Incense and Peppermints

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"Incense and Peppermints" is a song by Strawberry Alarm Clock. The single was released in 1967 and reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Although the Strawberry Alarm Clock are considered a prototypical "one hit wonder," they don't fit the strict definition; follow-up single "Tomorrow" reached #23 on the Billboard chart in January 1968.

The band members cared so little for the song that neither of the band's two singers, Lee Freeman and Mark Weitz, wanted to sing the lead vocal. This recalcitrance was due in large part to the lyrics, which had been written by a songwriter named John Carter, who was under contract to the song's producer Frank Slay. The band didn't care for Carter's pseudo-psychedelic lyrics and were miffed that he—and therefore Slay—would get a share of the song's royalties. As a result, the band impulsively drafted a 16-year-old named Greg Munford, a friend of the band who happened to be at the recording session to add percussion, to sing lead. Munford was never officially a member of the Strawberry Alarm Clock and appears only on this recording; he was not even present for the single's B-side.

[edit] Pop culture occurrences

The song has appeared in numerous places:

• The motion picture Psych-Out
• The motion picture Riding the Bullet
• The motion picture Beyond the Valley of the Dolls
• The motion picture Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
• The animated movie Recess: School's Out
• The Simpsons episodes "Weekend at Burnsie's," "D'oh-in in the Wind," and "Fraudcast News".

[edit] External links

• Song information at MPL Communications website

Preceded by "To Sir, with Love" by Lulu

Billboard Hot 100 number one single November 25, 1967

Succeeded by "Daydream Believer" by The Monkees