May 28 2021
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4
The black ska band from the 80s that all the white ska bands from the 90s copied. Are we surprised?
One of my favorite things about this whole 1001 albums thing is finding all the predecessors and progenitors.
I like how *FUN* this album is. It's sassy, it's naughty, it's just some boys playing around on their trombones. It probably gets a 4.5 from me. 4 seems too low (I've really been tossing out 4s a little too easily), but 5 seems a bit too high. It's not as polished as it could be.
👍
Dec 05 2021
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5
Excuse me, I am too busy to write any notes about this album because I'm building a time machine so I can go kick my college-age self in the hiney and tell her to pick up a Fishbone cassette or two. She would have really loved this album.
Listening to this was a wild ride! Such a range of styles. No two songs are alike: there were spoodly metal guitar solos, some funky ass bass, soulful keys and horns, ska rhythms and danceable beats, and some swoon-inducing twelve-string guitar. Fun tunes with lyrics to match but also upbeat songs that belie their serious social justice lyrical content.
I had a great time listening to this and will listen again and again to make up for lost time.
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Jul 16 2021
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4
Fuck me, what an assault on every one of my senses this is. I guess you aren't supposed to take it seriously, so I won't. A helter-skelter of magic, colour and bonin' in the boneyard. One of those 80s albums where they just threw everything at it and hoped for the best. Freddie's dead. Wild. Truth and Soul.
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Dec 05 2021
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5
Fishbone does something new and unexpected on TRUTH AND SOUL (…he notes about this 33 year old album…) mixing metal, ska, soul, funk and punk with reckless abandon creating something fresh, surprising and really fun!
I already knew the opening song “Freddie’s Dead,” but definitely not this funk/metal version. A great cover that retains the spirit of the original but is definitely their own.
“Ma and Pa” is one of the best songs about divorce I’ve ever heard. I loved the little calliope-like descending note thing suggestive of a carnival. This interesting little embellishment reappears in later songs.
The horn-forward, jaunty “Question of Life” is a ska/funk song exploring the relationship between God and man with some great saxophone. A funky fun look at a heavy subject!
“Pouring Rain” is one of the albums slower songs that took a couple of listens for me to fully appreciate.
“Deep Inside” goes full punk-metal-ska rebellion complete with screams challenging the squares (“plus you’ve got a blender by General Motors and a Tonka toy up your ass”).
“Mighty Long Way” could almost be a great 80s TV theme in a good way (some of my favorite songs are 80s TV themes!). Great lead guitar and an upbeat, positive message about friendship.
“Bonin’ in the “Boneyard” opens with fantastic funk bass and horns and comes complete with dog bark breaks. This song really smokes - made me really want to see Fishbone perform live!
Funk and metal come together in the service of societal inequality in “One Day.” Great little sonic embellishments pepper this song — tick-tock sounds, a pinball-type effect, traffic noises — along with a surprising but really cool metal guitar solo.
Looking for a ska/metal/punk/funk/out-of-control-carousel song warning quite directly of what is currently happening in the US? Then have a look at the sublime “Subliminal Fascism.” Incredible!
“Slow Bus Movin’” addresses racism in America with a great chorus and some B-52s-esque backups. ‘Round and around and around they go, bus been going mighty slow, Brothers in the back seat come to the front, People gettin' hostile wanna kill someone.” It’s been 33 years. This bus been going mighty slow indeed.
Another highly-topical fantastic-sounding song “Ghetto Soundwave” tackles police shootings and poverty in Fishbone’s funk/ska style. Fantastic song.
TRUTH AND SOUL sticks the landing on a message of hope with ”Change.” A sharp sonic departure from the rest of the album, this mostly acoustic guitar song would make a perfect campaign theme.
Fishbone is inarguably an incredibly talented group effortlessly able to blend a wide range of styles with great hooks and interesting, highly topical lyrics. It is filled with musical surprises that make the album even better.
TRUTH AND SOUL is a great time and I will be back for more!
👍
Jul 17 2021
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3
This is an weird mix of rock and ska/reggae, but once you get used to it it's actually rather pleasant. It was unexpected, fun to listen to, and I ended up liking more than I expected.
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May 05 2021
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3
confusingly funny
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Jul 04 2022
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4
Fishbone are one of the best live bands I have ever seen; they play a wide ranging and eclectic range of styles (metal, punk, funk, ska, etc) with versatility and high energy. With a solid rock core, augmented with multiple singers, keys and brass, they blew the audience away in the early 90s. This album is where they first starting bringing the metal elements into their sound, and really becoming what Fishbone are. They are also starting to turn their minds to more political material, with more lyrical concern particularly on race issues (although there are still plenty of party tunes on here).
That said, the common wisdom on Fishbone is that their records never really captured the incredible live band they were, and this album (which I really enjoy) shows that partially to be true. They are a bit stilted in the studio, and the recording is not all it could be.
Interestingly, I had just been listening to Alice Cooper's Billion Dollar Babies immediately before switching to playing this, and this sounds tinny and thin by way of comparison with Bob Ezrin's 70s production. It could be an artifact of the period in which it was recorded, and/or modest recording budget. Their next record, Reality of my Surroundings, has a much fuller sound, and they are the better for it.
But this belongs on the list as an example f a truly eclectic band that could bring the goods in any style they brought their mind to.
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Dec 01 2023
View Author
3
No. 53/1001
Freddie's Dead 3/5
Ma and Pa 4/5
Question of Life 4/5
Pouring Rain 4/5
Deep Inside 3/5
Mighty Long Way 4/5
Bonin' in the Boneyard 4/5
One Day 4/5
Subliminal Facism 2/5
Slow Bus Movin' 2/5
Ghetto Soundwave 3/5
Change 4/5
Average: 3,42
Just a fun album to listen to.
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Nov 09 2023
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5
What a roller coaster!!! Punk, ska, soul, rock....
Not a poor song on there.
A great listen...
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Oct 20 2023
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5
WHERE HAS THIS ALBUM BEEN ALL MY LIFE??? Funk, prog rock, ska, punk, metal...my word this band was created in a lab for me. Favorite tracks: Ma and Pa, Bonin' in the Boneyard
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Jun 12 2024
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4
happily enjoyable
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Oct 13 2023
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4
Of the four albums I would imagine being on the list, this is probably the least likely.
It is a really good album, with some great stuff (the cover of "Freddie's Dead" is a great opener, and "Bonin' In The Boneyard" is just WOW that bass solo!). It's just that the albums that represent Fishbone more I would pick their title EP or "The Reality of My Surroundings."
There are a couple of songs that are a bit... okay. "Ma and Pa" and "Pouring Rain" are okay, they'd be the weak spots. But the stronger songs are really good: "Questions of Life" (will I not pass the test?) or "Slow Bus Movin' (Howard Beach Party)" (the vocals are a little cheesy-sounding, but it's still effective.)
"Reality" is the album that really got me into Fishbone, so it's hard for me not to recommend that one. "Give A Monkey A Brain..." has some of their hardest stuff ("Servitude" is such a different song from ALL of "Truth and Soul"). But I guess "Truth and Soul" is a good place to start. I do like the album a lot, I just don't know if THAT is the one I'd pick to put in the 1001.
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Oct 20 2022
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4
Very 80s movies soundtrack to begin with but each song seemed to change genre, really interesting and fun
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Dec 30 2021
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4
This album is a roller coaster ride. You would never guess that it was all the same album. My favorites are the ska song Ma and Pa and the funk tune Bonin in The Boneyard - btw, what a song name! The guitarist sounds like he is simultaneously trying to sound like Earl Slick and Eddie Van Halen. This of course isn’t possible but he sounds good trying. Some of the stuff, like Subliminal Fascism, doesn’t work for me but that comes with the territory with so much genre hoping. The next tune Slow Bus Movin' brings me back.
The one bizarre thing is that the bass seems to be mixed way too far in the background. Many of these genres need the bass more up front. I tried to bring it forward as best I could with my amp but that doesn’t negate the production. Perhaps it’s due for remastering.
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May 06 2021
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4
Fun lyrics. Political. Mix of Rock/Funk/Ska/and more.
Enjoyed!
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Mar 25 2021
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4
I have loved this band for a long time now, and the fact that they were around for the punk scene in the late 80's early 90's here in los angeles is amazing. great music, amazing band
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Feb 05 2021
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4
bonin'...
good time boys...
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Jul 17 2021
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3
Yeah, it's funky. Seem like the kinda band that would kill it on Saturday night at Womad.
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Jan 18 2021
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3
Pleasent surprise. Sounds like King X and Faith No More. I had no idea that band existed.
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Jul 13 2023
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2
Pretty horrible, hated most of this. Constipated metal funk, evidently the inspiration for many dreadful bands that followed. Obviously good musicians so just scrapes a 2. Boo
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May 28 2021
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2
Not a band I’m familiar with and after listening to this I feel I’ve not been missing out much. A poor man’s Meatloaf, if there is such a thing it’s Fishbone. I realize I may have offended 2 sets of fans with that and for that I’m sorry.
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Nov 16 2023
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1
bruh
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Feb 17 2022
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5
Awesome, eclectic, fun.
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Mar 26 2021
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5
I’m pretty sure this album sucks to most people, and my memories listening to it were fantastic. Love this one!
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Oct 31 2022
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3
One remembers wanting to be as funky as "Ma and Pa" and "Bonin' in the Boneyard" and "Ghetto Soundwave." Alas, one was not, not really, in one's heart of heart. The horns are a major plus here. While the overly thumpifying bass and fly, bouncy ska-punk mash-ups worked only briefly, and only on a few cuts and gave rise to much that was meh and much that was outright annoying. If there was room for only one superstar band from this genre and time, one wishes it were Fishbone and not the RHCPs who became increasingly insufferable over the years and ultimately, absolutely execrable.
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Nov 01 2024
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2
Truth and Soul
Never heard of Fishbone before and on the basis of this I am unlikely to want to hear of them again.
It’s not entirely terrible, although it definitely has more than enough very low points, like the cover of Freddie’s Dead, the irritating Ma and Pa and the dreadfully unsexy Bonin’ in the Backyard, but it doesn’t really have much to raise it above a middling sense of pointlessness. Pouring Rain is a fine enough lower tempo song, Slow Bus Movin’ is relatively interesting and atmospheric, and Ghetto Soundwave’s use of the Low Rider horn riff isn’t awful, even if the song itself is pretty Level-42.
Skilled musicians making a funked up hybrid of Hair Metal, RHCP and Ska isn’t, I’ve found out, a sound I’m particularly fond of, and the whole thing has a pervasive sense of forced exuberance that makes me feel a little sad. I’m not going to go 1, as that feels too harsh on something that clearly isn’t actually objectionable, so a 2 it is. It exists, I listened to it, and I don’t have to again
🐟🐟
Playlist submission: Slow Bus Movin’
👍
Sep 08 2023
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2
Mom can we go to Oingo Boingo? Mom: we have Oingo Boingo at home.
This album’s inclusion feels like recency bias at the time of publication. People used to think that mashing as many genres together as possible was the future of all music, but really it was a fad that really calmed down in the late 90s. It feels like they were trying to show off how many textures and sounds they could include, and they forgot to write good songs. I’m gonna guess that this is big with the Ween/Mr. Bungle/Primus crowd. I just don’t enjoy it.
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Oct 20 2021
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2
I can’t do skaw
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Sep 29 2021
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2
An interesting mix of Reggae and rock influences that tries but misses the mark. Marred by overlong arrangements, dated synths, and questionable vocals.
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Jun 08 2021
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2
Time has not been good to Fishbone. We didn't enjoy this much. 15 year old me in a mosh pit enjoyed it
👍
Apr 09 2021
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2
First song sounds like something that would be on guitar hero. Then we go into ska. Album has a bit of an identity crisis. Not bad but not really my cup of tea.
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Mar 11 2022
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1
This fusion of rock, metal, punk, ska and jazz produces the worst of all worlds. Cringe-worthy
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Dec 03 2024
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5
Day 73 - Dec 2nd, 2024
Live laugh love ska <3 5/5
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Nov 28 2024
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5
Love it - total crossover done right :) brilliant
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Nov 26 2024
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5
There a very vague recognition in the back of my head somewhere for the band name Fishbone. After listening, this makes sense as most of my teen years were spent listening to the various waves of ska music. It was very surprising to see that this was released in the 80s. It reminded me quite a lot of Sublime, which is as high a compliment you can really get within this genre. Truth and Soul truly feels ahead of its time, albeit within the niche that is ska.
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Oct 28 2024
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5
Fantastic
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Oct 12 2024
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5
What I love about Fishbone is the special kind of intensity of their performances and choice of melodic lines, whether they're used for vocals, the brass section, the baselines... And this typical intensity is what unites the mind-bogglingly vast array of styles used here - hard rock, funk, soul, metal, ska, reggae, bluegrass, pop, folk - in other words that nascent crossover thing which confused so many professional "critics" at the time. Those narrow-minded guys only saw the stylistic switch's and not the talent that made it work on all cylinders, as it would on *The Reality Of My Surroundings*
To me, there's only one dud in the record, "Mighty Long Way", where an extra amount of hard FM cheese makes it impossible to listen to today. But the rest still sounds damn good today. "Bonin' In The Boneyard" has an incredible energy (and funk bassline). And Side 2 is even better than side 1, thanks to a few stellar cuts that allow the LP to build up like a motherf*cker from the first, harmonically rich yet also understated guitar tones of "One Day", calling for revolution in a fun and tongue-in-cheek manner, the organ-laden, Bad Brains indebted "Subliminal Fascism" (sadly prophetic), up to the wonderful and even gracious "Change". Needless to say, the topical lyrics are the cream of the cake. In 1988, Fishbone were bright, talented creative, young men, thoughtful but also FUN. So they got to be on this list somehow.
4.5/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums, rounded up to 5
9.5/10 grade for more general purposes (5 + 4.5).
Number of albums left to review: 40
Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 414 (including this one)
Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 242
Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 306
👍
Oct 03 2024
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5
A wonderful surprise.
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Oct 03 2024
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5
Funky funky funky! Good fun, great playing, solid lyrics. Enjoyed it a bunch.
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Sep 12 2024
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5
HOW HAVE I NEVER HEARD OF THIS BAND BEFORE??!! What happened to society to let Fishbone go unnoticed? This is amazing! I love this album! The sound is so unique and wildly varied and insane and I love it! The blend of ska, funk, and even metal influences is just awesome. The singing is nice too. The writing on here is just as varied as the sound. You'll have a song like "Subliminal Fascism" with a Dead Kennedys level of obvious political messaging that come two songs after "Bonin' in the Boneyard" which is exactly what it sounds like. The cover of Curtis Mayfield's "Freddie's Dead" at the beginning might be one of the best song covers I've ever heard. But why is this band on the list? As I said, Fishbone is far from the most well-known band ever, and my feelings on how good this album is are entirely subjective. Well, as it turns out, Fishbone is actually pretty influential in the underground, and has garnered a pretty strong cult following over the years. They've even influenced a number of very well-known artists and bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, No Doubt, Ice-T, and Primus. There's an argument to be made that if there's a thing that can be considered the "most important" of something, then the thing that influenced that first thing is actually more important. Many people consider Sgt. Pepper's to be the most important album of all time, but since Sgt. Pepper's was strongly influenced by Pet Sounds, does that make Pet Sounds the real most important album? I guess what I'm trying to say is that sometimes the greatest things in life are also the most underappreciated. I'm also trying to say that Fishbone is really good and should've been way more popular than they were. Light 5/5.
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Sep 11 2024
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5
SKA.
I LOVE SKA.
Seriously, at the moment I'm writing this, I can't think of another genre that makes me as happy as ska does. I'm such an unironic fan of the stuff—so why have I never heard Fishbone before today? I'unno. I suppose it's just a case where I already have albums lodged away as "my ska albums" (LET'S FACE IT by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and TURN THE RADIO OFF by Reel Big Fish), and given how much else I listen to as it is, I just don't have the want or time to find more. But dammit, I'm a fool. This Fishbone album, sonically, is everything I want from ska. It's damn near perfect—or maybe it just is, flat out. And, frankly, I should be giving Fishbone the respect they deserve, given how hard those previous bands I mentioned knocked their style. So, here I present it now: thank you, Fishbone. Not just for paving the way for stuff like "Sell Out", but for being the first among those mentioned here to make kickass music.
(Seriously, though. You shoulda seen the smile on my face and felt the happiness in my heart. Gawd**DAMN**, I love ska!)
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Sep 11 2024
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5
Just an absolutely great selection of funk, ska, and rock tracks with a message in a couple of them. Easy 5 in my book.
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Sep 11 2024
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5
It’s a highly recommended 4.5 that I'll bump up to a 5.
I’ve always had a slightly softer spot for ska, for whatever reason. I think something about the instrumentation just clicks really well with me, even if the songs are usually kinda hokey and goofy and never that serious. This, however, is… kind of a serious ska album. There’s some real depth to some of the songs here in terms of their lyricism, and I really respect the attempt to try and make a socially conscious album with this soundscape, especially for 1988, well before ska hit the mainstream like a truck in the mid-90s.
When it works, it works REALLY well, and when it doesn’t work… it just kind of exists in a way where you can tell they needed a LITTLE more time to refine it. There’s really not a bad track here – I enjoyed all 41 minutes of this, but for as much as I respect their vision, it’s just not executed as well as I’d like all the way through. With that said, it’s executed really damn well for its time, and definitely set the tone for other bands to come in and really refine it based on their efforts here. I need to take a deeper dive to see if anyone stepped up to that plate.
Regardless of any of that, I thought this was still really, really good. There’s a lot of energy throughout this, and it’s just a damn fun listen for the most part. I think it’s just good enough to give it a 5 – again, a few tracks just don’t work as well, but sometimes it’s really apparent when they were padding for time, or if they sort of couldn’t figure out a proper ending for a song or two. However, I don't really care. It might be a 2 if you really hate trumpets, but it’s almost certainly no less than a 4 in my eyes. I’m definitely pleased with a 5 – I just enjoyed the hell out of it, and I’m very glad to discover this.
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Aug 28 2024
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5
This right here is why this project is worth it. Just when I was starting to get very fatigued by album after album that doesn’t interest me, this comes along. Right up my alley, and not only had I never listened to it, I had never even heard of it.
The variety is astounding. How do they meld so many genres into one and stick the landing?
Instant favorite.
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Jul 22 2024
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5
Legendary album with a legendary cover of Freddie's Dead.
The musicianship is excellent. John Norwood Fisher's bass playing is inspirational. "FUNKY BASS!"
One of my all-time favourites.
Liked songs added:
- Freddie's Dead
- Ma And Pa
- Question Of Life
- Mighty Long Way
- Bonin' In The Boneyard
- One Day
- Subliminal Fascism
- Slow Bus Moving (Howard Beach Party)
- Ghetto Soundwave
- Change
👍
Jul 21 2024
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5
One of the best albums ever!!
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Jul 18 2024
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5
Hell yeah. It should be a surprise to nobody that black ska is way better
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Jul 13 2024
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5
I actually first heard this album in 1988 and it has followed me around since then. An album like this gives this 1001 list credibility, it is an album not everyone has heard but really should.
To fully appreciate it, put yourself in the musical landscape of 1988 and consider what a tour de force this was. This is a band in the zone and doing something unique.
Other 5 star reviews can describe the musical accomplishment better than I can, so at this point I turn it over to them….
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May 27 2024
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5
The sun will shine on brighter
And the wind will always blow
Some think life's a breeze
Others feel love is sin
I've found beauty in dancing stars
To you, your dreams may be a farce
And you think that you can't feel pain
And you think we can't feel at all
Can you sing out in the pouring rain
Yeah, this is a pretty great album.
5/5
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May 26 2024
View Author
5
Joyful energy, strong vocals, tight band, slapping beats, killer range. So rare. This is a real gem. So glad to see it included here. Saving every song so far. Forgot how much I loved this guy’s voice. Halfway through, I’m calling this a solid 5.
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May 24 2024
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5
For whatever reason this reminded me of faith no more-lite.
Fantastic, original, never heard it before. Loved the melding of genres. This is why I went through this project.
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May 15 2024
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5
Ska Funk Punk Metal Rock etc. band.
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May 09 2024
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5
I had heard of Fishbone, but couldn't recall every listening to them. I had a vague recollection of them being some kind of mellow punk band of the 80s and 90s and wasn't sure what to expect. This album was really unexpected and I enjoyed it very much. The music had a great variety and still maintained an idea of the band. There is one guy with a really amazing voice. The album finished strong too.
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Apr 18 2024
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5
I listened to this album so many times when it first came out, and loved it every time. I can't really tell if it's aged well or not, but it's very fun to listen to it again. It's probably easier to list the songs that weren't my favorites--"Freddie's Dead", "Deep Inside", and "Change"--as the rest all competed for favorite song (although the political/racial aspect of "Slow Bus Movin'" and "One Day" might rank them just a bit higher than the others).
It's kind of a bummer that their subsequent albums, at least the ones I bought, weren't as compelling (with the exception of "The Reality of My Surroundings"), but that's maybe to be expected, since I probably wanted them to just churn out more albums just like "Truth and Soul", and to their credit they clearly wanted to experiment with other styles and sounds. And the show I saw them at in LA--Primus and Fishbone--was a lot of fun, even with their newer material. I don't think I've ever seen so much energy from a surprisingly large band. (And what a bizarre combination of bands, although I loved them both. And I think it was at the Hollywood Palladium, an odd venue too.)
👍
Apr 08 2024
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5
In high school, I had the maddest crush on a guy who had the Fishbone logo painted on the back of his jacket. He was the only mildly punk boy in the area and he had excellent taste. *swoon*
Freddie’s Dead sounds brand new. I love what another reviewer said about this band: they are a black ska punk band from the 80s that white bands would try to imitate all through the 90s. Dead accurate. Not a damn one of those white boys ever came close to this.
Joyful energy, strong vocals, tight band, slapping beats, killer range. So rare. This is a real gem. So glad to see it included here. Saving every song so far. Forgot how much I loved this guy’s voice. Halfway through, I’m calling this a solid 5.
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Mar 15 2024
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5
This kinda sounds like a bunch of guys from the US got on the English train of making anti racism reggae music
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Mar 08 2024
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5
I had never heard of this band and was very pleasantly surprised.
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Mar 08 2024
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5
shits gas there’s no denying it
some serious tracks throughout it
was gonna give it a 5 but there’s something about it that felt kinda slow
actually it’s better than a 4 but not quite a 5 so gonna give it a 5
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Mar 08 2024
View Author
5
streets got freddie rest in peace man :(
if you look past how freddie brutally died for this album, im fucking with this heavy rn
shit got me like 🕺🕺🕺🕺
just a fun album really
you can see me bonin' in the backyard...
i think if you dont like this ur probably just racist i cant lie
4.6/5
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Mar 01 2024
View Author
5
What a fun album! I haven't listened to these guys in too long, but it was and is such a fun assault to the senses. You hear the first notes and smile. Within seconds, you're tapping your feet. Eventually you just have to get up and move around! There is stored energy in these tracks which must be released. Bonin In The Boneyard explodes. Gotta love funky ass bass.
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Feb 26 2024
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5
Ska, punk...diversión total!!!
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Feb 04 2024
View Author
5
Fishbone - Truth and Soul
What a fabulous album! Punk, ska, heavy metal, it's all here.
I first heard of Fishbone from the movie and soundtrack to Say Anything. Even though I didn't know much about them at the beginning of their career, I got there in the end!
5/5
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Jan 31 2024
View Author
5
Freddie's Dead - Weird intro, weird voice, weird riff, perfect.
Ma and Pa - Sounds like a funny circus, not a scary one.
Question Of Life - This song didn't have to go this hard.
Pouring Rain - Trumpets with weird rock, a genius yet unexpected combination.
Deep Inside - The name is clickbait, it wasn't deep enough.
Mighty Long Way - BEAUTIFUL RIFF AND KEYS.
Bonin' In the Boneyard - The bass, drums, keys and brass are just amazing.
One Day - As always, the bass is the best thing here. The guitar solo must be the best part of the album.
Subliminal Fascism - Punk ish and and powerful keys.
Slow Bus Movin' - Now this sounds like a combination of pirates and rednecks, jus' like PRIMUS.
Ghetto Soundwave - Idk, somethin' about the trumpets feels off, the rest is fine.
Change - A really good ending for the album.
Top 3
One Day
Question Of Life
Mighty Long Way
I would rate this with 4.5, well, a 5
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Dec 20 2023
View Author
5
Mega banger!! An insane mix of so many genres. Punk, ska, reggae, soul, funk, blues, you got it all. Some of the bass line so flea like. It's so creative and so diverse. Hats off. 9/10
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Dec 07 2023
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5
This was a mix of Rock, Skah, Funk. Very eclectic, much like my musical taste. I listened to it twice.
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Nov 29 2023
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5
Funk Yeah! 5 stars.
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Nov 26 2023
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5
Iunno what this was but I loved it
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Nov 26 2023
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5
What a surprise. This album is so good. I wish I had known about Fishbone earlier because this album is such a fantastic combo of funk and rock.
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Nov 03 2023
View Author
5
So much fun!
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Oct 18 2023
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5
I already love this album.
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Oct 04 2023
View Author
5
Great album, loved it.
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Sep 26 2023
View Author
5
What a wild ride! Fusion of ska/soul/funk/rock/punk.
Hadn't heard before, loved every minute. Aomeone buy the bass player a drink!
10/10
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Sep 22 2023
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5
Baita som, curto o estilo meio ska funkzao
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Sep 08 2023
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5
goddamn this goes so hard. it’s an education in itself of the relationships between funk, ska, punk, and metal, and it also bangs. really really fun listen, everyone on their a game hitting the perfect notes. slow bus movin is a highlight in an album full of highlights.
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Aug 10 2023
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5
fucking incredible album. one of the best funk rock albums i’ve ever heard. great lyrics, strong vocals, and great variation in the instrumentals. no track sounded the same. amazing.
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Jun 29 2023
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5
Great
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Jun 12 2023
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5
C'mon.
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May 28 2023
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5
I expected this to be bad because of the average global rating of 3.BUT NO.THIS SHIT IS AMAZING.Its funky its rock its got great hooks.Great guitar solos.Trumpets.Energy everything I like.Its great.And all the songs are under 6 minutes so it never feels like a drag.
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May 03 2023
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5
10/10
quirky as fuck, but an extremely well done, incredibly fun album that flies right by
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May 02 2023
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5
Totally T-boned by Fishbone! Bonin' in the Boneyard is boney.
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Apr 12 2023
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5
This felt like proto-ska! I loved the whole thing. Anything rock adjacent with brass is wonderful to me.
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Mar 26 2023
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5
Amazing. Wonderful energy, great composition. Well constructed and with a powerful message.
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Mar 08 2023
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5
Zeer gevarieerd plaatje. Had er nog nooit van gehoord maar vind het fantastisch
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Dec 02 2022
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5
Despite my sordid past in the scene, I had fears of hearing “ska” again after all these years, but of course this was different. It was more punk than ska, and everything I loved about the scene back then.
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Aug 10 2022
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5
Wow there’s loads going on here and I really like most of it.
I’m already recommending it to people, I can’t understand why this has less than 3 stars?
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Aug 04 2022
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5
Such a fun album! Fishbone is fantastic, a mix of so many genres making a unique sound.
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Jun 29 2022
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5
Loving the funky ska vibes and the frantic bass.
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Apr 07 2022
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5
One of the first all-black crossover bands, and one of the most influential for the generations to come. A blast. Lovely.
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Apr 04 2021
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5
Me encanta el disco, tiene una mezcla de estilos perfectamente combinada, y teniendo tanto Ska es un logro mayúsculo.
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Dec 01 2024
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4
Yea, this was dope
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Nov 29 2024
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4
Honestly a delightful discovery. Absolutely bonin’.
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Nov 15 2024
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4
Truly so versatile and in a way that every type of song they do is still very much a Fishbone song first and foremost, whether it be ska, soul cover, hard funk or circus freakout. Only reason it’s not a perfect rating is because I was not into a couple of the genre excursions personally but still respect them like mad for attempting.
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Nov 14 2024
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4
Very good indeed on first ever listen. Did this band ever cross the pond?
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Nov 11 2024
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4
I don’t know what that was - but I had fun with it
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Oct 29 2024
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4
I'm a huge Fishbone fan. This album is probably their best as an overall work although their other albums have great tunes on it. This one covers the entire range of music that Fishbone embodies. Funk, Ska, Punk, Rock. They are extremely talented musicians and it shows in all of the songs on here.
Top listens:
Bonin' In The Boneyard
Question of Life
One Day
Ma and Pa
Freddie's Dead (great cover)
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Oct 25 2024
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4
Trying to figure out why people don't like Fishbone as much as they SHOULD. Maybe black guys doing heavy rock makes people uncomfortable. (Maybe not, just wondering aloud). Stay in your rap, your R&B, but that's it.
But man these guys can do some cool cool shit. Maybe a little unfocused for some, but not for me. Appeals in the same sort of way as the Beastie Boys, music for the short attention span generation!
Fishbone is a "taste" issue for most people I think. It's hard to put my finger on why I like it. I generally go for high-energy stuff that's well executed and has something to say. For that reason I gravitate toward the more energetic genres like punk, hard rock, funk, and metal. (wanted to use a different word here, but gravitate is correct by this definition: 'To be attracted by or as if by an irresistible force.') Fishbone comfortably made their home in all of these.
And I'm the one guy who also likes ska, not gonna apologize. (Why does ska take so much shit? Maybe the genre was irreparably tainted by the 27,863 (give or take) bad 90's SoCal SkaPunk bands that thought music is mainly a comedy routine they could do to pass the time in college before going on to work in their Father's Law Firm? The mostly stupid hats? Motherfuckers made it so we can't wear a fedora seriously anymore. The cultural (in)appropriation? Now that I break it down there is KIND OF A LOT of problems aren't there? Of course very few of them involve the music directly, but whatever. I love all the Reggae branches - ska, dub, dancehall... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reggae_genres).
Fishbone lives in exactly that high energy place where the genre matters less than the content. But some people get inappropriately angry when a band starts with a soul song then does a punk song, then a funk song. And I understand, you want don't want to make trouble with your brain. I have a friend who refuse to listen to anything except "hard rock," his idea of variety is mixing in some U2 (FIRST 3 ALBUMS ONLY) with his Chevelle. I'm not criticizing his taste, I'm thinking of this as an example of the Fishbone hater who just can't break out of their own self-inflicted handcuffing to explore something (dare I say it?) different. Same person that HATES country music - I used to be that person, so I know from where I speak.
On the other hand, who cares? I love it, my wife doesn't have to, and we can all still hang out together.
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Oct 18 2024
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4
Genre fusions done right. Truly a bit of everything mixed in here. Each track was so different. Sometimes funky, sometimes heavy. I really enjoyed that. Glad I've discovered yet another new band.
Highlights:
Freddie's Dead
Ma and Pa
Mighty Long Way
Slow Bus Movin'
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Oct 03 2024
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4
This grew on me! A lot of it was not my thing but I appreciated the variety in songs. It seems like they did a lot of different things well, like I could never tell which genre they were "supposed" to be.
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Oct 02 2024
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4
I know that Fishbone is ska/reggae music, but I've never listened to them before. I think I remember hearing or reading that they influenced Sublime (ugh) quite a bit, so I think that gives me a good idea of what to expect on this album. Let's get to it!
I enjoyed this album a lot more than I thought I would. I expected this album to be a straightforward ska album, and while ska and reggae are the foundations that this album was built on, the overall sound didn't really fit neatly into any box, and in my opinion, the album is better for it. I was really hooked when this album kicked off with a cover of “Freddie’s Dead” from Super Fly. The hard rock guitars really reminded me of Living Color, and they created a sound that went well with the lyrical themes of the song. “Ma and Pa” was a bit more in line with what I expected from this album, with a sound more rooted in ska and reggae. The lyrics were great, I loved the fun beat and the keyboard riff in the chorus. “Question of Life” was really good too, and I loved its fun and funky sound. I was really hooked from these first three tracks, but “Pouring Rain” knocked the album off its rhythm in my opinion. It’s not a bad song, but its slower tempo felt pretty jarring after the first three songs. “Deep Inside” returned the album back to the sound that was established earlier in the album, and kicked off another run of fun and upbeat songs. From “One Day” to the end of the album, the songwriting took a more serious tone, as the album covered topics of racial violence and struggles of urban life. I’ve seen Do The Right Thing before, but I was completely unfamiliar with the attack on Michael Griffith until I listened to “Slow Bus Movin’.” I thought these songs did a great job of addressing these social issues, and the band’s upbeat sound brought a ‘you-attract-more-flies-with-honey’ approach to discussing these issues, and I think their method worked really well.
This album was a pleasant surprise for me, and I thought the overall sound was really unique, and gave the band a great avenue for bringing social and political issues of the late eighties to life.
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Sep 30 2024
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4
Back in 1987, I saw the Beastie Boys at Kalamazoo's Wing Stadium and these guys were the opener. I don't remember much standing out except the horn section, which was very unique at the time and the singer working his walking cane like a champ. I wish I had taken the time to appreciate these guys a little more because I thought this was a very good album. Solid energy with a wide range of sounds and songs.
Think this guy has very nice voice with good range. Not sure what I appreciated the most, the R&B sounding Pouring Rain and Changes or the funkadelic tunes like Deep Inside and Bonin in the Boneyard. Lets' call it a draw and just say I really enjoyed most of what I heard off this album. Luke mentioned he was going to see in concert and I have to believe it will be a fun, energetic show. Enjoy the concert! I wish the younger me would have paid a little more attention back in 87.
Had a good time with this one. Can't say I'll become a huge fan, but I can now say with certainty, I have seen Fishbone live and they are a good band.
I'm going with a 3.5 and will actually round up this time.
3.5
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