About

Tangerine Zoo, The

The Tangerine Zoo was an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1966 in Swansea, MA. They recorded and released two self-titled LP's and two singles from these albums on the Mainstream label in 1968. The Tangerine Zoo was formed by Guitarist/vocalist Bob "Benny" Benivides, Guitarist/vocalist Wayne Gagnon, keyboardist Ronald "Adrian" Medeiors, bassist Tony Taveira, and drummer Donald Smith. The group recorded two albums and two singles for Jazz Producer Bob Shad's Mainstream label. (US LP Release info: Mainstream Stereo S/6107 The Tangerine Zoo 1st album) and (Outside Looking In Stereo S/6116 was released in late1968). The Mainstream label also issues two Singles: "One More Hearthache" / "Trip To The Zoo" released as Mainstream 682 from the first album & "Like People"/ "Can't You See" released as Mainstream 690 also released in late1968). Shads' Mainstream label was home to many other psychedelic bands in the late '60's including Janis Joplin's first band Big Brother and the Holding Company(Mainstream S/6099 released in 1967), The Tiffany Shade (Mainstream S/6105), Ellie Pop (Mainstream S/6115), The Superfine Dandelion (Mainstream S/6102), The Jelly Bean Bandits (Mainstream S/6103) and most notably The Amboy Dukes. Biography by Jason Ankeny: ALL MUSIC GUIDE * Boston psychedelic band the Tangerine Zoo formed in 1967 in nearby Swansea, MA. Guitarist Robert "Benny" Benevides, bassist Tony Taveira, and drummer Donald Smith first collaborated in the Ebb Tides, which the previous year issued "My Baby's Gone" on the Arco label. With the additions of singer/guitarist Wayne Gagnon and keyboardist Ronald Medeiros, the group renamed itself the Flower Pot, abandoning the Ebb Tides' garage rock sound in favor of a more psychedelic approach. In addition to serving as the house band at the local Venus de Milo restaurant, the band also opened for the likes of the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Van Morrison, and Deep Purple. Their growing popularity was buoyed by a large fan base in Boston, and in late 1967 signed with the New York City-based Mainstream label. While recording their debut LP, label execs demanded another name change, fearing backlash from the obvious marijuana reference in the Flower Pot moniker; after setting on the Tangerine Zoo, the group released its self-titled debut in early 1968. Their follow-up second recording was titled , Outside Looking In. In mid-1969, the Tangerine Zoo was invited to play the Woodstock festival, but were forced to decline due to prior commitments. The band dissolved in 1970, with Gagnon soon resurfacing in Wadsworth Mansion, which scored a Billboard Top Ten hit with 1971's "Sweet Mary." The original Tangerine Zoo lineup reunited in 1988 to play a charity fundraiser, intermittently reconvening during the decades that followed. According to GEMM, Tangerine Zoo albums, like most Bob Shad produced/Mainstream releases was not promoted very well and the band and the LP faded from the scene with very little fanfare. Today, the original LP can fetch as much as $150.00 to $300.00 at auction in mint condition. The Mainstream catalog has since been handed down to Bob Shads' children and several titles from the Mainstream catalog have recently been reissued on 180 gram vinyl. Both Tangerine Zoo LP's are available on iTunes.