title, is in reference to drug use. Friends, apparently, are a metaphorical figure that John Lennon used to portray drugs
when he penned this song. Did the Beatles use drugs when they made their music? And if it is true that the Beatles were
drug users then one would have to wonder about the presence of other drug influenced music that has been created over
time. So in fact, can we say that drugs are a factor in the creation of music? They just may be.
Musicians from all genres can attest to the usage of drugs in cases concerning both artistic development as well as
personal life. Jazz musicians are said to have used marijuana as a way of attaining better timing. An old jazz term “tall”
was used to indicate that one of the performers were high. Legendary jazz saxophonist John Coltrane was asked to leave
the jazz band of Miles Davis due to his heroine addiction. Blues musicians also were advocates of drugs and alcohol.
Many of the lyrics of blues songs deal with the usage of booze in their life. One song in particular by John Lee Hooker
tells the story of his night at a bar drinking liquor in an effort to forget his love. Later redone by George Thorogood, the
song mentioned is “One Bourbon, One Scotch, and One Beer”. However, more so than the jazz and blues genre, when
drugs are mentioned in accordance with music, people often think of “hippie music”.
While “hippie music” is a hard definition to come up with exactly, one can get a sense of what that music was. While
people from all classifications can enjoy and bask in every type of music, for purposes of this project “hippie music” will
be classified as music that is primarily listened to by the type of person most labeled as a hippie. And for this particular
type of music, drug use was undoubtedly a major influence.
One of the poster bands for the hippie population is the Grateful Dead. The Grateful Dead, a San Francisco based
band were avid users of various narcotics. Often time throughout their career the Dead would perform concerts while on
LSD, a chemically manufactured drug commonly known as acid which may cause, among other things, hallucinations.
For a small period of time the Grateful Dead sold acid that was made by Owlsley Stanley, a prominent acid maker who
fronted the money for instruments and equipment for the early Grateful Dead. Rock Scully, the manager of the Grateful
Dead and author of Living With the Dead, tells of one time selling Owlsley acid to people who bought drugs for Jim
Morrison of the Doors. Scully then claims that Morrison wrote much of his best material while on the acid. Drug use by
the Doors is seen in more depth in the movie The Doors by director Oliver Stone. Acid was used by many performers in
the hippie generation, however, this was not the only drug that was used.
Musicians during the ‘60s used more of a variety of drugs rather than just LSD. Heroine, cocaine, mescaline, PCP,
nitrous oxide, and mushrooms are just some of the substances that were in favor of bands. The Allman Brothers Band, in
a show of band unity, all had mushrooms tattooed onto their calves. The mushroom was from then on adopted as the
unofficial symbol of the band. Eric Clapton, guitarist for the bands the Yardbirds and Cream before later taking on a solo
career, once recorded a song simply titled “Cocaine”. In a side note, Clapton now runs a drug and alcohol rehabilitation
center know as Crossroads.
Lyrics and song titles of the hippie generation also show a lean towards the use of drugs. The Beatles “Lucy in the
Sky With Diamonds” was said the have been written about a drug induced trip that they had, however it is contested by
band members that the song was written about a drawing that was made by one of their children. However, that is not
the only song that has people believing in the use of drugs by musicians. Steppenwolfs song, “The Pusher”, used in the
soundtrack for the movie Easy Rider talks about drug use and the people who sell it. “Purple Haze” by Jimi Hendrix is
another example of the way that drugs influenced the music the time. Purple haze, more than just a song title, was the
name of a batch of LSD that was made by the previously mentioned Owlsley Stanley. Heroine also get its due in the
musical circle by being the subject and title of the Velvet Underground’s song “Heroine”.
Drugs use also can be attributed to the cause for the death of many musicians who symbolized the hippie movement.
Most remembered for having passed during the time of hippies is Jimi Hendrix (barbiturate overdose), Janis Joplin
(heroine, alcohol and Valium overdose) and Jim Morrison (heart attack brought on by heroine use). However, the list
goes on farther than that, Who drummer Keith Moon, Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones, and more recently Grateful
Dead guitarist and singer Jerry Garcia all died from drugs or complications caused by chronic drug use. In more recent
history, Sublime singer Brad Nowell, Blind Melon’s Shannon Hoon, both influenced by hippie music have died from drug
complications.
Drug use has always been rampant in American music, especially rock and roll. In regards to rock and roll, the
specific genre of “hippie music” can lay claim to a number of drug users and drug influenced recordings. Whether
beneficial or detrimental to music is a arguable point, but one can not deny the impact and influence that is present and
caused by drug use. A quote by Michael Bloomfield, a guitarist who served stints with the likes of Bob Dylan and
Muddy Waters shows the way that some musicians feel about the use of narcotics. “ I’ve got a friend named Greenspan
that says, “I need a little cocaine to give me energy. I need a little liquor to give me courage. And I need a little pot to
give me inspiration.” I believe this to be the case for many musicians….I tend to stay fucked up all the time.” Michael
Bloomfield later died from a heroine overdose.
Scully, Rock and David Dalton: Living With the Dead (Boston: Little,
Brown and
Company, 1996)
Shapiro, Harry: Waiting for the Man (New York: William Morrow, 1988)