The Red Crayola

Among experimental rock ensembles boasting the greatest longevity, the Red Crayola operated for nearly their entire extended and wide-ranging existence under the Red Krayola name. Formed as a Houston trio under Mayo Thompson’s direction in September 1966, the lineup originally included Steve Cunningham on bass and Rick Barthelme on drums. Their unorthodox handling of instruments and song forms prompted Lelan Rogers to sign them to his International Artists label in 1967 after witnessing the group draw a shopping-mall audience through sheer minimalist force. Early that year the Red Crayola recorded their debut album, The Parable of Arable Land, aided by dozens of noise-making hippies collectively known as “the Familiar Ugly,” among them Roky Erickson on organ. The resulting sound ranked among the period’s more audacious and least market-oriented psychedelic statements, a deliberate outcome Thompson had sought. Yielding to conventional business caution on only this one occasion, the musicians altered their spelling to the Red Krayola once they learned that the Crayola Crayons company was weighing litigation. The second album, God Bless the Red Krayola and All Who Sail with It, introduced both the revised name and Tommy Smith, who took over drumming from Rick Barthelme. That release proved another singular milestone, opening the door to Thompson’s lengthy, varied career under the Red Krayola banner.