The Holy Modal Rounders

The Holy Modal Rounders was an American folk music group, originally the duo of Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber, who formed in 1963 on the Lower East Side of New York City. Although the band was not initially successful, they quickly earned a dedicated cult following and have been retrospectively praised for their pioneering innovation in several genres related to folk music. They also proved to be influential, both during their initial run and to a new generation of musicians like Yo La Tengo and Espers.

As the Holy Modal Rounders, Stampfel and Weber began playing in Greenwich Village, at the heart of the ongoing American folk music revival. Their sense of humor, irreverent attitude, and novel update of old-time music brought support from fellow musicians but also caused controversy amongst folk purists in the scene. In 1964, the Rounders made history with their self-titled debut, which included the first use of "psychedelic" in popular music. After their first two studio albums, the duo briefly joined the newly formed underground rock band the Fugs in 1965 and helped record the band's influential debut album.

Following their exit from the Fugs, the duo released two albums that experimented with psychedelic folk before they expanded their lineup to a full rock band by the end of 1968. The Holy Modal Rounders' expanded lineup notably included famed playwright Sam Shepard as a drummer and later guitarist Jeff "Skunk" Baxter (amongst others) before stabilizing in 1971, with a band that would later back Jeffrey Frederick as the Clamtones. In 1972, Weber relocated the band to Portland, Oregon, while Stampfel stayed behind in New York. Although Stampfel would describe Weber as his "long lost brother," they often had a hostile relationship and the two would only reunite sporadically following the band's Portland move. After Weber returned to the East Coast in 1995, the duo began a series of concert reunions starting in 1996 before breaking up for the last time in 2003. Provided by Wikipedia