The Incredible String Band were formed in 1965 by Scottish folkies Mike Williamson, Robin Heron and Clive Palmer. They recorded their eponymous debut album in 1966, an earnest affair although they showed their interest in exotic instrumentation, as they played a wide variety of traditional and ancient British instruments. Although Clive Palmer immediately decamped for the Trail to Afghanistan. Mike and Robin recorded The 5000 Skins Or the Layers of the Onion, an audaciously eclectic mix of bookish folk music, hippy love songs and Dylan-ish rants. They soon became the-name-to-drop-in-interviews for luminaries such as Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan. The band's next project was a quixotic multi-media spectacular at the Royal Albert Hall which highlighted the fact that they were never destined to make much money out of things. They lasted another 5 years, producing more great music, after which tension between the songwriters became unbearable and they split up.
Limited discography (LPs)
The Incredible String Band (1966)
The 5000 Spirits or the Layers of the Onion (1967)
