Description
The Three O’Clock – Sixteen Tambourines – Cassette
The Three O’Clock were the quintessential L.A. Paisley Underground band. Lead singer and bassist Michael Quercio in fact coined the term to describe the set of bands, including the Dream Syndicate, Rain Parade, Green On Red and the Bangles, who incorporated the chiming guitars of the Byrds and the Beatles into their pop songs with a psychedelic bent, and the clothes to match.
The album is characterized by its jangly guitars, lush harmonies, and psychedelic influences, drawing inspiration from 1960s pop and rock music. Sixteen Tambourines showcases the band’s knack for catchy melodies and dreamy atmospheres, with songs like ‘Jet Fighter’ and ‘Seeing Is Believing’ epitomizing their signature sound.
Lyrically, the album explores themes of love, longing, and introspection, often with a poetic and surrealistic flair. The band’s playful and whimsical approach to songwriting adds to the album’s charm and appeal.
Sixteen Tambourines received critical acclaim upon its release and has since become a cult classic among fans of indie and alternative music. It’s widely regarded as one of the defining albums of the Paisley Underground movement, alongside works by bands like The Dream Syndicate and The Bangles.
Beginning as the Salvation Army in 1982 as a three-piece and forsaking the name due to a conflict with the actual organization, the Three O’Clock originally included Quercio, and guitarist Louis (formerly Gregg) Gutierrez. The band plied a garagey sound on their self-titled debut in 1982. When ex-Weirdos drummer Danny Benair and keyboardist Mickey Mariano joined for the follow-up EP Baroque Hoedown and the LP Sixteen Tambourines in 1983, the band found a more polished, perfect pop sound. In 1985 they released Arrive Without Travelling for IRS, followed by Ever After (IRS). Gutierrez departed in 1986.
For their Warner Brothers/Paisley Park debut (Prince was a fan), Vermillion, Jason Falkner was added on guitar. Sadly, it proved to be their undoing, as they never really fulfilled the label’s expectations and Quercio refused to be pigeonholed as a pretty-boy pop star or spokesperson for the premature retro revival. Quercio continues to play in L.A. pop bands, while Gutierrez became a principle member of Mary’s Danish, and Falkner is a solo recording artist.
The Three O’Clock – Sixteen Tambourines remains a beloved album that continues to inspire and influence musicians with its timeless melodies and psychedelic charm.
Frontier Records
Song List
1. Jetfighter
2. Stupid Einstein
3. And So We Run
4. Fall To The Ground
5. Day In Erotica, A
6. Tomorrow
7. In My Own Time
8. On My Own
9. When Lightening Starts
10. Seeing Is Believing
