The Oxford Circle was an American

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock music that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is ...

and

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

band from

Davis, California Davis is the most populous city in Yolo County, California, United States. Located in the Sacramento Valley region of Northern California, the city had a population of 66,850 in 2020, not including the on-campus population of the University of ...

, near

Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

, who were active from 1964 to 1967. They became a popular

act with a

proto-punk Proto-punk (or protopunk) is rock music from the 1960s to mid-1970s that foreshadowed the punk rock genre and movement. A retrospective label, the musicians involved were generally not originally associated with each other and came from a variet ...

sound influenced by

Them Them or THEM, a third-person singular or plural accusative personal pronoun, may refer to: Books * ''Them'' (novel), 3rd volume (1969) in American Joyce Carol Oates' ''Wonderland Quartet'' * '' Them: Adventures with Extremists'', 2003 non-fict ...

and other blues-based bands of the

British Invasion The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when Rock music, rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of Culture of the United Kingdom, British culture became popular in the United States with sign ...

, that, in addition to heavy guitar feedback, came to encompass psychedelia. The group began to make appearances in San Francisco, where they became a top draw in venues such as the

Avalon Ballroom The Avalon Ballroom was a music venue in the Polk Gulch neighborhood of San Francisco, California, at 1244 Sutter Street (or 1268 Sutter, depending on the entrance). The space is known as the location of many concerts of the counterculture mov ...

. They taped a show at the Avalon in 1966 and, after lying in the vaults for years, it was rereleased in 1997 on the ''Nuggets from California: Live at the Avalon 1966'' anthology. In November 1966, they released the

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

, "Foolish Woman" b/w "Mind Destruction", which is also included, along with several other studio outtakes, on the ''Nuggets from California'' compilation. In 1967, drummer

Paul Whaley Paul Gene Whaley (January 14, 1947 – January 28, 2019) was an American drummer best known as the drummer for rock band Blue Cheer. He was the son of country music singer Paul Edward Whaley. He grew up in the towns of Vallejo and Winters, Califo ...

left to play in pioneering heavy rock act

Blue Cheer Blue Cheer was an American rock band that initially performed and recorded in the late 1960s and early 1970s and was sporadically active until 2009. Based in San Francisco, Blue Cheer played in a psychedelic blues rock or acid rock style. The ...

. Lead vocalist and guitarist Gary Lee Yoder and lead guitarist Dehner Patten left to form

Kak Kak or KAK may refer to: People *Ram Chandra Kak (1893–1983), Indian politician, chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir *Amar Nath Kak (1889–1963), Indian writer, brother of Ram *Siddharth Kak, Indian film and television director *Subhash Kak, I ...

, who recorded for

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...

. Yoder subsequently went on to join

in one of their later configurations. The Oxford Circle began as the Hideaways in 1964 and they were from Davis, California, which is a university town just outside of Sacramento, and Northeast of San Francisco. Their membership consisted of Gary Lee Yoder on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Dehner Patten on lead guitar, Jim Keylor on bass, and Paul Whaley on drums. They quickly became popular in the regional teen scene and in 1965 changed their name to the Oxford Circle (a small street in Davis), in deference the popular

, particularly some of the tougher blues-based bands such as

, led by

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan "Van" Morrison (born 31 August 1945) is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician whose recording career started in the 1960s. Morrison's albums have performed well in the UK and Ireland, with more than 40 reaching the UK ...

, who were particularly influential. The group became known for their intense live performances which included occasional use of heavy feedback from their guitars. Sensing a new market for their style of playing, the Oxford Circle began to make trips to San Francisco to play in the psychedelic pattern-projected, strobe-lit ballrooms there, where they became a popular live act, on several occasions sharing the bill with

the Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in Palo Alto, California, in 1965. Known for their eclectic style that fused elements of rock, blues, jazz, folk, country, bluegrass, rock and roll, gospel, reggae, and world music with psyc ...

Quicksilver Messenger Service Quicksilver Messenger Service is an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1965 in San Francisco. The band achieved wide popularity in the San Francisco Bay Area and, through their recordings, with psychedelic rock enthusiasts around the globe, ...

, and

Big Brother and the Holding Company Big Brother and the Holding Company are an American rock band that was formed in San Francisco in 1965 as part of the same psychedelic music scene that produced the Grateful Dead, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and Jefferson Airplane. After ...

. They played at venues such as the

, operated by Family Dog and Chet Helms, where they made a live recording that would remain in the vaults for years, which is highly indicative of their performances at the time in which they mix garage-based proto-punk with psychedelic experimentation. At that show they performed a nine-minute feedback-laden version of "Mystic Eyes", previously recorded by Them, a version of the Yardbirds' " Mister, You're a Better Man Than I", and blues "war-horses" such as "Baby Please Don't Go", later recorded by

the Amboy Dukes The Amboy Dukes may refer to: * ''The Amboy Dukes'' (novel), 1947 American novel about juvenile delinquents * The Amboy Dukes (band), American rock band founded 1964 ** ''The Amboy Dukes'' (album), 1967 album by that band {{disambig ...

and

Bo Diddley Ellas Otha Bates (December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist and singer who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, including Buddy ...

's " I'm A Man". In November 1966, they released the single "Foolish Woman" b/w "Mind Destruction" on World United Records. Drummer Paul Whaley eventually joined heavy rock pioneers

, but it created a vacuum in the band which led to their eventual dissolution. Future blues star

Joe Louis Walker Louis Joseph Walker Jr. (December 25, 1949 – April 30, 2025), known as Joe Louis Walker, was an American musician, best known as an electric blues guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer. His knowledge of blues history is revealed by his u ...

played with the group briefly. Yoder and Patten left to form Kak, who recorded for Epic, and Yoder subsequently joined Blue Cheer in one of their later configurations. By the end of 1967, the Oxford Circle were no more. In recent years the Oxford Circle's reputation has grown amongst psychedelic and garage rock enthusiasts. Their entire 1966 concert recorded at the Avalon Ballroom, along with the single, "Foolish Woman" (both the live and studio versions of the song are included) and other studio tracks, were released in 1997 in pristine sound quality on the ''Nuggets from California: Live at the Avalon 1966'' anthology, put out by Big Beat Records. The studio version of "Foolish Woman" was released on the 2004 deluxe 5-CD box set compilation ''Trash Box'' issued by Hit Records and on '' Uptight Tonight: The Ultimate 1960s Garage Punk Primer'', put out by Big Beat Records.

Membership

* Gary Lee Yoder (lead vocals and rhythm guitar) *Dehner Patten (lead guitar) *Jim Keylor (bass) *

(drums)

Discography

45 r.p.m. single

*"Foolish Woman" b/w "Mind Destruction" (World United 002, November 1966)

Anthology/Live album

*''Nuggets from California: Live at the Avalon 1966'' (Big Beat, 1997)

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oxford Circle 1964 establishments in California 1967 disestablishments in California American blues rock musical groups American protopunk groups Garage rock groups from California Musical groups established in 1964 Musical groups disestablished in 1967 Psychedelic rock music groups from California