They mostly did covers of then-popular hits and developed a considerable following in Glendale and also in Santa Barbara, playing there so often that a lot of histories have them coming out of Santa Barbara. Their lineup was formed from the members of various other bands coming together, and included Lee Freeman on vocals, guitar, and harmonica, Ed King on guitar, Gary Lovetro on bass, Gene Gunnels on drums, Mike Luciano on tambourine, and Steve Rabe on lead guitar. It was 1965 and all things British were still a selling point, so the name made as much sense as anything else. The band's origins go back to Glendale, CA, in the mid-'60s, and a group then known as the Sixpence. But there was a real group there, with members who had played for a long time on the Southern California band scene, who were proficient on their instruments and who sang well and generated four whole LPs of which at least three were worth hearing more than once.

Their name is as well known to anyone who lived through the late-'60s psychedelic era as that of almost any group one would care to mention, mostly out of its sheer, silly trippiness as a name and their one major hit, 'Incense and Peppermints,' which today is virtually the tonal equivalent of a Summer of Love flashback. Strawberry Alarm Clock occupies a peculiar niche in the history of '60s rock.

Strawberry alarm clock