Psycho Daisies

Album: Over Under Sideways Down (1966)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • One of the few Yardbirds songs sung by their guitarist Jeff Beck, this song mentions several places in America, which is where the Yardbirds enjoyed some of their most decadent moments. While they were always more popular in their native England, The Yardbirds had a lot of American fans and toured there frequently. Looking back in 2010, Yardbirds drummer Jim McCarty told us that these trips to America where a high point. Said Jim: "We'd go from being on top of the charts and going to fantastic places and traveling to places like California that were just our dream after being in a sort of post-war London, which was rather dismal and rather miserable. Suddenly we were going to sunny California where things were happening and things were rich and there were lovely girls and cars and everything."
  • It's clear in this song that California was where The Yardbirds had the most fun, and mentioned twice in the lyrics is Mary Hughes, who was a Hollywood blonde that starred in movies like Muscle Beach Party and The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini . She and Jeff Beck had an affair.

Comments: 1

  • Python from BrooklynThis song is the genesis for Led Zeppelin’s brilliant “Rock and Roll.” I wonder if any Led Zep fans felt Deja guy when they heard “Rock and Roll” in 1971.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")Song Writing

Director Mark Pellington on Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," and music videos he made for U2, Jon Bon Jovi and Imagine Dragons.

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions Answered

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions AnsweredSong Writing

10 Questions for the author of Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & PalmerSongwriter Interviews

Greg talks about writing songs of "universal truth" for King Crimson and ELP, and tells us about his most memorable stage moment (it involves fireworks).

Paul Williams

Paul WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

He's a singer and an actor, but as a songwriter Paul helped make Kermit a cultured frog, turned a bank commercial into a huge hit and made love both "exciting and new" and "soft as an easy chair."

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine Band

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine BandSongwriter Interviews

Harry Wayne Casey tells the stories behind KC and The Sunshine Band hits like "Get Down Tonight," "That's The Way (I Like It)," and "Give It Up."

Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Heaven And Hell

Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Heaven And HellSongwriter Interviews

Guitarist Tony Iommi on the "Iron Man" riff, the definitive Black Sabbath song, and how Ozzy and Dio compared as songwriters.