The title track of this ’68 psychedelic rocker was The Amboy Dukes’ only hit, rising to no. 16 on the Billboard singles chart. The album itself, which topped out at no. 78, has interesting moments, and the Nuge’s indelible leads throughout, but it’s the eponymous single that keeps me coming back.

Ted Nugent was the epicenter of The Amboy Dukes, which he put together in the Chicago suburbs in ’64, and later relocated to Nugent’s hometown, Detroit. Though the band has been characterized by multiple sources as psychedelic rock, later in life, the vehemently anti-drug

The Motor City Madman is mad at drugs, and perhaps always was, but Journey to the Center of the Mind is unambiguously psychedelic.

Nugent would go on to say The Amboy Dukes did not celebrate drug use as other 60’s/70’s bands. The Motor City Madman is mad at drugs, and perhaps always was, but Journey to the Center of the Mind is unambiguously psychedelic.

It’s an interesting juxtaposition because this album certainly borrows from the instrumental tropes and lyrical affect associated with psychedelic music of the era. The vocals are reminiscent of Moody Blues harmonies, with spoken word passages that aspire to mythic narrative. But where the Moody Blues seems to resonate with authentic spirituality, the lyrics on this record come off as daffier and eclectic.