S.F. Sorrow

The kind of music I like, but not enough for a 4…

2.7 Listen to this in passing. Some interesting guitar tones and song structures. Didnt pay enough attention to understand any inkling of the concept. May check out again at a later date. May Not

The music was pretty good, but for a rock opera, it wasn't all that interesting of a story really at all

I see and ditto all the other reviews referencing the Beatles. Very trippy Brit-rock. Meh.

They must have taken all of the drugs, I mean every single one wow

Non memorable late 60s rock. Terrible recording and/or mix.

Loved them, very 60s obviously. Can't have a soft without a sitar or heaving guitar riffs. Would class this as Dad Rock, specifically the ones who think they're still tough young men but would get their ass handed to them in a fight now.

Idk anything about this man but why did this feel like the soundtrack to a coming of age movie set in the 60s or the opening to a Crime Scene Investigations spin off?! Love an album that begins with capturing the vibe if what its going for. Pretty good at the start but then half way through I was like hm ... It was a bit too long I think. The more acid version of Black Sabbath. Fave Songs: S. F Sorrow Is Born She Says Good Morning Private Sorrow Balloon Burning I See You Defecting Gray Talkin About The Good Times

Very British invasion pilled

One track in I was like "oh great, another Beattles wannabe band from the UK no one even remembers." But I listened through and was pretty into it. Then I read their bio and discovered their earlier work even better. Hat tip to 1001 on this on.

2.5

Psychedelic, different sound and concept for the time. Ahead of their time, cool to listen to.

3+

So reminiscent of The Beatles

Album is full of surprises, a couple of bangers in there as well. At times the production feels very grainy (obv it’s old), but then suddenly there’ll be a switch up which comes out of nowhere, with production ahead of its time. The album is quite experimental and theres good variation within the album. I’m not sure if I’d listen to it much, but I can understand its value. I’ll give it a 3.

Standard Britpop that blended into the background.

Probably groundbreaking for its time. Kinda corny now

Sorrow Is Born S.F. 3.6 Bracelets of Fingers 3.4 She Says Good Morning 3.5 Private Sorrow 3.3 Balloon Burning 3.4 Death 3.5 Baron Saturday 3.3 The Journey 3.3 I See You 3.6 Well of Destiny 3.4 Trust 3.3 Old Man Going 3.5 Loneliest Person 3.2 Score: 3.407692308

Het klinkt behoorlijk Beatles-achtig. En met behoorlijk bedoel ik echt flink. De effecten, de samenzangetjes, de structuur van de liedjes, de helium-achtige stemmen. Maar dat vind ik eigenlijk helemaal niet zo'n probleem, liever huismerk Beatles dan een Zappa kloon, om maar iets te noemen. Balloon Burning is wel een schijtirritant nummer overigens en zo zijn er nog wat meer nummers die niet helemaal raak zijn. Het is een rock opera, dus als je er écht voor gaat zitten kun je er misschien nog iets meer uit halen dan ik nu, maar al met al vind ik dit een prima psychedelisch album. Tussen de 3 en de 4.

3.5/5

Definitely of its time, but I'm surprised I haven't heard more people talk about this. Personally I found it interesting but I'm not sure I'll listen to it again.

Okay. It’s kinda The Beatles and kinda The Who, and I probably would have loved this if I was alive and knew this album when it came out. Fine. Not sure about listening before I sleep eternal, but fine.

Never heard of these guys, but nice psychedelic 60's tunes. Bracelets Of Fingers was particularly interesting, as was Balloon Burning (My favorite). I dig this album, at least enough for a 3.5. I'm going to listen to more of them.

I didn't know what to expect with this, but really enjoyed it. I see where maybe MGMT, Temples and Empire of The Sun get some influence.

Very typical brit rock sound, but they did take a lot more creative risks and didn't stay on any one idea for too long. Some of the risks just became annoying but some paid off

Vibes 2.6. I need to listen again with the lyrics and maybe a flowchart

Boring album with some minor standouts

kiva

Feels very Sgt. Peppers. I enjoyed it and saved a few songs. Solid psych rock album. Pleasantly surprised. I likely won’t be back to the album but I might dabble with a song or two on some playlists.

pretty cool that this is considered the first rock opera. this reminded me a lot of Sgt. Peppers, which actually came out the year before. a lot of kudos to the first rock opera ever, and can definitely see why that would make the list. that being said, I liked the back half of the album a lot more than the first. I think after 'Well of Destiny', I enjoyed how the album progressed. The first part really had me on the fence if I was going to like this album or not, especially Balloon Burning (that song was absolutely grating to me). shout out to the section of 'Old Man Going' to 'Mr. Evasion'. Probably wouldn't throw this one on again, but definitely cool to listen to the roots of a rock opera and understand where it started.

This felt familiar, even though I had never heard of this band before.

i think i burned myself out on all the bad psychadelic rock in this book/series that i was elated at first listen because this album doesn't suck, but on second listen i came back down to earth

Someone else said this is pre-Beatles and Doors weirdness, but this album came out the year after Sgt Pepper and The Doors debut album? I don't know.. This was a fun romp of an album though. A creative arrangement and mix, intriguing songs, some very heavy Beatles influence throughout, but with a little more bite and edge at times. At the end of the day, it's fine to good, nothing ground breaking.

nice background prog rock listening. i especially enjoyed the riffs and the compositions of "Old Man Going" and "Lonliest Person"

sergeant pepper wanna be. honestly though, there were some enjoyable songs on this album - when i was ready to move on with my life, Walking Through My Dreams pulled me back in. 3.5 rounded down to 3.

Fairly unremarkable 60s era britpop. Looking this up, I guess it's "one of the first rock operas," which is neat. But the thing about rock operas is that I don't get them until listen several times, and it's unclear why I would do that here. Plenty of good riffs (balloon burning is fun musically) and some really nice transitions between songs (really cohesive album!), but the competition in this genre is intense, and this doesn't rise above.

3.2 2x

3.5

Very good 60’s rock. Like the Beatles but not famous? Enjoyed it!

I get it, but the stereo mix is so jarring. I feel like every late 60s group is like Jefferson Beatles.

This was a cool listen, totally unfamiliar with this album or this band for that matter

This is apparently the first rock opera. Psychedelic rock contributed more to metal than other rock subgenres. Just wanted to say that here (I don't have much to write about). The title track was a good opening. Most of the songs were ok. 3 stars for "S.F Sorrow".

Strange, psychedelic, creative, and colorful. I’m pretty into this despite its wonky sound.

I’m trying to think what it is that bothers me about 60s psychedelic music. I think I’m too far removed from that culture to understand it. Also, growing up in the 80s and 90s, this is the sound we were rebelling against. Also the sitar and pan flutes… not pleasant in any generation of pop music. However, this album is slightly better than most I’ve heard on this journey. Still incredibly British, and to me that is derogatory when it comes to 60s music.

Feels like an interesting bridge between the 1960s psychedelic era and prog rock of the 70's. No idea how influenced they are, but it's a nice little musical detour. Gotta say it was a bit dull, but makes me a bit more interested in the band which I've never heard of before..

Veel vette momenten, maar pakte me toch niet als geheel. Niet slecht, maar ook niet geweldig.

60s psychedelic rock opera - whimsical, fun, but not something I'll come back to

Fav: Balloon Burning Least Fav: I See You

17 tracks, many ideas, none grabbed me. I‘m sorry. 3 stars without rating.

60s pop - similar to a lot of other stuff. If you grow up with this particular band, you probably love it. Else it is simply sounds so similar to a lot of other bands.

Another early concept album that carried more influence than worth. It has intriguing similarities to both the Beatles and Stones, while also going in a third direction. Like a lot of early psychedelia, space reigns supreme where some bolder tones or more complex chords could take the lead.

The songs I liked, I loved, but most of them faded into the background for me. Enjoyable record for the most part. 3.5/5

Interesting. I'm glad I read the wiki on this one. It's a bit all over but seeing they were going for a rock opera makes sense for some of it being disjointed. I feel like this was done better by a lot of other bands but they must've been an influence on some of them. I'm glad to have listening to this but I doubt I'll be back much. Good to have on the list.

Interesting style. But not terribly interesting

enjoyable, just not memorable.

"S.F. Sorrow" is an interesting enough album. Psychedelic in a similar vein to many of the greats from the genre. Most notably, it's considered one of the first rock operas, very similar to "Tommy" though The Who deny any influence. Truthfully, I never would have picked up on the fact that it's a concept album if I hadn't read it or tried to listen very closely to the lyrics. It doesn't work as well as other attempts by more famous bands but Pretty Things get credit for trying out the concept first. It's not a bad album and maybe it deserves more of my attention. But it's not one that was destined for fame, apart from the historical footprint it gets. It's cool for what it is.

Enjoyed it!

60er.....

The first rock opera album, so now we know who's responsible for that genre.

Pretty nice sounding music. Standout tracks: Balloon Burning, I See You, Trust

концепт альбомы про жизнь я слушать и понимать не умею, поэтому просто мужики поют (но с саундом 60х я это не ассоциирую). смогла бы я отличить от зе ху? кто знает...

It was cool. Better than Tommy.

"S. F. Sorrow" has a consistent storytelling but unfortunately that doesn't make this album fresh enough to avoid comparisons. It could be an album by any other rock band of this time. I'm so done of these records sounding the same fuckin' thing all the time. I understand that it was something of the time, but at some point it ends up getting exhausting for those who listen and try to appreciate the work.

meh

So cool it left me cold

maybe a bit overblown

3 < x < 4

Minder utroligt meget om Beatles' mere eksperimenterende numre (white album?)

I can't recall a single song of these I heard yesterday. I know that I listened to it and I didn't hate it Standouts - 3/5

idk if this is normal, and I guess I dont read much anymore, but I am reading and I listened to this while reading... kinda tuned this out and I think that thats bc of the album and not bc im reading bc the next album started and im def noticing that more.

It’s just so mediocre. This dude doesn’t need to include every single 60s psych rock album that exists on this list. This really doesn’t need to be here

I liked some of this - the particular standout for me was Balloon Burning. But other aspects of it were a little too meanderingly psychedelic for my tastes. A mixed bag - low three.

Decent album, nothing hugely memorable other than Private Sorrow being a highlight, and Baron Saturday sounding a bit like former UK Chancellor George Osborne having an acid trip.

Not really standing out to me

Better than the Beatles

Some songs use stereo effects heavily and when listening on headphones and having hearing issues in one ear makes me switch my system to convert the audio to mono.

S : Had never heard of this group but I thoroughly enjoyed this one - 4 D : Found this a bit too quirky to properly enjoy. 2

I had not heard of this album until today. A blend of Sgt peppers, Early Who, Pink Floyd, the Kinks and many other bands. Definitely peak 60s psychedelia. It reminds of a less pretentious Tommy with a big focus on sound.

Interesting early psychedelic concept album with some interesting sonic experiments. Decent.

Psychedelic rock! What’s not to like! It’s not exceptional, but it’s definitely not bad either! A pleasant surprise!

It was a solid album, and when a remaster is available I would love to listen to it as I found my biggest issue with this album was that it was mixed so odd vs current mixing standards. I can see why the Wiki article mentioned ripping off The Who because I can see it's fingerprints all over Tommy. Overall, definitely glad I listened to it, will listen to it again with a future remaster. Favorite Song: Balloon Burning

Beatlesy! God, men kan måske godt forstå at den ikke er husket så meget. Har hørt det meste før

A bit too long, a lot of the songs mixes together. The style was pretty cool though

Quite dark this but a good album

S.F. Sorrow: The brooding, lesser-known older brother of Tommy who traded pinball for profound despair and avant-garde introspection.

New album for me. I understand it has some historic value due to the comparison with Tommy, the better known rock opera. The album on its own is OK, but I feel slightly indifferent.

Full appreciation probably requires digging into the story, which I didn't do. As far as the music is concerned: not that bad actually.

Decent album. Few tracks has a Beatles Sgt Peppers vibe

Not bad. Kirkland Beatles.

A lot of it reminded me of later Beatles stuff, maybe heading into a Hendrix kinda direction. Might need another listen.

Another St Pepper from 68.

Bien aimé, mais un autre album de vieux rock des années 60 qui sonne un peu comme les Beatles. Rien d'autre à dire. 6/10

Some of the songs were OK but boring, and the others were actively annoying.

Interesting combo of what seems the Beatles and the kinks

A hidden gem! Swaths of light psychedelia. Solid hooks. First time ever listening.

This grew on me after a slow start but I rather doubt it did so sufficiently to be played it. I didn't know the history or details & have no dog in that fight but it does sound awfully like 'Tommy' ripped it off, doesn't it? PS the panning is highly irritating, lol....!

You could tell me this was a lost Beatles album and I'd believe you. It's not as good as the Beatles, but an interesting listen. Some cool sitar and songs but nothing that really grips me. 6/10 (3/5)

no doubt better in mono

Great

Pretty good sounding psychedelic rock album but kinda drags in the middle. The audio panning gets kinda annoying but there is a good album there, just with 17 tracks it's a bit much. Very Sgt. Peppers Beatles like and has some good moments as well as some bad. Overall probably a 3.5

3.5 - I like the potential but def need to see more

Das Album ist eine faszinierende musikalische Reise durch die späten 60er Jahre. Es beginnt mit dem Track „Private Sorrow“, der durch seine Folk-Elemente einen sanften Einstieg bietet. Dieser ruhige Anfang wird bald durch experimentelle Klänge abgelöst, die das Album in eine neue Richtung lenken. Ein Höhepunkt ist der Song „Old Man Going“, der mit härteren Tönen und intensiver Energie überzeugt. Zum Ende hin taucht das Album in den Beatkeller-Sound der Doors ein, was einen interessanten Kontrast zu den vorherigen Tracks bildet. Insgesamt ist das Album konzeptionell gut arrangiert und zeigt die Vielseitigkeit der Band. Es ist eine spannende musikalische Reise, die die verschiedenen Einflüsse und Stile der späten 60er Jahre gekonnt miteinander verbindet.

Never heard of The Pretty Things, but this was some very solid British psychedelia. Listened to this in the background straight through twice -- no major standouts, but all was enjoyable to my ear. High 3 verging on low 4.

I would believe you if you told me this was a Beatles album, literally sounds the exact same. I wish they didn't use the crazy amount of headphone switching a volume changing that was kind of driving me insane at points. Wasn't fully listening to the lyrics but after reading the wiki this is apparently supposed to all be a connected story. If I liked this album more I would definitely go back and re-listen better to hear the story, but I don't care too much. Pretty average psych album.

Good enough.

Ganz schön. Konzeptuell und atmosphärisch.

Decent psych

Okay late 60s music, though didn't find it stands out from other music of the time. Hints of The Who, early Pink Floyd, The Beatles and other 60s psychedelia. 3/5

id rather listen to the beatles sorry

Dear 1001 albums editor/s, you don't have to add every hour long rock album from the 60s onto the list, you do know that?

Et par gode momenter og idéer, men ikke helt gennemført og mange underlige produktionsvalg

Boomer bait. Sounds fine but no thanks.

Pretty run-of-the-mill late 60s psychedelic stuff. A little darker than the rest, but not very remarkable to me.

Unfortunately for these guys the who, the Beatles, mc5 and a lot of others where contemporaries of theirs, they were never going to out do them. The white album was released the month before as an example! Solid all the same 3.5*

This probably would have seemed awesome to a UK teenager in 1968. I didn't think it was that unique or interesting, though.

It was cool, it was interesting. It hit the marks for the early classic styles, but AFTER hearing all of them, it's hard for this one to have the same impact. I'll listen again to really get the story.

sounds like weird era beatles and the who combined

Favorite Song: Walking Through My Dreams

Very mediocre.

Ok

It’s OK

I can't properly rate this one. When it started, I was like "Oh, this is a Beatles imitation band" but then it got weirder as the album went on, so that no longer fits. I know it's not something I ever want to listen to again, but while "listening" to it I was fairly engrossed in my work so this mostly just washed over me as slightly annoying background music. Points for doing some weird shit, and maybe I would have appreciated it more if I paid more attention to it. Rounding up to a 3 here, partly because in retrospect I feel bad about giving the recent jazz albums a 2--it's not a genre that I enjoy, but the musicianship was objectively good enough to get those to a 3 even if I didn't enjoy them that much. Sorry, jazz guys. 2.5

This album was fun and interesting enough and I get why it's on the list being one of the first rock operas. It's got enough 60s British weirdness in it to keep me engaged. Fun enough for sure.

Reminiscent of The Who. If you like rock operas this is one for you

A mix of good psychedelia with mediocre proto punk/metal and Sometimes enjoyable soundscapes making this Experimental Rock.

Rock operas usually need several listens, and so does this most likely

This album didn’t leave a huge impression on me. I was really into it after the first few songs, but as the album went on, it became more psychedelic, and I got bored. That said, I do appreciate the wide variety of sounds and genres encompassed in this one album. It’s as if all the different eras of The Beatles got condensed into one project.

It was ok! Not that memorable but i enjoyed it

Points for creativity but a lot of this was tough to listen to. Reminds me of something I might’ve made in high school before learning that less is more.

Would I listen to it again: yes Is it a no-skip album: no Do I like it: yes

It's like if the Beatles made a rock opera. Works some of the time.

Sounds like your basic oldies album. Good but not memorable.

Sure, groundbreaking and whatever. Slightly weird and wonderful in places. But overall, zzzzzz. Which goes for the album art too.

Sounds like the Beatles

It was ok but probably won't listen again

I've heard this several times during the last decade, but never does it remain in my mind.

Never heard of them. Never heard any of these songs. Interesting sounds of the 60s.

Interesting listen.

great rock opera, i’d listen to this again

Heavy influence from the beatles here. Still alright i suppose.

I drifted off and lost interest in the narrative. Without it, as a collection of songs it's ok but nothing special.

With most of the albums in the 1001, giving it just one listen is probably not enough. This album was pretty good, but I didn't feel invested enough to think of it much higher than a 3, though I reckon with several more listens I'd probably warm to it more.

I listened to this with noise canceling headphones while walking and it made me dizzy. I didn’t realize it was a concept album when I listened, so it probably warrants another listen with that in mind. But overall, enjoyed it, even if it feels similar to a lot of other British rock.

Never really cared for rock operas, but it’s not awful

This was interesting. I feel like it needs another listen.

🎧Interesting psych rock album with lots of cool experimental flourishes. Entirely unclear what the story of this rock opera is, but the same can be said for Tommy which it allegedly inspired (though members of The Who deny it).

Interesting from a British prog/psychedelia perspective. Clearly of that strain of Pink Floyd kind of scene. Not brilliant, just interesting.

Meh I wasn’t listening too intently so probably need to give this another listen to understand the story better. Rating: 3.0

Very Beatles sound to it.

Had its moments, but nothing really stood out to me or smacked me and yelled, “listen!”

- Honestly pretty great production quality for the 60s - Very enjoyable listen, good rock and roll - 3.5

I loved this album! I don’t know how I’ve gotten this far in life and not heard of The Pretty Things. An amazing mix of the Beatles, Pink Floyd and modern psychedelic music. Really good stuff

Interesting concept album, definitely a 60’s rock opera. Listened twice. Had a Sergeant Pepper vibe. Appreciate it, and might listen again. 3/5!

Schon der erste Titel erinnert mich an die Beatles (You can't do that), später scheint immer mal wieder Sgt. Pepper's durch... ist ja nicht das Schlechteste. Obwohl richtig altbacken hat es mich gut unterhalten.

Decent acoustic folk. A little on the hippie side but not obnoxiously hippie. I didn’t quite get it at first, but read afterwards that it’s a rock opera, so it made a bit more sense (I wish I’d known that before listening, to be honest). Private Sorrow was my pick of the bunch, I enjoyed the acoustic guitar run-down in its intro. Would listen to more Pretty Things.

Good bass in S.F. Sorrow is born. Very beatles-y A little noisy. A lot beatles coded. It's decent. The bass is good, instrumentation makes sense.

Da 3

Surprisingly good psychedelic sounds.

Another Beatles clone/revision. It seems like 1 out of 25 albums on this are actually "must hear before you die". This is not one of them.

Sgt Pepper inspired psychedelic rock, leaning a bit too heavy into the psychedelia for my taste. I liked the hard rock stuff like Old Man Going the best. Above average but not quite a 4 upon first listen.

Four days after listening, I remember nothing but the top review. Three stars, I guess?

Doesn’t hold a candle to Tommy, and there’s no way Townshend wasn’t thinking about and planning Tommy before he ever heard this…a pale comparison

Based on the short album wiki and rock opera comment I wasn't expecting much, took a couple of songs to warm up to and tailed off to the end, but thought the middle third was quite interesting

I don't hate this after fully expecting to. It's sub Sgt Pepper mostly but I admire the ambition and they shoot off in some interesting directions without getting annoying like whatever that Small Faces album was.

Some claims that this is the 1st rock opera/concept album. Solid Psychedelic Rock coming out of the 60s. Mad sounds, quick changes and fanciful lyrics keep it afloat.

Def I can hear the influence on Tommy, and also the influence of Sgt Peppers here. Not super amazing but overall I think this is a good listen. I understand why this is on the list. nothing really stuck out as a great track, but it does sound like an Abbey Road record recorded by the people who recorded Sgt Peppers (and it was!)

Kinda crazy only British bands existed in the 60s, eh? And this one had a drummer named Twink!

They should have spent less time writing a story and more time writing better music

It's fine. Never heard of them before. 3/5

I see you Trust Loneliest person

Interesting guitar and overall okayish sound.

I liked this enough when I first heard it to add it to my library. Still pretty cool, but I was deep in a 1960s era back then and now not so much. Ratings are subjective, folks.

C+ S.F. Sorrow Is Born 3 Bracelets 3 She Says Good Morning 3 Private Sorrow 3 Balloon Burning 3 Death 3 Baron Saturday 3 The Journey 3 I See You 3 Well Of Destiny 1 Trust 3 Old Man Going 3 Loneliest Person 3 Yay the first concept album

I don't know that I've heard much from Pretty Things, but I kind of enjoyed the album, despite a certain Beatlesesque-ness to their style and songs (at least on the first half or so of this album). ("Bracelets of Fingers" was probably the most egregious example of this, I'd say, but a lot of the better parts of the album is sadly reminiscent of Sgt. Peppers and seems pretty derivative. Other parts are just a bit painful to listen to.) I think my favorite song was "The Loneliest Person", and not just because it was one of the shorter and more cohesive songs on the album. :) If I hadn't read the Wikipedia entry, I'm not sure I would have ever realized that this was a rock opera, nor do I have any real sense for poor Sebastian and his life's journey. I find it also bizarre that most of the contemporary and later critics focused on similarities to Pink Floyd, The Who's "Tommy" and blues styles, so maybe I just missed the boat entirely on any Beatles imitation. It's pretty awesome that the band couldn't really perform this album live (and not just because they took LSD before a 1969 TV "performance" of the album).

Beats were good but nothing clicked with me in particular

Gear: LETSHUOER S12 Pro Mix: Stereo is fun! Musik: prätentiös, nervenzehrend und überlang - super! 😊 Wertung: 🐠🐠🐠(🐠)/5

Unique for being one of the first rock operas, still managed to be over my head.

I liked it but kind of reminded me too much of the Beatles

Mmmhhhh, do not know

If this is one of the first rock operas then I guess I understand its place hear but also they really opened Pandora’s box. Did not try following the story. Overall it was too 60s for me. I did like Loneliest Person.

I can hear lots of different 60s bands in here. Not bad but I probably wouldn’t come back to it

the drummer goes by the name \"Twink.\" he converted to Islam later in life, changing his name to Mohammad Abdullah. though he still records under the name Twink

The more psychy bits of this are so good. The rest isn't that good, but the psych bits make up for it.

This was decently enjoyable. The sound quality wasn't great, but that had more to do with the era it was from than anything. I could probably listen to this again. 3.5/5

Pretty interesting blend of rootsy and psychedelia. After reading the eclectic history of this band, I'm impressed. The music has tonal qualities in variation of notable favorites from the time period and yet this one falls into obscurity. I like it alot. But, its a complicated taste maker album, be forewarned.

bootleg beatles

Mediocre

OK, so this is supposed to be "the first ever rock opera album"? Sorry, but I don't have the attention span to listen closely enough to the entire album to follow the story, if there is one. That aside, it sounds like a late-stage experimental Beatles album (perhaps not surprising since it was recorded at Abbey Road at the same time as the White Album & produced by the Beatles' old engineer), so... not bad?

3.5

- if i could give this 3.5 i would

I started with negative feelings and left thinking that it was a solidly good album. I recognize the importance and contribution but psych rock opera isn’t my thing

Joyeux melting pot de tout ce qui se faisait à ce moment : on y entend les Kinks, les Beatles, les Beach Boys, sans doute aussi the Who même si je ne connais pas (encore) “Tommy”. Sympathique, conforme au cahier des charges de l’époque. Content d’avoir découvert ça, mais je ne vais pas en retenir grand chose et ça ne va pas bouleverser le podium des meilleurs groupes des 60’s.

psychedelic rock, somewhere between late 60’s era beatles and cream. didn’t dislike it, but they didn’t do anything groundbreaking that hadn’t been done before.

Interesting

Maybe if I listened a few more times I would find it more to my liking.

Its not the worst but it's not the best. I like the sound it has. Was going to give it a 2 but some of the songs grew on me and made me realise that i think its pretty average so 3 it is

can be a bit heavy on the distortion, but the sound isn't bad. the real problem is the album is entirely forgettable, even if the idea of a rock opera is cool and the execution is decent

I think if this happened to be the first rock opera/thematic records I'd ever heard, it would have had more of a lasting impact on me. I can see how this would be influential, but for me personally it was just kinda...meh?

similar to the beatles

This almost got 1 star based on the first couple songs. Still not my thing, but it got better.

All of the songs sound like Paperback Writer. S.F. Sorrow can be filed under "first of its kind but later eclipsed by albums with better songs, production, and performances".

Super cool album! Extremely experimental.

Wanted to like this album but the lyrics and ideas died out at the end. Loved the original concept.

Not my vibe, but okay to listen to.

Best Songs: N/A Listen Again: Probably not

As I listened to this album, it was clear that it was a concept album, and I pondered whether its significance might be because it was the first rock opera concept album. Imagine my surprise when I learned that many rock critics do indeed consider THE PRETTY THINGS' S.F. Sorrow the first of a slew of rock operas that came out in the late sixties and would continue to emerge up until today. It is wild hearing some of the sonic soundscapes tropes we are familiar with, emerge here first. Before Tommy, before The Wall, you can hear how The Pretty Things introduced the notion of dissonance, key change, rhythm, and melodic rephrasing as narrative tools. Having said all that, this is an album that everyone should hear once, but aside from tracks "Private Sorrow", "Old Man Sorrow", and S.F. Sorrow is Born", I'm not sure if I have it in me to hear this album all the way through again anytime soon. A very dark story.

Had never heard this before. High psychedelia that sometimes sounds like the Beatles, but also sounds like other contemporaries from the era. A lot of fun and a bit of a romp.

Decent rock.

California hippie tunes

My favourite part was from Private Sorrow to Death. I like that most songs have unexpected outros.

Enjoyed listening to this, as I had never heard of them before. Although there were a couple of songs I really liked, most were just ok, and some I didn't care for at all. Definite Beatles sounds but definitely nowhere near as good as the Beatles.

It was fine. An interesting mix of Rolling Stones, The Who, and Beatles influences (or maybe just 60s sounds, really). Nothing enthralling, but an okay mix.

I liked this! Cool to hear one of the first rock operas. A couple low points.

Middle of the road hippie fare - it's mildly interesting in terms of being a concept album, but it got a bit grating to me quite a few times.

I restarted this thing three times because I just couldn't remember what I'd listened to. It's fine, I guess. But it's also wholly unremarkable and unmemorable.

Fair

Genre de brit psychédélique. Un peu comme sgt pepper comme il est mentionné mais quand même moins connu. Ça permet d'explorer le genre. 3.85

There’s quite a lot of kooky 60s psyche albums on here. I enjoyed this one though

Interesting to listen to another early concept album. I've generally been a fan of the format in my own musical tastes. For this one, eh, the music was alright.

Quite ok

3.1/5 Best track: Loneliest Person

3/5

Pretty standard 60's folky jangly stuff. Quite enjoyed

Groovy. With over 50 years of distance between this album and today, maybe I'm over simplifying by classifying this as a bare-faced knock off of The Beatles, Sergeant Pepper's album from 1 year earlier. I also hear influences of Cream; a band who were ahead of their time. Pleasant listening, but overall a derivative work.

Ágætis plata. Samanbland af svo mörgum stefnum sem voru í gangi um þær mundir.

historical significance

Kinda neat as a sort of Beatles-Album-That-Never-Was, but nothing I would come back to again and again.

It's late 60s psychedelic rock that sound exactly like late 60s psychedelic rock. Their experimental parts are a little more out there than most of their contemporaries. It's alright, but nothing sticks with me. Favorite song: SF Sorrow Is Born.

Pretty good rock opera. Glad to have found this.

Imagine Sgt Peppers mixed with Revolver except played but an average band instead of the Beatles. It’s decent because it sounds almost identical to the Beatles but that’s it 6.2/10

Cool concept, I here a lot of the Beatles in this.

I'd never heard of this band but this was some solid psychedelic rock. It reminded me a lot of The Beatles at certain points. I was really enjoying it until it started to sound all very same-same in the second half.

Just ok

Surprisingly great. Another that was completely new to me that I rather enjoyed. 3.5/5

Good 60s rock

Psychedelic concept album. Not bad, worth a more careful listen sometime to absorb more of the story. Sounds like early Pink Floyd at times.

I mean, it's OK although sometimes comes across as sub Beatles. Apparently this is their magnum opus but sounded a bit dated an unmemorable. After the album finished, Spotify fired up its general 60's follow up tracks and tbh I was enjoying them more. No doubt it was a 4 back in its day, now...

Alright Beatles ish vibes. Didn't kick my balls.

Some cool sounds and ideas. Fascinating to hear what else was being recorded at Abbey Road at the same time as the White Album and A Saucerful of Secrets. But the songs just don’t grab me.

I really enjoyed this. Only gave it one listen. And I’d never heard it before. It’s much more acoustic than The Pretty Things that I grew up with (Rosalyn, Don’t Bring Me Down). But there’s something very classy , very Moody Blues about it. The Journey sounds so like a Beatles song of that time.

Thank you, 1001 albums, for making me listening to another record that I had meant to get around to for ages, but never listened too. And it's 1967/8 at Abbey Rd Studios. Norman Smith (producer/engineer) really had a sound going at the time, and this is strongly reminiscent of contemporaneous albums by the Beatles and Pink Floyd, also with strong involvement from Smith at Abbey Rd. Experimental for the time, but still tuneful and often surprisingly heavy (Old Man Going). A lost treasure (although there are quite a few records on this list of this ilk). Favourite track: Baron Saturday.

Enjoyed this one I think it is a grower It could be something I come back to I will give it a 3/5 but with time it could sit higher. First track is good. I did lose slight interest in the album as it went on, but that's more of a reflection of me than the album High 3/5

This album has some interesting ideas but not enough to really keep me interested through the length of it.

Very 1960s. Hippy-dippy psychadelia etc. It's very much of its time - so in context, it would have been a fine example of the genre. I just don't like it.

Grand

Odd. Very odd. Story / lyrics interesting (which does not always mean good), music varies with the story. Concept albums have come a long way! 3 🌟

I wasn't sure what to expect with this one, not having heard of the band let alone the album. It was ok and not even all that dated for a 1960s record. Even the artwork made the album difficult to place.

I could appreciate the psychedelic 60s sounds of this album, and the creativity behind it, but it's not one that I'll be listening to again.

60s drug plinkety wafts

Pretty nice psych-rock record from the era of the Beatles. Not sure I’ll be revisiting it soon, but I’m not mad at either. Tough to be in the same space and time as the Beats. 3 stars!

3++

I wasn't expecting much, but this was really excellent. It may not be the most adventurous work of its time, but one thing I will say for this album is that it's a very accessible entry into psychedelic and proto-prog that never gets too weird or heavy handed. It's also just a well made album that's not particularly bogged down by the concept, which can be an issue with concept albums/rock operas. Fave Songs: Trust, Baron Saturday, I See You, The Journey, Balloon Burning, Old Man Going, Death, Well of Destiny

Sounded Beatles like, but not as good

First listen Saved 6/13 Top track: S.F. Sorrow Is Born

What if you listened to a Beatles album not by the Beatles?

Nicely enjoyable

Way ahead of their time, and should have been as popular as The Who.

Very 60's, very British and part of the pop-rock quirky concept trend at the time. Quite musically accomplished and clearly spoken, it's not really my thing but I can appreciate it's place in music history.

Some interest here, but it didn't succeed in carrying much of a narrative for me and no songs thay really grabbed me.

Decent but forgettable

Like pulverising 47 ducks

12th June 2023 Listened half on Monday and half on Tuesday. Worked from home and played Hogwarts legacy in the evening. Like the strange forgotten stoner brother of the Beatles and the Stones. 2.5 if I could.

The shitty beatles

If this is a concept album, it’s pretty loose. Or at least it seems that way to me. That’s not a detraction, by the way. It’s just the style of the album...there are moments where the psychedelic overtone of the music pulls the art out of its narrative and just does its own thing. It’s like a writer using fancy speech tags instead of just using “said”. A stylistic choice.

v Beatles-y

Wild stufff

Steven F Minecraft

Genuine 1968 San Francisco sound with plenty of flower power, peace, love, groovy-ness all over it. Never heard it before but it didn't suck entirely.

Completely competent psych-rock. Apparently one of the earliest rock operas but I would have never known unless I read up on it. Not bad but it was mostly background music.

Fine 60s psych album.

Never heard of this band before but sounds very familiar like early pink Floyd . I enjoyed it .

This seems like something that I might like more on a re-listen.

It was cool and had some good material in a genre that I like.

Rock psicodélico sesentero. Ni fu ni fa.

This was pretty interesting and quite varied. It definitely had the late 60's psychedelic influence, but harmonies and styles reminded me of the beatles (sgt. peppers) at times, as well as early decca-era bowie and 60's pink floyd. bracelets of fingers, trust, loneliest person were highlights for me... but it also goes pretty weird in some spots.

After a promising start, any gritty psychedelia sloughs off completely by the end. Concept-wise, easily better than most contemporaries.

This was weird and I liked it. I especially liked Bracelet of Fingers and Trust. Some of the songs are just too weird though.

Mmm. Meh. Sounds like 1968 I guess. Wouldn’t listen again, but wouldn’t be bugged if it were on in the background

Interesting album! Baron Saturday is so weird, and I’m not sure why, but I liked it. I don’t know that I’d seek this album to listen to again, so 3 stars.

They sound like The Beatles and idk how to feel about that? Is it cool? Is it weird? Who was influenced by who?

Probably needs another listen, it was alright though

Too Beatles-y

Enjoyable

As a big classic rock guy, I'm surprised that I wasn't already familiar with this album. I've heard of the band Pretty Things, mostly because I was really into Procol Harum and when going through the stacks at the record store Pretty Things would always be right in front of them. But never really listened to them before. This album sounds a bit dated, but interesting nonetheless. I thought it was funny that The Who claims not to have been influenced by this album when producing their own "rock opera", because the whole time I was listening I was thinking how much it reminded me of The Who. 3 stars.

It was kind of crazy. Psychedelic the Beatles then early metal all in one song I'm what has to be an experimental concept album. I honestly don't know what to make of it but I kinda liked it?

The more I hear of 60s psychedelic rock the less the unique the beatles seem. Maybe these are all imitators...but maybe they're all just sorta the same.

Eh

Boy, some people really tried to be like the Beatles in the 60s, didn't they.

Great stuff! Enjoyable 60s psych rock. Wonder why I don't really know the Pretty Things - seems so in line with lots of 60s rock I grew up listening to. 17 songs felt like a lot to take in - I'm finding it hard to pick out particular ones that resonated with me - but overall was some great background to variosu things I did this week

Not bad at all, quite enjoyed it. Never heard of the band but it fit with a lot of other stuff I like

It was an alright album. I was not familiar with the band or any of the songs.

This was my first introduction to The Pretty Things, I thought it was pretty good. The instrumentation was my favourite aspect of this album, I can be a sucker for psychedelic music. There’s nothing offensively bad about the vocals, I just find this style of delivery a bit annoying, same issue I have with The Beatles so I can’t fully get into this one. Really great music here nonetheless, 3.5 stars.

Aardig, maar vond het niks aparts

So this band borrowed from the Beatles, influenced the Who, basically created the idea of a concept album, and no one knows who they are? Music was fine, production was surprising given it is from the 60s. The lyrics though...I have never heard such utter nonsense.

The wiki blurb said that many people though that the who was inspired by this band but I saw more of that kinks album about wartime Britain. That said, this album did give me the same indifferent feeling as the who.

It might not be fair but this gives me "discount Beatles" vibes.

En ole rokkioopperoiden suuri fani enkä ihan tässäkään jaksanut kokonaan tarinaa seurata tai ymmärtää alusta loppuun. Onhan tää aika tällasta poukkoilua ja aika ennalta arvaamatonta. Tai ainakin koittaa olla niin ennalta arvaamatonta kun nyt kuuskyt luvun psykerokki voi olla. On tässä sitä Tommy-henkeä havaittavissa, mutta ei tää kyllä niin hyvä oo kun The Whon eepos, joka varmaan tulee kuunneltavaksemme ennemmin tai myöhemmin. Omituisesti panoroitu levy. Mua vähän häiritsee se että monessa biisissä melkeen koko backline on vasemmalla ja oikella laulu, soolot ja klapit — jotenki härön kuulosta. Pari ihan tiukkaa stygeä löytyy. Annan tälle ehkä toisen mahiksen myöhemmin. 3/5

Vähän tuntuu että tää psykedeelinen rock-ooppera on Briteissä jo oma genrensä. Ihan hauskaa musiikillisesti, tosin ei mitään ihmeellistä, enkä ehkä niin paljoa syttynyt teksteille. Jotkut biisit kyllä jees! Sanoisin et 3/5, voi ajan myötä ehkä noustakin.

El suposat pare dels discos conceptuals, que influenciaria poc després el naixement de 'Tommy'. Passa per ser un disc a descobrir, d'una banda injustament tractada. NI una cosa ni l'altra. Té els seus moments, però 'Tommy' i la majoria dels tants que vindrien després van millorar en molt la proposta de The Pretty Things, i el reconeixement a cada un en aquest cas és l'adequat

I liked it and I didn’t. Idk 3.5