Twink – Think Pink

Twink, Pearls Before Swine, what’s gotten into 2017? The reexamination of excellent reissues of the outer edges of ’60s psychedelic music continues. The man called Twink (aka John Alder) was a founding member of such luminaries as The Pretty Things, Tomorrow, The Deviants, and The Pink Fairies. He then went on to form a very short lived band with Syd Barrett in the post-Floyd years (Stars). Twink’s tenure in The Pretty Things lasted through their S.F. Sorrow days, but he left before the release of Parachute. It’s following this period that he recorded Think Pink with members of what would become The Deviants alongside rogue members of The Pretty Things and Steve Took of Tyrannosaurus Rex.

The album, though commercially released, was really a warm up for the coming of The Pink Fairies. Members Mick Farren, Twink and Steve Took along with the addition keyboardist Sally Meltzer would form the original (though not album version) of that band. Twink’s lone solo outing would, however, exemplify his standing as one of the lights of the UK underground rock scene. He was known, as many at the time were, more for his stage antics than his adept playing. Still he managed to know the right people and work the right angles to become integral to the core of ’60s psychedelia. As such Think Pink is full of indulgently chugging riffs, glorious fuzz breakdowns and effects touches for ‘the heads.’ It’s about as quintessential a snapshot of the frayed edges of that scene as could be captured.

There are no singles on the LP, there’s nothing that’s overtly catchy about the album and while that might be construed as a commercial weakness in hindsight it ends up its strength, feeling more on the pulse of what might have been working in clubs than what’s often known as canon of the period. This new reissue reinstates the original mono mix that was intended for Decca’s release. Bound to run out to the most ardent collectors, but it’s a great curio of the time for sure. Recommended to pick it up if you can! \




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