Creme Soda - Tricky Zingers (PSYCHEDELIC FOLK-ROCK US 1975)

"CREME SODA - TRICKY ZINGERS" (PSYCHEDELIC FOLK-ROCK US 1975)

"Creme Soda" were a Milwaukee, Wisconsin Psychedelic band consisted in "Art Hicks" (drums, bongos, dahka - de - bello drums, and vocals), "Ron Juntunen" (electric acoustic and slide guitar), "Bill Tanon" (guitar, mandolin, bass, harp, bowed guitar, percussion and vocals) and "Jim Wilson" (bass guitar, piano, percussion and vocals) hailing from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where they first started playing together in 1972.

Creme Soda: (I'm) Chewin' Gum / Roses All Around, CST-112 , 1974

In 1974 "Creme Soda" recorded two singles for little "Trinity Records", "(I'm) Chewin' Gum" / "Roses All Around" (CST-112, 1974) and "Keep It Heavy" / "And That Is That" (CST-113, 1974).
"Creme Soda" are not an easy band to categorize as they were able to play virtually any musical genre with consummate ease.
In 1975 "Creme Soda" released an album titled "Tricky Zingers" (Trinity Records CST 11, 1975) with some very pleasant Psychedelia and laconic Folk-Rock throughout, with good choruses and a laid back guitar hero ringing away in the background.


Without knowing when the record was from, you'd have pegged it as a late 60s thing rather than pre-dating Punk by a year.

Melodic Folk-Rock predominates as evidenced by "Give It Up", "Tonight", "Deep In A Dream", "Keep It Heavy" and "Daydreamin'" with heavily acoustic guitar playing and gentle vocals; but there's also a couple of weirder more Psychedelic tracks in Beatles' - "Tomorrow Never Knowns" - style "Numero Uno" and "The Beat Song".
There are also some Rockabilly / Punk in "(I'm) Chewin' Gum" and in "When The Sun Shines" and a bit of Blues on "That Is That".
It's the epitome of what Psychedelic Rock should be: experimental, trippy and distinctive.

Creme Soda left to right: Art Hicks, Ron Juntunen, Billy Tanon and Jim Wilson

"Creme Soda" did get some notice amongst Underground Rock cognoscenti - Power-Pop and 60s Garage-Rock champion and Bomp! Magazine (and record label) founder "Greg Shaw" wrote the album's liner notes - but their low fidelity and general obsolescence only increase their charm.
It's truly an excellent album, stylistically everywhere.
Everywhere but the year 1975, the year when, against all probability, it was actually recorded.

Creme Soda clockwise from upper left: Ron Juntunen, Jim Wilson, Billy Tanon and Art Hicks

"Tricky Zingers" is an impressive and relatively overlooked recording, which, despite being recorded in 1975, has a decidedly mid-'60s feel about it.
Too unfashionable, perhaps - "Creme Soda" were no more not long thereafter.