Aldous Huxley - Visionary Experience
Original release: Gifford Associates 102, c1969
Producer: Laura Archera Huxley
Comments: The second and last volume in a projected series dealing with 'the human situation', issued posthumously by Aldous Huxley's widow Laura. Al is in great form on this 1962 lecture before a Los Alamos scientist crowd, speaking of the visionary experience and how it relates to the history of art and religion. Substantial time is spent on psychedelic drugs, covering something like half of side 1, and this is the best audio document of Huxley's thoughts on LSD and mescaline around.
The non-hallucinogen talk is equally interesting and thought-provoking, and the mood is upbeat and progressive in a typical early 60s manner. The recording isn't perfect, but who cares? Terrific. Somewhat difficult to find, but a building block in any LSD-oriented record collection. The first volume in the series is "Human Potentialities", which contains no lysergic references but is still worth checking out for Huxley fans.
©
Patrick the Lama 2006