Electric Music For The Mind And Body

I find it very hard to get excited about an album like this. It was probably big or important in its time (67, right at the beginning of the whole psychedelic pop-rocknsummer of love shit) but this is the same crap I've heard a done much better a million times. I paid more attention to the lyrics to see if I was missing something groundbreaking - cool cats, diggin trips, fuck LBJ, nothing new to see here. And I get that these are cliches now but might not have been at the time, doesn't make them less annoying. It's raw, and I fucking love raw albums, but these guys needed a couple more takes of a few of these songs. And the bluesy track that could have been a nice song was ruined by the loudest tambourine I've ever heard in a song, followed later by the loudest maracas I've ever heard in a song. "Death sound". Maybe I'd have enjoyed it if I'd heard it before I heard Jefferson airplane, grateful dead etc. Or if I never watched ANY Vietnam movies. Or if I dropped some acid first. Other than that, great album.

Electric Music for the Mind and Body by Country Joe and The Fish (1967) McDonald’s moniker “Country Joe” is a reference to Joseph Stalin, and Barry Melton’s moniker “The Fish” is a reference to Mao Zedong (Wikipedia); you see, mommies, daddies, and managers were post-WWII socialists. This was music that was loved at the time because it was so ‘counter-cultural’. And it was loved by people who celebrated their difference from the mainstream by imitating each other. This mindset was perfectly parodied by Dick Shawn in the 1967 Mel Brooks classic “The Producers”. The ‘message’ is carried by trite lyrics that clunk along and stop just short of expressing feeling. It’s what you get when you turn red diaper babies loose in the studio. Lyrically, the album seems to be excusing itself by saying, “Since I’m stoned, I don’t have to make sense”. There’s one weeny stab at amateur political satire of LBJ (“Superbird”) that can be reduced to “I don’t like you, nyaah, nyaah”. And when a songwriter says (“Sad and Lonely Times”), “I can’t find the words to tell you how I care”, the listener can’t help but say, “Well, keep searching and get back to me”. Lead guitar has some nice moments (“Death Sound”, “Bass Strings”) with sparkling blues runs, inventive rapid tremolo and tasteful reverb, but it’s slapped against lead vocals that utterly lack soul. Plus, the bass strings on “Bass Strings” are seriously out of tune (actually, this is the case on most of the album). And there’s often an annoying mismatch between the gimmicky guitar effects (e.g., “Porpoise Mouth”) and the lyrical mood. Organ and harmonica on the pretentiously ‘psychedelic’ extended “Section 43” are strictly amateur. The closing track “Grace” (supposedly a tribute to Grace Slick) is so bad I can picture Slick saying, “Thanks, but no thanks.” It’s all about love, peace, getting high, stop the war, yada yada. And it’s all so plastic—an album that begs not to be taken seriously. 1/5

Well, it’s better than the Grateful Dead, but that’s a low bar.

blues-y patchouli oil old school hippy stuff. Rugged, gritty, leftist. That classic "I recorded this in a tent" aesthetic.

These fuckers were at Woodstock and I was served this album during Daylight Savings Time. These things are both true and more substantial than I care to admit. Drugs and drug music have gotten much better since this album was released. Yet we still can't fix Daylight Savings Time or create another successful Woodstock.

Apparently you can judge a book by its cover. My favourite part was the song that randomly played right after this album finished on Apple Music. Check out “Screamin’” by The Paul Butterfield Blue Band.

Wow. A psychedelic rock album from 1967? These guys were truly innovators. There were definitely no other psychedelic rock albums from this time period! I'm sure this album belongs on the list and is not just a footnote in one of the most oversaturated music genres of all time! Country Joe should shut up and let THE FISH speak for a moment. I want to hear some blubs. Truly one of the albums ever. 2/5.

Was having a bad day. couple of beers and this CD fixed me.

Who could forget the time that LBJ fought the Fantastic 4 and Doctor Strange? This album is on DRUGS

Well that Xmas recycling is not going to sort itself, I'd better get a crack on. For some reason our yellow bin cycle doesn't really align with Xmas, so it's a bit of struggle, what with two weeks of normal recycling and then all the Xmas boxes and stuff, but then that's Canterbury Bankstown council for you. Sorry did someone say something about Country Joe and the Fish, sorry, I didn't catch that..on a par with Stephen Stills? I can't hear you over the sound of boxes being scrunched.

Excellent stuff. Love finding bangers on this list that I've never heard of. Loved the weirdness of it

Meh. Groovy, but only as a period example

On the whole, I liked it. Good, old-school, jazz-infused psychedelic rock. There were some things I didn't like though. The guitars were occasionally too high-pitched and whiny for my liking (although I really liked the more swamp-style twingey guitar parts) and the vocals weren't the best either. Still, a nice listen overall.

Fuzzy, loosey goosey blues and psych. A pleasant surprise, but I feel like it loses the plot near the end. I like how, at one point, they drop all pretense and just whisper the letters "LSD". Favorite tracks: "Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine", "Love"

I Liked this a lot more than I expected I would, especially after starting it and not getting through the first song or two the first couple tries. You can tell that it was one of the albums that laid the foundation, or discovered the formula for, psych and jam bands that would follow. It seems like a more bare representation of the elements that would go on to dominate those genres. Very bluesy at times with a country and rock ‘n roll vibes with a lot of experimentation and ambience.

I really enjoyed this album, maybe the electric stuff got a little too loud but when they go folksy, yum, I liked it so much I easily listened twice

Had never heard of them before but loved it. All the sounds, the twang, the catchiness of the lyrics, I probably saved half the album to my music. This is why I'm doing this project, to find things like this. And also, what a name!

swampy psychedelia? sign me the fuck up — 10/10

Great psych!

Better than Coldplay

On the whole, I liked it. Good, old-school, jazz-infused psychedelic rock.

One surprise in this project is how much I like psychedelic music. Certainly wasn’t much of a thing for me when I was younger. Through this project, though, the psychedelic-laced albums more often than not appeal. This album is no exception. I listened to it three times today and each time enjoyed it more! I dig it not just as a historic album but also as a groovy listen.

Really enjoyed this one, especially the dark psychedelic sound that it has.

tri bom o som

4.5/5. Might be low-key some of the best stuff from 60s Cali psych at the time

beautiful

Probably the best Country Joe and the Fish album

I was not thrilled by the prospect of spending the weekend with these dirty hippies - the Reading lineups for either 1991 or 1992 knock Woodstock into a cocked hat, in my opinion. However, I was lowkey impressed, presented with a fascinating set full of bluesy weirdness and mild mysticism (along with era-appropriate cliches; meekly complaining about LBJ in "Super Bird", conspiratorially whispering "LSD" in "Bass Strings"). Closer to Beefheart than to The Grateful Dead, pretty good.

Neat cross section of 60’s Southern rock and psychedelic. Definitely a solid and unique listen

I love psychedelic/acid rock from the late 1960s and this is another great San Francisco Bay Area album from 1967. I like the electric organ heavy songs which lean to more jazzy-psychedelic than acid rock. I still love Jefferson Airplane the most from the scene but this is also a very good album.

I enjoyed this one more than I expected. It’s a vibrant slice of late-’60s psychedelia, full of swirling organ lines and free-spirited energy. At times, it reminded me of The Doors with its moody, hypnotic grooves and extended jams. The album feels raw and exploratory, capturing that era’s sense of musical adventure without being too self-indulgent. Pass the incense and turn up the volume!!

Better than I was expecting, typical 60s psych, but great guitar playing and interesting songs

I was picking up what they were putting down. I often don't connect with country-rock tinged psychedelia and usually favor either heavier rock or pop influences, but this album has the right shiftless druggie vibes for my shiftless druggie lifestyle!

A classic acid/psych rock album from 1967. You just can't miss that one!

Legit, charming, and I can't remember much else of it two days later.

Amateurish, bluesy/country/hippie rock. I'm sure these guys had a dream (or an acid trip) that convinced them they should put together a band, but they really should have practiced a few times. That's how real musicians do it, anyway.. It's a product of it's time and I feel like I should forgive it some (or show it some grace) on these merits. We had Donovan's "Sunshine Superman" as our album yesterday and that didn't hit well at all. That was more medieval bard than hippie IMO. This one, while the quality of the music is lower, is a bit more charming to my ears, because of its more country-blues bend. Plus, their misguided but seemingly earnest attempt pulls it up to a low (3/5).

I could not point out one track on this entire album. It all ran together, but in a "its-fine-just-let-it-play" kinda way. An album length unending jam. Its got some good bluesy riffs that you could've heard on similar psychedelic rock albums from the time. Enjoyed most of this. Solid 3.

drugs

Hippie Dippie ok.

A pretty plain 60's Psych record with lots of electric guitar, electric organ, and 60's shit. It was alright, but it didn't leave an impression

#262 Heard Before? Not at all. Notes: - vocals sound like a parody of the hippie sixties. yikes. i guess it really was like that. - my absolute favorite thing about this album is the chintzy too-loud organ parts. - the mix sounds like someone hit random faders. Verdict: Best left behind at Woodstock, where it clearly belonged. Listen Again? Nope. But I have a soft spot for Section 43.

Came into this one completely fresh, as I'd only vaguely heard of them and was never exposed. I really wanted to like this one, as it had a sound reminiscent of the Doors and some other late 60s psychodelia, but I found myself bouncing off of the the minimalist/shoddy production value right out of the gate. Every song seemed to bring a little something to like, but most tracks either overstayed their welcome or included some shrill guitar riff, screechy vocals, or calliope sounding organ music that annoyed and repelled me. Not the worst I've ever heard, but I certainly wasn't high enough to give it its due. A disappointing 2/5 that I hoped to like more than I did.

I was prepared to defend this record but it's very front loaded, if you can believe it. Snooze.

There are a number of genres this list has made me appreciate more - 1950s crooners, 1970s funk, etc. The one genre it has made me realize I really don't care for is late 1960s psychedelic pop. Writing this comment has also made me realize I don't know how to spell psychedelic without googling it.

I literally said "Oh fuck off" out loud when I heard the whispered "L-S-D" at the end of "Bass Strings." That was the culmination of annoyance that started building with "Section 43" and picked up speed with the LBJ jokes of "Super Bird." By the time the plodding "Grace" closed things out, my hostility couldn't be reined in. In short, I hated this. I'm sure it blew minds back in '67, but I found it un-fucking-bearable 60 years later.

Wrote a long rant about how mad I am that shit like this is over-represented on this list. Quickly realised I don't actually care enough to post it.

This is nowhere near as shit as I thought it would be, or even what I thought it would be. It's a diffuse, sprawling psych-rock album heading into some wildly experimental territories and with some thrilling Hammond organ playing to be witnessed. This is way ahead of its time in more ways than one. It's got a thick murky low-end and swirling atmosphere which demands to be heard either on a good pair of headphones or speaker system. The guitar work on here is great, with a real bluesy bite to it that weaves spectacularly well with the aforementioned Hammond organ. There are also hints of the developments which would follow in ambient music and space rock in the engulfing seven minute "Section 43", which shares that same drone-heavy experimentation of later acts. This is a genuinely fascinating and fearlessly ambitious album. It's for that reason I'm awarding it five stars.

oi

Really really fun! I love psychedelic rock and have basically no awareness of the genre - how exciting!

I remember when this wasn't a thing. How did we survive back then?

This one is a delicious psychedelic rock record, so full of different influences and blending different genres, from folk to blues. The melodies in here are excellent, and the eclectic sound makes it flow so surprisingly, but yet with so much sense and cohesiveness. It has a very dreamy sound, with many elements combined like a kind of collage throughout the songs that float around them, from organs to guitars, like links between different sections or just as pieces that help enrich the atmospheres the songs build. There is also a great mixture between textures between the instrumental sections and the sung ones. Also, I love how the voices flow from being in stereo to just sounding in one speaker in certain moments. It also creates a huger impact and helps enrich that dreamy atmospheres I have loved listening to in this album. But, if I had to choose one song, that final track, "Grace", is delightful. It is much more than a closing act, it really is a condensation of the diversity that this album breathes, but in a very tranquil way, as a meditative way of exiting it. It truly is a pretty interesting and unique record. It is not just another 60's psychedelic record, it is what psychedelia really is, and a great example of excellence in that decade. It is explosive and deeply atmospheric, it is strange and very comforting at the same time. And it is, overall, a very beautiful and exciting album to listen to.

Excellent.

So much better than expected

This whips, listening to Bob Dylan from the same era right before this was quite the contrast because this does the electric music thing that album was kinda sorta leaning into 1000x better. Not even slightly hiding the drug influnces in this one lmao. Underrated

This sounds like hippie music. And it came out weeks before the Summer of Love. Took a few listens but I've now totally been engulfed by it. This has some bangers

Один из лучших альбомов в одном из моих самых любимых жанров. Яркий, психоделический, глубокий, триповый, жаль только короткий. Настоящее общественное достояние.

tremendo album las guitarras me volaron la cabeza

i fucks with it

1967 foi um ano forte, repleto de lançamentos icônicos e memoráveis. O álbum que gerei anteriormente, Surrealistic Pillow, também foi lançado em 1967, e eu dei a ele 5 estrelas. Naturalmente, em um ano tão rico, é natural que uma coisa ou outra escapasse da minha atenção e passasse por debaixo do meu radar, o que foi o caso da estréia do grupo Country Joe & The Fish. Me sinto um pouco tolo por ter desconhecido este disco toda a minha vida até então. Fez meu tipo e me agradou profundamente. Ele exibe muita criatividade, riqueza em detalhes, produção atemporal… É um prato cheio. Gosto da variedade nas composições, claramente inspirada pelos alucinógenos que o grupo experimentava, como eles deixaram claro nas letras de várias das canções aqui. Em pleno 2026, algumas coisas sobre este disco podem facilmente serem consideradas clichês. Mas eu nunca enxerguei o clichê como algo negativo. Ainda mais quando analisado o contexto cultural da época. Parte da variedade musical exposta aqui vai do Blues à arranjos voltados ao Country, e tudo com a palheta do Rock Psicodélico tão famoso dos anos 60. O disco facilmente manteve minha atenção enquanto viajava pelas diferentes gamas do seu espectro, sem nunca escapar do seu núcleo central. Um jeito bem verboso de dizer que o álbum me prendeu completamente através da sua variedade e da sua consistência. Gosto das guitarras e dos vocais especialmente, o disco todo possui um estilo bem puro, sem muitos adornos desnecessários e sempre mantendo a simplicidade. Uma ótima surpresa. Rapidamente adicionado à minha rotação constante. 5/5

as the name says

Genial, espectacular. Wikipedia dice que es rock psicodélico, pero aquí escuché al menos cinco géneros más, todos geniales. Casi ninguna canción suena igual a otra y en todas se sienten los ánimos por explorar y descubrir cosas geniales. Nuevo favorito.

amei o instrumental e o jeito meio eclectico!

Joseph Allen “Country Joe” McDonald y Barry “The Fish” Melton padres del rock ácido (junto con The 13th. Floor Elevators, Blues Magoos, Jefferson Airplane...) La espléndida Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine tuvo bastante éxito en su día, aunque el tema más emblemático es sin duda I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin-to-Die Rag (no incluida aquí) y su momento tuvo lugar en su participación de Woodstock en 1969 ( a Country Joe lo contrataron para una actuación en solitario de emergencia, no programada, cuando Santana aún no estaba listo para subir al escenario y después actuó con su The Fish), luego desaparecieron. Abren con Flying High. Section 43 es un viaje de más de 7 minutos a lomos de armónica y órgano, remarcada por pausas al inicio y final del tema. Bass Strings es blues psicodélico , atrevido para su época por su explícita letra sobre drogas, aunque nada que ver con parias como la Velvet. Sad and Lonely Times es un tema ligero y fácil de escuchar. Death, es más ácido. Superbird es de lo mejor del disco, es una versión respecto a la publicada en otro EP anterior (como Section 43", "Thing Called Love" y "Bass Strings). The Masked Marauder es otra joya. Grace está obviamente dedicada a Grace Slick de los Jefferson Airplane. Un tema más propio de, pongamos Dvid Crosby, con su aire extraño y casi oriental. Uno de los mejores discos de la inigualable cosecha del 67. Música Eléctrica para la Mente y el Cuerpo. Palabras mayores.

Amazing as we lived in SF for a long time.

Dig/Dug this album,

for my mind and my body

Thoroughly enjoyable bluesy stuff. Love the whole vibe of this.

This was an interesting listen and I'm sure it was a very early influence on the psychedelic sounds in Frisco n LA in the mid 60s. Love the guitar work. Atmospheric for it's time but with a raw sound at the same time.

i really enjoyed the psychedelic vibes

Это очень крутой и хороший психоделик рок альбом, который вот я прям заценил

she might have the body of a 12 year old girl but she has the mind of a woman which is what matters

Absolutely loved this! Every single song was a highlight for me

On the first listen, I thought this was just kinda alright, but on the second listen I think I appreciated it a lot more. It had a flavor VERY reminiscent of early Doors with some Animals, Cream and Jefferson Airplane thrown in there too. It was obviously super psychedelic and crunchy with a bunch of catchy hooks and cool melodies. The production quality was typical of 60's psychedelic rock, which is to say that it was a little fuzzy and not super crisp and clear, but I didn't mind it at all. Listened to it twice and really dug it. Five stars.

Loved it. I love 60s psych blues. More of this pls!

Now that’s some proper 60’s psychedelia, I think these cats mighta played at Woodstock tbh

Loved this. Totally 1967!

A hidden gem. Never heard of them before but I like the music. Shame they were so short lived

the keyboard and guitar on this album feels, ELECTRIC. the end of the album takes it slow and lets you soak in tbe beauty

60's psychedelic rock from San Francisco is where it's at. I thoroughly enjoyed this album. They played Monterey Pop and Woodstock. What an awesome scene to have been involved in. Great stuff.

I LOVED this

Electric Music for the Mind and Body is Country Joe and the Fish's debut album, originally released in 1967. This might be the best psychedelic album ever. I mean, the cover alone should peak your interest. This album is so raw. The guitars are mixed so loud that they just take over. It almost has the vibe of an early acid test live performance. There's fuzz guitar, delay, tremolo, everything you'd want in a psychedelic record. The organ parts can be a bit overbearing and dated at times but there's so many cool moments on this record that it gets overshadowed. It's fantastic under certain mind altering substances. It's a shame that Country Joe & The Fish kinda got lost in music history and aren't mentioned much anymore in the psychedelic scene because they were true psychedelia at the top of their game. Fun fact: You may see old vinyl copies of this LP with messed up corners. There was a rumor upon release that they dipped one of the corners of the record sleeve in LSD, and many a hippie tried to get dosed by chewing the corner.

This shit goes hard af

One of the best psychedelic rock record that really worked with what the genre wanted to do.

Scrappy hippies are my kind of wannabee cowboys.

What a fun album

Nice album.

Amazing listen all the way through

Well, I approach this with a great deal of nervousness. Country? Ew. Is it actually country? No, thank the lord it isn't. It's psychedelic rock, which is on every measure better than country. Speaking of "country", I absolutely love the filth of "Not so sweet Martha Lorraine". Clearly a reference to Shakespeare's "Country Matters", this is a song about sex. A bookish woman has learnt about sex from books and by rote. She doesn't take pleasure in it, but uses it. She wants him "to die" is obviously, glaringly la petit mort, the little death. Wiping the tears "from his friend's eye" is sordidly descriptive. She's using sex, using it to bring him to climax even - but she's never learnt "the country ways" - she doesn't know how to take any of that pleasure for herself. And he's lamenting that. What a cracking little track and what a story it tells!

What a fantastic record.

9/10 - pretty good album

Nice

Groovy, I love it. The first tracks are perfect, the last ones are a bit less interesting to me, but still very good

Wow.

Un viaje sonoro espectacular, recomendable

I would have had the time of my life jamming out to this if I'd been a teenager in the 60s.

I thought this would be just another boring late 60s folk/psychedelic album but I actually enjoyed it. I’ll give it a 4 for now but that may change on a later listen. Section 43 was a really interesting song

I don't think I was familiar with Country Joe & The Fish before, so “Electric Music For The Mind And Body” is a really nice new discovery for me. Basically, the guys play a jazzy kind of blues rock - and as the album progresses, the psychedelic elements become more prominent. In that regard, I find the last track, “Grace,” very impressive (and at the same time comical). So, in that sense: yes, Country Joe & The Fish is definitely worth checking out.

Country Joe & The Fish’s Electric Music for the Mind and Body was a refreshing change of pace from the seemingly endless parade of late-’60s psychedelic rock we’ve been subjected to over the last few years of this 1001 list. I was expecting more of the usual psychedelic weirdness, but this turned out to be much more bluesy rock and jam band than I anticipated. Aside from the closing track, this was a surprisingly fun listen.

I enjoyed the psychedelic rock. I am Country Joe paired up with the Fish.

Honestly very vibey groovy bluesy easy on the ears listening to it