Electric Prunes

I give up on trying to speak English, here's a graph instead   /\ enjoyment                                                    5 |                                                                       4 |                                                                       3 |  __                       ___                                      2 |      \              ___/      \                                    1 |        \__/\__/                \__/\__/\/\____             0  --------------------|--------------------> time                          ~7th song                                 

Never heard of them before, but really dug the first tune “I Had Too Much To Dream (Last Night).” Great song and great lyrics. How have I never heard this before? The second track “Bangles” again drew me in right away. I want to see this lady’s dressing room and vanity. Fantastic fun lyrics. “Onie” took it down a notch into a pleasant, dreamy tune that I liked a lot. Made me wish I was wandering through the streets of a new town gazing into shop windows wearing boots and a mini skirt. After changing my name to ‘Onie’ of course. Clever lyrics abound. “Are You Lovin’ Me More (But Enjoying it Less)”. Great sixties sentiments like “Sold to the Highest Bidder” and “The King Is In His Counting House”. A delightful cover of “About A Quarter to Nine”. Some quality sexy time with “Luvin’” and “Try Me On For Size”. And a couple of transportation songs, “Train for Tomorrow” and “The Toonerville Trolly”. Speaking of… “The Toonerville Trolly” is a generous helping of Cool Whip on this fabulous album! I started literally laughing out loud on a public bus - so much fun! But I found myself wondering if ‘ridin’ the Toonerville Trolly’ might be a euphemism for something else… and imagining all the possibilities. Throw in the artsy album cover featuring the band in the same pose as a modern art rendition of them and it’s pretty much everything I could ask for in a 60s album. So glad to have been introduced to The Electric Prunes!

Some songs were good, some were just completely out of pocket. Felt very dated in sound. I will use Toonerville Trolley as punishment for people who have wronged me in the future.

People seem to think irony as a pop-culture phenomena was a 90s thing, but I’m realizing that there was a whole wave of it in the late 60s as psychedelic bands inexplicably made entire albums of joke songs with ragtime piano. I’m guessing everyone was burnt out by the end of the 60s. I feel like I should like this but it’s just lame, the whole side B is especially kind of unbearable. Favourite track: “I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)”

i’d never heard of electric prunes but i was pleasantly surprised! love it!

My left ear enjoyed this one. Cool sound.

This would considered a Psychedelic classic were it not for the significant drop in quality on the B side. I still enjoyed it a lot, and it deserves more credit than it gets, but it's clear the longer the album goes on the less ideas the band has. I have no idea what they were thinking with that last song

I liked the short songs. not enough people writing 2 minute songs these days

Another that had a few good tunes, interspersed by Nursery rhymes and rubbish

Starts as a psychedelic fever dream but then kinda goes all over the place, ending on a bizarre sarcastic joke. If the material were more consistently psychedelic like the opening track or "Get Me to the World on Time" it'd be 4 stars but I have to round down to 3 for the jarring tone shifts.

A true cornerstone of psychedelic rock, the self-titled Electric Prunes album delivers haunting, dreamy vocals intertwined with swirling guitars and ethereal production. Amidst this sonic landscape, one also discovers heartfelt, tender tracks that add depth to the album's aura. Seamlessly blending psychedelia, garage rock, and avant-garde experimentation emblematic of its time, this record conjures an entrancing and otherworldly atmosphere. 10/10!

I really enjoyed this one. It was like... a darker version of the Beatles and the Beach Boys, kinda the way the Wiki page described.

I love a good 60s garage rock.

Fun and standout psych garage, this honestly surprised me. There was more chaff here than I'd normally allow for a four star album, but the kernels of wheat that came out really were golden.

Especially liked 'Sold to the Highest Bidder'. Some really fun fast moving tracks on this one. At points it felt like it was straddling the edge of being endearingly goofy and annoyingly so

Good album which has a lot of missed potential unfortunately, would have wished that the more exotic and medieval sounding songs were more plentyful

WHAT IN THE FUCK IS THE TOONERVILLE TROLLEY I HATE IT SO MUCH. There are some really sorta... creepy at times psychedelia goodness in here, mixed with filler songs. I really enjoyed stuff like "I had Too Much to Dream", and "Get me to the World on Time", "The Highest Bidder" a solid 3/5!

Interesting contrast to the Animals.. they focused on politics, prunes focused on girls with more than a touch of misogyny...

This album feels quite manic, some cool songs and some others I really don't care for at all. First track might be my fav, the rest are sorta meh. Like Toonerville Trolley is sort of horrible. An interesting debut for sure.

The biggest crime that 60’s psych bands perpetrated was convincing people that cabaret songs and show tunes could somehow be considered “psychedelic”.

What an odd little album. I rather liked some of the tracks and others seemed silly, like songs for children.

Probably the most uneven album yet. Some good cuts and some abominations. 2/5

Na ja, die Zeit ist rum.

Tired of 1960s Kinks sounding bands right now.

How have I never heard of this band? That’s because they suck.

Gets one star for the effort of actually going to the studio and recording this pish

Actually thought it started ok but quickly descended into some truly awful noise. Some music is timeless. This mess is not.

I am struggling to find anything to say about this album. Its just such a blatant doors ripoff. I got through the album no problem but cant say that I would want to go back to it. The Toonerville Trolley is a real piece of shit and is a star demerit.

Who the hell chose this? This album blows.

Boooooooring

I love this album

This album was not available on my music streaming service. Instead, I listened to the second album "Underground". Which was quite good.

Εxcellent album

Wow! Sometimes, this project really surprises me with this kind of thing: An album and even an artist or band that I never heard about before and became a fan instantly. The first song sounds a little bit ~strange~ but when I got the vibe for it, it's a great album with the right number of songs and an excellent set (more songs could be too much)

Ah, grata sorpresa.

Excellent 60's music.

I’m so torn between a 4 or a 5 for this one. I absolutely love it. It’s heavy, it’s psychedelic, it’s eerie. But just about every song is so great. A really overlooked album.

The essence of psychedelic music

Super fun album that almost sounds like a Beatles greatest hits album. No skip, 5 stars

cool

Loved it.

based on the cover and concept alone this feels like it's gonna slap, but let's see if it delivers The description said garage rock but because of the harmless looking 60s dudes in bowl cuts and turtlenecks i was not expecting full on cock music. really feels like the beginning of dudes in their garage just singing songs about getting laid. Still, it also has some deeper tracks with interesting instrumentation, such as About A Quarter To Nine. Toonerville Trolley is like a Fleischer Animation fever dream. Dark and ambienty, but also rough. Strong 4, if not 5. I've listened to this album 4 times in a row back to back tonight from how much i like it. once i fix my speakers i might try to hunt down a physical copy. Rounding to 5 because I've had this on repeat all week.

So funky and fun!

Psychedelic masterpiece!

My kind of music

Great early psych rock with some baroque and garage elements.

Listened to this on the way to the zoo and everything is making me feel like an excited kid. Really interesting first song. Fuck it, 5 stars

Surprisingly fire guitar tones

The quintessential 60s vibe. I remember it in my childhood. Instant hope and wonder about life and my world. I love this.

my shit

I loved it. Precursor to heavy metal

Love! It’s pretty old so I feel like the fact that I like it and it’s old makes me like it more.

Some delightful very sixties rock. They were the first band to use a wah-wah pedal, but not much evidence here.

7.5/10

Great!! Garage rock!!

60s psychedelic blend. Pretty good

Vaguely familiar with some of their music. Classic 60s psych. A couple of less interesting songs on this album, but not enough to detract from the whole experience.

I Had Too Much to Dream parecida a Summer Wine

No coneixia el disc; considerava la banda un one hit wonder del protogarage, pel primer tema, i m'ha sorprés molt positivament que el disc estigui tot ell, sinó a l'alçada, molt a prop del seu single més conegut. 'Train for Tomorrow', 'Sold to the Highest Bidder', 'Get Me to the World on Time'... tot temes punyents i reivindicables

This is a very different sounding album with a variety of eclectic styles. It would be hard to belive that songs like Onie, Sold to the Highest Bidder and the Toonerville Trolley could be wriitten by the same band, but in fact, they were wriiten by a song writing team that the band was forced to use. Nevertheless, it really stands out compared to alot the stuff that came out in 1967.

Gheard in the 60s Schatztruhe koane großen Hits aber stilprägend

These guys were clearly listening to everyone at the time. The Beatles, Beach Boys, and Rolling Stones influence is clear. However, the Electric Prunes are clearly doing their own thing and doing it very well. Their music is varied, psychedelic, and dark. They are also experimenting with sounds and instrumentation in a way that still sounds interesting over 50 years later

I've heard of The Electric Prunes but the name is such an unsuccessful attempt at humor, I kind of assumed they were a parody, like Spinal Tap. But here they are. (And maybe Spinal Tap's got an album on this list so this doesn't really prove that they're a "real" band. In fact some of these songs reminded me of ST's Cups and Cakes.) Anyway... I liked this. The music definitely evokes a specific time period. These guys look awfully serious on the cover, though, for playing songs that are quite silly. I guess they're mad because their producer made them sing songs they didn't even write! How often has it happened that an all-male band sang so many songs written by a couple of women? (Oh, but looking closer, I guess they're recreating the B&W illustration behind them which is...what? Why isn't THAT the cover?) In addition to Spinal Tap, I was reminded of The Guess Who and The Hollies. I enjoyed I Had Too Much to Dream, Are You Loving Me More, Sold to the Highest Bidder, Get Me to the World on Time, and About a Quarter to Nine. The ragtimey Toonerville Trolley was a delightful surprise at the end.

Another new one for me. I love the opening track and biggest hit, "I Had Too Much to Dream," with its wonderful psychedelic 1967 sound. The songs that keep with this sound are my favorites. I like the sound of "Train for Tomorrow" and "Try Me On for Size" has a good marimba in it. What kind of name is "Onie?" I really enjoyed the whole thing, although I'm not sure ending with "The Toonerville Trolley" was the right way to go. Was the piano solo supposed to do that?

Niet erg speciaal, maar wel van kunnen genieten

Jaaa hier hou ik van. Psychedelica die ik nog niet ken. Versie van Nature boy is fantastisch

8,5/10

spaccano! da riascoltare e riscoprire

Genuinely enjoyed. The last track was really weird until I realized what it was doing

Different, enjoyed it

I can hear a lot of other bands in their sound, they certainly seem like they weren't afraid to try out different styles. It was a bit of bizarre familiarity despite never hearing of this band before.

The intro track here is the intro to the famous Nuggets compilation. If you heard that song first, of course you'd be hooked. It's a psychedelic garage masterpiece. The sudden chord and vocal changes in the rest of the tracks are exhilarating and keep you on your toes. This is the closest thing to postpunk in the 60s with the lofi garage-style and high experimental sounds. They all have compelling premises but I find them to be incomplete. They don't evolve their ideas very much which is a bit of a disappointment. But for a 60s album, it doesn't get more creative than this. I seriously have no idea what the next track is like. After banging my head against a concrete sidewalk to "Get Me to the World on Time" how would I know I'd casually strolling down that sidewalk on a sunny afternoon to "About a Quarter to Nine?"

Great album, must listen to it again sometime. Favourite songs: - Onie - Get me to the world on time - About a quarter to nine

Wrinkly enough 4 me

Never heard of these guys before. Enjoyed album a lot...

A really enjoyable visit to sixties America, here a band in a groove and mood designed, it seems, to appeal to an older, sophisticated audience not otherwise screaming at the British Invasion bands. If lacking any crazy memorable tracks, still a pretty decent album of its era.

pretty fun album, really liked it - 8/10

Didn’t know they were making this kind of music back then

Classic 60s rock with a few great tracks.

Like, wow man.

Fun listen, lots of jams.

4 stars! This was a pretty exotic, yet in-depth and sensual listen.

adelantado a su época, sonidos frescos, me gustó para estarlo escuchando de fondo, tiene un algo

[16/09/2022] Liked it. I didn’t listen to it well enough to comment more lmao. 3.5 or 4 I think.

A great psychedelic garage rock album with some incredible songs like "I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)" and "Get Me To The World On Time" and some songs that shouldn't have been on the album (Onie) Enjoyed this a lot!

I Had Too Much to Dream parecida a Summer Wine.

Much deeper album then I would have thought. Very good music.

Going into this record without any prior knowledge, it was a blast to listen to the stylistic variety the record had to offer. Every track offered a grounded period-standard psych rock motif fused with other prominent sounds of the time. Really enjoyed the trip the album took me on, from the blissful melody in 'Onie' to the Stones-esque rock flair in 'Get Me to the World in Time'. Its a real shame the album closes with 'The Toonerville Trolley'. That track made me want to gouge my eardrums.

Kinda fun stuff. Catchy. Decent hooks.

ok

60s psychedelia. Interesting, as it feels like a more pure sound as opposed to the radio fodder you imagine from the time, but every now and then you get a song you could imagine on some flower power TV show. Apart from that, raw vocals, tempo changes, definitely challenging the sounds of the times.

A not-so-well known gem of the psychedelic rock subgenre that comes across a bit harder than other works of British bands. And that's fine.

I found myself enjoying this quite a bit. Real channeling of some of the big rock bands of the 60s, Beatles, Stones etc. It's fairly psychedelic and a bit dark at times, and I was pleasantly surprised by how the speed picked up from time to time. It got a bit goofy and just plain weird at times though, and some of the songs were a bit boring. Very good album though! Favourite: Sold to the Highest Bidder

Some great tracks in their - Onie for instance.

Trippy, maaaaan. Or at least very dreamy. Echoes of the Beach Boys in places. The warmth of the '60s is felt like a warm blanket around your ears, both in the songs and in the recordings. The coolest part though, is that most of these songs are written by two women, not by any of the five men in the band. Progressive politically and sonically, AND a ton of fun at that? This is an easy 4 stars for me.

Cool man.

A few songs swaps from being perfect

Was a bit concerned by the album art that this would be more of the same 60s folk rock. I was pleasantly surprised as the album opened with a banger that I feel like I've maybe heard on some movie or tv soundtracks. The whole album was psychedelic but the band has a bite that you don't usually see from this era. Between the distortion in the guitars, the growl of the vocalist, and the lyrics themselves these guys almost feel like a group that would have thrived in the punk era but went psychedelic as that was the counter-culture in the 60s. Great album, didn't save any songs but would absolutely listen again.

Liked it more than I thought.

Chouette alnum dark psychedelic, ça me fait un peu penser à The Piper at the Gate of Dawn de Pink Floyd