This hits the sweet spot between rock and roll and the "roots" sounds of country, blues, and friends. Hits it perfectly, as far as I'm concerned, with a delicious dusting of California psych. If the debut lacks anything, it's fully-formed songs: Many pieces sound like beginnings, though that does not mean they are lacking. The playing is good and well-rendered, but short of mind-blowing. The high points are confluences of many factors.
I'd never heard of this band. It was interesting to learn about their brief rise and very long, unfortunate fall. There's a cult following around this band that perpetuates a mythology about how they were screwed badly by their manager, and should be as big as The Beatles, and so on and so forth. There's no doubt they were screwed, but it also feels like maybe there were some self-inflicted wounds along the way. In any case, they put together a great debut album with a killer sound. The fact that all five members contribute to vocals allows them to do some interesting things, especially with the harmonies. There's some nice guitar work in here as well. Best track: Sitting By The Window
Very much like early The Who. There’s some really jammin’, rockin’ songs like Hey Grandma and Fall On You and some more country, The Byrds style songs like 8:05. Great guitar playing. Recording quality isn’t the best, also it’s not on Spotify? Had to look it up on YouTube. All short, quick hitting songs, only barely over a half hour
Most of these songs are not available on Spotify (Mac edition) This is a shockingly good listen.
I knew nothing about this band, yet they produced this stunner. I particularly love those slightly bluesy numbers with that distinctive late-60s bass. Whichever of those great singers had that raspy voice, he is a good as anyone. Ever! That manager deserves to live in he'll with Kenny G being piped in.
Un bon album du summer of love. C’est dommage que spotify n’ait pas toutes les chansons la musique est tres bonne et le son rock and roll 4.25
Gran descobriment. Un àlbum potent, amb rock, blues, psicodèlia, i molta marxa. Temes potents, guitarres afilades, veus trencades. Un àlbum collonut que desconeixia i que avui m'ha alegrat molt el dia.
Really liked it! kinda put it off for a bit since I was busy (and I kept trying to listen to it while writing my paper about the movie but had to keep pausing to watch the movie so I gave up) but I was pleasantly surprised! I liked the beginning of the album more than the middle/end tho, I will admit
No los conocía y me han gustado. Vaya guitarras tiene el disco y eso que no tiene grandes alardes de solos para el lugar y la época. En canciones destacaría Sweet Ride
This was a fine album. Good bluesy rock, great vocal harmonies and fine songs. Seemed fresh and new. I'm glad to have been introduced to it. 3.75 stars
Muy buen disco. De los que marcaron la pauta para el buen rock. En Spotify no están cargados los sencillos Hey Grandma ni Omaha, así que hay que irse a YouTube o alguna otra plataforma.
Straight out of the soul of 60s psychedelia, with boatloads of rock and roll tragedy on top of it.
Weirdly this album isn't fully available on Spotify or Amazon Music (there are some tracks, but they are mostly the 'bonus' tracks from a 2007 reissue). So be warned that if you listen on these services you aren't really getting the actual album. Was able to find it on youtube videos. Pretty great record! Something about this era and this style of music that always feels like coming home to me. I'm not a baby boomer that grew up with this stuff in my formative years (in fact, never heard this record before) - I think it's just that this era's blues-based rock is so foundational if you're a fan of rock music.
Huh. This one really caught me by surprise! I love the sound, and it's really clean and well done! Never felt tedious or redundant at all. Got some good Jefferson Airplane, James Gang etc vibes... Would definitely listen again!
Aww man, this album is great, but everything that happened after it is such a mess, I feel sorry for them.
This album was all over the place and I enjoyed it. Last track was kind of stressful though and a few weren't available on Spotify.
I don't know how I wasn't aware of this album, or group. It's just a shame the full album isn't on Spotify!
This album took a few listens to get but there's a lot more going on here than the first impression that it made. I like the three guitar thing and the fact that most songs were quite short, clocking in at under 3 minutes and one clocking in at under a minute. Unfortunately, there's something to be said for bands whose first album are their best album. But I think after a few listens the songs are well-crafter enough to give this 4 stars. It's a strong album with some good payout for multiple listens.
Never heard of these guys before. A real find. A shame that some tracks seem to be missing from Spotify, I could easily imagine an alternative universe where the ones I heard would be as familiar to us as the Beatles back catalogue. There must be a story somewhere in how these guys never 'made it.
Surprisingly excellent rock album from a really talented band. It reminds me a little of a lot of things, a little rock and roll, a little country-blues vibe, with shades of CCR, CSNY and the Dead. Some of the more high energy songs can get a little ramshackle or rambling, but when they're focused, it's great music. I absolutely love the guitars, which are exceptional, and in league with some of the best in country rock. I also like the all-band/multi-vocal approach, propelled by a strong lead in Peter Lewis. Go to YouTube for the full album. Spotify didn't have all of it. Fave Songs: Hey Grandma, Fall on You, 8:05, Ain't No Use
Great early psychedelic rock from the Bay Area. Sadly the bad never reached its full potential, but a nice glimpse of what could have been.
Love the guitar parts and harmonies in this album. Lots of cool parts overlapping. Lead vocals are good though not too memorable. Songs are also good but not too memorable.
I liked this album a lot. Good country style rock. Reminds me of The Dead more than anything, but I would so shorter on jams and perhaps a little more rocking. 4 🌟
Wasn't expecting this. Do people know about these guys? It's like if the Byrds slept with Chicago, and had a baby raised by Meatloaf. Teenage Fanclub must love them, power pop owes them big time. Some of the tightest rocking harmonies that've graced my ears. Every song short and sweet, only two breaking the 3 minute mark. Was this who The Monkees wanted to be?
Why didn’t this band do better and how come I’ve never heard of them? And it’s so hard to even find this album to stream, had to go to YouTube. Great guitar work, great bluesy rock vocals. Really dig it 4
The whole album isn't on Spotify which is a bummer. I liked what I did listen to! Reminded me of hey Jude, more folk rock style
What a jam. How annoying the entire album isn't on Spotify or I'd add it to my regular rotation
Pretty good psych-folk. Some interesting performances and almost a punk-ish energy to some of them. A shame they had such a shit manager and that it’s unavailable to stream.
I can't say that I find this album particularly interesting or engrossing. It's good, but has a sound that is very much of its time and doesn't really work for me. I will say that the production on the album is excellent and makes this album work better for me than it ordinarily would. 3/5
Weirdly this ticked all the boxes of the kind of thing I like bit I just found it a bit boring and forgettable.
No logré disfrutar bien el disco porque no está disponible de manera normal en ninguna plataforma y en YouTube hay que estar pasando anuncios y son versiones de distintas fuentes. Del sonido, siento que es como una mezcla de Grateful Dead con The Mamas and the Papas: Hippie, a veces buen sonido, a veces poco producido. Me gustaron Fall on You, Changes y Lazy Me.
Lo puse en Youtube desde la PC y no tiene comerciales, no noté diferencia de las versiones hasta que escuché una en vivo, este rock psicodélico me gusta mas que el de Hendrix y lástima que hubo bandas que fueron mas comerciales
I listened to self titled Moby Grape album from 1967. One of the previous records was from the lead signer of this group "Skip Spence." I enjoyed these songs quite a bit, definitely one of the better examples of late 60s psychedelia that I've heard. I would like to hear this with better quality and not a random Vimeo. The songs are surprisingly fresh, and the guitar work and harmonies were a step above.
Was good enough for a second listen. Although it sounded like generic 60's. Playlist on youtube. https://www.youtube.com/user/phil23hero/videos
Está bueno para un domingo por la tarde viendo pasar las nubes sin que pase el tiempo.
songs are a nice kind of old. Least favourite songs: Changes, Indifference Favourite songs: 8:05, Ain't No Use,
What a funny name and what a great album. Never heard of this bunch of grapes but I really enjoyed working to it. Light hearted easy listening
A nice early psych rock/country rock album. 6/10, but why are the drums hard-panned left in every track?
1967 guitar tone and styling. This is a pleasant listen but I didn't really take anything from it.
No está completo en Spotify, pero se pueden escuchar muchas canciones. Preferidas: Come in the morning. Ain't no use.
Not a million miles away from odessy and the oracle by zombies only a bit more jovial and less like listening to four grown men sing about a damp flannel. I enjoyed this but it’s nothing too profound.
Pretty classic 60's sound, definitely a good album, but nothing grabbed me to play it a second time.
I was apprehensive about this thinking it was going to be another 'Electric Prunes', but it was actually alright!
Disco de rock and roll clásico, con toques de country. No es mala álbum, pero es uno más.
Kompetent rock n'roll, med koselige harmonier og noen kule gitardeler. Ganske likt tidlig Beatles synes jeg. Men selv etter 2-3 gjennomhøringer er det ingen låter som egentlig har festa seg i hodet, så det gjorde ikke noe særlig inntrykk.
Kult album. Perfekt lengde på det, ble ikke lei den type musikk, mer sann over før det begynte følelse. Ellers så hørtes det ut som ganske standard 60s rock.
Deilig med litt kortere album! Deilige toner, veldig klassisk rock. Det var stemning å høre på, men ble ikke sittende med så mye igjen etterpå, lite minneverdige sanger. Likte godt Hey Grandma da.
Some of the tracks aren't available on Spotify. Mr Blues was a very nice and infectious song. I really enjoyed Fall On You and 8:05. All the songs have been a lot shorter than i expected, but that's ok. All in all it's a pretty good album to have in the background, but I'll probably not visit it again in the future.
Unfortunately the majority of this album was not available on spotify for me. Changes is a good track though.
Sgt Pepper: June 2, 1967 Moby Grape: June 6, 1967 Jerry Miller of Moby Grape: “We sold better in Marin County than Sgt Pepper.” Likely a 4-star if I could spend a little more time with it.
Pretty generic rock album for the era. Borderlines on heavier jam/rock with influences seeming to come from Hendrix and Crosby,Stills,Nash.
A great 60s jam band with hints of CCR. Some good rock that, for me at least, has completely fallen off the radar in the last 60 years.
I find the sound of this album kind of appealing. It's very garage-y. The three guitarists are kind of falling all over each, especially on the more uptempo tunes. It could have easily just been a mess, but instead it has a ramshackle charm. The song structures and melodies are poppy, and the harmonies are often strong enough to put it all over. Hey Grandma and Omaha are the obvious standouts--they have a relentless forward momentum and energy, but they're not the only strong tunes. I find it kind of impressive that this same band can pull off the highly specific tex mex influenced ballad 805--it's even kind of moving. There are some nice psychedelic touches here and there, too, although that hardly makes Moby Grape psychedelia. And then there's the sprightly, country flavored Ain't No Use. After that, the quality drops off, as if the members of the band were having trouble remaining focused. If the rest of the album were as good as the tunes I'd mentioned, this would be an easy 4.5 stars, but alas, not.
1) Spotify no lo tenía completo, muy aleatorias las canciones no disponibles. 2) Lo escuché con poca atención y, como no me atrapaba, aun con menos. 3) A mi gusto, olvidable. 4) No tengo canciones fav. 6/10
Pues como mi spotify no me lo mostró completo, pues no puedo decir que lo escuché entero. Si bien hay sonidos amables con el oido y agradables, me pareció que induce más a un estado de aburrimiento (de repente se me ocurrió que en portugués esta palabra es aborrecimento, lol, o sea no lo odié, pero pues lo encontré sin pena ni gloria)
Pretty good mix of songs. Neat guitar interplay. Similar to other bands around at the time but probably a touch off centre to have become very popular.
A couple of filler tracks, but overall this is a good album. Lower first division 1960s psychedelia.
They sound like a bunch of different bands to me: a bit of country a bit of folk, some psychedelic rock. They like to change up the vocalists a bit, some are more talented than others. I recognize a couple of songs: 8:05 has a nice whimsical 60s feel. Omaha really rocks. I must know it from one of those 60s shows on CKCU. Hey Grandma, Changes and some of the sub 2-minute songs I could do without.
Another band name that makes you shake your head. They and the Electric Prunes must have been sampling the brown acid when they came up with their band names. I had to chuckle when I saw the album was made in 1 1/2 months for $11,000. I remember the Ramones saying Phil Spector made them spend 12 hours recording the opening chord to Rock & Roll High School. I like the raw and biting sound of the guitar solos on songs like Mr. Blues. It is similar to the sound Keef was laying down on solos in the mid 60s. (e'g. on She Said Yeah from Dec Children.) This was an enjoyable Psychedelic album.
I had to listen to the youtube version of this album, as it's not available on Apple Music. It's a little better than average for the era; several different vocal and musical styles, which keeps it interesting and pushes it into the 3-star range for me.
This wasn't on Spotify or Apple Music without loads of tracks greyed out, but I found a rogue copy on YouTube. It's ok. Again, it feels like the sort of album that decades down the track is considered highly influential more than it's regarded as a work in its own right. It also gave me a good late 1960s rock feeling and I'm happy that it played a big part in shaping this sound.
I really like the multiple guitars, but something is missing that I can't quite put my finger on. Great, but feels a bit like a poor man's CSNY.
Very solid, but it sounds like late 60's psychedelic rock. Which I still enjoy, but this album doesn't age the same way the real greats from that era did (like Jimi Hendrix's stuff). I really enjoyed the vocals, from pretty much all of the band. Come in the Morning, Lazy Me, and Indifference were highlights for me. Definitely worth a listen, not sure how many times I'd go back.
I have the first Buffalo Springfield album, and besides from the song "From What It's Worth," everything else sounds incredibly... dated. This is how I felt listening to Moby Grape. Every song sounded very dated, so old that it just does not break through the era it was made in. I imagine that's what's going to happen to a lot of the music that I knew growing up, when people who didn't live during the 70s and 80s hear it for the first time. Whereas for me it still fits into my head. So as good as the performances were, I doubt I would come back to it.
Unabashedly weird. Not mad at it, but definitely "get-high-to-this" music. Didn't leave a big impression on me, didn't hate it either. Kind of reminds me slightly of credence Clearwater revival, though a little too psychedelic for me. Def prefer CCR. Fave track: Indifference.
Kind of feels like a mixture of sounds that were being used at the time. It's very much your standard 60's rock album. Each member apparently sings/writes the music, so that's a fun fact to know. It's important to blend all of your influences in order to create something new. I've never heard of Moby Grape before, but they got some nice jams.
Was expecting folk/country from the album cover and this comes through in some songs. A very pleasant surprise when some elements of rock were introduced into the first couple songs of the album. Favourite song: 'Fall on You'
First time listen, "Mr Blues" reminds me of the British Blues Explosion bands like Yardbirds et al. Psychedelia at it's best. This is good music with some great riffs and driving Rhythm section. Also some nice harmonies for example in "8:05" and "Ain't No Use" which is also reminiscent of CSNY. I suppose this is in the same vein as Buffalo Springfield auguring the onset of Americana and Country Rock too. Fave's "Mr Blues" "8:05" and "Ain't No Use"
Moby Grape: Can’t you just smell the lava lamps burning? Hipper and groovier than one expected and pretty tuneful, but true to the cliches of the ‘60s. One gets why there was some hype here, but it feels just about 55 years old, doesn’t it? More garage than psychedelic at times. Opening side is gritty and driving (save for “8:05” which is quite good) but starts feeling canned by the end. Side 2 is much the more effective. There’s something fun to “Ain’t No Use” and dreamy about “Sitting by the Window.” Overall, the playing seems just slightly above average and the singing maybe slightly below. One wants to say you’ll like this sort of thing if you like this sort of thing – this sort of thing being standard-issue ‘60s rock. Solid effort – but not much more – despite one of the dumbest band names in rock history.
This didn't quite click with me. I didn't mind it, but most of the songs passed without notice until the album had finished. Will try again sometime in the future, though.
Something of an incomplete grade, since it was impossible to find the complete album anywhere. Amazon Music suggests the entire album is available, but only allows for the same handful of tunes as the other streaming services. Considering the band's mismanaged history, that's not much of a surprise. The songs I did find are all surprising gems, although as a native Nebraskan, I foolishly hoped for more from a song called "Omaha". It's fitting that a band known for having all the potential in the world but relegated to what-might-have-been status has an album on this list that seemingly no one can listen to in its entirety.
Just another bog-standard 60's album. I don't what all the fuss is about to be honest. Best Tracks: Fall On You; 8:05; Changes
Музыка приятная, местами изобретательная. Но и не более того. Также отмечу местами интересную гитару. По словам фронтмена Led Zeppelin - оказала влияние на их раннее звучание. Такого я не заметил;) 5,5 из 10
Got that sound of the psychedelic rock but just isn’t good. Maybe spotify is missing songs
Nada que retuviera mi atención. Buena guitarra pero nada extraordinario. Tracks: Omaha
No conocía el grupo. Rock psicodelico californiano hippie muy decente. No es mi máximo, no es algo que busque realmente poner de nuevo pero esta bien. Supongo se perdieron entre tantas bandas que sonaban similar tipo Grateful Dead.
Ehh, it was a little bit whispery and weird. I appreciated the music, but not so much the singing.
Otra banda de rock de San Francisco de los 60 que sigue tocando hoy en día. Nunca consiguieron el éxito comercial.
A lot of the songs were blocked on Spotify for some odd reason. The few I heard weren't bad but wasn't my style.
For whatever reason I can only access 2 songs and the bonus tracks in Spotify. Probably just as well, hippy folk music from the 60s hasn't aged fantastically. Have you heard California Dreaming? Yeah, it's that but not as catchy.
I only had maybe 35% of the songs because of Spotify, but it was...eh. Basic 60s blandness.
Like San Fran californian hippy surf rock. The kinda stuff that people say The Beatles did really well. Not so much my bag, alright though. Also, album cover looks like it might be The Red Victorian where me Jim and Scott stayed in San Fran. Decent musicians, kinda bluesy at times, but just wasn't loving it. 2/5
not bad. Wonder why this band never really achieved lasting success like a lot of the similar bands of the era. probably the name was just too stupid
album wasn't available on spotify except for two songs and a few bonus tracks. moby grape feels like an unimaginative neil young covering bob dylan.
I thought it was going to be a moby album when I saw the name but alas this is just another inoffensive rock record from the sixties
Felt like it was gonna be a banger at the beginning but petered out pretty quickly after a few tracks. Spotify version was also missing a few songs.
Moby Grape by Moby Grape (1967) They were supposed to be ‘the next big thing’ upon this debut album’s release, but they fizzled, and the reasons are evident on the record: five members, five lead vocalists, five front men, five songwriters, five egos. Plus, they were atrociously (over-)managed, but that’s backstory. This album could have been great. The talent was there. The opening track “Hey Grandma” shows their ability, and their ability to work together, when they applied themselves. But (except for track four, “8:05”) it really goes downhill from there. Mostly psychedelic rock, but it lacks the absorbing power of Jimi Hendrix, The Grateful Dead, The Doors, or many others. A qualifier is appropriate here: I never listened to them stoned. Since they were all five vocalists, it is noteworthy that they didn’t have a smooth vocal blend. Compare with CSN (with even the later Y), and there’s no comparison. Moby Grape was less than the vocal sum of its parts. Similar observations could be made about the competing guitar arrangements and performances. This ain’t The Eagles. The laughably surreptitious flipping of the bird and the cheesy faux political dying of the American flag in commie red on the cover photo adds to the plasticity (Oooooh, they’re so revolutionary, Cindy!). Too bad. These guys could really sing. 2/5
Really really really average 60s rock. I didn't hear anything particularly memorable or genre-defining. The best song is 55 seconds long. Spotify doesn't even have the full album, had to scour Youtube for the rest.
Pues solo se puede escuchar parcialmente, no está completo ni en Spotify, ni Tidal, ni YouTube Music. Lo oído no está mal pero poco más.
There isn't muich to comment on here. It's a 60s rock album. It doesn't offend, but then it isn't setting my world alight either. It's fine.
Honestly felt like all the songs sounded the same, there was nothing unique or distinctive about Moby Grapes' sound.
Didn’t like. Grape Jam is a better album