Search - Blue Cheer :: Vincebus Eruptum: Outsideinside

Two Classic Blue Cheer Albums On One Cd!

highway_star | Hallandale, Florida United States | 07/18/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The trio of Blue Cheer who consisted of bassist/vocalist Dickie Peterson, guitarist Leigh Stevens and drummer Paul Whaley were one of the psychedelic sixties loudest bands. This latest 2 for one release of Blue Cheer's first two albums "Vincebus Eruptum" and "Outsideinside" on Track Records, U.K. is a bargain when you consider if you bought each individually you'd pay almost twice as much. "Vincebus Eruptum" released in 1968 was a solid album full of garage rockers complete with distorted guitars, pounding drums and wailing vocals. The album produced one hit "Summertime Blues" which took the song to new levels with it's obvious psychedelic influence. But the album also had lots of other good songs such as "Parchment Farm", "Rock Me Baby", "Second Time Around", "Out Of Focus", and "Doctor Please". Their second release "Outsideinside" released later in 1968 was an even better album utilizing the same formula that made "Vincebus Eruptum" a success. Lots of distorted guitars with tons of feedback, loud drums and screaming vocals. The standouts on "Outsideinside" are "Feathers From Your Tree", "Just A Little Bit", "Come And Get It", "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", and "The Hunter". In addition to the music you get the video of "Summertime Blues" that can be played on a PC or MAC. The video is encoded in Quicktime. I could not play the video on my PC. My only complaint about this new 2 for one release is that I'm not certain that it's been remastered from the original master tapes. The liner notes could have been better too. If you enjoy listening to 60's psychedelic rock then this is a must have."

Two-way dose of Blue Cheer

Rick Devore | Butler, Pa. | 05/02/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What a concept; combine the first two (and most classic) Blue Cheer albums on one disc so you can put it on, turn it up and trip out on the heaviest rock of the late 60s. In fact, Blue Cheer's brand of heaviness has rarely ever been matched. They were heavier than their hard-rock contemporaries, Cream, Jimi Hendrix and Deep Purple. Perhaps Black Sabbath was heavier when they came along but Sabbath was heavy in a sludgy, negative way whereas Blue Cheer was heavy in a vibrant, life-affirming fashion. Most "metal' bands followed the Black Sabbath route, and Led Zeppelin paved the way for more sophisticated hard-rock but there never was, and probably never will be, anything quite like Blue Cheer. As primitive as they were, the Cheer kicked it out thick and heavy with a true sense of rock and roll. You can't go wrong with this CD. "Vincebus Eruptum" is raw, agressive distortion and feedback drenched blues-rock. "Outsideinside" is just as gutsy but trippier and more sophisticated comparably (Even some piano tastefully blended in with the sonic mayhem.) Much is made of the fact that these guys were not very good musicians. But, the sum product is amazing. Some folks also complain about the way these albums were recorded, with the sound whooshing back and forth between the left and right channels. However, I dig it. You can get dizzy listening to this stuff through headphones. In conclusion, if you want to own some of the greatest hard rock ever recorded, this is it. The sound quality is primitive but the energy that this band had is unbeatable. "New Improved Blue Cheer" has some great songs too but these are the essential Blue Cheer albums on this disc."

THE BIRTH OF HEAVY MUSIC?

sonic-x | Sharon, PA United States | 05/22/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The guy who described Blue Cheer as having "Hendrixian ambition with Count Five talent" pretty much nailed it; nevertheless, "Vincebus Eruptum" is a remarkable document for its simple, in-your-face production and relentlessly heavy sound, and deserves the attention of any heavy music fan. "Outsideinside" suffers a bit from its attempt at a more sophisticated production job but still contains some great tunes and is well-worth checking out, especially for anyone interested in exploring the "San Francisco Sound" (other great examples of this "sound" are Jefferson Airplane's "Surrealistic Pillow", Steve Miller Band's "Sailor", Quicksilver Messenger Service's first album, and Grateful Dead's "Anthem of the Sun"). If you like this disc, though, beware: don't waste your money on any of their other releases, which were uniformly boring and bore no resemblence to the music on this disc."