Psych-Rocking Dreams
By JUAN R. GOVEA
Bartlett: “I did remember what I was going for and thought that I could recreate the spirit and sound of what … I tried to do back then.”
Photo by Emily Rose Burek.
In 1968, back when Texas’ legendary psych-rock scene was emerging, a young folk musician by the name of Johndavid Bartlett signed a record deal with the Lone Star State’s premier psych-rock label, the Houston-based International Artists. Two labelmates, the 13th Floor Elevators and The Red Krayola, urged the high school student to hit the studio. With help from Krayola mastermind Mayo Thompson, Bartlett went into Golden Star Studio in his birthplace of Houston and began recording his debut album, but the label soon folded, leaving