TEA COMPANY (The) - Come and have some Tea with The Tea Company, 1968 (USA, NY. psych) (Smash SRS 67105)

NB: (1) has been counterfeited on LP and CD. There is also a superior CD edition, released by band member Mike Lassandro - see main text for details. 45 : 1 Come And Have Some Tea With Me/Flowers (1968)(Smash 2176). Tea was another word for marijuana, so with a name like The Tea Company, it is clear what to expect from their sole album. It is an interesting effort, with the title track and ten-minute cut, Flowers outstanding. The latter sounds Beatles-influenced psychedelia, with high-pitched guitar notes superimposed upon a typical psychedelic backing. It sounds rather like an extended version of the ending to Strawberry Fields Forever. Aside from a slowed-down version of The Supremes' hit "You Keep Me Hanging On", all the compositions are originals and some are full of the usual hippie cliches and social commentary, for example, Love Could Make The World Go Round and Make Love Not War. Their sole 45 contained shorter versions of two cuts from their album, with Flowers being a drastically edited and remixed version. The group, who were originally called The Lip-Tin Tea Company, came from Queens, N.Y. and evolved out of The Naturals. They played mostly in New York City, Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut. Al Vertucci recalls:- "The Tea Company and all The Naturals stuff was done at Ultra-Sonic by Bill Stahl". Ultra-Sonic was "in Hempstead, L.I., and the owner/engineer was Bill Stahl who did all of the 'Fudge and Shangri-Las stuff there. One of the great engineers ever!! He did with four tracks what people can't do today with 48. The Tea Company LP (which was recorded on 8 tracks) was then re-mixed and ruined at A&R Recording, 7th Avenue in NYC by Mercury's Dick Corby."

Personnel :

Frankie Carretta - guitar, lead vocals
Mike Lassando - drums, backing vocals
John Vancho - bass, backing vocals
Al Vertucci - guitar, lead/backing vocals

Tracklisting : 
1. Come and Have Some Tea
2. Flowers
3. Love could make the World go Round
4. You Keep me Hangin' on
5. Don't Make Waves
6. As I have Seen you on the Wall
7. Make Love, not War 

LINK  (no pass)