Search - Blues Magoos :: Psychedelic Lollipop

This is the one to get

T. Horsefat | Napa CA | 10/31/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This psychedelipop classic is available in three forms, but don't be confused. This, the latest version, is absulutely the best. The sound, liner notes, and packaging are first-rate. Anyone familiar with releases on the Collectibles label can guess that the two-CDs-for-the-price-of-one edition (Lollipop/Comic Book) is not a real bargain. As for the older (2002)Repetoire version, well, it contains no extras, it's sound is not quite as good, it's packed in a standard crappy jewel case, and the liner notes are useless. Rolling Stone's Encyclopedia of Rock (~late 70's, I believe) wrote the Blues Magoos off as a flashy one trick pony that influenced no one. I guess they never considered a comparison to Pink Floyd's first album, which came a year later. The Magoos hit charted in the UK and you can bet Syd Barret payed attention since the Floyd was, at that time, playing more pop-oriented music. I'll add that, in the early 80s, I caught the Chesterfield Kings at DC's 9:30 club when they were a pretty new act. At that time (at least at that performance), they looked and sounded like a Blues Magoos tribute band. Enjoy this album. It's fun."

THE BLUES MA-WHO'S?

wally gator | USA | 06/20/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Who are they, you ask?



These guys are one of my favorites from the sixties garage scene. The best way to purchase this disc is in the 2in1 album pack that pairs this up with the follow up album, Electric Comic-Book, because it's actually cheaper, and you can experience the good tunes from that one too.



This however is the far superior album of the small catalouge of The Magoos. Why so rare?



I think, mainly, that The Blues Magoos barely wrote any of their own material, and they weren't British. The Blues Magoos came from Brooklyn, NY... but they could really rock for a sixties garage band. Listen to them cover I'LL GO CRAZY. Its a two minute long jam! Very nicely executed. Check out GOTTA GET AWAY, with the group shout along choruses. Nice,nice,nice. A little pre-punk meets bubblegum, but heavy duty. Check out TOBACCO ROAD, with the drums kill keyboards kill guitar sequence in the middle. Pisser.

This album came out in 1965, listen to how it must've influenced great bands like The Doors and other sixties legends. Some bands seem to fall through the floorboards now and then... but it's pretty great when you manage to pry them out. ROCK!"

+1/2 -- Essential garage rock in the psychedelic age

hyperbolium | Earth, USA | 05/07/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This Bronx-originated band had the misfortune to bust out their signature slice of garage rock, "(We Ain't Got) Nothin' Yet," just as the psychedelics kicking in to the audience at large. The title of this debut album suggests the band was tuning in and dropping out, but even with a jamtastic freak-out added to the Nashville Teens' "Tobacco Road," the group's whining Farfisa organ and pounding rhythms were still rooted in the garage. That's not a knock on their music, just a thought as to why they were unable to follow-up the top-5 success of the single.



The ten tracks that comprised their Mercury debut were recorded in 1966, just as rock was transforming from DIY garage into flower power and psychedelia. You can hear the impact in the ballad "Queen of My Nights," which takes in both the McCoys' "Hang on Sloopy" harmonizing and Country Joe & The Fish's acidy organ-and-bass. The similarity to CJ&TF's psych-blues is also heard on the original "Sometimes I Think About," with its terrific burbling guitar solo. Most powerful of all is the full-kit drum fills, jangly guitar solo and percussive, ricocheted background vocals on "Gotta Get Away."



Whether covering James Brown ("I'll Go Crazy"), interpreting blues standards ("Working Life Blues"), or rocking garage originals ("She's Coming Home"), the Blues Magoos had the magic touch of a garage band with psychedelic flair. Fans of the Seeds, Standells, Leaves and other bands that bridged frat rock to psychedelia should have this in their collection. Of all the reissues available, the 14-track CD on Repetoire is the one to get for sound quality and completeness, as it includes the album's original ten tracks, plus four singles versiona as bonuses. 4-1/2 stars, if allowed fractional ratings. [©2007 hyperbolium dot com]"