals, Flute, Harmonica), who had been the lead singer of a competing band on the Penn Campus.
The band was heard by Sonny Casella while playing at Drexel University later in the Fall and he signed on as the Manager shortly thereafter. They played mostly around the Philadelphia area into the Spring of 1966, most of their bookings being arranged by their new manager.
The information below "More to Come" is not completely true. Sonny Casella was the Manager, he did not play in the band. "It's a Happening" was written by Stu Freeman and Josh Rice, not Sonny Casella. Sonny did produce, arrange and mix the song. It is true that our song hit #93 on the Billboard Top 100, and that's where it died. When Herb Alpert of A&M Records found out what Magic Mushrooms were, he pulled the record off the market because we would not change the name of the band.
More to Come
Next to nothing is known about their career. They released the single "It's A-Happening" in September 1966. A Zappa-esque piece of psychedelic madness, the single hit #93 in the American charts. It became popular in garage circles, and was included on the Nuggets compilation in 1972.
According to the Nuggets sleevenotes, The Magic Mushrooms released two albums after "It's A-Happening". The same source says that Sonny Casella was based in Philadelphia, while the song was recorded in New York.
