UPDATE:

The Way Back Machine will be undergoing a drastic redesign in the up coming months and during that time I will not be posting anything.

Much of my time is now spent working on The Way Back Community over at Ning. Stop by and visit the site and join if you are interested in what you see. It has turned out to be a very nice hang out online. Hope to see you there.

Hey Hipsters and Cool Cats!  We have another piece of poetry from our Way Back friend, Michelle Wind.

Today she presents a piece entitled

“Cisco Man.”

copyright 2009- Michelle Wind

So I met this guy today

Walking down the road,

“Help me, can you?” he said.

They call me Cisco, man.

“Just got released from Veteran’s Hospital and lost my way.

“Got pins in my leg, that’s why I walk with a cane”

“Agent Orange got me bad, back in Nam, and

the government owes me over a million”.

“When we got back from Vietnam the American people

turned their backs on us”.

“Can’t go to the Memorial Wall it would kill me”.

“When I came home I was addicted to drugs, and

2 men tried to rape my girl, I shot them both dead”.

“Did prison time, but it wasn’t my fault, by the way

did I tell you my name is “Cisco”, man.

(I called the Vets home in Yaphank, and they came and picked Cisco up)

written By; Michelle Wind / May 23rd, 2007

“Way Back Video of the Day”: Hendrix at Monterey Pop Festival

WAY BACK NEWS UPDATE: I just found a link where you can purchase the Trips Festival movie.

Click to Transport

Hey Hipsters and Cool Cats! I have created an oasis of music pleasure for you at the new Way Back Machine blog on blogger. Click the image above to be transported there. You will find playlists I have created and in the upper right hand corner you will see “The Way Back Machine Radio.” 

I hope you enjoy this new feature and will use it to brighten up your day. 

  Also Check out the Way Back Collection of Grateful Dead Concerts!!

 Hey Hipsters and Cool Cats. Today a fellow time traveler stopped by The Way Back Machine and told a very cosmic tale taking us back to 1969..I would like to share that tale with you here today.

Way Back when, it was about 1969, it was a drizzly, chilly day.  I was out riding in the country, appreciating the scenery, and enjoying some herb.  Heading back into town, I spotted a hitch hiker along side the road.  The little town I lived in in central Texas was notorious for hassling anyone with hair over their collar. The Gestapo was known to find seeds in tail lights, arrest folk, and send them to the hoosgow for a spell.  Anytime we saw anyone thumbing a ride, we’d get them through town.

He was happy to get out of the rain.  The vibes were right, and we had a great visit. He was coming from California, heading east. Stopped at the DQ on the outside of town and bought my friend a burger and got back on the road.  We caught a good buzz, and about 5 miles out of town, we parted company.  He gave me a little match box, as a sign of his appreciation, and said to “enjoy.”

Shortening the story a bit… the matchbox contained 5 small, thin, clear squares about 1/4 inch on a side. I placed them in an aluminum film can… Hmm, there was a dance that night, and as I walked in, a square found it’s way under my tongue.

A bit of background – orange sunshine, purple barrels, and other assorted “enhancers” were good friends.  I would revel in the exploration of the new venues they presented.  I had no problem heading off to new places under cosmic power. This is also the first time I’ve tried to write about this experience.  I have tried to but the words don’t work.  I try to come up with the right phrases and concepts, but it doesn’t seem to work.  I’ve tried to explain it to some, but I can’t communicate it properly.  I feel that I must take care who I reveal these thoughts to lest I wind up in a straight-jacket somewhere.

The dance was great.  Good band, great people.  Having a super time.  Effects of the clear square were great.   Extremely controllable.  Make geometric shapes out of the grid paper squares of the acoustic tile ceiling – no problem.  Melt a wall, no problem, amazingly smooth.  Another.   Shortly after, things were becoming strange.  People were talking backwards, all kinds of auras were showing up and melting together.  Certain people were morphing into their animal avatars.  I decided that I had better head home for bed.

I walked out to my VW beetle, and fumbled for my keys, opened the car door, and was closing it in front of my house.  What??? How did I get here?  Too Strange.  I turned around and was closing the front door to our house looking at the bug 20 yards away in the street.  Uh-oh I closed the door and it kept swinging to open into my room. Sheeeeeat.  Being very quiet, I listened to hear if I woke anyone up.  No?? Cool. Closed the door, turned around, and looked at myself in bed. I looked back at the door, and I wasn’t there.  Too strange, way too strange.

I put on my headphones, tuned in the underground FM radio station coming out of Austin, Texas.  The FM station started broadcasting “underground” rock about 10:30 at night.  Wow, never heard stuff like they played.  Turned the volume up, laid back, closed my eyes, and surfed the music.  Roller Coaster by the 13th Floor Elevators, many other unbelievable songs, Hendrix, Ten Years After, and then a “new” group, The Moody Blues.  When the Moodys came on, I was looking at the 3 remaining clear squares.  The song was “Legend” from In Search of the Lost Chord.  There’s part of the song which goes “along the coast you’ll hear them boast about a light that shines so clear, so lift your glass and drink a toast……”  Yep, I did it…without thinking, or any consideration of the consequences, I lifted my glass and drank a toast.  Oh double sheeeeeat

Immediately, it felt like I had stuck my tongue into a 110 outlet.  I felt a rush like I’d never felt before.  I closed my eyes and rode the flow. After a very short period of time which seemed like forever, I opened my eyes and I was no-where. My room was gone, the floor was gone, everywhere it was black.  I didn’t feel any dis-ease and as I looked inward, I saw a point of light.  I found that by staring at the point of light, I would have a sense of movement.  I let the movement carry me, and it was like floating on a serene current.  Ocassionally, I recall hearing something about an angel coming down from heaven, and telling me it was my time to rise, or someone urging me to break on through to the other side.  I had never felt such freedom. 

I sensed somethng ominous.  Like an unseen waterfall coming.  I would feel a blow, hurt, the current became more eratic and I was being thrown around and was unsettled.  I began to sense images.  I would see shadows of someone speaking to a person, and the words carried hurt. The dark lessened and I saw a face in the shadows.  It was me.  This seemed to go on for a long time and it seemed that some were very hard and painful, and other times, it was just a dis-ease.  The waterfall was coming.  I sensed tremendous pain approaching…. I was very afraid.  It grew closer and the pain was visceral.  Suddenly, there was a cool wave of peace, love.  I was somehow shown that it was the pain I had caused being born, but at the same time, it was washed away by the love of my mother.

I felt so different.  Burdens that I didn’t know I was carrying had vanished.  I felt energy, I was everywhere. Something/someone was in my mind, no, there were several.  I was receiving calm soothing vibrations.  Thoughts opened like flowers in my mind.  Whole concepts became crystal clear.  As you are aware of someone walking up on you silently and reading over your shoulder, I was aware of 3 thought entities focused on me.  I sensed I should relax and not try.  It became easier to communicate.  Somehow I was experiencing telepathy.  A crude example would be to say, think of a chair.  Well, instead of an ambiguous thought picture of a chair, a chair thought would for which encompassed every aspect of the chair… it’s size, shape, structure, feel, smell, sound, in other words, every aspect of the chair.                                                                                                    

Volumes of information were available just by thinking about something. One thing would lead to another, which would lead to 3, which would lead to 10, then I’d pop back to my center of reference.  I groked amazement, our thoughts flowed together but somehow stayed seperate.  I was shown others points of view.  It seemed that I was able to think of experiencing something like being a happy dog, and I knew true happiness.  I could absorb sorrow and turn it into a joy of being able to feel sorrow.  Somehow, it seemed that what was good and what was evil merged into being… just being. Now.  There was a flow, a source where all became. It was very intense, but at the same time it became pure and was not threatening.  Something of a finality was coalescing. Like getting ready to put the last piece of a jigsaw puzzle in place.  

I felt that a crossover point was approaching.  Thoughts formed that very few had arrived at this point without having already passed away.  I now had to make the decision to continue my journey and staying in this mental wonderland. I would not be able to return.  I would leave my body behind.  Many scenarios passed through my mind simultaneously.  The people who would be hurt when I was found.  My mom. Others who may not follow the trail because I died.  But, if the completion was what I saw it could potentially be, it wouldn’t matter because I could erase myself from time, and no one would ever know that I was, but it wasn’t a certainty.  Time was long and in relation, my life was short anyway. If there was a chance for later, I would wait.  I was told ‘they’ would be there any time, all the time.

I was aware of fire. Orange fire. Sliver, bigger, ball. it was sunrise. It’s unreal, but to this day I can remember Harry Belafonte singing “Circle ‘Round the Sun,” as the sun rose.  A cool breeze came in through the window.  I was coughing very hard.  I couldn’t stop coughing.  There was a lot of blood on my pillow. My head was reeling. I turned on a light and looked around.  Everything seemed ok.  My fingernails were blue.  I went to the bathroom and saw red orbs staring at me from the mirror.  I was extremely pale and my lips were blue. Blood in my pee. 

Something to eat and get back in my room before the family wakes up.  Try to figure out what had happened.  I smelled muffins being made and juice being stirred.  A little more time and I now feel I deserved an Oscar for acting ‘normal.’  I grabbed a couple of muffins and headed outside saying something about early fishing.  Jumped on my motorcycle and went up into the hill country to try to sort things out.   About noon, I went to a friends house, and tried to explain/describe the experience… he said I had acid indigestion, and harrumphed.  

Little did I know that it would not be written down for 40 years.  Still, I’m not doing any where near a decent job of it.

Several times since then I’ve been blown away.  The first time was when I read some book with accounts of astral projection.  Wow – been there, done that, had no idea what it was.  A few years later, I learned about “near death experiences”.  Yea, been there too.  Still trying to figure out some other place/things what had gone on.

Tried to go there a few times since then.  Tried to figure it out as a philosophy major in college.  Interesting, but not one class looked at Aldous Huxley, Allan Watts, Aleister Crowley  John Lilly, and many others including the illustrious Timothy Leary.  There seemed/seems to be some enablement, empowering of the mind, can’t really write it right.

That’s about it.  So much else has gone on and I’m still being amazed.  All I can really say is what a long, strange trip it’s been.

Way Back Video of the Day

Hey Hipsters and Cool Cats, As you may know I am an artist. I have been working on a series of poster prints entitled “Somnium Materia Progenis.” These poster prints are a combination of my Dream Matter series and the influence of the psychedelic 60’s.

The posters are 11 x 17  printed on heavy stock with a protective coating. All prints are signed by the artist. The cost per poster print is $15 + S&H 

To find out how to purchase write to: sound_of_water@yahoo.com

The first print available is : “Somnium Materia Progenis No. 1″ ( Below)

Somnium Materia Progenis No. 1

Hey Hipsters and Cool Cats we have a special treat for ya in today’s posting. I met a groovy chick over at one of those online commune..ities. She had posted about her meeting with the great gonzo king himself…HUNTER S. THOMPSON and a year later the electric kool aid king…KEN KESEY!!!

Allow  me to step aside and give Michelle the stage so she can tell her tales…Lets give Michelle a big Wayback welcome!!!

I met Hunter Thompson in Aspen, Co. 1967, after he had written the book “Hells Angels”, and I had met Ken Kesey in 1968 in Springfield, Or. on his commune, the two were friends, and I had met them on separate terms. Introduced by different parties, so neither one knew I had met the other. In retrospect it’s ironic.
Their unpredictable behavior, their unrestful wild spirits, leaves us wanting more from them, idolizing them, these “Two Merry Pranksters” make us dig deep to search our
own behavior and we come to realize what fearless, powerful men these were struggling with their demons within.

“Two Merry Pranksters” by: Michelle Cohen-Wind

copyright 2009   michelle cohen-wind

Hunter Thompson,
what can I say,
you don’t get to meet
someone like him everyday.

Driving up red mountain,
my traveling partner Gene said,
“let’s go stop in and see an old friend”.
Approaching the cabin two very large
doberman’s suddenly appeared.
Hunter came out and said,
“Don’t be afraid”, and invited us in.

He was tall, lanky and gangling,
his hair cropped very short,
so different from our long hair,
I thought.

The first thing I noticed
as we entered the oversized room
was a huge coffee table
made from the core of
a redwood tree.

A thick book titled “NIXON”
lay among the stacks of
reading debris, piles of books,
magazines, papers everywhere
you could see.
Hats and caps hung everywhere
on the walls, and a shotgun
stood in every corner of the house.

His tiny son ran about,
with his diaper on and nothing else.
Like a little wild Indian boy,
he held an 8″ blade hunting knife.
I commented to Hunter,
“Is it alright?”, He said,
“how else will he learn”.
I will never forget that,
it was a poignant statement.
We hung in the kitchen for awhile,
old friends talked and then
we were gone.

“Ken Kesey is Dead ” By: Michelle Cohen-Wind

copyright 2009 michelle cohen -wind

Ken Kesey is dead,
so they said,
I remember clearly
driving up to his ’stead-
He stood there at the gate
with a shock of yellow hair
black were his clothes,
his skin was so fair,
Garrison belt, harley boots,
leather vest, bare chest,
“come on in”, he said, with
a smile, come into the barn
and set awhile.
His boys came in maybe 11, and 10
they lit up a doobie, and passed it on.
I was 19 at the time, May 1968,
just visiting with some friends of mine.
Up to Springfield, Oregon we came,
tripping and driving from San Francisco,
laughing all the way.
Honestly, I didn’t know who Ken Kesey was-
he asked me to stay on, and live on the commune.
But he had a wife, and a mistress named “Bubbles”
So we spent the day, tripping away,
He said”you can live here and stay”, and showed
me a shelf in the barn, where I could sleep.
He showed me his pink rabbits, and yellow chickens,
and he pushed me down a dark hole from the 3 story barn,
I felt like Alice In Wonderland.
Everything was communal-
the bathroom had 10 toilets in a row, open to anyone
that had to go, sinks and shower without any walls.
The kitchen was one long hall- with a huge flower
on one end, and when you went near it, it lit up.
The day came to an end, the trip wore off,
but it was an interesting day meeting Ken Kesey.

Far Out Michelle…such groovy writings…Thanks for sharing with all of us here at the Way Back Machine.

“THE DOORS / LIVE AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL”

July 5, 1968

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Part Four

Part Five

Part Six

Part Seven

Part Eight

Hey Cool Cats, Dig the way out soundtrack in the opening scene of The Wild Angels. The song is performed by Davie Allan and the Arrows. The title is “Blues Theme.” The song made it on Billboard charts for 17 weeks and peaked at No. 37. 

Wild Angels was a 1966 film by Roger Corman shot in Southern California. Starring Peter Fonda, Nancy Sinatra, and Bruce Dern. 

MORE SCENES FROM THE WILD ANGELS

Davie Allan and the Arrows 20 years later!!

Our Next post will include another film starring Peter Fonda.

“THE TRIP”

Trailer / THE TRIP

Hey Hipsters and Cool Cats!

Our featured video today is a History Channel documentary entitled ” Hippies.” 

~COMING SOON~

EASY RIDER 

starring : Peter Fonda , Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson