“The Birdman Of Alkatrash”

The b-side of Strawberry Alarm Clock’s #1 hit song “Incense And Peppermints” was “The Birdman Of Alkatrash”. It’s a simple garage pop song that has received a lot of attention over the years due to its pairing with the famous a-side.

“The Birdman Of Alkatrash” was originally released as the a-side to “Incense And Peppermints”, on the All American label. When “Incense And Peppermints” started getting all the attention from DJs and the band was signed to MCA’s Uni label, the two sides were re-released by Uni and the two sides were switched. “The Birdman Of Alkatrash” is remembered as a b-side today.

The song, offering a humorous pun on the ‘birdman of Alcatraz’, inmate Robert Stroud, is self-consciously silly, bobbing merrily along on the strength of its playful music. “The Birdman Of Alkatrash” is much softer than the band’s previous raveups, scattered around various singles under their original name Thee Sixpence. It’s clearly not as psychedelically advanced as the flip side. The more rounded edges and goony nature of the song are largely due to the keyboard and the warped lead guitar riffs.

“The Birdman Of Alkatrash” was not chosen for inclusion on Strawberry Alarm Clock’s first album, Incense And Peppermints. That was despite the finished album being a mere 30 minutes in length. It would perhaps have sounded too out of place. In a sense, the song stands as a final goodbye to the Clock’s formative months.

“The Birdman Of Alkatrash” appears on…

“The Birdman Of Alkatrash” b/w “Incense And Peppermints” (All American, 1967)
“Incense And Peppermints” b/w “The Birdman Of Alkatrash” (Uni, 1967)
Incense & Peppermints (1990)
Strawberries Mean Love (1992)
The Strawberry Alarm Clock Anthology (1993)
Step By Step (1998)