1960-шы жылдардың психоделикалық рок тобы «The Misunderstood»

American psychedelic rock band

The Misunderstood were an American psychedelic rock band originating from Riverside, California in the mid 1960s. The band moved to London early in their career, and although they recorded only a handful of songs before being forced to disband, they are considered highly influential in the then emerging genre. Creem, in their September 2004 review, wrote, "The saga of the Misunderstood is one of the most unbelievable, heartbreaking, and unlikely stories in the entire history of rock." Classic Rocks June 2010 issue stated, "The truth is that this band (the Misunderstood) were so far out on their own, so individual and innovative that you can only wonder at the set of circumstances that conspired to prevent them from becoming the iconic name that was surely their destiny."

The band began in 1963 as one of many garage bands formed in the US in the wake of the British Invasion. They moved to London in 1966, with the assistance of their manager, John Peel, who would later gain fame as an influential BBC Radio DJ. Bass player Steve Whiting was also involved in developing material for the band. Distinctive features of the band's sound included the steel guitar of Glenn Ross Campbell and the innovative style of Whiting, known for his use of slide, fuzz tone and distortion. Fontana Records introduced the band with a four song live performance in London's Philips Studios. British media response was positive, Head Heritage in a 2006 review wrote, "The Misunderstood's material extended far beyond the reach of the period in which it was conceived. The extraordinarily advanced tracks on side one from 1966 reveal them as one of the earliest and most original probes into psychedelic rock."

British DJ John Peel championed the Misunderstood's music throughout his entire career. Shortly before his death, in an interview with Index Magazine, Peel stated, "If I had to list the ten greatest performances I've seen in my life, one would be the Misunderstood at Pandora's Box, Hollywood, 1966. My god, they were a great band!"

The Misunderstood are known for having pioneered the live light show. Campbell initially soldered a guitar jack to a car light bulb and plugged this into the extension output behind each amp. This simple idea produced visual music, as the response between the guitars and the lights plugged into the amps was identical. They first showed this feature at the Hi Ho Club in Riverside in early 1966. They also played with lights at the Marquee Club in London in mid 1966. An advanced, multicolored, large scale version of this "light show" or "visual sound" system was being planned in London when the band were forced to retire. Another feature of their visuals was getting all three guitars feeding back using different tremolo settings, thereby leaving the stage flashing with musical lights.

In his "Peelenium" (Greatest Songs of the 20th Century) John Peel lists the band's song, "I Can Take You to the Sun" for 1966. "I Can Take You to the Sun" appears as number 6 in Record Collectors book, "100 Greatest Psychedelic Records", a list in chronological order. Mojo April 2009 – "I Can See For Miles: A Z" lists the Misunderstood for "M". June 11, 2010, Classic Rock named the Misunderstood as No. 18 in their list of "Cult Heroes".