The band originally consisted of Ed King (lead guitar), Mark Weitz (keyboards), Lee Freeman (rhythm guitar), Gary Lovetro (bass), and Randy Seol (drums). On their first and most famous single, Incense and Peppermints, lead vocals were sung by Greg Munford, a 16-year-old friend of the band.
Strawberry Alarm Clock's song reached #1 on the Billboard pop singles chart in late 1967, and it has since been included in many mutli-artist collections and also appeared in many films as an iconic tune of the swinging sixties. After that success, the band added George Bunnell (bass and rhythm guitar) before making their first LP in 1967, also titled Incense and Peppermints. Bunnell would also become their main songwriter.
Membership changes were many. which sadly foretold the band's falling fortunes. Gary Lovetro left the band before their second album, Wake Up It's Tomorrow, which was also released in 1967. Their single from that album, Tomorrow, was a minor hit and their only other top 40 appearance, reaching #23 in early 1968. Although the group followed up with more LPs in 1968 (The World in a Seashell) and 1969 (Good Morning Starshine), Strawberry Alarm Clock had begun to fall apart and their audience was mostly gone The group managed to keep performing in various forms until 1971, when Strawberry Alarm Clock finally broke up.
Strawberry Alarm Clock as a band has made two notable appearances in films, first in the 1968 Jack Nicholson movie Psych-Out, where they played several songs including Incense and Peppermints, Rainy Day Mushroom Pillow, and The Pretty Song from Psych-Out. They second' appeared in the 1970 Russ Meyer camp classic Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.
Ed King went on to join Lynyrd Skynyrd. Several members of Strawberry Alarm Clock reunited in the 80s to perform on oldies concert tours as well. Still, no additional albums came of that.
The original band lineup reunited one last time to perform an approximately one-hour set at the Virginia Theatre in Champaign, IL, on April 29, 2007. The event was part of the last day of film critic Roger Ebert's ninth annual Overlooked Film Festival and was preceded by a screening of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. Despite being unable to speak due to recent surgery, Ebert made prepared remarks with the use of a device given to him by a U of I professor.
Hummin' Happy
Strawberry Alarm Clock Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
See the boys with lemonade stands
See the couple in the car
Getting busted
There's Mrs. Fashion Lady
She's just stepped into the street
Can you see the open manhole
Yeah
Can't you see I'm a sadist?
Evil things make me laugh so
I'm hummin' happy
A little sparrow alive in the street
A little sparrow with nothing to eat
A big old semi running down the street
A squished, dead birdie lying at my feet
Yeah
Can't you see I'm a sadist?
Evil things make me laugh so
I'm hummin' happy
The lyrics of Strawberry Alarm Clock's song "Hummin' Happy" is a commentary on the absurdity of modern life and the senseless atrocities we see around us. The song starts with a leisurely stroll down the boulevard where the singer sees children selling lemonades and a couple getting arrested. The next verse introduces the character of Mrs. Fashion Lady, who steps into an open manhole, and the singer shows no empathy towards her plight, stating that "evil things make me laugh so."
The song also mentions a little sparrow with nothing to eat and a big old semi running down the street, culminating in a dead birdie lying at the singer's feet. These events also seem to bring delight to the singer, confirming their sadistic tendencies. The lyrics are essentially a commentary on the darker side of human nature and how people derive pleasure from witnessing tragic and horrific events.
Line by Line Meaning
Strollin' down the boulevard
Walking leisurely down the street
See the boys with lemonade stands
Observing the children who have set up lemonade stands
See the couple in the car
Spotting the couple who are inside the car
Getting busted
Being caught for doing something wrong
There's Mrs. Fashion Lady
Noticing a woman who is fashionable
She's just stepped into the street
The woman has just entered the street
Can you see the open manhole
Is the manhole clearly visible to you?
That has got Mrs. Fashion Lady?
Did the woman fall into the manhole?
Can't you see I'm a sadist?
Don't you perceive that I derive pleasure from causing others pain?
Evil things make me laugh so
I find humor in situations that others perceive as evil
I'm hummin' happy
I am feeling content and cheerful
A little sparrow alive in the street
A small bird that is still alive on the road
A little sparrow with nothing to eat
The bird has no food or sustenance
A big old semi running down the street
A large truck driving on the street
A squished, dead birdie lying at my feet
The bird on the road has been hit by the truck and is now dead
Contributed by Taylor V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.