Joe Byrd & The Field Hippies The American Metaphysical Circus

The United States Of America was not a commercially
successful music group, releasing only one studio album and
then immediately breaking up, but the depth of their influence
in the music scene could not be understated. More an
avant-garde project of experimental sounds and radical
politics, the band were early innovators of electronic
instrumentation, and were major inspirations to acts like
Portishead, Broadcast, and Dan Deacon. At the helm of this
group was the eccentric experimental composer Joseph Byrd,
(Dubbed Joe Byrd by Columbia Records, deciding that no rock
musician could be named 'Joseph.') who had got his start in
the Fluxus community of artistic experimentation, engaging in
early collaborations with Yoko Ono.
Though his band The United States Of America failed to catch
on with a wide audience, their lone record caught the attention
and support of Columbia Records producer John McClure,
who encouraged Joe Byrd to compose a follow-up. Byrd would
gather an extended group of West Coast musicians and
performers, among them famed session musicians Ted
Greene on guitar, Tom Scott on saxophone, and even narration
from radio personality Ernie "Ghouliardi" Anderson. Byrd would
dub this collective The Field Hippies, and with them produced
a three-part, politically-charged acid rock suite titled
The American Metaphysical Circus.
Though once again major commercial success eluded Joe
Byrd, his 2nd project became every bit as influential as The
United States Of America had. The American Metaphysical
Circus proved to be an early adaptor of synthesizers and
vocoders, and received high praise for its combining of
brass-heavy psych-rock arrangements with experimental
sound techniques in tape delays, loops, backwards vocals,
and other recording tricks.