Biography
Among Texas psychedelic acts tied to International Artists, Bubble Puppy secured the strongest mainstream results, even as labelmates the 13th Floor Elevators received more attention, by reaching the pop Top 20 with "Hot Smoke & Sassafras." The quartet originated in Corpus Christi as the Bad Seeds, a lineup of singer/guitarist Rod Prince, bassist Roy Cox, and drummer Clayton Pulley that later replaced Pulley with David Fore. After guitarist Todd Potter joined in 1967, the musicians briefly adopted the name Willowdale Handcar before settling on Bubble Puppy the following year. Their raw garage-psych approach earned a contract with the prominent Texas imprint International Artists, which released the debut album A Gathering of Promises in 1969. Although "Hot Smoke & Sassafras" became a major success, follow-up singles "If I Had a Reason," "Days of Our Time," and "What Do You See?" failed to chart, leading the group to rename itself Demian. A self-titled album appeared on ABC/Dunhill in 1971, yet the single "Face the Crowd" attracted scant notice and the band broke up. Prince and Potter revived their partnership in 1977 under the name Sirius, adding bassist George Rarey and drummer Mark Evans to complete the 1979 release Sirius Rising. The original Bubble Puppy members reconvened in 1987 and drew from the later Texas style of ZZ Top while recording the comeback album Wheels Go Round. Cox went on to lead the Bluesknights and NYC Outlaws until his death on April 2, 2013. In 2017 the band reunited once more, with Rod Prince and David Fore joined by guitarists Mark Miller and Gregg Stegall plus bassist Jimmy Umstattd. This configuration toured across Texas and issued Certified Badass in November 2017.
Albums