This is a slice of forgotten musical history. Much like The Velvet Underground, the Rock group Tomorrow is seen in today’s world by their fans as a crucial and essential band from the late 1960s who, along with Pink Floyd and Soft Machine, pioneered British Psychedelic Rock to audiences with a considerable critical, although not at all commercial, success of the time. Indeed, Pink Floyd became superstars in the 1970s and Soft Machine had a long-term and loyal cult following. Tomorrow never had this luxury of fame or fortune. Regardless, this is the main album released by the group back in 1968. Trivia fans will note that Steve Howe, later of Yes fame, was this group’s main guitarist and was crucial not just to Tomorrow’s sound, but also to the remastering of Tomorrow’s works for the 2023 Permanent Dream release. More on that at another time. Sadly, this album flopped since it was recorded in early 1967, but by its release in February 1968, the rapidly changing music world had decided to move on from such Psychedelic Music of this intent. The band consisted of Keith West (vocals and songwriting), Steve Howe (guitars), Junior (bass guitar) and Twink (drums). The album was produced by a collaborator of Steve Howe’s, Mark Wirtz who liked the sound of the band and was impressed by them and the album was released by EMI/Parlophone. The cover art is minimal and in black and white, and it is a bit of a strange thing for such a Psychedelic Music band to have on their only main album release. Regardless, let’s take a listen to this album and we shall hear if it is any good today.

My White Bicycle is the first cut that was recorded and is a reference to the bicycles that were a given thing in Amsterdam at the time. It begins with some warped and interesting backwards guitars and sounds totally tripped out as a result. This is a simple yet trippy-sounding tune that sounds imaginative, different and excellent throughout. This is similar to the British Psychedelic Rock Music of the time but has a personality throughout of its own. The mixing and sounds are really superb, and the lyricism and melodies are fantastic. All in all, this is a good taste test of what Tomorrow was about. A simple, catchy and singalong tune for the listener, with a very interesting and wide array of backwards sounds and music to match. A great, simple and catchy tune that will brighten up your day. A great song, with some clanging guitars and backwards sounds to conclude with.

Colonel Brown launches right into a weird and trippy tune which has some clean, clanging guitars and a simple sound to the music at hand. This tells the tale of said character in the title track who has a simple and matching instrumentation to boot. This is well produced and nicely matched by guitars and instrumentation throughout. A really great and listenable tune, the storytelling and sounds throughout are fantastic. Fine and fantastic, the guitars in the second half sound really amazing and full of colourful sound effects and precise playing. Again, a really great listening experience, through and through. It ends with gongs, hi-hats and sweet guitars to conclude with.

Real Life Permanent Dream begins with some trippy instrumentation fade-in, including sitars. It sounds extremely well-mixed and crafted. Soon enough, this launches into an interesting song with acoustic guitars and great singing. Instantly, one can hear how great and awesome this music is. A really great piece of British Psychedelic Rock that sounds really very great. The lyrics are also highly intelligent and different, with some very artistic and inspired lyrics throughout. The guitar shredding and Sitars throughout, along with the rest of the song, make this for a fantastic listening experience. This sounds really great throughout and is one of the best listens from this album. It sounds absolutely wonderful from start to finish. The outro sounds tripped out, with guitar, Sitar and bass guitar to match. Really good.

Shy Boy is a synchronised-sounding piece of music that has some sweet and glorious harmonies throughout. This is a song that points back to the 1960s and a similar time in the history of the world. A really good tale of youthful romanticism, this is another Psychedelic gem that details a relationship between young adults and what they get up to. Musically, it matches the song with organ, strummed acoustic guitars and a punchy backbeat. A good tale, with a twist at the end of it all. Vastly underrated.

Revolution begins with some weird guitars and a tale of musical proportions as well. This is not a cover of the infamous song by The Beatles. Instead, it is a song that drastically changes throughout and has a vast and ever-changing sound. This has many different musical sections that sound really great throughout, and this further illuminates this album release as a lost yet brilliant listening experience in the history of music. Some wah-wah guitars and Mandolin melodies are present here, along with some Penny Lane inspired sounds. Obviously, these guys were paying close attention to The Beatles, oddly enough. “Revolution, NOW!” is repeated throughout the chorus of this song, and the wonderful mixture of songs and sounds is quintessentially brilliant. A great and inspired listen, this song no doubt would have appealed to the Hippies in retrospect. A fantastic listen from start to finish. It ends with an interesting and stereo-panned piece of music that speeds up to conclude with, and which fades out as well. Excellent.

The Incredible Journey of Timothy Chase is a slower and more melodic tune with some great guitar playing throughout. This quickly launches into a nice song that employs the best sound effects and is a joyous Pop/Rock masterpiece that sounds brilliant. This music is heavily drug-influenced, and to be fair, this album sounds a lot like The Incredible String Band’s music. This breaks down into a sweet and melodic breakdown section that goes to and fro throughout. A really sweet and unique listen, this is a detailed and extraordinary tune that needs to be heard by many more people out there. A melodic, pretty, natural and above all, Psychedelic listen. In fact, this music is way more Psychedelic than Goa/Psy Trance Music, as that form of EDM is more for hedonistic party-loving ravers. This track has so many detailed and different musical sections throughout that it sounds joyously mint. The guitar soloing at the end is terrific, and it fades out nicely as well.

Auntie Mary’s Dress Shop begins with a harpsichord and quickly leads into a fantastic and upbeat tune that is incredibly joyous throughout. This is an awesome and fantastic song about said Auntie who really cares about others, and sounds really amazing throughout. Detailing a simple and sweet life throughout, this is an excellent song about being dressed up by said Auntie who is an excellent person who dresses men and women of the day alike and who ends up working for the Queen. A really great tune to hear, this is a truly majestic 1960s classic that seriously needs to be heard more often. Super sweet and awesome to listen to, the drumming and harpsichord at the end are furious. Brilliant.

Strawberry Fields Forever is, of course, a cover of the legendary song by The Beatles. It begins with some guitars instead of keyboard parts and has vocals in a vocoder instead of being recorded naturally. This sounds great, all the same. It is a stranger-sounding tune with some more complex drumming than the original. A great example of the broad and deep range of The Beatles musical influence, especially at the time. A really good cover song and Keith West does a brilliant John Lennon impression throughout. Nonetheless, a really excellent and simpler cover tune of The Beatles original. All in all, this sounds really top-notch and sweet. A powerful and unique tune that has some really interesting and suspenseful sections of music. Different from the original, more raw and rocking as a result. The outro sounds like a mayhem of Rock glory. This finishes differently from The Beatles original and sounds really cool. A great cover song.

Three Jolly Little Dwarfs begins with some tripped-out piano, and quickly launches into an excellent British-sounding song with some awesome Psychedelic sounds and lyrics throughout. This is a simple, enjoyable and above all Psychedelic tune that will appeal to many Classic Rock listeners out there. In any case, this whimsical piece of Psychedelia is gloriously good. It sounds quite unlike most music out there, to this very day. A cool tune of comparisons and contrast between the dwarfs, this is a fantastic and unique listen for many out there. Towards the end are some interesting drums and guitars, which finish the song up there.

Now Your Time Has Come begins with some crunchy guitars and smooth harmonies that sound excellent. A racing tune then evolves into a glorious slice of 1960s Rock Music. This still sounds magical, and very consistent throughout. The singing and performances are all super sweet to hear, and the changes throughout are drastic and dramatic as musical tunes. This tune is a great and different listen than anything else that you can hear today on mainstream radio. Some great guitar work by Steve Howe is present in this song. Nonetheless, this does sound genuinely great. A very adventurous musical tune, this still has some excellent proto-Yes guitar leads that sound amazing to this day. This has a large instrumental section throughout the majority of the track, and it really sounds great to hear such a gorgeous and unique listen as a result. Sure, this is full-blown Hippie Music, but the music within is absolutely excellent. Towards the end are crashing drums and other great guitar leads that sound really sweet. This finishes up with a super sweet song section, with some trippy lyrics and more top-notch guitar playing. Very nice. It fades out at the end.

Hallucinations is the final track on this album and has some interesting vocals and guitar playing about the weather at hand. Again, this is very good music to hear and is extremely imaginative throughout. This is obviously about tripping out on LSD, but it sounds amazing and fantastic music to listen to and enjoy, even when sober. All in all, this album is a winner, even if it isn’t overly innovative or as popular as other great albums of the time, such as The Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Pink Floyd’s The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn, which were both released in 1967. This is a really great album that sounds sweet, lovely and amazing. This is specifically about the experiences one can have whilst tripping out. An awesome song, particularly if you enjoy tripping out to music.

This is a really very good album that deserves more listening and praise than what it currently gets. It is one of the lost musical classics of its time, leading up to today, well into the 21st century. To be fair, this is not as consistent as other releases from either 1967 (when this album was recorded) or 1968 (when this album was released). Still, if you love Psychedelia in a Classic Rock way, this is one of those albums that you must seek out today. A very interesting and tripped-out listen, obviously best to hear under the influence of LSD and/or Marijuana. Fans of the album will be delighted to know that there is a 1999 reissue of the album with extra tracks, mainly from the group, seek those out if you are interested in hearing more of Tomorrow’s Music. Should you listen to this album? If you have heard a lot of the 1967 classic albums, this is definitely a no-brainer. Other music fans will not dig this music, however.

A forgotten gem of the past.

8/10