Ace of Cups - “I Wanna Testify”
Ace of Cups were a rock band formed in the late 60s. They were named after the tarot card “ace of cups”, which contains five streams of flowing water within its design - symbolically, one stream for each band member. They packed up and headed to San Francisco where, as they say, it was all happening, and subsequently became one of the first respected all-female bands in the area and rock ‘n’ roll in general. Jimi Hendrix thought they were so great that he had them open for him at Golden Gate Park. He was quoted in Melody Maker as having said, “I heard some groovy sounds last time in the states, like this girl group, Ace of Cups, who write their own songs and the lead guitarist is hell, really great.” [*] It may very well be true that Mary Ellen Simpson is one of the best-kept secret weapons of the 60s with her smokin’ guitar talents.
Said Denise Kaufman of the Ace of Cups, “We all wrote - individually and together. And we all sang. Even songs that one of us had written often expanded and blossomed when we brought them into the band. We were really into harmonies, counter melodies and experimentation. We did some songs a capella. Some were humorous (“Waller St Blues”, “Catch You Later”) many were socio/political (“Glue”, “Living in the Country”, “No More War”), many were about relationships and in those times that was by its very nature personal/emotional and political. The songs we wrote as women (“Pretty Boy”, “Gypsy Boy”, “Looking for My Man”, “Circles”, “Simplicity”) were outside the box of those times.” [*]
Their demos are collected on the compilation It’s Bad for You But Buy It!. The group churned out several great rock songs, some of which double as uninhibited grooving soul (like their version of the Parliaments’ “I Wanna Testify” above) at the drop of a hat. They pull off a great swirling, psychedelic version of Oscar Brown, Jr.’s “Afro Blue”, complete with some outstanding drumming. In “Stones / The Grass Is Always Greener”, they give a shout-out to the Rolling Stones. In “Glue”, the refrain of “Buy it, buy it! It’s bad for you, but buy it!” (of course, from which their compilation takes its name) pokes fun at female beauty product consumerism with a faux jingle, just dripping with the essential sarcasm and sneer that’s always been ingrained in garage rock. The Ace of Cups could create building, organ-driven jams like “Looking for My Man” and slow it down with smoldering ballads, like “Simplicity” - Denise Kaufman’s ode to Wavy Gravy. The comp even includes the ‘66 snotty, raw garage stomper “Boy, What’ll You Do Then”, which was actually recorded by Denise & Co., Kaufman’s pre-Ace of Cups group.
Sadly, despite earning the attention of several labels, they were never signed for whatever reason. Perhaps because of the music industry’s lack of interest in seriously promoting female bands who wrote their own material and played their own instruments or the hands of poor management, as it went with a number of bands’ fates in history. Their manager was very cautious, and perhaps the intentions were good, but it also led to missed opportunities. Also, some of the members had children and might have found it difficult to juggle life on the road with family duties. A number of factors may have led to the band’s dissolution, but it sure as hell sounded fun while it lasted. They remained friends and have reformed for gigs every now and then. Rumor has it they’re even going to record again. You can see what Denise Kaufman is up to here (mostly surfing and being a yoga instructor!)
Check out some live footage of the Ace of Cups in 1967 here, from the film Revolution. For more information and photos, go here.
-k.
