General
The Seeing Eye Gods is the name of the band Brett Gurewitz was is in in the early eighties. It was Brett's first side project and they released a self-titled 12" picture disc. It was released in 1985 on Epitaph Records at a time when he was heavily into drugs, and not on good terms with his Bad Religion band-mates.
Back then Brett had a distribution deal with a company called Sounds Good and they released about 1,000 copies.
The album has a pop-psychedelic feel to it, with Brett singing on all tracks, and him and Bertini (his friend and pusher) playing all the instruments.
On this record Brett goes by the nickname "Billy Pilgrim" and John Bertini by the name "Ripped Van Winkle".
For a long time not many knew about this record. It was in 1998 when Suzy Shaw told former The Bad Religion Page admin Roger Vulture about its existence. Some punk collectors in Europe knew that it was written by Brett and that Suzy is "Psychedelic Suzy", as she got a few letters on the subject. This would seem to indicate at least some distribution. But Suzy herself had never come across anyone who had one until Roger found it and contacted Suzy.
Tracklist
- Only One
- Psychedelic Suzy
- Pictures of Matchstick Men
- Strawberry Girl
- Happy
Brett co-wrote all the songs with Bertini, except for "Happy", which Bertini wrote alone. "Pictures of Matchstick Men", however, is a cover of a Status Quo song.
Two songs talk about the girl Brett was dating back then, Suzy Shaw. They are "Psychedelic Suzy" and "Strawberry Girl".
Liner notes
The album was produced by Brett Gurewitz and Jon Bertini, engineered by Bret Gurewitz and Recorded and Mixed at Westbeach Recorders, Los Angeles, CA. Vinyl says " 33 1/3 RPM Unauthorized duplication would be appreciated " and in the dead wax, you can read "WE ARE BEATRICE", "EPI - SEG -1" and "22801".
The following text can found on the backside of the sleeve:
"The Seeing Eye Gods were founded April 1st, 1980 in the primordial soup of the Los Angeles basin. United by the common belief that in an age of acid reign all men are created in technicolor. Vocalist Billy Pilgrim, an undifferentiated wisp of nothingness, in 1965, came to Ypsilanti, Michigan, May 12th, 1966. Unbeknownst to Billy, in the small neighboring town of Romulus, lived his soul-mate (cell-mate) Ripped Van Winkle. Rumor has it born a full-grown man, Ripped has aged into a young child. Billy having heard of this extraordinary yet familiar feat, became possessed of the idea of a working relationship. Years passed and moments later our unsung heroes, seemingly linked by fate, meet while interviewing for employment as human guinea pigs at the U.C.L.A. Medical Center. The rest is history. The Seeing Eye Gods."
Art direction: Brett Gurewitz
Design and logo: John Strauss
Artwork
The artwork is drawn by Johns Strauss and Brett himself.
