Groovin'

Fun and catchy vibes, but I doubt I will be listening again to this record.

Not my favourite but didn't dislike it

Hey I know that one song!

Idk

I liked this well enough, I didn’t realize they sang Groovin, I only knew the Booker T version.

Lots of classics

This was a fun little album.

OK. Outside of Groovin this is a really forgettable album. I'm sure it's important from a historical standpoint but it sounds like a bunch of 60's music. I'm hoping they were the ones that a lot of bands were aping at that time. Then it would make sense as to why I listened to it. It's not bad it's just very milquetoast album. Again if they were the forefront then it's a different spin on it as they were first. I doubt very much they were the leading edge of anything though. Well I'm sure some of yall's grandparents got busy when listening to this.

Très ordinaire

vraiment juste correct

Just a less good Beatles vibe? It wasn't terrible, but just okay. "Groovin'" was maybe the only thing I may have heard, and it was definitely the best thing on here, but also enjoyed "How Can I Be Sure?" and "Sueno"

Notable Textzeile: How do I know? Maybe you're trying to use me Flying too high can confuse me Touch me but don't take me down Das ist als einzelne Songs gesehen sehr abwechslungsreich und solide. Aber es ist nirgendwo so richtig originell. Man könnte jetzt alle Anleihen oder Abkupferungen aufzählen und irgendwer hat das bestimmt auch schon gemacht. Ich beschränke mich darauf zu sagen, dass ich das gerne gehört habe. Gut zum kochen. Aber wird vermutlich nie wieder angemacht. Solide 2,5

Belangloser 60er Pop, mit schönen Melodien und Harmonien und den Rest habe ich schon wieder vergessen. Warum muss man sich das anhören?

Habs zum einschlafen gehört. War perfekt dafür.

Honestly it was pretty fun to listen to

More dopey 60s hippie music except this one has a ugly cover art. Definitely not bad, but a bit too lovey-dovey for me. Calling this psychedelic rock is extremely generous especially considering it came out the same year as "The Jimi Hendrix Experience", "Surrealistic Pillow" and The Doors self-titled. Favorite track: Groovin'

I've been on this journey long enough to recognize there is a very specific sub-category of 1960s no-name bands who desperately tried to replicate The Beatles(whom I always found overrated anyway, but that's another for another day), and come off as the off-brand version instead. The title track is groovy, and some of this was fun, but I can't see a reason to listen to this one again. Favorite Track: "Groovin''.

1967, a year I thought I was pretty acquainted with musically despite being born over 30 years after the fact. I’ll never truly know any decade between then and now better than those who’ve lived it, and when albums like this come up, it shows it even more. I don’t think I’ve even heard of these guys but they have the sunshine vibe on lock while still sounding accessible compared to the more psychedelic stuff coming out then. Sounds timeless even today.

Starts off great! What a fun album opener! Great vocal on this - Find Somebody and I'm so Happy is good too. Not a big fan of Sueno, it's fine but a little messy. How can I be sure is really lovely Groovin' is fun (these guys were definitely inspired by Beach Boys) If you knew and I dont love you anymore are sweet and pleasant 60's songs (very much signothetimes), but not that memorable You Better Run is great garage rock! Kinda misplaced on this album, but cool track. Place in the sun starts off very promising, but is sort of a letdown.. and too long. It's Love is really cool tho! Overall it's a fun listen - most of all it just feels like a compilation of 60's tracks, but the performances are good, the tracks are (mostly) well written and the lead vocal is really great when it's Felix Cavaliere (had to look up the name) 7/10

They’re quirky but funner than most.

unimpressive

Good album I think they were inspired by the beatles and stones

Seems like they’re copying Motown’s homework here, though I can’t blame them. Maybe some peeking at the Beatles too. Serviceable but not exciting. The horns sounded pretty good; I wasn’t impressed with the use of strings. The vocals have a gritty blue-eyed soul thing going for them that only sometimes struck me as overdone. I agree with the streaming data: “Groovin’” is the best song on this record. To me it stood head and shoulders above the rest of the tracks. Great hook, production and arrangement suites the subject matter, and the Motown-esque singing performances (from the backing vocals in particular) were effective.

8/19/2026 Favorite Track: I Don’t Love You Anymore

I knew Groovin’ already, but this listen made me realise I’d underestimated my relationship with it. Six years ago I knew I liked it; this time I had a much better vocabulary for why. The Young Rascals are an extraordinarily fluent band. Soul and R&B aren’t styles they’re trying on, but the language they already speak, and that gives them the freedom to spend most of this album cheerfully ignoring the question of what sort of band they are supposed to be. If Groovin’ reminds me of anything outside music, oddly enough it’s Richard Linklater’s Waking Life. The rotoscoping in that film is continually changing style: if one visual treatment doesn’t grab you, don’t worry, another one will be along shortly. Groovin’ has much the same restlessness. Its musical surface keeps mutating, sometimes dramatically, without the intelligence underneath it changing. Soul, garage psychedelia, chanson, doo-wop, sunshine pop, Latin-inflected rhythm, acoustic pop and the emerging “heavy” sound of 1967 all pass through, and you barely have time to acclimatise before the picture changes again. That could easily have produced an incoherent mess. What saves it is fluency. A British group reaching for American soul at this point could make wonderful records while still sounding like students of the language. The Beatles, for example, loved this music and absorbed huge amounts from it, but on something like “Got to Get You Into My Life” I can still hear the act of translation: brilliant musicians asking themselves how brass and soul rhythm might work inside a Beatles record. With the Rascals, that grammar seems internal. Brass, Hammond, backing vocals and groove don’t arrive as stylistic signifiers; they behave organically because this is where the band started. That makes their experimentation unusually convincing. “How Can I Be Sure” can suddenly adopt the emotional posture of chanson, complete with accordion and a harmony that seems permanently reluctant to tell you where home is, without sounding like a novelty French number. “Find Somebody” can head into murky, blunt-chorded Nuggets territory, not a million miles from the 13th Floor Elevators or the Misunderstood, and still retain the physical confidence of a soul band. “A Place in the Sun” can borrow the grammar of doo-wop, including a spoken interlude and false ending, without turning into revivalist comedy. They’re not putting costumes on. They seem to understand what these different musical languages are actually for. The self-production matters too. That was still highly unusual for a young pop group in 1967, and what’s interesting is that the Rascals don’t use the freedom to impose a grand unified studio aesthetic. Quite the opposite: Groovin’ sometimes feels as though they have decided to produce eleven singles. Each song gets whatever shape, instrumentation and atmosphere it needs, with almost no obligation to resemble the song on either side of it. This is an album in the older sense — a collection of songs — made with a very modern confidence that every one of those songs can inhabit its own world. The title track remains the most startling example of that freedom. “Groovin’” still sounds remarkably modern to me: the whole temperature, pressure and tempo of the band suddenly change, and this previously muscular R&B group drifts into relaxed Latin/Caribbean-inflected soul-pop without making a fuss about the transition. It doesn’t sound “tropical” because somebody has decorated the studio with palm trees; the feeling is embedded in the rhythm. Coming from the band that made “Good Lovin’”, it isn’t a modest development so much as a colossal sidestep. There’s plenty of sheer pop pleasure here too. “A Girl Like You” has gorgeous soul backing vocals, a wonderfully crisp snare, brass, piano and even harp, yet everything feels load-bearing rather than decorative. “I’m So Happy Now” has an irresistible bounce that briefly put me in mind of the Small Faces. “If You Knew” sounds as though it could have wandered off Help!, particularly in some of its “Tell Me What You See”-like cadences. “You Better Run” periodically settles into a lovely slab of rhythm-guitar-and-Hammond heaviness while somehow continuing to groove rather than merely thud. There is a slight dip for me with “I Don’t Love You Anymore”, which eventually leans a little too far into cheese, but the hit rate is remarkably high. More importantly, the album keeps moving. By the closing “It’s Love”, the structures themselves seem to be loosening: flute, odd little piano figures dropping through the register, forward propulsion underneath while the song starts to break down and dissolve. It feels less like a grand finale than a band discovering that the doors have opened onto a looser musical world and seeing no particular reason to close them again. So what genre is Groovin’? “Psychedelic soul-pop” is probably the least inadequate answer, but really the genre is pop in the broadest possible sense: take anything useful, understand it properly, shape it into a song and move on before anyone can box you in. A genre-agnostic delight, and a strong four stars.

If the bands Chicago and The Monkeys had a baby it would sound like the Young Rascals.

Okay album, but not very memorable.

This sounds like a pop group trying to stay relevant as pop music evolves. I don't think it has worn well over the last 5 or 6 decades. Terribly unoriginal.

I've seen quite a few people compare this album to the music of the Beatles or the Beach Boys, and yeah, the influence is hard to miss, but that's still a bit reductive. I think one key aspect in which the Young Rascals differentiate themselves here is the jazz and soul influences reminiscent of the Motown label. It can be heard through the constant use of wind instruments for instance. There's still nothing revolutionary here, I guess, but this was still a very pleasant musical discovery.

buen album. me hacia acordar a los beatles pero mas groovero

Love the album cover art! Excellent use of horns, acoustic guitar, and more rare musical instruments like the harp, tambourine, and slide whistle. They played with the "new" stereo technology of 1967, giving the listener a new way to experience the sound. Pleasant harmonies and real-life, relatable lyrics. Favorite track - A Place in the Sun.

The Rascals are fixtures of 60s nostalgia radio, and I didn't really realize how much until listening to this album. I kept running into songs I recognized but didn't actually know by whom they were actually performed, which was funny. The Young Rascals (right after this they'd just call themselves The Rascals) are one of many many bands that sprung up after The Beatles hit big. When you look at music from the 60s you get a lot of "after I heard Elvis" or "after I heard The Beatles," of course. The Rascals fit into a slot of kind of poppy blue-eyed soul and after doing a lot of covers, started writing their own songs to mostly success especially on this album, their third. Fun fact: The Rascals were the first white band signed to Atlantic (which makes a lot of sense when you listen to this album.) The two lead singers swap duties back and forth and they're both very strong vocalists. I added three songs to my library: "How Can I Be Sure" (a song I've loved all my life), "A Girl Like You" (ditto), and "Groovin'" (a song you may think you don't know but has been in movies and TV all your life). I would rate this album a very solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️. (Sidenote: I didn't realize "You Better Run" by Pat Benatar was a cover! The original is here.)

'60s American pop, mildly psychedelic, nice harmonies, pretty good. 'How Can I Be Sure' was later covered by both Dusty Springfield and David Cassidy

Wasn't a fan of this one, the one hit had a much higher production value the rest really didn't grab me

gracias a estos chads encontre la cancion de peter and gordon

OK, but nothing to write home about. Sounds like 60's pop (which it is). Better than the Monkees, but not as good as the Mamas and the Papas...

Groupe inconnu. Et sans intérêt particulier. =>2/5

Had no idea who The Young Rascals were going into this, but I'm happy to say that I dig their vibe. A Girl Like You immediately got my attention, and from there, Sueno and How Can I Be Sure kept me interested. Once I realized they sang Groovin', their inclusion on this list made sense to me. The only real drawback on this album is that cover of A Place In The Sun, which just can't compare to Stevie. Still, real solid.

playful and classy hits the right spot

Hey, it's fun!

I liked it. Would listen again

Mostly forgettable 1960s pop-rock. The standout is "You Better Run," a song I had only previously heard as the Pat Benatar cover version. It has a power the rest of the album lacks. One extra star for that one.

4/10

Love the sound of the second track, cool vibe. I recognized the sampled from the beginning of Tribe Called Quest's Left My Wallet in El Segundo in the track Sueno. That track is decent as well. Not sure I love their big hit, How Can I be Sure. About half the songs on this album are just fluff. If you Knew is decent. You Better Run is solid as is A Place in the Sun. It's Love is probably the best track on the album. Overall, it's got some good tracks I'd throw on a 60s acid rock list. The fluffy moments hold it back though. Just one of these forgotten bands from the 60s that probably doesn't belong on this list. High 3/5

Liked this. Varied.

Se siente como canciones de peliculas gringas felices, como juego de gemelas. Tiene muy marcada su escencia 60-70, se siente como si estuviera influenciada por the beatles. Está bueno, quizá no lo suficiente para guardar sus canciones pero si lo volvería a escuchar. Me gustó, me pareció relajante

It was a pretty good album. Several of the tracks I knew and the overall sound of the rest of the album was beautiful and folksy. The general tone was positive and I liked it. Faves were: Find Somebody, How Can I Be Sure, Groovin', I Don't Love You Anymore, and It's Love. Shout to Sueno, too. The beginning of I Left My Wallet in El Segundo.

I liked this enough Playlist add: "I'm So Happy Now"

Very fun, very listenable. Has that 60's/70's flair, and in many ways seems genre-bending.

A cromulent psychedelic soul album. Nothing I would listen to again, but not bad either. The production quality across tracks was strangely inconsistent. The album struggles a bit to find a cohesive sound. The tracks somehow don't feel like they belong together despite being from the same genre. However, this does result in the album having a surprisingly distinct style (something that most psychedelic bands from this era fail to achieve). As a side note, the book claims that this band was one of the few white R&B bands that could compete with the black artists from that period. I don't know about that. They're certainly not even close to the greats like Ray Charles or Aretha Franklin. 2.5 stars.

Pretty cool and groovy, but it's a bit forgettable. In a week I'll probably forget I ever listened to this, but I thought the same thing about Whatever by Aimee Mann which I now think is amazing.

A Girl Like You 3.6 Find Somebody 3.4 I'm So Happy Now 3.4 Sueño 3.2 How Can I Be Sure 3.3 Groovin' 3.4 If You Knew 3.2 I Don't Love You Anymore 3.4 You Better Run 3.4 A Place in the Sun 3.7 It's Love 3.2 Score: 3.381818182

El álbum es bastante agradable en su mayoría, lo escucharía de fondo alguna vez. Groovin' es muy linda canción sin duda y me relaja. It's Love, If You Knew y How Can I Be Sure tampoco se quedan tan abajo, son buenas.

Groovy, although it's the sixties and a lot of the sound of that era is a little bit lost on me in 2026. Interesting because when I was 26 I was totally into it. How times change.

Groovin'

Three or four uber-vanilla imitations of Stax-Volt artists with a lot of genres-du-jour in between. The competent, but uninspired, aping of so many different sounds reveals its cynical pop nature - an effort to find a radio hit rather than create art. And as with so many pop albums, from whatever era, the songwriting strength of the one hit feels like an accident in the context of the mediocrity that surrounds it.

Мелодійно, проте альбом доволі посередній

good, not my fav tho

It was fine. Some of the songs were definitely fun, the slide whistle in You Better Run was good. The album as a whole just didn’t do it for me, maybe a second listen would change my mind

You better run!!!! Because this album is so good. Loved it. Such a treat of an album. Makes me feel good, and I want to listen many more times. Such great emotion in the singing too.

Is that a fire alarm going off in the background during Find Somebody? Spatial Audio for the WIN. It’s so happy! Like the Beatles but better cuz not British and the psych rock is done more enjoyably and less pretentiously.

This project is fun because you get to listen to an album you’ve never heard before and will never hear again.

Very pleasantly surprised by this. Expected discount Beach Boys, got a serious competitor! 4/5

I thought I would like this more than I did. It irritated me.This was bubblegum music, AM radio. I really learned the classics of rock on FM. 2 stars. The faces on this album cover look like Zanti misfits, for those Outer Limits fans🤣

Very British. Some of it is close to an area of 60s-70s British pop that I don't really like, but overall it's enjoyable. I kinda like the back half of the album better. You Better Run was cool.

really had a blast listening. dips into so many styles and sounds of the 60's it feels like a musical feast. these motherfuckers played a slide whistle and i was like "damn this shits actually hittin". i was compelled to listen through a few times and even after the novelty wore off it's still a jammer. favorite song is It's Love

Rating: 4/10 Is this something to outright hate, not really but I'm extremely indifferent to listening to an entry of 60's Beatles pop that feels extremely derivative and undeserving of any particular reverence in modern times. I've been into a lot of 60's pop rock on this list and so far this is the worst of it to me, I would rather just put on more Beatles, Byrds, Kinks. The first track A Girl Like You was pretty good

Fine 60s with some memorable moments.

Pleasant, unassuming 60s pop rock. All the hallmark 60s staples with nothing particularly memorable or interesting.

Straight-up 60s pop music with no surprises. It's fine but it certainly doesn't sound fresh. I feel it's one of very many similar albums which could have been included in the list to represent someone from the era who isn't The Beatles, and happened to be the one that the contributor had a soft spot for

Good album!

This was fine.

It's pleasant and a nice vibe, just not quite sure how it made this list? Standout Tracks: Find Somebody, Groovin', You Better Run Rating: 3

A band I didn't think I'd heard of, turns out I did know some of their songs. First impressions were not positive, consistent with many negative reviews here - but as I read around, and the album progressed, I felt at least some of the soul was "for real" (as per Atlantic signing them), particularly the singing. The title track is a stand-out, it certainly works - I wonder where did they get the Afro-Cuban vibe from? I also checked out Good Lovin' (big hit, not on this album) and it works quite strikingly compared to the original by The Olympics. So I can see that there was some songwriting/arranging gift in play. And a decent range of styles and moods are essayed on this album. But as others have commented the lyrics/themes are weak and offputting. Seems like this could be the best album of a band which merits a mildly interesting paragraph in an account of 60s pop music, but the album pales in comparison to more significant bands and albums being released around the same time. Is it bad in parts? There are certainly mediocre run-of-the-mill bits, so I'll say it's Mix of Good and Bad, 5/10.

Excellent album. I was surprised by the songwriting. Impressed

Enjoyable and relaxing

I recognize a bunch of these tracks by title, but I've never listened to this album start-to-finish otherwise. This is fine. Unfortunately, I was trying to resolve another frustrating situation while listening to this so I probably wasn't paying close enough attention to it. But it was neither bad nor good.

There’s so much good stuff here—and not *just* the essential “Groovin’.” “A Girl Like You” and “You Better Run” are, among others, excellent. The occasional nods toward (early) psychedelia are interesting. I considered throwing this 4 stars!

Some of the most forgettable 60s music I’ve ever heard.

It was fine.

26. jul 2026. 17.41 uprkos svemu (mojim predrasudama) its a nice lil album best: girl like you, find somebody

Yeah, I mean, they're not The Kinks but they'll do.

Good early psych/brit stuff, with all-timer song.

Love The Rascals, this being my 2nd favorite of theirs that I've heard.

It was ok but I’m not sure I’ll revisit it.

cute pop-soul, but kinda repetitive, not cohesive and kinda hollow and ironically, soulless. favorite song: groovin', was gonna say maybe "a place in the sun" but couldn't stand the outro, sorry bout it guys.

I like the blending of the folk elements.It creates peaceful tone for the album. There are a lot of nice vocal harmonies throughout, I'm especially drawn to the ones on "I don't love you anymore". I will say some of the songs can feel quite generic.But in particular , the title track and the opener stand out as the highlights of the album. Fairly simple album, but overall , I quite enjoyed it. Fav Track: Groovin

maravilhoso chega de depressao e coisas pra baixo

This isn't the worst thing I've ever heard, but it isn't for me.

beatles if they had musical talent

It’s maybe not the most complex but I really enjoyed it and it did feel like there was a good variation. The lyrics are maybe a bit too simplistic, but overall I thought it was good fun. Just a nice mood boosting album. Fav song: Groovin’ Least fav: Find Somebody

Enjoyed this. Not quite as good as the cover looks but still decent. Specific rating - 4.2 Fav song - groovin Least fav - it’s love

Their last album before they aged out of being The Young Rascals and just became The Rascals, the remaining members are in their 80s so I imagine they'll become The Old Rascals any day now. It's a fun album but I'm really not sure why it's on the list. Favourite song: Sueno Least: Find Somebody

My overwhelming feeling is one of relief that a song as good as ‘How Can I Be Sure’ isn’t actually a David Cassidy song after all!

𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯’ is an enjoyable blue-eyed soul album, but it suffers from being released in one of the greatest years in popular music. When placed alongside so many groundbreaking records from 1967, it inevitably feels a little too safe and understated. That doesn’t mean it’s without charm. The (Young) Rascals deliver warm vocal harmonies, effortless grooves, and consistently strong melodies that make the album an easy listen from beginning to end. The performances are polished, and the songwriting is undeniably solid. Even so, I never felt the album reached the same creative heights as many of its contemporaries. 𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯’ is a thoroughly enjoyable record, but in such an extraordinary musical year, being merely good isn’t always enough to stand out.

* 60 "We have Beatles at home" ... og så kommer det her. Det er totalt fin slut 60'er lyd, og der er også lidt optur-momenter, men heller ikke mere end det.

meh 2 the meh - en meget lille 3'er

It's giving nothing 1.9

har både beach boys og beatles vibes så det burde umiddelbart kræve lidt af et tilløb for mig, men jeg synes faktisk det er forbavsende godt/catchy. Mange af numrene lyder som noget, der kunne have været med på et Guardian Of The Galaxy soundtrack - og det er en god ting i min bog. Men det er på den anden side heller ikke hverken specielt banebrydende eller bemærkelsesværdigt

Los bardean mucho a estos pibes. Que son una copia de los Beatles, que no son originales, que son horrendos. Tampoco la pavada. O se enojan fácilmente con las cosas o descargaron su enojo en ellos porque sí. Basta con escuchar para entender que no son un copy paste. Sí, es muy notoria la influencia pero tampoco nos pasemos de skibidis.

I think this was alright but I genuinely can’t remember much about it

Definitely sounded like music from the 60s. The second half of the album had more songs that caught my ears. I didn't feel like this was anything substantial, however. It was okay to have playing in the background.

This album is solid, for its time. But that’s sort of the biggest problem with this album. It’s just so “of its time” that it ages poorly. Before I even heard the second song I can picture exactly what this band looks like and exactly what their stage on tv looked like. And it didn’t disappoint, it’s about as “70s” as something is gunna get. The opening track is good, and I didn’t hate any of the other tracks but the problem is that this album has ZERO edge. It’s so family friendly and wholesome it might as well be a Monkeys album. Which is not a compliment. I just found everything about this album boring and “been there done that” but done better by pretty much all of their contemporaries. Boy bands from the 70s may be more musically gifted than the ones what I grew up with, but that’s not saying a lot.

It's fine.

Great álbum so complete it brings a lot to this genre

It’s really not bad, but still fairly generic 60s psychedelica. While there aren’t any real standouts for me, it also didn’t quite get annoying. Calling it essential listening feels like a stretch. 3

Kako je dobre muzike bilo u '67, ovo zvuči smiješno u poređenju.

kinda whateva Will I listen to again: 1%

later era beatles wannabe type beat. didnt make me be grooving. 2/5

I always thought the song Groovin was done by an African American... Surprised Pikachu face

Simple and happy 60s music. Nothing too offensive, but not all that great either.

Late 60s sugar pop

When I read the blurb for this album on the streaming service, it mentioned that this album where The Young Rascals started dipping their toes into psychedelia. I immediately tensed up and gritted my teeth as I hit play, but I didn't seem to find too much of that while listening. It felt poppy in a way that I was anticipating, given the time, and the horns felt really bright and were a welcome touch. As a whole, though, this just didn't grab me. It wasn't bad, but I just didn't care about any of it. Oh well.

60 pop perfection

Disco normalito de los 60s, estuvo bien.

-so this album is by no means “bad” but i find it very uninspired and lacking in creativity. there was certainly a “sound” that most bands had in the 60s and that’s great, but this just feels like a collection of all those tropes regurgitated to be really palatable. in other words, a bit of a ripoff. don’t get me started on the soul stuff -that being said, as i mentioned, not bad. if this were the only album i’d ever heard from the 60s i’d probably love it -Favorites: Find Somebody, Groovin’

Pretty standard late 60s stuff but I liked it! I don’t really think it should be on this list though. Bonus point for the flute solos.

I mean, there's nothing actually wrong with this. But I'm unlikely to listen again.

3,4 Highlights: A Girl Like You, Find Somebody

Another classic in its own space. Never had the pleasure of listening to it on my own.”Groovin” has definitely been a few movies I’ve watched before.

fuckin hippie mfs. nah mentira, it was just fine. me gustó el title track

We have The Beatles at home: Fav tracks: Find Somebody,

Nah

Without consciously remembering the name of this album, I was about to give a one-word review: "Groovin'".

Another boring psychedelic 60s album. Next, please. Favorite Track: A Place in the Sun

This sounds exactly like the 1960’s and if it’s the nostalgia of that time you’re after then look no further. That said there are better examples than this to whisk you away to the times of joss sticks, kaftans and ban the bomb marches. Groovin is the obvious stand out track which has the power to slow down everything around you without the use of anything herbal and turn the sky a psychedelic pink. Wish I was back then and knew everything I know now but the trip here was still amazing. 3/5 30/6/26

The Young Rascals are a moment in time. Groovin’ is an all time great single, evoking a specific period in history - much simpler, less jaded and caustic, and definitely more innocent. I was a mere boy if 7 when this came out and remember my mom singing along to Groovin’ as well as Tony Orlando and Dawn’s Toe a Yellow Ribbon. Listening to the full album you can see hints of The Who vocally but, for a band from New Jersey, the innocence of the 50s still lingers amidst these songs. Not unpleasant and I can see how several of these songs were minor hits as singles, but again, this is a record released at a time when simple well crafted songs about love and relationships made the charts. I recognize the quality but it really isn’t in my top 1001. 3/5

no es muy original pero tiene canciones disfrutables como "How Can I Be Sure" y "Groovin'" 3.7

I was pretty distracted during this, but I feel like this is kinda just the tamer, less experimental version of The Beach Boys. Like it’s cool, I thought there were some really good songs on here, but it’s really not doing anything special. And there’s only so many 60s pop albums one can stand before it gets stale. Favorites: Find Somebody, You Better Run, A Place In the Sun

Ok. ★★

Soul, pop, garage, psyc, and none of it feels out of place. Very 60s pop but varied enough to stay interesting

nyt ei oo viikolla jaksanut hirveämmin kirjoitella. Aika usein oon myös töissä kuunnellut tuon albumin, eikä oo sit pahemmin kerinnyt enää arvostelemaan. Pitää vähä tsempata tässä. Kyseinen albumi ei kyllä itseäni säväyttänyt, liian vanhaa, liian hidasta ja mitä lie muuta. Katsoin mikä oli albumin kuunnelluin kappale ja yritin oikeen keskittyä ja kuunnella, mutta paskaa sekin oli. Aivan liian vanhaa musiikkia ei siitä pääse yli eikä ympäri

somewhere between the kinks and the early beatles, really enjoyable 60s soulish rock but nothing that really stands out great production and instrumentation, lyrics are a bit cheesy

Sounds kinda dated and not really that interesting.

Despite being a clear attempt to copy the beatles and beach boys, have to give them credit that they made a decent album

Some solid 60s pop

I didn't mind it. The cover art is abhorrent but the music is pleasant.

A couple good songs but mostly forgettable. 2.75

my first reaction to this was Laughing Irl at the silly cover but honestly its a great if unrevelatory slice of mid 60s pop. its not entirely separate from the psych boom but there's more of a soul and even rnb approach to the instrumental and vocal performances here. sometimes there are funny abberations like the harder edged You Better Run but on the whole this is rly comfy american 60s pop music, upbeat and melodic and warm, less adventurous than the british invasion bands but slightly more bite than the monkees. honestly i think the biggest highlight is the vocals, which are full of beautiful and silky work on both lead and harmonies. How Can I Be Sure in particular is absolutely wonderful...just a rolling melodic wonderland.

I don't think I actually listened to The Rascals before, or at least what they're called after this record. They're another one of those blue-eyed soul groups that combined elements of pop and rock into their sound, with primary songwriter duties handled by lead vocalist and keyboardist Felix Cavaliere and percussionist Eddie Brigati. From what I gather, Groovin' compiled most of the singles they had written between 1966 and 1967, showing the band following the at-the-time trend of incorporating psychedelia into their sound alongside some Latin and jazz arrangements, and... it's okay, I guess? The compositions are decent enough and reasonably played, the vocal harmonies are solid, and there are at least a few good ideas here, such as the main riff of "Find Somebody", the Latin-infused guitar rollicks of "Sueño", and that flute embellishment that opens the closing track "It's Love". In particular, I really dug the swaggering "You Better Run," which would later be given a hard rock treatment by Pat Benatar. But that said, the album can be summed up as a compilation of singles largely themed around teenage melodrama. I get why, because Cavaliere was dating a high school student at the time, which inspired him to write most of these songs. First, it should be made apparent that he was at least 24 at the time, so... eww. Second, it's not like I'm against teenage melodrama; I've enjoyed the likes of what Olivia Rodrigo and Sombr offered in this decade. But I do feel that their records had the benefit of detail and nuance in describing their relationships, and I don't get that here in the songwriting. Also not helping matters is how muted the production is. I've tried listening to this album in both mono and stereo, and I'm just not getting the necessary oomph that really elevated their sound. Though there are some jarring mix decisions left in, like the alternating panning of the guitar line in the opening of "Find Somebody". Finally, as far as psychedelic acts in 1967 go, there were plenty of better options to choose from. I mentioned this in my review of Pink Floyd's The Piper at the Gates of Dawn two weeks ago, but even that record was trying to be innovative in all its experimenting. This, on the other hand, feels like it was following a trend. At the end of the day, Groovin' is just an okay record for its time. I would be curious how The Rascals turned out after this, when they started writing albums rather than just compiling singles. But as it is, this is just fine.

Old school soul tunes in the same era of the Monkeys maybe? Not really my cup of tea, but the vocal harmonies are nice. Happy subject matter. 2.4/5.0

Hey! It was fine!

Loved this. Good variety

This album had such a great start with “A girl like you”! It was fun, groovy (as advertised), and built nicely throughout the track. While a bit more laid back, “Find Somebody” kept the energy going with the percussion in the background. I really liked the vibes after of “I’m so happy now”. It was very of its time, and had almost Beatles vibes to it. How can I be sure was a very pretty track! The title track was not as groovy as I would’ve liked it to be. “If you knew” and “I don’t love you anymore” were also pretty chill. I was so happy that “Run” brought back the upbeat. The bass was great and I loved the combination of instruments. It also had some semblance of a bridge which… yay! I did actually quite like “A place in the Sun”. “Love” was a very fun closer to this album. Overall, I enjoyed this. I wish it has been more upbeat for the whole thing as that’s where it really shined! 3.5/5 ⭐️ 170/1089

Ei

Great 60s album with lots of variety. But with the album cover? Overall 4/5 easy listen

Started a little slow, but improved quite a bit after Sueno. Definitely didn't think I would enjoy this, but was pleasantly surprised by a few. They have a very 60s sound

This has a Monkees/Beach Boys/Zombies vibe to it. It incorporates some South American rhythms, soul, and rock. Definitely an "of its time" album. I'm not really "Groovin" but it passes the vibe check for sure (3-3.5).

Oh, really don’t think I am in the mood for this today. The exercise is teaching me that the 60’s really wasn’t my decade. But I did appreciate their innovative use of both channels AND the flute. 3 Boolean: surprisingly, true

Incredibly generic 1960s pop. Neither bad nor memorable. "You Better Run" is about as close as it gets to being interesting, but the song was over by the time I realized it. The cover art is silly.

Buen disco, entretenido!

Groovy

эм ну фигня какая-то ничего не зацепило

Perfect album! "A Place In The Sun" and "It's Love" are the masterpieces.

Three great songs do not make a great album. Other than those three, the others are toss away fillers. I was seven when this album came out and and the song Groovin’ was all over the radio, a perfect summer pop song.

Sounds like some of these songs would've been very great radio hits. But that's it

It was ok. 2.5/5

It's... fine?

Довольно базово звучащий альбом для шестидесятых. Приятные песенки. За обложку отдельный респект. How Can I Be Sure - понравилась больше всех. Скрипочка, аккордеон, классно. Ну так, в общем, с пивом потянет, что называется. 3/5.

Nothing special.

Love love love. Songs to tap along to and I even caught myself singing along. All the grandmas would be on the dancefloor for sure with these track. ‘A girl like you’ giving temptations vibes and then ‘Find somebody’ gave me massive stone roses vibes but it sounded even better than them.. Loved The Spanish twist on ‘sueno’ ‘Grooving’ then giving three tops vibes. Every track surprising and the band clearly not afraid to try new things- The music sounding on point too. I loved it! Best track- ‘find somebody’ Worst track- ‘I don’t love you anymore’ Straight onto a second listen already and half way through again… That must mean it’s hit the right notes with me! Not perfect though. 9.5/10

Young Rascals First Rascal "So are we gonna make this album soul, prog, R&B, psychedelia, garage, pop easy listening or flamenco?" Second Rascal "Yes" Third Rascal "Which are we best at?" Fourth Rascal "Oh......" What a flaccid collection of blue-eyed boy jizz this is. Best Track - Find Somebody Worst Track - How Can I Be Sure 1.5/10

Pegadizo. Un blues entrando en los setenta. Estuvo bueno

Not really my thing but didn't hate it either

the termites

3 (El anterior era un 2)

These young rascals are pretty groovin.

2.5

This was ok, didn't blow my socks off but not bad!

They list their band as The Rascals now, guess they're not Young anymore. Standard 60's pop equals 3 stars

Nothing exciting or notable here. Just a collection of average songs that lack originality.

Flojardo, casi me duermo

Trite, saccharine 60s pop with slight "psychedelic" tendencies. Not sure why this is on the generator, seems like there were a ton of bands in this vein and nothing on this album is very notable musically. I do appreciate that they were a bunch of Italian guys from NJ though, represent fellas. 2/5.

That was a fun, and groovy, album.

I liked a few songs. Rest was kinda mid.

I didn't expect much going into the album, but almost right away I was impressed. It is pretty groovy as you might expect, but really every song was great. I had never heard of this band before listening to this album, but I'm glad I know them now.

Pretty good music. I especially liked the song Groovin.

Yeah okay.

We already have every Beatles record on this list, do we really need every Beatles rip off act too? It’s fine, I guess. Inoffensive, but I didn’t need to hear this before I die.

"Mom can we get the Beatles on the way?" "We have the Beatles at home"

Kind of like a mid 60s album. Not much else. A few hits otherwise kind of blah.

Love this!

Groovin is a right track 👌 dynamite. The music and the voice are great in this album, but I just don’t rate the songs. Simple as

4 Didnt really stand out at all to me on the first listen but on the second time round, this is a genuinely really good album, very varied styles

Bien normal

A fantastic album that makes me want to grow up in the 60’s

Muzak

The album had an easygoing and pleasant atmosphere, but much of it felt less memorable to me than I expected. At times, it reminded me of a lighter and less distinctive version of The Beatles. Find Somebody stood out to me for its guitar riff, while Groovin’ was the only track I had already known before hearing the album.

Perfectly fine psychedelic pop/soul. Groovin' is a solid track. Other than that, not really speaking to me.

1.5 One of the most mediocre, unextraordinary albums I’ve heard for this project. Nothing interesting going on, no good voices, no interesting lyrics, nothing new. Idk what reason could justify this being here. At least it’s short. I’ll forget this whole album by tomorrow.

Really chill and nice, had a lot of fun with it. Find Somebody had a nice guitar riff. The guitar in Sueny was also really fun. How Can I Be Sure was awesome. Fun album overall. Best song: How Can I Be Sure

2,5

Nice, but for me, irrelevant.

This was surprisingly groovy! I expected another twee 70's folk thing that was about as engaging as grandads stories about the 40's, but it turned out much better. The blue eyed souls, the strong writing and the good hooks meant this got 2 plays through with the appreciation of the whole family. I didnt love it, but its a 3.5 rounded up because why not.

3.5 I actually like a lot of this, most of the instrumentals are pretty fun and I like the composition and lyrics for a few songs. Favorite song: a place in the sun/ a girl like you

ну норм.

Has some great songs and also a few duds but still enjoy listening to the Rascals.

I don't feel like anyone really talks about The Young Rascals as a classic 1960s pop band, so I was surprised that this had a better killer to filler ratio than, say, the Mamas and the Papas' album I got the other week.

This was a pleasant surprise. I cringed when I saw the cover art and title, thinking it was going to be a Monkee's knockoff or something. That still exists in this space, but there is also smattering of soul and multicultural sounds that balance out the record and make ot actually interesting.

Meh. Early Beatles-inspired rock. Nothing terrible, yet entirely forgettable.

Fine but nothing memorable

Honestly really enjoyed this. Love the R&B/soul flavor, and of course the psychedelic style. Would like to listen again.

3.5 stars

Pretty solid.

I saw all of the Beatles comparisons before listening, so I was pretty confused when the opening track is nothing like the Beatles. But then the next song comes on and I got it. I still think that a decent bit of the album isn't going for the Beatles knockoff thing. And when it isn't, it is much stronger.

Maybe nothing revolutionary but I love this kinda stuff

Meh.

Decent album full of songs about wanting to get laid. Such simpler times. Weren't they aware that there was a world in chaos? Not one song about Vietnam? Come on! Doesn't quite reach the heights of some other music of the era, but still quite solid.

I can't quite figure out if they're going for imitation Beatles or Rolling Stones but they can't quite pull off either. It's not bad but I listened to it a few times and still can't pick one song that really caught my attention. And as for that cover 'art'...

fav songs: a girl like you groovin' i don't love you anymore a place in the sun warm, melodic, soulful 60/100

Pop precursors! Lots of earworms - How Can I be Sure!

Decent music from the 1960s, so I’m giving this album 2 stars…

Bland sixties pop apart from groovin

Bubblegum pop. It’s nice but not anything spectacular.

Groovin' er en god blanding af blue-eyed soul og psykedelisk rock. Den lander et sjovt sted mellem motown og tidlige Beatles eller The Beach Boys. Meget fedt, Album. Vil vende tilbage ;) Standouts: A Girl Like You, I'm So Happy Now, How Can I Be Sure (Nina Simone??), Groovin' (Sam Cooke??)

3.5

Olay, jut very of its time. 3 stars

Meh. This is like a mixed bag of popular styles at the time and they really don't seem to have an identity of their own. It's not terrible, but it's not very interesting either. "Groovin'" is the best thing here, and it's just okay. 3 stars.

3,5

Cursed album cover. Music itself isn’t so bad. Kinda mildly groovy, nuts and bolts 60s pop soul stuff. Nothing too special. It hits initially like Zombies Odessey & Oracle if the music was a lot more average and inessential - Clodessy and Snoracle. Something with better songs and similarly cartoony but non-cursed album artwork would be The Best Of The Lovin’ Spoonful also issued in 1967. 3 stars minus 1 for the artwork.

Album #86: Groovin’ - The Young Rascals Genre (W): Blue-eyed soul, psychedelic pop, psychedelic soul, garage rock Singles: You Better Run / Love is a Beautiful Thing, Groovin’ / Sueño, A Girl Like You / It’s Love, How Can I Be Sure / I’m So Happy Now I have listened to this album once before. Thoughts?: An unremarkable, generic and boring album with one amazing song on it. Sounds like a basic soul band, but Groovin’ is such a gorgeous song. Favorite songs: Groovin’, You Better Run,

You can safely judge this by the cover.

plaatje van dertien in een dozijn... wat psychedelica, wat hippie gedoe, wat esoterisch gezwam, maar zeker geen originaliteit

I dug this so hard. Pure oldies sound that I live for.

3.5

It was okay. There were a couple tracks I'd call good, but the rest for forgettable, useful to set a movie scene to the era, but nothing that ages well as something to continue listening to 60 years later.

This album was all over the place, and I can't say it worked for me. The variety of styles just makes it seem disjointed. 2.2

The most average album I've ever heard. Therefore fitting it find itself on this list

6/10 Estuvo bien, pero nada wow. Encaria muy bien en Stranger Things, no me aburrio pero tampoco me sorprendió nada

This is the same as the previous. Felt burnt out at the end. 6/10

Chill album, I didn’t mind it at all. Groovin’ was definitely the standout.

raro de bueno

Guess you'd have a different opinion if you're a Usonian, for the rest of the world... this is just another Beatles wannabe band. Sometimes it sounds like a Beachboys thing but it really didn't do it for me. Kinda boring.

Forgettable, harmless 1.4

Ganz nett ...

My impression after 1.5 songs: this is pretty fine music that was just drowned out by the better stuff coming out from The Beatles, The Mamas & The Papas, and others around the same time. Yeah, and I stand by that point after listening to the whole album. Usually, I take notes during, but nothing ever came to mind that my first impression didn't already cover, honestly. If I want to listen to some iconic 60s music, I will go to anything but this. It's like getting a knock-off, off-brand, poorly assembled Lamborghini, when an actual Lamborghini basically has the same cost. AKA, having an account/subscription to a music streaming site. Not worth listening to before I die, but also, not actually a bad listen. Just kind of pointless. Favorite Song(s): I'm So Happy Now

**Groovin'** (1967) by The Young Rascals is widely regarded as the band's creative peak—a record that captured the Summer of Love's optimism while pushing blue-eyed soul into new territory. Released on July 31, 1967, the album reached No. 5 on the Billboard 200 and produced three top-ten singles, cementing the New Jersey quartet's place in rock history . --- ## Lyrics The songwriting partnership of Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati produced lyrics that radiated positivity and romantic idealism. Brigati described their collaborative language as "upbeat and positive," and that sensibility permeates the album . The title track "Groovin'" captures a simple, sun-drenched moment of contentment—"Life would be ecstasy / You and me endlessly"—that felt perfectly attuned to 1967's cultural moment . However, the album isn't one-dimensional. "How Can I Be Sure" introduces vulnerability and romantic uncertainty, while "I Don't Love You Anymore" (written by guitarist Gene Cornish) offers a surprisingly assertive breakup narrative: "It's like my life had just begun" . "You Better Run" brings an edge of confrontation. That said, some listeners find the non-hit material lyrically thin, with one critic noting a repetitive thematic cycle: "I'm looking for someone like you... okay, I found somebody... yay, let's get married now... oh no, maybe I'm having second thoughts" . --- ## Music *Groovin'* represents a dramatic expansion of the Young Rascals' sound. Where their earlier work leaned heavily on garage-soul covers, this album blends: - **Blue-eyed soul** ("A Girl Like You," "I'm So Happy Now") - **Psychedelic rock** ("Find Somebody" with its phased fuzztone guitars) - **Latin rhythms** ("Groovin'" incorporates baiao influences; "Sueño" is explicitly Latin-tinged) - **Baroque pop** ("How Can I Be Sure" features strings and trumpet in a cabaret-influenced arrangement) - **Jazz-rock fusion** (the album closer "It's Love" features flutist Hubert Laws) The band employed three different lead vocalists across the album—Cavaliere, Brigati, and Cornish—creating varied textures. The core quartet was augmented by session players adding violins, horns, harp, and congas, giving the record a lush, sophisticated palette . --- ## Production Produced by the band themselves with orchestral arrangements by Atlantic's Arif Mardin, *Groovin'* was recorded primarily at Atlantic Studios in New York . The production balances polish with organic warmth. The title track famously opens with bird songs and a relaxed Latin groove—a far cry from the band's earlier rave-ups. Atlantic Records was initially skeptical about releasing "Groovin'" as a single, but DJ Murray the K convinced label head Jerry Wexler to take the chance . The album was originally released in mono, which some modern listeners find limiting, though others appreciate the concentrated sonic punch . Cavaliere was deeply involved in every stage: "I was present for every second of it. We never mailed anything in... from the creation of the songs to the recording of the track to the singing and the mixing, even to the mastering whenever possible" . --- ## Themes The dominant theme is **joy**—unapologetic, radiant happiness. Even when addressing breakups or uncertainty, the album maintains an affirming energy. "It's Love" soars with exultant optimism, while "A Place in the Sun" (their cover of Stevie Wonder's 1966 hit) sustains the record's sanguinity . The album also reflects the **Summer of Love** ethos—"Groovin'" peaked on the charts just as that cultural phenomenon was dawning, and its "breezy feel" became synonymous with the era's idealism . The band's visual transformation (Nehru shirts, beads, longer hair) mirrored this shift toward psychedelic openness . --- ## Influence and Legacy *Groovin'* was pivotal in defining **blue-eyed soul** as a commercially viable genre, proving white rock bands could achieve significant R&B crossover success . The title track was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999 and appears on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's list of 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll . Booker T. & the M.G.'s instrumental cover reached No. 21 in 1967, and the song continues to resonate—a 2024 Poolside remix achieved platinum certification . The album helped earn the band (later known simply as The Rascals) induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 . Retrospective critics often rank it as their finest work, with AllMusic awarding it 4.5/5 stars and praising its "limitless personality" . --- ## Pros - **Genre-blending ambition**: Seamlessly integrates soul, psychedelia, Latin, jazz, and baroque pop without feeling disjointed - **Three legitimate classics**: "Groovin'," "How Can I Be Sure," and "You Better Run" remain enduring songs - **Vocal versatility**: Three distinct lead singers prevent monotony - **Production sophistication**: Arif Mardin's arrangements and the band's attention to sonic detail elevate the material - **Emotional authenticity**: The happiness feels genuine rather than saccharine - **Historical significance**: A landmark of blue-eyed soul and 1967's revolutionary musical year ## Cons - **Uneven deep cuts**: Some non-single tracks ("A Girl Like You," "I'm So Happy Now") rely on generic late-'60s pop brass arrangements that haven't aged as gracefully - **Mono limitation**: The original release lacks stereo separation, which can feel constrained to modern ears - **Lyrical repetition**: Outside the hits, the romantic themes can feel cyclical and occasionally underdeveloped - **Identity diffusion**: Some critics note the band seems to be chasing multiple sounds (Beach Boys, Beatles, Otis Redding) without a fully cohesive identity - **Overshadowed by 1967's giants**: Released within months of *Sgt. Pepper's* and *Their Satanic Majesties Request*, it struggled for critical attention despite its quality --- **Verdict**: *Groovin'* is an essential document of 1967—a bridge between the raw energy of mid-'60s garage rock and the sophisticated pop-soul that would follow. While not every experiment succeeds perfectly, the album's best moments are transcendent, and its influence on blue-eyed soul and genre-crossing pop remains undeniable.

It was a nice album not to much going on felt a bit repetitive. Also went through ALOT of relationship statuses during that

pretty good

Some OK tunes. Stylistically I found it all over the place, none of the styles particularly appealed to me and I found the arrangements dated (not surprisingly from a 60 year old record I guess).

Nice '60s music with a few nice hits (A Girl Like You, Groovin'). Just nice, not the best of its time.

buenisima la portada

On est en 1967, le "Summer of Love" bat son plein, tout le monde se roule dans l'herbe avec des fleurs dans les tifs en pensant que la paix dans le monde va arriver par l'opération du Saint-Esprit et de trois buvards d'acide. Et au milieu de ce bordel chromatique, débarquent ces quatre types du New Jersey qui, au lieu de nous balancer du garage rock un peu hargneux comme ils savaient le faire au début, décident de nous pondre l'album ultime du "tout va bien, les oiseaux chantent et la vie est une brise légère". Mon premier réflexe, c'est l'urticaire car j'ai une sainte horreur de l'optimisme béat en musique. Pourtant, je dois me rendre à l'évidence : ces putains de hippies savent y faire. Ce n'est pas un album, c'est un piège, on commence l'écoute avec une grimace de mépris, prêt à dézinguer cette pop "blue-eyed soul" un peu proprette, et on finit par se surprendre à dodeliner de la tête comme un imbécile. C'est là que réside tout le paradoxe de ce disque et sur ce point il est d'une efficacité redoutable, presque insultante pour quelqu'un qui préfère les structures un peu plus déstructurées. Le son de cet album est d'une clarté limpide, merci la production d'Atlantic Records qui, pour le coup, ne s'est pas foutue de la gueule du monde. Les Young Rascals ont délaissé les amplis qui saturent pour quelque chose de beaucoup plus aéré, presque pastoral. On sent l'influence de la soul de Motown et de Stax, mais passée à la moulinette d'un groupe de rock blanc qui aurait passé trop de temps au soleil. C'est une musique qui respire, qui prend son temps, avec cet orgue Hammond qui vient tapisser l'espace de manière feutrée. C'est l'antithèse absolue de la violence sonore que j'affectionne, et pourtant, il y a une honnêteté dans cette légèreté qui finit par briser mes défenses de vieux cynique adepte de post-punk. Le morceau-titre, "Groovin'" par exemple, c'est le mal incarné sous forme de pop song avec ses bruits d'oiseaux en intro et son tempo de sieste dominicale. Il devrait m'exaspérer au plus haut point, mais le talent est là : la mélodie est imparable, l'arrangement est d'une sobriété exemplaire et la voix d'Eddie Brigati est juste assez soul pour ne pas tomber dans la mièvrerie totale. C'est chiant à admettre, mais c'est du grand art de la pop. L'album ne se contente pas de flâner car il y a des moments où le groupe se rappelle qu'il a des couilles, même si elles sont bien cachées sous des vestes en velours. Des titres comme "You Better Run" (certes sorti un peu avant mais emblématique de leur style) ou certains passages plus nerveux de l'album montrent que derrière les sourires, il y avait un vrai groupe de musiciens capables de tenir la route. Le batteur Dino Danelli est une machine à groove, il ne joue pas, il sculpte le rythme. C'est peut-être ça qui me sauve le truc : ce n'est pas de la pop fadasse pour ascenseur, c'est de la musique jouée par des mecs qui ont écouté énormément de R&B et de jazz avant de vouloir devenir des idoles des jeunes. Alors oui, ce n'est pas le chef-d'œuvre du siècle et si je devais emmener dix disques sur une île déserte, Groovin' resterait sur le quai, probablement oublié sous une pile de journaux mouillés. Mais dans le cadre de ce projet, où l'on se cogne parfois des horreurs inaudibles ou des albums conceptuels pompeux qui durent trois plombes pour ne rien dire c'est un peu le sorbet citron entre deux plats de résistance bien lourds. Je lui mets un 3 sur 5 parce que c'est la note de la réconciliation. C'est la preuve qu'on peut aimer la musique sombre, exigeante, voire brutale, et quand même apprécier un disque de pop bien foutu de 1967 sans avoir l'impression de trahir sa religion. Ce n'est pas révolutionnaire, ça ne va pas changer ma vision du monde, et je ne vais pas me mettre à porter des pantalons à pattes d'eph pour autant. Mais le disque s'écoute d'une traite, sans ennui, et c'est déjà une victoire en soi. En fin de compte, les Young Rascals ont réussi leur coup : ils ont créé un disque qui, presque soixante ans plus tard, garde une fraîcheur étonnante et c'est agaçant d'aimer ça, vraiment. J'aimerais pouvoir dire que c'est de la merde pour hippies défoncés, mais la musicalité est trop évidente pour être balayée d'un revers de main. C'est plaisant, c'est bien écrit, c'est bien produit. C'est un 3/5 solide, honnête, qui ne prétend pas être plus que ce qu'il est : une bande-son pour les jours où le soleil tape un peu trop fort.

Really really good album

Good but not much is memorable per say.

Technically it's fine and inoffensive. Taken in the scheme of 1966 it's poor. Why listen to this when you have Beatles and the Stones, The Who, Love, Buffalo Springfield and The Monkees!!

This was nice enough but I'm not sure why it's considered good enough to be on the list. It doesn't seem to do anything that's massively exciting or original.

There’s better albums to dedicate your time too. They sound too similar to so many other artists that do it better. The title track, Groovin’, is a banger, but that’s about it

I knew a song here but was shocked these guys were as big as they were. I guess is heard of them but never listened. Mostly old fashioned but a little bit of 60s psychedelia mixed in.

There are threads of so many genres in this music. Itself is dated, but it predicts a lot

hippie vibes, vive l’été et vive le soleil

Good album. It's a solid 3. But I don't think it goes beyond that. The song I liked the most is "Find Somebody" (kind of psychedelic).

This grew on me as I went on, and I quite enjoyed it. The soul influences lift it above other similar stuff a bit, but I'm still not entirely sure why it belongs on this list.

Captures the 60s vibes - Good background music

Lowkey buyoant.

enjoyable little pop album

"Groovin'" is a competent pop album for its era. While I recognise that music appreciation is largely subjective, I find it difficult to understand its inclusion in the 1001 Albums list. It is often noted for setting a benchmark for "blue-eyed soul" and for taking certain risks with its arrangements and compositions; this is certainly evident on the title track, which is a highlight. The album is a cohesive piece of work, but it feels firmly rooted in 1967. Unlike other records from this era, that possess a timeless quality, this collection sounds somewhat dated. While it was likely a significant marker for the genre at the time, it doesn’t quite reach the heights of the truly standout albums from the same period. Great album art though! Three stars. Side one 1 "A Girl Like You" (4/5) 2 "Find Somebody" (3/5) 3 "I'm So Happy Now" (3/5) 4 "Sueño" (3/5) 5 "How Can I Be Sure" (3/5) Side two 1 "Groovin'" (4/5) 2 "If You Knew" (3/5) 3 "I Don't Love You Anymore" (3/5) 4 "You Better Run" (4/5) 5 "A Place in the Sun" (3/5) 6 "It's Love" (3/5) Total - 36 Average - 3.27 304/1001 165/304 albums reviewed were new to me

If baige was music

This Album is so pidly podley pop by numbers. So Baige, if you ever meet anyone who says this is their favourite album, just run.

this surprised me it was pretty good judging from the cover and release year i thought it would be a bit nonsense but i liked the sound

Great

Muy buen disco, parece el inicio de la psicodelia, dentro de la línea Beatle.

I like listening to that and maybe I'll listen to it sometimes again but I don't think it was very significant to me.

I didn’t mind this, kinda chill. Second half was better than first. My wife would love this album so I’m giving it a higher rating because of that.

Not terrible

In a nutshell: derivative psych soul You may know Good Lovin' or the title track, but that's all you need to hear. It's fine. Just... fine. Inoffensive. Overall: 2/10

Por momentos me suenan a los Beach Boys y por otros a los Everly Brothers. En algún momento hay trazas de psicodelia, pero siguiendo anclados en el pop. Se hace agradable la escucha, pero no encuentro el álbum especialmente notable. La canción que da nombre al disco es un buen ejemplo de single dispuesto a gustar a grandes audiencias, y es de lo más destacable, junto con “A Girl Like You”. Para pasar un buen rato sin demasiada trascendencia.

What the fuck is this cover art? Pretty cool that I learned where the sample for "I Left My Wallet in El Segundo" by A Tribe Called Quest came from! Pretty good overall, actually.

Absolutely fantastic blend of psychedelic rock and soul. You Better Run is such a badass banger! Another album I wish was longer.

A groovy little album. I’ll show myself out.

I’m going to the beach!

3.5

Z hudobných skupín 60tych rokov nezanechali vo mne žiadne emócie.

In a world of the beetles why would anyone want to listen to beetles wannabes. This album is just ok.

Ønsker så jævlig hardt at de var The Beach Boys, men så er de bare ett av mange band som heter noe edgy (for 60-tallet) som The Young Rascals. På noen spor kunne de også tenkt seg å være the Beatles. Om de har en divergerende ambisjon fra å imitere boy band cum psych pop pionerer, så er det at de også ønskte de var litt Motown. Og på How Can I Be Sure, Nina Simone. Men prøvde de noensinne å være The Young Rascals, eller er de bare et lappeteppe av vellykket musikk resirkulert? Resultatet er i stor grad helt ok, men det mangler artistisk gnist. Tittelsporet er ganske nice da. Harmonicaen minner meg om Badlands og The Go-Team (som jeg sverger på sampla en låt fra Badlands, selv om jeg ikke har klart å bevise det). Siste sporet er også ganske kult, men de prøver ikke engang å skjule hvem de prøver å imititere: it's Love.

Høres ut som en samleplate av typen Absolute 60s, men man har gått for de helt ålreite, litt billigere låtene fra litt mindre band. Det mest imponerende her er hvordan et band klarer å høres ut som et samlealbum med flere artister. Vanligvis liker jeg at det er litt spenn i albumet, men også at det er helhet. Dette virker litt tannløst og som at plateselskapet har satt det sammen for å cashe inn på tidens rytmer. Helt ålreit, men The Monkees er fortsatt det beste boybandet fra 60-tallet

Okay now this feels dated, not bad but not particularly strong. Gives off "trying to be like the Beatles" vibes. Not an album I had a bad time with either, but just nothing grabbed me about it. Not a name that has stuck around.

Great 60s guitar sounds

Day824 - i had no idea “you better run” was a cover when pat benatar did it. i wasn’t crazy about this album but groovin is a great song

Ég hafði aldrei heyrt um þetta band áður, og platan lætur ekki mikið yfir sér við fyrstu hlustun, en hún er merkileg næs ef maður gefur henni nokkra snúninga. Feelgood sjöunditugur.

60's vibe, like hippie, not my style, but ok

Fairly decent...

i like sueno a lot

Some nice guitar work and general vibe but nothing very memorable.

I can't imagine a time where this album was ever fresh or interesting. It might be a good example of a very specific type of music that was popular in the 60's, but it is incredibly safe. Not a fan.

nem bom, nem horrível. 1,5/5.

Mais um album completamente comum dessa lista

Reminds me a lot of the Beach Boys; decent songwriting; side two is definitely stronger

Groovin' has been on so many movie sound tracks. Most of this album was so happy and up-beat. I really enjoyed this album! I am going to find me a place in the sun...

Super - neki, kar ne poznam. Prvi, "A Girl Like You", je ful tak quintessential 60s pop rock. So far je vse ta vajb. Prijetno, inoffensive. A, "Groovin'" pa poznam! Fletn. To je to, basically.

Psychedelic Soul-Pop from the mid 1960s, which sounds a bit dated now. I remember their hits single "Groovin'", and I vaguely remember "How Can I Be Sure".

A bit too old for me

60s rock, ok. Meh! 🫤

Good

Look, there are worse things to listen to whilst drinking a malted milk at the hop with your steady.

The Beatles if they didn't sound like shit. Still had some meh songs but some were quite nice and a good variety. Fav song: Find somebody

A pleasant one. Funny we just had a quick shallow vibratos from Dolly Parton a day ago and now we’re back to the deep slow vibratos. It feels like he’s shaking my shoulders. Music wise, ok. Nothing really stands out. Productions can be better but I get it was in the 60s. So it’s not too bad. 3-3.5

a fine album. nothing really stood out, and nothing was really offensive. overall it was just fine

A refreshing album from the 60s that didn’t seem like it was a band just trying to copy The Beatles. A couple solid tracks and a great listen overall.

Another perfectly fine album but I don't know why deserves to be on this list. Feels kind of like a Temu Beatles band. I was originally going to give a three for this, but I'm going to drop it down to a two for its monotony and boredom.