Shiva's Headband
Encyclopedia
Shiva’s Headband, an early Texas
psychedelic rock
band, formed in Austin
in 1967. The group was the house band at the Vulcan Gas Company
, a late 1960s Austin nightclub
. The band is credited with a significant role in the founding of the Armadillo World Headquarters
. The bands first royalty check opened the club and hired Eddie Wilson as manager. Shiva's Headband was also the first band to perform there. Throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, the band played with touring acts such as Spirit
, Steppenwolf
, ZZ Top
, Janis Joplin
, Canned Heat
and Steve Miller
. Austin psychedelic bands contemporary to Shiva's Headband included the 13th Floor Elevators
and Conqueroo.
Shiva's Headband's Capitol Records
album, Take Me To The Mountains, produced by bandleader Spencer Perskin with Fred Catero, became the first record released nationally by an Austin-based rock band. The album cover featured artwork by Jim Franklin
. In 1973, the band had an onscreen performance in the film, The Thief Who Came to Dinner
, a Houston
-based production that starred Ryan O'Neal
and Jacqueline Bisset
.
In 1999, long-time bandleader Spencer Perskin was voted " Austin's Old hippie ” at the Eeyore's Birthday Party
, an annual Austin rite of spring. In 2005, Spencer Perskin released the recording, Magic Feather again with artwork by Jim Franklin. The band still performs in Austin, using the name Shiva's Headband Experience.
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
band, formed in Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
in 1967. The group was the house band at the Vulcan Gas Company
Vulcan Gas Company
The Vulcan Gas Company was the first successful psychedelic music venue in Austin, Texas. The Vulcan opened its doors at 316 Congress Avenue in the fall of 1967, and closed in the summer of 1970. Houston White, Gary Maxwell, Don Hyde, and Sandy Lockett started the Vulcan...
, a late 1960s Austin nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
. The band is credited with a significant role in the founding of the Armadillo World Headquarters
Armadillo World Headquarters
The Armadillo World Headquarters was the premier music hall and entertainment center in Austin, Texas, United States from 1970 to 1980.-History:...
. The bands first royalty check opened the club and hired Eddie Wilson as manager. Shiva's Headband was also the first band to perform there. Throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, the band played with touring acts such as Spirit
Spirit (band)
Spirit was an American jazz/hard rock/progressive rock/psychedelic band founded in 1967, based in Los Angeles, California.- The original lineup :...
, Steppenwolf
Steppenwolf (band)
Steppenwolf are a Canadian-American rock group that was prominent in the late 1960s. The group was formed in 1967 in Los Angeles by vocalist John Kay, guitarist Michael Monarch, bassist Rushton Moreve, keyboardist Goldy McJohn and drummer Jerry Edmonton after the dissolution of Toronto group The...
, ZZ Top
ZZ Top
ZZ Top is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "That Little Ol' Band from Texas". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based boogie rock, has come to incorporate elements of arena, southern, and boogie rock. The band, from Houston Texas, formed in 1969...
, Janis Joplin
Janis Joplin
Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer, songwriter, painter, dancer and music arranger. She rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company and later as a solo artist with her backing groups, The Kozmic Blues Band and The Full Tilt Boogie Band...
, Canned Heat
Canned Heat
Canned Heat is a blues-rock/boogie rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California in 1965. The group has been noted for its own interpretations of blues material as well as for efforts to promote the interest in this type of music and its original artists...
and Steve Miller
Steve Miller (musician)
Steven H. "Steve" Miller is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter who began his career in blues and blues rock and evolved to a more popular-oriented sound which, from the mid 1970s through the early 1980s, resulted in a series of successful singles and albums.-Early years:Born in Milwaukee,...
. Austin psychedelic bands contemporary to Shiva's Headband included the 13th Floor Elevators
13th Floor Elevators
The 13th Floor Elevators were an American rock band from Austin, Texas formed by guitarist and vocalist Roky Erickson, electric jug player Tommy Hall, and guitarist Stacy Sutherland, which existed from 1965 to 1969...
and Conqueroo.
Shiva's Headband's Capitol Records
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
album, Take Me To The Mountains, produced by bandleader Spencer Perskin with Fred Catero, became the first record released nationally by an Austin-based rock band. The album cover featured artwork by Jim Franklin
Jim Franklin (artist)
Jim Franklin is an artist best known for his poster art created for the Armadillo World Headquarters, a former Austin, Texas music hall....
. In 1973, the band had an onscreen performance in the film, The Thief Who Came to Dinner
The Thief Who Came to Dinner
The Thief Who Came to Dinner is a 1973 comedy film directed by Bud Yorkin and based on the novel by Terrence Lore Smith. The film stars Ryan O'Neal and Jacqueline Bisset, with Charles Cioffi, Warren Oates, and in an early appearance, Jill Clayburgh....
, a Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
-based production that starred Ryan O'Neal
Ryan O'Neal
Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal , better known as Ryan O'Neal, is an American actor best known for his appearances in the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place and for his roles in such films as Paper Moon , Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon , A Bridge Too Far , and Love Story , for which he received...
and Jacqueline Bisset
Jacqueline Bisset
Jacqueline Bisset is an English actress. She has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards and an Emmy Award. She is known for her roles in the films Bullitt , Airport , The Deep , Class , and the TV series Nip/Tuck in 2006...
.
In 1999, long-time bandleader Spencer Perskin was voted " Austin's Old hippie ” at the Eeyore's Birthday Party
Eeyore's Birthday Party
Eeyore's Birthday Party is a day-long festival taking place annually in Austin, Texas since 1963. It typically occurs on the last Saturday of April in Austin's Pease Park. It includes live music, food and drink vending which benefit local non-profit organizations, attendees in colorful costumes,...
, an annual Austin rite of spring. In 2005, Spencer Perskin released the recording, Magic Feather again with artwork by Jim Franklin. The band still performs in Austin, using the name Shiva's Headband Experience.
Discography
- Take Me to the Mountains, Capitol Records, 1969
- Coming to a Head, Armadillo Records, 1971
- Psychedelic Yesterday, Ape Records, 1977
- In the Primo of Life, Moontower Sounds, 1983