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My Friend Jack
"My Friend Jack" is a psychedelic rock song released by the English freakbeat group The Smoke in 1967. It was included originally in their debut album It's Smoke Time, and it was also included (among other compilation albums) in the collection Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964–1969 (Rhino, 2001).
It was credited to all four band members: Geoff Gill, Mal Luker, Zeke Lund and Mick Rowley.
The song was later covered by Boney M.
"My Friend Jack" was the only international hit by The Smoke. The song seems to suggest the use of psychedelic drugs (specifically LSD) in lines such as "My Friend Jack eats sugar lumps" and suggests traversing the world inside his mind (such as "Been on a voyage, across an ocean").
The song was pulled off the U.K. market due to the drug connotations and it therefore never succeeded in their own country. The original content of the song was so unacceptable that "My Friend Jack" had to be rewritten before EMI would touch it; finally, it was released in February 1967. The single only made it to number 45 before being banned by the BBC, limiting it to three weeks on the U.K. charts.
The first version (somewhat slower and almost entirely modified except for the chorus) featured more obvious content related with the hallucinogenic effect and incomprehension. Lines such as "Oh, what beautiful things he sees" had to be re-recorded as "Sugarman hasn't got a care". The demo is available on some CD compilations, such as Real Life Permanent Dreams. A Cornucopia Of British Psychedelia (1965-1970) (Castle Select, 2007).
In mainland Europe, however, the final version of the record sold well; the group and their song was supported after appearing on an installment of the successful German television show Beat-Club, alongside Jimi Hendrix, The Who, and Cliff Bennett & the Rebel Rousers.
"My Friend Jack" ended up reaching the No. 2 spot in the German pop charts, and earned the Smoke a place on a tour with the Small Faces and the Beach Boys in 1967. The single charted high in Switzerland, France, and Austria as well, and suddenly there was demand for a Smoke LP in Germany, entitled later It's Smoke Time.
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My Friend Jack
"My Friend Jack" is a psychedelic rock song released by the English freakbeat group The Smoke in 1967. It was included originally in their debut album It's Smoke Time, and it was also included (among other compilation albums) in the collection Nuggets II: Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond, 1964–1969 (Rhino, 2001).
It was credited to all four band members: Geoff Gill, Mal Luker, Zeke Lund and Mick Rowley.
The song was later covered by Boney M.
"My Friend Jack" was the only international hit by The Smoke. The song seems to suggest the use of psychedelic drugs (specifically LSD) in lines such as "My Friend Jack eats sugar lumps" and suggests traversing the world inside his mind (such as "Been on a voyage, across an ocean").
The song was pulled off the U.K. market due to the drug connotations and it therefore never succeeded in their own country. The original content of the song was so unacceptable that "My Friend Jack" had to be rewritten before EMI would touch it; finally, it was released in February 1967. The single only made it to number 45 before being banned by the BBC, limiting it to three weeks on the U.K. charts.
The first version (somewhat slower and almost entirely modified except for the chorus) featured more obvious content related with the hallucinogenic effect and incomprehension. Lines such as "Oh, what beautiful things he sees" had to be re-recorded as "Sugarman hasn't got a care". The demo is available on some CD compilations, such as Real Life Permanent Dreams. A Cornucopia Of British Psychedelia (1965-1970) (Castle Select, 2007).
In mainland Europe, however, the final version of the record sold well; the group and their song was supported after appearing on an installment of the successful German television show Beat-Club, alongside Jimi Hendrix, The Who, and Cliff Bennett & the Rebel Rousers.
"My Friend Jack" ended up reaching the No. 2 spot in the German pop charts, and earned the Smoke a place on a tour with the Small Faces and the Beach Boys in 1967. The single charted high in Switzerland, France, and Austria as well, and suddenly there was demand for a Smoke LP in Germany, entitled later It's Smoke Time.