A Word About Colour Trivia Quiz

Answer: Mungo Jerry

I just HAD to include Mungo Jerry in one of my quizzes (as I dearly love this band). "Lady Rose" was their very best song and was released as a single (and ep) in 1971. This catchy song was a huge hit in Europe (sadly in the USA they were only ever known for "In The Summertime". Which is a shame because they really had some other damn fine records - if you can find a comprehensive best of by these guys cheap, do yourself a favour and grab it). If this song does not put a great big smile on your face then you must be suffering from Moebius Syndrome ;-)

Answer: Cat Stevens

The great Cat Stevens recorded the track "Into White" for his wonderful 'Tea For The Tillerman' LP, which was released in 1970. Now I do not care what some misinformed people think about Cat nowadays but nobody can deny that he was one of the best of the early '70s songwriters, and many would consider 'Tea For The Tillerman' to be his defining moment.

Answer: The Doors

This Doors track is off of their 1969 'Soft Parade' release, an album many feel to be the "least" of their original line up studio releases. Now admittedly I lost my fascination for this band right about the same time I reached puberty (Jim Morrison lost a LOT of his appeal to me the exact same time I actually started dating girls for real) and felt the same way about this album at the time but I have to admit: time has been increasingly kind to this record. If you have not listened to it in decades might I suggest you pull it out and listen to it again? Redwing were a band that got some airplay in the Los Angeles area in early 1971 that had Poco (and later Eagles) affiliations - Timothy B. Schmit was a member and I am going to assume everybody here knows who Iron Maiden and The Guess Who are.

Answer: Christie

This huge 1970 hit for the UK band Christie was actually first offered to The Tremeloes, who turned it down as "too poppy" (I bet they regretted that genius move after it topped the charts all over the world!). Apparently this song purports to be about a soldier returning home after the civil war and not about public urination! Go figure. Could'a fooled me!

George Baker Selection were a Dutch band that performed the great "Little Green Bag", Tony Orlando & Dawn do not deserve a mention here (or anywhere else for that matter) and Bladder Flask are a UK free jazz ensemble from the '80s. I did not make them up!

Answer: Pink Floyd

"Green Is The Colour" was a big live favorite for fans of Pink Floyd on their 1969-1971 tours. Originally from the soundtrack album for the film 'More' (Great album, godawful movie). I seem to recall having owned this as a Japanese single at one point so chances are pretty good it was also released in that format as well. One of their prettiest songs from their best era.

Ambrose Slade were the mighty Slade before they changed their name to Slade, Deep Purple were one of the biggest acts from the first half of the seventies and Trace were Rick Van Der Linden's great band after he left the great Dutch group Exception.

Answer: Peter Brötzmann & Han Bennink

It just would not be an Ugly Pancake quiz if I did not throw in a curveball such as this now would it? Add to that my HUGE love for free jazz and you are just beggin' for trouble! This is part of a lengthy five track suite of songs on the astonishingly great Peter Brötzmann & Han Bennink LP 'Schwarzwaldfahrt' on the Free Music Production label released on vinyl in 1977 and reissued in 2005 as a double cd (Atavistic ‎- ALP254CD) with a boatload of bonus tracks (don't let the door hit you on the way out to running to your local music emporium to special order a copy).

Albert and Alexander are further German musicians of the free jazz persuasion that are well worth your time to check out. Horst is somebody I have never personally heard but his name pops up on this quiz site often enough with an easy listening hit of his entitled "A Walk in the Black Forest", of which the German title was, amazingly enough, "Eine Schwarzwaldfahrt"!

Answer: Frank Zappa

"Ms. Pinky" is a track from Frank Zappa's 1976 'Zoot Allures' album. The album was originally conceived as a double LP (but released as a single LP (the missing tracks eventually appeared on 'Sleep Dirt' and the posthumously released 'Läther'). Essentially this album was recorded by Zappa with drummer Terry Bozzio and numerous guest musicians were brought in to complete the tracks that finally wound up on the album (The album back cover depicts a four piece band including keyboardist Eddie Jobson and bassist Patrick O'Hearn who were a part of his band at the time yet did not appear anywhere on the album itself.

Flo & Eddie are ex Turtles, and ex singers for The Mothers, Howard Kaylan and Marc Volman. The Fugs are quite simply one of the ten greatest bands of all time to me and have not existed for decades and Pinky is some rap chick (I am assuming) that I found online who I have never heard a note of.

Answer: Antietam

Ok, ok, ok... I know: why do I do stuff like this? Well honestly: when I first started writing down ideas for this quiz this was my VERY FIRST choice. I just L-O-V-E this song beyond words ever since I first heard it way back in 1985 on their self titled debut LP (YouTube it - if you like hard rockin' '60s sounding stuff you'll love it - if you like what you hear check out more of their stuff. They are well worth it (and if you can figure out which song the bassline here is ripped off from PLEASE message me here - I have been trying to figure that one out for 30+ years now!).

The Fluid were one of the truly great lost "grunge" era bands, Green River eventually morphed into two bands you may have heard of: Mudhoney and Pearl Jam and ask anybody in Seattle who was going to shows in the eighties and watch their eyes glaze over with happiness at the mention of The U-Men...

Answer: The Beatles

See? Suffer through my indulgences and I'll throw you a bone every now and again :-) Originally released by the Beatles as the B Side for "The Ballad Of John & Yoko", this peppy little number is (musically speaking) actually one of George Harrison's more interesting and odd compositions. It was also eventually released on LP as part of the 1971 'Hey Jude' (aka 'The Beatles Again') album.

Y'all know who the Beatles were, right? Then it can be assumed you also might have heard of Badfinger as well? And The Rutles? The Shoes are one of the best US power pop bands and you probably have never heard of them. You should immediately rectify this. Try and youtube a track by theirs entitled "Tomorrow Night" or "She'll Disappear". If those two tracks don't do it for you, their other tracks probably won't either. But if you are a fan of the pop music you'll be thanking me for turning you on to them.

Answer: Hole

Ok I tossed you the bone. You did not think I would not make you pay a little more for it, did you? Hole. The only band I ever tried to join (I LIKE Courtney - she is a great girl. At least when I last saw her right before she and Kurt got married she still was). "Burn Black" is a very early Hole track about Courtney's first husband Falling James (I have this from Courtney herself). It was released in 1991 as the b side to their "Dicknail" Sub Pop single. To my liking the original Hole band (with all five original members) were the greatest band in Los Angeles bar none at the time. The "Dicknail/Burn Black" 7" is a great example of why I loved them so much and wanted to join after Lisa left...

The other three bands are all bands with girls in them that are contemporaneous of Hole and sonically not completely dissimilar (Courtney was an original member of Babes In Toyland btw).

Answer: The Clash

"Protex Blue" is a great little number off of the first Clash LP (UK version - I do not know if is on the US track line up, as I never owned that version of the LP). The Clash - Many still consider them the best punk band ever (or even the best band ever). I cannot wholly disagree. That was one band that DID mean something and a consistently fantastic live act. Was I sad when Joe died and all possibilities of a proper Clash reunion died with him? Yes and no. Yes because... well it was JOE STRUMMER! And no because if that reunion had been a lousy idea all of us waiting for it never had to find that out and can have our memories of the band's greatest live on forever. I guess sometimes it is not the very worst thing that can happen when your idols pass on too soon.

Stiff Little Finger and Protex were both exceptional Irish punk bands and Skrewdriver are a punk band that musically is quite good but politically repugnant (are you familiar with white power punk? They pretty much started the whole thing. If your personal world view and politics lean towards National Socialism then god created this band just for you. If not then avoid at all costs).

Answer: Van Morrison

100% Honest Injun: I do NOT consider this a tough question! Then again his 1967 'Blowin' Your Mind LP' on Bang Records has been a big part of my life since right after my birthday 3/26 in 1967 when my mother got it for me as one of my post birthday records (since I'd been howling for it for weeks before when word of his first solo release was being mentioned on KHJ and KRLA radio locally). OOOoooooh did I love that record. Still do. Van might loathe the album, but not me.

This is one of my favorites from that record.

Not quite as "mindblowin'" as "TB Sheets" (or for that matter the 100% PERFECT side one of that LP) but easily the stand out track on side two.

Answer: The Who

"A Man In A Purple Dress". What can I say about this track? I have never heard it nor heard OF it until I started to look for other colour songs (and here I am claiming to be a big Who fan... pathetic me is what I am). Apparently this track is from their 2006 release 'Endless Wire', which I have been told is supposed to be their best post Keith album. And I swear: If I don't die before this happens I DO intend to find out if that truly is the case one of these days!

Answer: The Stone Roses

Alright: another bone for people of a certain age. If you were into the first Stone Roses album when it came out in 1989 and this song was all over modern radio back then then these guys were kind of your Led Zeppelin. And I do get it. Totally. I own the super mega deluxe issue of this record. NOT the world's greatest fan of THIS particular track however (probably one of my two least favorite tracks on the album to be honest - a potentially amazing three minute track that goes on for a small eternity). I suppose I'll just keep my mouth shut about what I think of their second album...

The wonderful Primal Scream eventually wound up with the Stone Roses' rhythm section, the AMAZING My Bloody Valentine had an affiliation as their leader Kevin Shields was also in Primal Scream simultaneously with the guys from Stone Roses (at least when I saw them he was). And Aztec Camera? Roddy Frame? Not ringing those bells for you? Alright: NOW you kids are just plain messin' with my head playin' all ign'ant and stuff!

Answer: Hawkwind

Showing my age here. Silver Machine was SUCH a massive hit when it came out and a major party favorite to throw on the turntable at the time. This great Hawkwind hit is a major fond memory of my early teen years. Every kid at one of our parties would "dance" to this (more appropriately: every kid at one of our parties would play air guitar to this) when it hit the box... That's the legendary Lemmy on bass and vocals, Dave Brock on guitar, Nik Turner on sax, Dik Mik on electronics, the voluptuous Stacia on dancing etc. Even my mother and her girlfriend liked Hawkwind. Not seeing them live in their prime will remain a life long childhood regret of mine.

Motorhead was Lemmy's band after he got kicked out of Hawkwind. For drug use of all things! The Hawklords is what Hawkwind morphed into around 1978 for a brief while and Status Quo... Let's pretend that everybody taking this quiz is European. Then do I REALLY need explain who STATUS QUO is?! Other than in America they were one of the most popular bands on the planet from the late seventies until the mid eighties!