Back to Index
the great flop
"Green Tambourine" made its debut on the charts in December of 1967, and by early 1968, the Pipers seemed to be on their way. The song hit number one on the national charts, and even went to #7 in the United Kingdom. True stardom was at hand. Unfortunately, the Lemon Pipers were another of the many groups throughout history thrown insidiously off the mark by a record company. "Green Tambourine" was nearly the perfect pop single. The primary elements of Green Tambourine's sound were orchestral pop and folk-rock along with psychedelic effects. The single was a fine commercial stab for the continuing psychedelic era, while also being artistic. For many people, the song was not a bubblegum song. "Green Tambourine" had a wide range of appeal from the elementary school kids all the way up to college students. Furthermore, the flip side of "Green Tambourine" was the guitar drenched "No Help From Me," a garage rock rave-up nowhere near bubblegum music. The flip side was heard by those who bought the single, and that is why at this point the Pipers were not looked upon as "bubblegum." For the next single, the domineering record company chose "Rice is Nice." The single was a great flop, not even reaching the top 40. "Rice is Nice" was obviously a bubblegum song, featuring fruity lyrics sung in a twee voice, thereby alienating most of the older listeners. "Ask Me If I Care" on the Pipers first album was a likable Byrdsy track featuring twelve-string guitar and orchestration. Even though it was not as blatantly commercial as their smash hit and the instrumentation was not particularly original, "Ask Me If I Care" would have been a better follow up. Being more of a standard folk-rock track, “Ask Me If I Care” would not have resulted in the alienation caused by "Rice is Nice." By the time the Pipers released "Jelly Jungle (of Orange Marmalade)," the audience had been reduced. The song missed the top fifty. "Jelly Jungle" might (or might not) have charted higher under different circumstances. It was a commercial piece of psychedelic pop/rock arguably still with the times, even if it was a lightweight bubblegum song. It was May of 1968, less than one year since the Beatles were singing lines about "tangerine trees and marmalade skies."
In conclusion, it would have been very possible for the Pipers to have had top 40 follow-ups (especially after scoring a #1 hit) if the record company employed their “hit record” strategies more effectively. Instead, the record label's decisions were ill-advised in forcing the group to release the unrepresentative "Rice is Nice." Perhaps if Buddha Records had done a better job, the Lemon Pipers might have generated more interest from future generations, and be looked upon as more than a one hit "bubblegum" outfit. On the other hand, it is not certain how much the band did to help their own cause.