One single was all it took for the Buddhas to attain garage-psych nirvana. ‘Lost Innocence’ and ‘My Dream’ were produced by Gary S Paxton and released on the Shel-Dee label in September 1967. The Buddhas were from Bakersfield, a hundred miles north of Los Angeles in California’s San Joaquin Valley. They were active in 1966-67, playing many events sponsored by the dominant “boss” radio station in the area, KAFY, including opening for big name acts at the Bakersfield Civic Auditorium such as the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, Jefferson Airplane and Sonny & Cher. A KAFY show at the Civic on June 2, 1967 was promoted with the slogan Flower Power is Coming, and saw the Buddhas playing alongside the Avengers (of ‘Be A Caveman’ fame), the Words, the Donnybrooks, the Reptyles, and the Black Glass to raise money for the March of Dimes.

While some of that Flower Power pollen had evidently permeated the Buddhas’ sound, they remained essentially a hard-driving, dance-inducing rock ‘n’ roll band, short-haired and smartly-dressed in matching double-breasted suits. The members were Dennis Roark, Dane Nelson, Rick Starr, Larry Meadors (or Meadrows, according to the band’s business card), Gary Lettiere and Larry Kirby.

The single was recorded at Paxton’s studio in the Bakersfield suburb of Oildale, and mixed in Hollywood, where the producer made good use of Capitol’s fabled echo chambers. ‘Lost Innocence’ has a tight, compact arrangement, its thumping rhythm track supported by handclaps along with some heavily-reverbed backing vocals. The stinging, reverb-cloaked guitar break hits a sonic sweet spot somewhere between Drake Levin and Jorma Kaukonen. The flowery poetry of the lyrics relates a cautionary tale of teenage lust and its consequences. The outcome of this “story of short-lived glory” appears to be a shotgun wedding: “Cause her daddy and the sheriff did both agree ‘twas I for the blame.”

On the flipside, the eerie, languorous ‘My Dream’ boasts a clear, melodic lead vocal, reverb-swathed backups and plenty of tingling fuzz guitar floating through the veils of mist.

The Buddhas disappeared into the mist soon afterwards, and their single slipped into obscurity, until Greg Shaw exhumed ‘Lost Innocence’ for inclusion on Volume 2 of Pebbles, disclosing its immense wonders to a new generation of sixties rock & roll enthusiasts. Now both sides can be enjoyed on seven-inch vinyl for the first time this century.