Biography
The psychedelic outfit the Tangerine Zoo took shape in 1967 in Swansea, Massachusetts, just outside Boston. Guitarist Robert "Benny" Benevides, bassist Tony Taveira, and drummer Donald Smith had already worked together in the Ebb Tides, the group that released the single "My Baby's Gone" on Arco the year prior. Singer/guitarist Wayne Gagnon and keyboardist Ronald Medeiros joined next, prompting a new name, the Flower Pot, and a deliberate turn from the Ebb Tides' garage rock toward a psychedelic direction. In addition to holding down the house-band slot at the Venus de Milo restaurant, the musicians opened shows for the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Van Morrison, and Deep Purple. Strong local support in Boston helped their profile rise, and by late 1967 they had secured a deal with Mainstream, the New York City label. During the sessions for their debut album, executives pressed for another name change to sidestep any backlash over the marijuana implication in Flower Pot; once the Tangerine Zoo was chosen, the self-titled LP appeared in early 1968. Taveira departed before the follow-up, Outside Looking In, was recorded. Although the band received an invitation to perform at the Woodstock festival in mid-1969, prior bookings forced them to decline. The group disbanded in 1970; Gagnon soon resurfaced in Wadsworth Mansion, whose 1971 single "Sweet Mary" reached the Billboard Top Ten. The original Tangerine Zoo lineup reconvened in 1988 for a charity fundraiser and has reunited from time to time in the years since.
Albums