Fifty years ago about 100,000 people came to San Francisco to take part in the musical and cultural revolution known as the Summer of Love. That year brought us familiar and enduring hits like the Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” and the “A Whiter Shade of Pale” by Procul Harum. But what ever happened to songs like “I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman” by Whistling Jack Smith, which reached number 20 on the Billboard charts? We’ll look back at the musical legacy of the Summer of ’67, including some of the then-popular tunes that have been lost to history.
Further Reading:
- KQED’s Full Summer of Love Coverage
- Beyond Janis and Jimi: The Forgotten Jams from the Summer of Love
Guests:
Emmanuel Hapsis, editor and writer, KQED Pop; cohost, The Cooler, KQED’s Pop Culture podcast
Joel Selvin, San Francisco-based music journalist; author, “Altamont: The Rolling Stones, the Hells Angels and the Inside Story of Rock’s Darkest Day”