Bee Thousand

Bee Thousand is the seventh album by American indie rock band Guided by Voices, released on June 21, 1994, on Scat Records.

Following the release of Bee Thousand, the band began to attract interest from other record labels, eventually signing with Matador for their next album.

Due in part to both of these factors, several unusual errors are present in the album's recording and mixing; for example, the guitar track drops out at one point in both "Hardcore UFO's" and “Mincer Ray”.

[15] Many of the album's lyrics reflect childish or fantastical themes and were heavily influenced by the statements and actions of Pollard's fourth grade class, exemplified by "Gold Star for Robot Boy".

The title Bee Thousand was inspired by a group brainstorming session, during which band members smoked cannabis.

Other considered titles included All That Glue and Instructions for the Rusty Time Machine, both of which were used in the lyrics of other Guided by Voices songs.

[17] The caped person on the front of the album is from an image in an article by National Geographic documenting the festival of Mardi Gras in Acadiana, Louisiana.

[18] In July 2014, Guitar World ranked Bee Thousand at number 6 in their "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994" list.