Reviews (page 6 of 8)
Overrated. Yes there’s some virtuoso playing, but it’s kind of a so what. You can get that anywhere. Does it have songs? No. Does it have good vocals? No. So it’s just a jam over a Bo Diddley track? Yea. Maybe I don’t get it, but this ain’t a classic.
Much like a zinfandel, this is boring jammy shite.
A live album, the first track, "Who Do You Love Suite", which would have occupied the whole of the first side of the original vinyl album, is a 25-minute cover of Bo Diddley's "Who Do You Love?" in classic 1960's Psychedelic Rock / Acid Rock style. A great album.
Why? Why? Why?
Yea whatever.
A very pleasant prog/psychadelic experience across two Bo Diddly medleys. It certainly made my grocery shopping a much nicer experience
Late 60s/early 70s guitar jamming. Unfortunately I recently listened to Carlos Santana, so this never stood a chance.
Sprawling rock jazz jam.
I enjoyed this, and think it would get better on repeat listens.
I like the concept of every song bleeding into each other to make one song. I just wish I liked the song it produced here more. A little too slappa da base energy for me.
Experimental rock vamping on the Bo Diddley rhythm, pretty boring
Interesting
Western vibes for sure. Wouldn’t return to this although it was a nice vibe while I’m out west
I don't really know what to say about this album. It really didn't stick with me.
terrible all solo guitars no vocals, i can appreciate it but it just seems like a practicing album which doesn't appeal to me, poor.
🎧Lots of boring/annoying/noodling guitar jamming. Not a fan. First part of Who Do You Love cover is alright.
Didn't make much of an impression but was a pleasant enough listen. Good sort of psychedelic/ambient music.
Ok. Sounds like good prog rock of the era. Would probably love it if I'd grown up listening to it, or put in the effort now and have it several listens. But probably won't.
Had never heard of this band. Some of it was ok but most of it was over indulgent noodling. Have not kept it in the library after I listened to it. Enough said.
Though a lot of this album didn't capture my attention, the seamless transition between the first two tracks is always a huge plus for me. There were also a lot of good blends between 60s/70s rock and classic country which I appreciated. Overall a fine listen, but not one that was particularly memorable for me. Notable Tracks: - Who Do You Love - Pt. 1 - Maiden Of The Cancer Moon - Calvary - Happy Trails 6/10
I've heard worse But I've heard a lot better A high 2
Nah thanks.
Kind of a trip if you can stick with it.
I like guitar solos… but not this much.
Really enjoyed bits of this. Really hated other bits. It was always so close to being great. Then just got a bit too out there. 2.3
Ohhhh these songs! Don't dislike, but am generally weary of the late 60's/early 70's genre (if you're paying attention, 1001 algo...). I can hear the undertones of blues and country throughout and appreciate the influence and recognizability this album has. The beginning of jam bands? Or maybe just an early example. In any case, without a muddy field, crocheted halter, and copious amounts of shitty beer... I won't listen again.
Less than half baked jam session exploiting the 60's "Love" theme and riffing off the Bo Diddley song that is infinitely superior to anything on this mess, no need to ever listen again.
Its ok 2/10
one hit. small hit. classic funky rock
Oh dear, this is somewhat self-indulgent. I guess they had fun recording it - and some excellent guitar. But just quite a tiresome listen.
'Who Do You Love' is a classic tune but there are better versions. Then it's endless bluesy 60s guitar noodling....yawn. It says everything that my favourite song here is the 90 second closer 'Happy Trails', a quirky drunken Cowboy Song.
Some mates sat down and found out they were decent at guitar so found a recorder and got cracking. Sounds alright but there’s no reason to re-listen to this.
Rubbish. More of a jam than an album. It’s like they hadn’t actually written anything before they sat down and pressed record.
Quite interesting. One chord vamps as done by Bo can be done well. This is. Wouldn’t we be better to hear Bo? Or early John Lee hooker? Nonetheless worth a listen. 2.5 The second side starts with another bo Diddley.
Lets say you give a blues rock band hallucinogenic drugs and ask them to paint the sky with the sounds they can make. The result? Intermission music to play whilst waiting for Jim Morrison to return to the stage. .... I kept expecting it to launch.
This album is so San Fran, psychedelic, Summer Of Love it ain’t funny. I found it to be a terrific listen. Bo Diddley can never get too many kudos for his contribution to rock & roll. I was lucky enough to see him at the Stagedoor Tavern in Sydney in December 1979. Like Chuck Berry, he would tour here without a band & pick up a local band to back him - I think they were called The Aliens. He was still great. And Q.M.S. do pretty well with their versions of Who Do You Love & Mona. John Cipolina’s guitar work is outstanding here, as it is on the 13-minute epic, Calvary. Roy Roger’s Happy Trails (I never knew it was written by his wife, Dale Evans) really takes me back to my childhood. Really enjoyed this album.
Scene: interior, wood paneled record company office, 1968. A fat, besuited record company executive chews on a cigar, feet on the mahogany desk. A minor flunky enters the room. "The kids are going crazy for these psycho-deelia bands these days. We should get one for our label. How about the Doors?" "Well, sir, the Doors are already signed to Elektra. And the singer is, how shall I say, not really camera ready these days." "Ok, who else have you got that sound like the Doors?" (Flunky checks notes) "Well, sir, I've got the Quicksilver Messenger Service." "Sounds like a bicycle courier company. Are they any good?" "Up to a point, sir." "Are they cheap?" "Well, yes, they _are_ cheap." "Done. Sign them immediately. Now peel me some grapes." I am angry at having to sit through this record. It has all the worst aspects of 60s psychedelic 'live' albums (interminable solos, including extended bass and drum solos, out of tune guitars, dodgy studio overdubs) but none of the energy or verve. I was stunned to read this quote from Greil Marcus' rapturous contemporary review of this record in Rolling Stone: "They use the infamous Bo Diddley rhythm not as a crutch, not as something for the rhythm section to play with while the lead takes it; Quicksilver finds dimensions of that 'bump buddy bump bump — bump bump' beat that no one has even suggested before, as they stretch it, bend it, move around it, as a motif or a bridge, as an idea rather than as a pattern." This confirms my opinion that Greil Marcus is a pretentious dickhead with absolutely no understanding of rock and roll. The extended workouts on Who Do You Love and Mona show me that QMS also had no idea about what rock and roll really is. Their sloppy, ham-fisted, unfocussed take on the riff demonstrates everything that is wrong with this record. They don't understand that a minute and half of honest 'bump buddy bump bump -- bump bump' does more for the heart (and the hips) than all the wanky solos in the world. I hope Bo Diddley got paid, at least.
I'm not even finished listening to it and I'm giving it five stars and putting it on the playlist for when I go up to the cottage with my girl to get real high and f*** all weekend
Faded into background noise, but not unenjoyable background noise.
Not what I expected. Not bad, not great.
This album is pretty much one 50 minute song, which would be kind of cool if that song weren't so goddamn boring.
Packt mich nicht.
hvítingjar spila blús af þó nokkrum krafti. svo sem mér að meinalausu en ekki eftirminnilegt eða skemmtilegt. mjög eftir bókinni.
Much more enjoyable to me than some of their San Fran Psych peers. Basically just a jam loosely based on Who Do You Love, very bluesy. If it weren't for the lengthy improv jams and jazzy parts, this would be a pretty straight forward live blues album.
It had its moments, but just a lot of meandering psychedlic-ish guitar stuff.
Livealbum
Va så kjedelig så eg hørte bare første halvdel
hippies!
Happy Trails is a mesmerizing journey through psychedelic rock, highlighted by its sprawling jams and inventive guitar interplay. As someone unfamiliar with this album prior to this listen, I was struck immediately by the interplay between the two guitarists. The guitars often reminded me of early Santana albums, with intricate solos and melodic phrasing that feel both adventurous and familiar. One notable feature of the album is the way vocals are mixed—mostly subdued, a byproduct of its live recording at the Fillmores or just a creative decision made during mixing. The sparse vocal presence shifts the focus to the instrumental prowess of the band, allowing the extended guitar solos and improvisational jams to take center stage. The “zone-out” noisy sections are particularly compelling, drawing listeners into a trance-like state with their hypnotic quality. The crowd noise is mostly buried, a decision that might seem odd at first. However, this choice makes a key moment when audience interaction on “Where Do You Love” is brought to the forefront even more striking. The ambient mics capture the crowd’s energy on this section, adding an engaging layer to the live experience. The album’s centerpiece is the epic rendition of Bo Diddley’s “Who Do You Love,” which spans an entire side of the LP divided into six movements. This track showcases the band's ability to stretch out a song into a prolonged jam, filled with dynamic guitar interplay and a captivating bass solo that provides much-needed variety. Following this with another Bo Diddley song, “Mona,” which mirrors the exact same chord progression and jam format of “Who Do You Love,” which cracked me up. The slight variation in approach between the two tracks demonstrates the band’s ability to experiment within a consistent framework. “Calvary” stands out with its choir-like vocal sections that, although difficult to hear clearly, add a cinematic depth to the song. This ethereal quality might make it my favorite track on the album, adding a unique and evocative element to the overall experience. Overall, Happy Trails is a fascinating exploration of live psychedelic rock that successfully blends long jams, innovative musicianship, and trippy atmospheric experimentation. The album piques interest in Quicksilver Messenger Service’s broader discography, leaving me eager to delve further into their music. 3.5
Here we go! Just some good, clean, non-drug induced music. I pretty much let this one play in the background while I worked. Nothing jumped out at me, but I did find myself liking Calvary.
Journalists Quicksilver Messenger Service don't just ask WHO do you love, but they make their English teachers proud by making this intial statement and adding the WHEN, WHERE, HOW, and WHICH supporting sentences before concluding by repeating their main point: WHO. These brilliance of these architects of the essay form ends there though. I wouldn't be surprised if the guitarist was in the mixing room, being sure he was turned up enough. One can barely hear the singer, which may be for the better based on such pedestrian lyrics as "I need you baby and it ain't no lie/Oh, without your lovin' I'd surely die." The skillset of the muscians is evident, but largely uninspired. When they finally break from the exposé on love, they go straight into a song with the same key while the drummer plays the same prevailing Bo Diddley beat as the previous 25 minutes. I believe "Happy Trails" is the best song on here. Though this cover is poorly sung, it IS expertly whistled. At least it provides a much needed change in direction. The next song that auto-played after this album was a banger called "Cobra" by this same group. Evidently they can put together something focused and less meandering, but we don't see it here.
I've heard of the band name Quicksilver Messenger Service before, and for some reason I always thought it was a 90s indie band. Maybe I was thinking of the Quicksilver clothing brand from the 90s LOL. In any case, I feel like this kind of music could fit in with some of the indie noise rock Sonic Youth type distortion-heavy stuff I heard on college radio in the 90’s. Sprawling, freeform soundscapes, abstract psychedelic jazz, with a little riffing on Bo Diddly as well. It was an interesting listen. But I'm left wondering one thing: WHY you love.
This one was ok. I'd never heard of the band. The sounds on it reminded me a bit of Cream. Nothing ground breaking though, just a pretty basic continuous jam album. Nothing really jumped out at me as being particularly special.
Really liked this album.
Cool album. I will always enjoy psychedelic, blues rock from this era. First half of the album is a cool long-form live version of "Who Do You Love." It's just generally some solid music to vibe to with interesting arragements. ****
I’d much rather listen to Henry Ramsay than this self-indulgent noodly shite.
2 stars. was hoping for cowboy ballads based on the cover.
Classic rock and roll - didn't do a lot for me.
Psychedelic rock is growing on me. This was a decent listen, although not terribly different from track to track.
Started nice but ended up getting bored. I’m not a fan of guitar noodling.
It has its fun moments, but there are also plenty of times when you think, 'OK, get on with it.'
Pretty much one long jam. Pretty cool
First time listen is my only time listening to it overly long version of Who Do You Love (there are better versions out there) and the second side is self indulgent wank.
Gear: Meze 109 PRO Artwork: 🐎🤠👋 Mix: 🐎🤠👋 Musik: 🐎🤠👋 Wertung: 🐎🤠(👋)/5
Live albums seem to be real hit and miss on this project, Van Morrison’s live album was particularly dreadful and unnecessary. Happy Trails is a good example of a live album that showcases a band’s strengths. Yea, it’s Jammy and perhaps meanders but that’s the beauty of live music, it’s a time to give new life and length to the studio tracks. The hazy blues with psych undertones makes for an enjoyable listen. I understand it’s not going to be for everyone and that’s cool but I really liked this. 4 stars
Unfocused guitar noodling. Random noises. God save us from late sixties San Francisco jam bands. If I could give this less than one star, I would.
That was terrible.
Cacophonous psychedelic jam band and I mean this as a compliment
non so cosa mi spinga a non dare una stella. veramente. c'è qualcosa di (molto) vagamente salvabile, anche se non riesco a capire cosa sia.
Pallosissimo, questo ad ora batte Bert Jansch come album più brutto tra gli ascoltati (ne ho sentiti 21 quindi non tantissimi però rimane brutto)
Non so cosa mi trattenga dal dare 1
I ate some delicious spicy ramen noodles for dinner tonight so I was actually good on noodles ... unfortunately this album delivered almost nothing but noodles. noodles in this style, noodles in that style. unending noodles. a strega nonna pasta pot of noodles. 🍜
Dreadfully annoying
I normally don’t love albums where they’re just kind of jamming, but this was alright! “Calvary” was definitely too long.
i was somehow exactly in the right mood for this (read: feverish, woozy, taking a bath) 3.5
Definitely more interesting than I expected. The first half medley is pretty decent with various solos or breakdowns which is nice. The second half might get a little dry at points. 6/10
A country western light rock album entry
Interesting listen 3/5
Best Song: Who Do You Love Pt. 1. Certainly the most "alive" part of the album. Worst Song: Where You Love. There's barely any song here. It's just random noises, mostly. Overall: Is it just that I lack the experience/vocabulary for this old prog rock? What makes this album noteworthy over any of the others? From my naive listening, it doesn't go in any particularly interesting direction, it doesn't seek to maintain focus on a particular theme to do something cool with it, it just kind of dithers around for a while and then moves inexplicably on to a new thing. I'm sure if I was in the same (psychoactive) headspace as the musicians I'd have a better time, but this album imply sounds boring to sober ears.
Not really my "jam"
Weird but alright. Too long though.
Some good jamming
Far more enjoyable than I thought it’d be! Difficult to listen to on account of it being so old but solid.
Pleasant surprise - sort of experimental instrumental rock, reminiscent of some of Band of Gypsies. Mostly noodly guitar solos, but generally good
Half the album is a single 25m-long jam with bloated noodly solos over 2 chords. If you're not a superfan of 60s psychedelic bands (or high) this gets old pretty quick. The rest of the songs are mostly equally uninteresting jams (save for a short metal-esque bit in Maiden (appropriate)), ending with a weird cowboy tv show theme w/ bad vocals. Pass.
Probablemente, uno de los álbumes más aburridos que he escuchado en esta lista. ¿El éxito comercial es lo único que te hace ser digno de pertenecer a este selecto grupo de 1001 álbumes de los miles de millones que se han lanzado en todo el mundo hasta la fecha? Este disco no debería estar en la lista; no influenció a nadie y nadie se inspirará escuchando. Este no es más que una cápsula de tiempo de la psicodelia de finales de los '60s, la cual en muchas ocasiones es excesiva, enfocándose más en improvisaciones que en composiciones. Si puede, sálteselo, no es para nada fundamental en ningún catálogo.
Not as bad as I thought it was going to be . Almost enjoyed it
This album is on the list but nothing by Bo Diddley? Really?
Very typical late 60's sound, much like other bands of the era, Cream, Hendrix etc. Enjoy how each song leads seamlessly into the next one, almost like a 50 minute guitar solo. Slight lull on the song How You Love and the penultimate Cavalry prevents it being a 5
Yesterday's was Creedence Clearwater Revival, then this today... I'm ready to be a conscientious objector.
I started off liking but then got confused. It has some interesting jams, but I didn't really see how it connected or how it was really an album. It felt like some guys that are trippin and just playing their instruments. Don't get me wrong they are talented, but I just didn't get it as a collective piece. Which at first isn't a big thing but after looking into the album more the reason it is popular because of what it is as a collective album. I liked Mona and Who Do you Love - Pt. 2, but I didn't get how those really connected with Calvary or Which Do you Love.
Didn't care for this much. There's a term for this type of guitaring that I reserve for only when it's truly deserved. "Wankery"
They put a lot of heart into their jams. I can put my inner flower child at their show pretty easily, swaying to the psychedelic sounds. That said, I got a little bored with some of the jams too.
Didn't really like it
Whenever anyone says about an album, “this is so timeless, it could have been released today” I always think that’s bullshit. Music almost always sounds of its time. But I think I’ve found the exception. Jam bands have not advanced one iota in 55 years. The very few times I have heard Phish or Goose or moe or Umphreys McGee by accident or morbid curiosity, they have sounded exactly like this. And I don’t mean, quite similar to this. I mean, I think jam bands might get on stage and pretend to play instruments but are actually just playing records from other jam bands over the sound system and their tapioca-brained fans don’t realize it. I’ve heard the theory that lawyers and accountants and middle managers aren’t really necessary to an economy and are really just make-work to ensure that mediocre children of rich people have jobs. I’m starting to think that jam bands are that for 20 to 50-year old bandnerd potheads. Nobody needs these bands to make new records because it’s just the exact same shit that every other jam band has made for the last 60 years, but who’s going to let an unemployed smelly nerd who won’t stop talking about polyrhythms crash on their couch for a decade? Nobody. So those dudes have got to have some kind of job and so we keep needing jam bands to scoop up 6 of them and put them on a bus to travel around taking drugs and sleeping with a parade of hairy foul-smelling whippet-addicted women and playing the exact same songs that every other jam band has played for the past fifty years. This garbage may have sounded good in the Fillmore East to people tripping on acid, but I’m in my kitchen eating Frosted Mini-Wheats, so it sucks.
Some interesting stuff here, but probably would not listen again.
When i read the description of this record I was dreading listening to it. I mean a 20+ minutes rendition of Who Do You Love by Bo Diddley-pass! However, I really dug it.
Quintessential, psychedelic rock music from the beginning of the genre.
Pretty chill
This is a hard album to figure out. On one hand there’s some great musicianship. But most of the vocals I don’t care for. It feels meandering for most of it. It’s not aggressively terrible. But there were long stretches I zoned out completely and forgot I was even listening to an album. 2.5/5
2 stars for this jam. 5 stars for the jar of Guava jam I just bought, so good.
Groovy and a little heavy.
Album 441 of 1001 Quicksilver Messenger Service - Happy Trails Rating : 3 / 5 Just some jamming. It wasn't the greatest but it certainly wasn't the worst. You're not going to find any catchy tunes here. Just some decent music that will help you pass an hour.
Desert-dusted psychedelic suites that flow surprisingly well.
Definitely not what I was expecting. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. The ideas are at times not developed enough to be truly interesting, but their musicianship is worth a listen nonetheless.
Some cool moments on the A side and in Cavalry, but the most part this is just an album of sound and fury signifying not much of anything, with lots of (improvisational, from the sound of it) instrumentalization that goes nowhere in particular.
i really enjoyed this one! i dig a live performance and was able to just vibe to this music. i had it on while prepping/cooking dinner and it was a good environment for it.
I think this album needs some context. Guitar work is pretty sick sometimes. Didn’t know this is where “who do you love” comes from.
This is definitely a 60's rock record.
Rolling stoned.
bo dawdly
Another self-indulgent wankfest like Allman Brothers. Not my sort of music
There are much more exciting bands from the San Francisco psychedelic scene to listen to. Competent but dragging.
Meanders a bit more than is justified, but what's psychedelic rock without some gratuitous noodling. Production quality is fantastic.
Boring, that's all I have to say about it. I expected some nice cowboy tunes, but instead got run-of-the-mill prog rock. Nothing awful, mind. Just unremarkable.
Rambling.
If I were 22, stoned and at the Fillmore, this would be divine. As I'm not, it's just an artifact.
I don't mind this at all... 3.6+ Yes it's a little boring in parts, but I overall dig the extended jams here. Kind of like Doors but without the organ stuff. Pretty solid dynamic range on this one! Mona to Maiden of the Cancer Moon is probably the best part.
Bleh. A bland, 30 minutes of riffing on Bo Diddley, followed by little of interest.
Good stuff. Could totally listen again.
No idea how this made the top 1001. I can think of so many albums that are better than this. Tracks 1-3 were confusing. I felt like I was waiting for something to happen. Very odd jazz with guitar solos. I will score this a 2 though as I loved the cover of Mona, the album got better after track 6 Favourite song: Mona Least favourite: All of them Album artwork: Odd
Bunch of pointless noodling for 50 minutes with no direction. It's like sitting down and listening to the guy playing a guitar at the subway. I guess it's better than the Grateful Dead album I had, but I would still throw rotten tomatoes at them and call them stinky.
The last track is unironically my favorite, not only because it's the only track that delivers what it should deliver, but also it's the shortest one. This is in stark contrast with the rest of the album, composing of excruciatingly long instrumental noodling. Psychedelic people doing this should have known that it only works when it is interesting.
Well-executed psychedelic blues in same the vein of early Grateful Dead, but nothing that made me stand up and pay close attention.
This was just a rambling mess of guitar wankery. I don't mind a bit of guitar wankery, but this was just pedestrian.
Sheeeww doggy what a fine album! I done burned a hole in my boot dancing to this'ne.
Dated.
I'm kind of picky about my late 60s Bay Area psychedelia but this is solid.
This must be a one hit wonder group. I never heard of them and this is the time when I was listening to music a lot. It isn't music you can dance to and that's what we wanted in the 50's, 60's and 70's. It's more like background music for a movie or tv show.
I think the whole idea of the "Who Do You Love Suite" is a novel idea. It's just that I've heard "Who Do You Love" done a bunch of times, and I keep thinking of Bo Diddley or even George Thorogood as a better version. The intro to QMS' version is just not as exciting to me. "Calvary" kinda peters out at the end for me, and I wish there was more info as to where each of the songs was played (Fillmore East or West), but it sounds like the band was so high they probably don't remember. As it is, it's good, but doesn't stand out for me. I had always heard of these guys, but if this is their best, I'm glad I hadn't sought them out before.
Who Do You Love parts 1 and 2 are cool homages to Bo Diddley, as is Mona. They show the chops on guitar of John Cipollina and Gary Duncan and do acid rock in a way that is not annoying and/or tiresome. I'm not sure if I can say the same thing for the rest (15ish minutes) of the Who Do You Love Suite (i.e., side one). Those songs in between (almost solos for each band member) have some cool moments (distortion in the middle of Where You Love, pretty bitching guitars on all of How You Love) but it feels a little drawn out. I guess I could've done with a 15min jam session instead of a 25min jam session. Side two is more of the same - recorded in studio but produced to feel like a 25min jam session. While I'm good with the 7min Mona and the 3min Maiden of the Cancer Moon, I got less and less captivated as that side went on and I find myself a bit bored during the 13min Calvary. This album almost feels like a 3.5 - there's some great musicianship but it just kind of drags at times. Maybe if it was tighter I would've been more of a fan. Or maybe I'm being overly critical and not appreciating the musical mastery these guys produced. Whatever the case, I gave it an average rating. And I think the fact that I didn't really get into any of the similar tracks that Apple suggested afterward made me feel confident I was making the right choice.
okay
some highlights but too self-indulgent
Tasty tasty psychedelic rock! This album has been one of my favorites since my deadbeat school buddies listened to it getting high. Amazing guitar work, joyful jamming. Sure, a bit self-indulgent but I put myself in the shoes of the grooving hippies who got to see John Cippolina live. The man definitely deserves a spot on this list, and this album (especially side 1) shows him off at his finest. Favorite tracks - When You Love
Not bad, not great
Jam album, floated along like they do
Not exactly my thing but it’s a great representation of its era and the “set and setting” of 1960s San Francisco.
They obviously need more LSD.
When the Lone Ranger looking album turns out to be a Psychedelic, you gotta go with it. Not horrible but I wouldn’t seek it out. The band is technical and stiff, they need to loosen up and have some fun.
I didn’t realize this would be jam band because I was expecting to hear the radio version of who do you love seeing the track list. I figured out early on they must have been recording live because everything seemed to blend together but was expecting more singing. I don’t mind jam bands when I’m in the mood but it always seems like they just know each others’ sound and play without really defining any specific songs (even the lyrics here sounded improvised) and I imagine a concert would never have the exact same version as the album (or any shows would be the same) which is cool when you’re in the mood for that. Not sure I would listen to the album again but would enjoy them live I’m sure!
If you like jam bands you can jam this record up your ass. That is where it belongs.
Never heard of these guys before. It was good stuff.
Would've been a great Woodstock filler band.
These guys were definitely seeing trails. There is a cliche that some of the best music is made by people on drugs. Sometimes that can be very true. For this album, that popular Verve song springs to mind. Didn't work for this album
Started as solid blues-inspired psychedelic rock (great!) which devolved into a long winded jam session. Not my thing.
Decent listen
Why, exactly, do I "need" to hear this album? There's nothing interesting about this. I couldn't force myself to pay attention and gave up about six minutes in.
4 lovely stars.
As far as jam band rock goes, it’s good. As a whole, I grew bored to tears with the riffs on the blues classic.
A cool journey in early psychedelic/progressive rock
Just ok for me, nothing stood out.
Jees psyche rockia. Sopii paremmin taustamusiikiksi, koska ilmeisesti livenä nauhoitettu niin kappaleet ajoittain aika improttuja ja päättömiä. Hyvä kokonaisuutena. Parhaat: Maiden Of The Cancer Moon, Who Do You Love Pt1 ja 2, Mona
Bold putting an extra long cover version of a full half of an album. I don’t think it’s the best cover of who do you love either. Overall this is a good jam/ psychedelic album, deserves to be on the list, but there are better examples of this music already in the book.
3.5
I have been a QMS fan for well over 50 years. I especially loved their version of Pride of Man.
Makes sense they came up in the psychedelic San Francisco scene. You can hear the Grateful Dead in their guitar work. There’s even a note of the California surfer sound. Normally, I hate this kind of music. But so far, it’s alright. Bitch is tearing it up on When You Love. It’s nice that the songs flow straight into each other. Feels like an unbroken musical experience. Where You Love, How You Love and Which Do You Love are interesting and experimental. I should not be enjoying a psychedelic jam band, but I think that’s what’s happening here. It helps that it’s mostly really well-played instrumental music. Words would not be helpful here. Better that they let the music do the talking. Makes absolute sense when you learn that the full six song suite was based on Bo Diddley’s original 1956 Who Do You Love. Pretty brilliant reinterpretation. Should hate, cannot find cause.
Not bad but meandering and ultimately kind of goes nowhere.
More prog. Wasn't awful but not what I was in the mood for
I was already intimately familiar with this album. I really like it a lot because I like this genre and time period (late 60s psychedelic blues rock) and am generally a fan of live albums. I really like the extended jams. That said, the vast majority of this album (entire Who Do You Love suite and Mona) is an extended take on the Bo Diddley beat. If you like that, it's great. Unrelated to this album, but I went looking for more live Quicksilver Messenger Service from this era, and there is quite a lot of it out there, but Happy Trails is the best of the bunch.
How did this make the list?
Ég hafði aldrei heyrt um þessa hljómsveit áður og hefði aldrei dottið í hug að hlusta á hana enda ekki mikið fyrir kántrí en svo er þetta bara ekki kántrí. Þetta er bara rokk eins og ég fíla það. Platan var bara hin prýðilegasta plata en það stóð samt ekkert upp úr. Ég myndi sem sagt hlusta á hana aftur en ég mun líklegast ekki muna eftir þeim.
A big regret of mine is that I didn't see Kyuss when they were playing at the festival I was at. Didn't know, didn't bother, probably [unclear mumbling]. With that, for context, Quicksilver Messenger Service gets a 4½ out of 5 𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘷𝘺, 𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘵!s.
Gotta love. Led Zeppelin!
2/5
So jammy.
boring ahh hell
An unknown album from this era and it's alright. But ultimately I don't really get on with instrumentals
Nope. Boring noodling. Why?
The naming of the tracks on this album is absolutely inspirational
Catching up, so I just finished this one this afternoon. It was cool though, I liked the vibe. Lots of jamming with no lyrics. Nice driving tunes.
I wouldn’t call this one an album, it’s really like a handful of really long songs. It’s not bad or anything, the jam band thing just really wasn’t ever for me. Maybe they’re significant, but I couldn’t tell you why.
When you think about the original final format of this album came in, it begins to make a lot more sense. The Who, When, Where, How, Which, and Who Do You Love are really just one 25 minute long song on side A. Although the rest of the songs on side B are named more uniquely, they really just blend right into each other. The whole album feels like two big cohesive songs. This is another example of an album that works better as a whole than any individual song song by itself.
Sixties blues jam rock. A great live exhibition, if that’s what you’re looking for.
Pretty good album, really nice guitar riffs and solos. Refreshing sound, even of the record is more than 50.year old.
Not good
hmmm more rock psychadelic rock its ok
Some guys jamming, but it got a bit out of hand, and now it's on a record
Mais um que escutei para seguir com a lista, só que nem lembro quase nada do som.
I just can't with the jam band stuff.
This reminds me of just about every basement jam I've been in in the 70's . At least it sounded that way to my fuzzy 18 year old brain. John Cipollina is well known by guitarists of that era. He was a very creative player and had some unconventional approaches to gear. I feel like this studio recording doesn't quite capture what these boys must have sounded like live
Man, if Bo Diddley had made money off of all his songs that bands have covered even of just Who Do You Love, he would have died as rich as he should have. I do love this concept album though- even if the whole first side is a cover. It's cool that they spliced it together from live shows at the Fillmore East and West. It makes wonder why a jam band like Grateful Dead rose of of the SF psychedelic scene to become it's own brand, when a band like Quicksilver Messenger Service, arguably just as talented if not more so than the Dead, sort of faded into relative obscurity (except from Deadheads who pride themselves on loving bands just like the Dead who aren't the dead -- looking at you, Todd Gascon!) Anyway, I liked it for the concept and because the musicians are good. 4 stars.
Had to turn it off after 20 minutes of a very poor cover of who do you love.
daora e dançante
Not for me
I don’t like it
1.5
This was an interesting experience. Firstly, the opening track is quite good. And I loved how each song transitioned into the next. That’s always something that easily draws me into an album. But after that first song, the others are not really that great. Way too many instrumentals here. I usually like those but this is too much. 6.5/10 Top 3: 1. Who Do You Love - Pt. 1 2. When You Love 3. Mona
I thought this was going to be a country album. It wasn't. It was fucking boring. That little Happy Trails cover at rhe end rubbed me the wrong way. I wanted some country gold that I had never uncovered before and this was just not anything that I wanted.
Interessant. Stellenweise toll groovig. Stellenweise krass verspult
This is such a great prog / psychedelic album. QSR sounds like elements of the Doors and very early Springsteen. Live albums tend to be tough to get through, but Happy Trails, a blend of two concerts at the two Fillmore's is reminiscent of early Jam bands and makes for a joyful ride. 4/5.
They’re good at what they do, but they only do that one thing for nearly an hour. It’s a good groove at first, then you let it fade to being background music, and when it inevitably hits your conscious thoughts again you wonder very strongly, “How the fuck am I still listening to this same song??” Then you realize it’s track 7 and you were roused from ignoring the music because the six track thematic opening ended. That seems like good news, but it really is somehow still the same song, just called something else. This list is way too 60s heavy. Not every band making 14 minute improvised songs needs to be heard. I would argue most of them absolutely don’t need to be. Like it has its interesting moments, but they’re interspersed with such long periods of absolute dross that the payoff isn’t worth it. Makes for good samples. Makes for decent music in a movie scene. As a whole listen, though? Only if you have the required narcotics.
Most of this sounded like the stoner group's band at a high school talent show.
Jam band covers album. Interesting but not my favorite.
Don't judge a book by its cover - the artwork seems so random after listening to the album 🤷♂️ I'm not really into jam bands, but this was somewhat mesmerizing. I was surpirsed and impressed that it was actually live; the quality was great, especially for the time, and you wouldn't even know if it weren't for the crowd at the end of part 2. I enjoyed it more than expected, but it's not something I would actively seek out.
As someone who generally loves '60s-'70s jam band rock, but had never listened to Quicksilver Messenger Service before, I was pretty excited to listen to this album, and I was all ready to contradict all the other bad reviews. But... they're right. This album is just kinda meh. Kinda boring. It just drags on. Some interesting guitar here and there, but not much else. Maybe I just don't like acid rock? Would much rather the Allman Brothers or Grateful Dead for extended jam tracks.
This was a fun, trippy, classic rock album. Loved the live/improvisational feel. Would have loved to have seen this guys live in their hey day
Not bad
Jammy background noise.
It’s a mood, great to put on in the background, but it didn’t terribly impress me. I don’t think it particularly stands out against their contemporaries.
Solid representation of the Bay Area Scene.
Yeah… definitely not my jam. Struck me as second-rate Doors knockoffs but missing that Door’s spark of kooky mysticism and general dark mystery. Came off as just endless long-form psychedelic noodling. Maybe they were better live.
I'm not familiar with this album or artist, but judging by the cover, I assumed this album was country our country-adjacent, and I was excited for something a little different. Well, I got something different, but not in the way that I'd hoped. I was not expecting this album to be psychedelic rock. Psychedelic rock is pretty hit or miss with me, and this album was a pretty big miss. I'm not a big fan of George Thorogood, but I much prefer his rendition of "Who Do You Love?" to the suite that the band has on this album. It was completely drawn out, and not even that interesting to listen to. The side two songs weren't much better, but at least "Calvary" was somewhat interesting. I really don't understand why this album is on the list, and I can't find any redeeming qualities in it. Pretty much a bore from start to finish.
This HAS to hold the record for most guitar wanking on an album of all time. Total 100% wank fest. Nothing happens except the wank.
We get it. You're high and you like guitar solos.
Serious Grateful Dead vibes. Flows wonderfully and is some of the most fun to listen to early psychedelic rock I've heard.
Good rolling beat. 3
Fun album but not enough to keep me engaged. Good background jamming music. Strong 6
Classic instrumental rock. Slow and shreddy. I can like that!
What? How is this album on this list?
Awesome concept album. Ahead of it's time!
My first time listening to this one, I really liked it. Acid rock with jazzy undertones. Quite jammy
Not a great live album.
This is just nice enough. Not mind blowing.
A 45 minute jam session capped off by a country classic. Overall I enjoyed it.
This project's taught me that I don't like the wider world of 60s psych rock as much as I thought, so it's great to find something that sounds like what I actually had in mind. Y'know, jam music
The first half of this is an extended jam session on a single musical theme that is pleasant enough but only moderately held my attention. I’m sure it seemed epic to tripping hippies in 1969 who had not yet experienced the great prog epics to come. The rest is also pretty noodley and unmemorable. The guitar and bass tones are great though.
Snoozefest
Meandering
An album where there are 4 mic checks bookending the 2 actual songs on the album. The psychedelia here is manufactured at best too. There's simply no reasonable way to consider this a foundational album to recorded music. There are plenty, plenty of early psychedelia albums that can take the place of this boring mess.
I enjoyed it initially, but grew tired throughout.
- i love the happy trails song but it was not enough to redeem this one for me
Pretty bad honestly. I hate music that goes nowhere and it sounds like they don’t know where the music should be going either. Went in with high hopes. Rating: 1.9
Interesting enough, doubt I'll listen to it again though.
- On the one hand, I like the sound. I would argue that it is a generic psychedelic rock sound, but this is probably because Quicksilver Messenger Service is foundational to that sound. - But the first half of this album is one jam session that goes on for 30 minutes...I am admittedly done after five have passed. - It may be important. I found it boring.
meh No words!!!! I hate guitars!!!!!
Excellent guitar work.
i like the first song. seemed like nice noodling the rest of it.
I enjoyed the first half. A continuous development on a classic song over 5 movements that always monitor their virtuosic playing with the knack for hooks? Sure it somewhat loses its focus but count me in. The second half, however, nosedives in quality. The track mona was pointless and indulgent with no intrigue whatsoever. Then the album completely goes off the rails with the 13 minute cavalry which will leave you with absolutely no recollection of what happened even at its grandiose runtime. Then the album ends with a miserable county pastiche cover which is the records title track. This second half completely derails a great start to the album and sadly leads the album to exemplify everything wrong with 60s psychedelia. Too bad.
feels like the Doors. pretty average no weird instruments or key changes, just some nice and relaxing background noise.
Proto jam band. Some good songs. I favor versions of "Mona" and "Who Do You Love" by other artists, though.
60s hippie music…
Gillar man gitarrer så är det här skivan för dig.
Sent me into a trance with it’s 27 minute track - not sure it’s for me but love the audacity and enjoyed it over a pint as I’m sure is best
Mäßiger Psychedelic Rock.
kärlek som tema, ett koncept kanske. trevligt koncept 60-tal. och en gunghaj spelar gitarr och en flaska rom. tyvärr inte rom utan droger. eftersom ett gäng narkomaner. DRUGMAN!!! DRUG FREAKS!!! de gjorde fortfarande bra musik även om det inte fanns något mandat att använda dessa droger om det skulle behövas wjere do you love
This is an interesting and eclectic album. It's kind of straight ahead experimental 60s rock, a harbinger of the progressive rock movement, a contemporary "jam band," and so much more. This is a terrific album in its genre and Calvary is one of the greatest guitar songs I have ever heard.
some good instrumentals but not my thing
Having never heard of this artist before, I was surprisingly pleased with the album. I'm not sure what to call this genre, but it felt like stoner rock with hints of folk, jazz improv, and other elements. Some hints of Pink Floyd type vibes. I loved all the guitar sounds, distortion, reverb, mixed in with clean acoustic sounds. I enjoyed listening.
Es isch halt sehr akustisch (mit usnahm vo zwei drei songs). Da muess nid unbedingt schlecht sie aber für mich isches nid so würklich überzügend. Es isch jetzt nid bad? Aso irgendwie scho groovy? Würd mich jetzt nid störe würds laufe. Idk 4/5? Weiss doch au nid
Uhhhh find de ahfang maximal geil? Macht mega spass zum lose. Oooookeee ich bi ziemli schnell is wtf is going on ine… wtf is going on?! Das chaos omg das album findi eh ganz schlechti repräsentation vom cover… Aso who do you love, how do you love, Mona (!!), sind banger Where do you love=?? What is going on?? Which do you love isch mid… De rest isch eifach oke? Hmmmmmmm idk
ok experimentelle bluesrock? ok s publikum macht mit? sie mega jammy bois. ha irgendwie wenig z sege finds nöd scheisse aber au nöd super, sie jammed afoch und da findi nöd soo spannend.
"album vo hüt bitz rotz?" - luca denn freu ich mich doch ufs album, wo zumindest funny usgseht han gfunde ich tun albumcover au rate und das isch HARD, ich liebe zeichneti albumcover und weg de rote schattierig han ich gmeint s ross isch es GÜGELI who do you love findi schomal guet und de übergang zu when you love findi sehr geil schad hets mit dem "...love" nöd ganz durrezoge hahaha jaa momentan isches sehr es guets morgealbum sber chanmer au vorstelle, falls das gitarregedudel jz no 45 wiiter so gaht, chönnts au alt werde oke vlt wirds das ja aso moment ischs basically eis lied will d übergäng merktmer nöd oke luca langsam chan ich dier nachempfinde wiso hend mier in letschter ziit iwelchne bandprobe müsse lose? isch ja cool und alles hie und daa aber joa mona findi wieder chli besser, s het chli meh struktur? vlt hani das au s gfühl wegem gsang oke fürs 13 minute lied gits es 2 ich han kei bock meh
Bizarre….
First few tracks, I was impressed with the instrumental work. Fully bought in at 4 stars
Nurdle - nowhere near baked enough to enjoy this, and not sure I would want to listen to it even if I was
Absolutely rips
Original Jam Band! Liked it a lot, haven’t heard it in a long time!
Needed to be tripping on LSD to enjoy
Calvary rips. Best album cover on the list so far.
Today is yet another artist I haven’t heard of before. The album art is leading me to expect music you might find in a Spaghetti Western, but then Apple Music lists it simply as rock so I’m not entirely sure what to expect here. I’ll go in with an open mind and hopefully find something good. Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Who Do You Love Part 1 I didn’t mind this in parts, but it just felt too long for me. It reminded me of when I went to see the Black Crowes and every one of their songs ended up taking 20 minutes because of the endless jamming which bored me to tears. In small doses, I can see this being pleasant. As a full album, it was a bit too much for me. I did quite like the last song though. It sounded a bit saloon-ish and made me think of Red Dead Redemption.
This reminded me of lots of different bands: Grateful Dead, Allman Bros, the Doors,Steve Miller band, CCR… and I kept thinking I would rather been listening to those bands instead. Liked the A-side treated much like 1 long jam, B-side definitely more disjointed. Added ‘Who do you love pt 1’ to my list as I enjoyed the first half more. Unfortunately this album is quite forgettable for me, even though I didn’t hate it
Gets totally heavy, and nods toward plodding at time – in other words, it's not exactly quicksilver in feel, despite some jam bandy predilections. Does rock with legit bluesy psychedelic feel without moving fully into dinosaur territory, though certainly it's proximate.
It all starts with having fun. After listening to so many highly produced albums, this one comes across as organic. There is a sense that this is made to be performed live and never the same way twice. Although not the best lyrics or the most amazing music ever, this album holds up well and I enjoy listening to it. It is refreshing when bands broke out of the singles mold and started to make long songs and concept albums. Art freeing itself from the confines of making money.
Pure 60's psychedelic rock, very reminiscent of The Dead during the same period. Quicksilver was one of the original jam bands and this record provides a quality view into that genre of music. I happen to like it a lot -- it's definitely not for everybody. Very creative and interesting improvisation from all the musicians (esp. the guitarist). In this regard it's closer to a jazz sensibility than traditional 3-minute rock songs. Hadn't heard this album before, though I knew about QMS -- it won't be in the regular rotation but it might be a change of pace occasionally
Not my thing - prog rock but too slow & boring
Decent guitar stuff on here. Psychedelic jam band - meh.
I liked the 60's guitar riffs and the vibes. I did not like the clapping section at the end of Where You Love. My standouts were Mona and Who Do You Love pt 1
That was way cooler than the name implied.
I would have liked to talk to my Dad about this album, as it is right smack in his mid-twenties, and he definitely had opinions about music from this era. Otherwise, it's psychedelic rock that sounds fine for its era but doesn't show me anything new or fresh. It is enjoyable but creates no lasting memory.
I have, at this point, completed 730 albums. Long gone are the days where each morning provided promise of something exciting and new. I now trudge blindly through the endless desert sands of indistinguishable guitar riffs, noodled by equally-indistinguishable men, that dominated the late 60s and early 70s. I hear nothing. I feel nothing. I yearn for water. But there is only Happy Trails.
It was ok. Awesome guitar.
Nobody needs a 22 minute jam on the Bo Diddly Beat.
Monstrous version (25:50) of Bo Diddleys 57' Who Do You Love on side A, side B announced as Rock 'n' Roll (not at all) but verrry well made psychodelic rock. The epic length is modern in this time - compare with Deep Purple's 1972 live album Made in Japan (shortest track 6:52). I like this album, especially seen in the context of time.
unexpectedly groovy; good work listen
This type of music is not my cup of tea at all.
Instrumental 60's rock. Yes, please.
At the start of the album it sounded like this might be a unique 60's rock sound, but eventually it kind of just veered into jam band territory and I quickly lost interest.
Didn't think I needed a 25-minute interpretation of Bo Diddley's \"Who Do You Love?\" and I was right. 1.5/5
Pretty solid country rock. I’d be lying if I called this my thing, despite warming up to honky tonk stuff, but I get why it’s here. C
#95. This shit ain't it. If you're gonna put out an album that's some drawn out live jam band bullshittery, you should at least play your own songs and not some terrible cover of someone else's song, yeah? I think its pretty obvious why no one has heard of this before. What's less obvious is why/how it made it onto this list. 2/5: nah Song added to playlist: Maiden Of The Cancer Moon I've created a playlist on Spotify that consists of the best and/or my favorite song from each of the albums in this book. This list can be found here if you are interested: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7MAXDGLWlwLkFLb8veGfkA?si=FqkQQPgZTFWG0jAUJXLFZA&utm_source=copy-link
Fairly standard late 60's psychedelic Rock? I've seen this around before but it's a bit disappointing.
•Not owned: Streaming •Nice jammy psyche rock .The handling of blues reminds me of the the Who's Live at Leeds (released the following year). Accessible psychedelia always tells me the band is stoned and having a great time—also evident with opening the second track with "This next one is rock and roll"... coming off a 20 minute burner of an opening track. • 4/5
Started listening. "This sounds like a watered down Grateful Dead." Reads bio and sees they're a late 60s, Bay Area jam band. But to be fair, for what they were - a blues/jazz inspired rock band - they were alright. But to really enjoy you really have to have a head full of acid. So much noodling. Songs that just don't end or are hard to even can songs. It's like a 2.5 for me but I'll round up.
Albums like this make me wonder about the criteria for inclusion on this list. Does an album have to be popular? Influential? Innovative? Good? Who knows, because this is none of those.
Sounds like teenager, garage band, self indulgent shite.
Waste of time
whoever decided on the 1001 albums list is in love with jam bands. I am not.
Didnt hate it some cool prog rock stuff but overall just okay
If enjoy long drawn out guitar jams, shapeless song compositions with endless self indulgent guitar noodling, this is the album for you! I would have to be drunk (or stoned) out of my head to really enjoy this, but I'm not sure it would help unless you were in the mood. You have to admire the effort and clearly these guys have talent, but can't understand why this would be considered essential? Happy trails...on to the next!
Not bad, can definitely hear their influence in other acts.
Promising start then monotonous twanging.
Not my thing but was a very interesting listening.
Some good songs mixed with some plodding ones where they seemed to be having fun but I wasn't. Maybe groundbreaking at the time?
This was pretty good! I especially liked the "Who Do You Love" suite.
This album feels a little noodly and not in a cool jazz way, in the way that 4 guys in their garage noodle together. There are some cool parts but it is overshadowed by the guitarist's less than interesting improvisation
Rock psicodélico. Está bien. Un 4.
Country rock, casi todo melódico. Suenan bien.
Oh good more wonky live bullshit from a non-canon 60s American band. We’ll see if I get through this one. I can’t do it. These fucking sloppy, self-indulgent guitar solos are killing me. Time to listen to Leonard Cohen instead.
061223 19:12 3
not good enough
Thoughts before listening: This will definitely be a first listen for me. I believe these guys were a 60s San Francisco band in the same scene as the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, and Janis Joplin. I'm expecting psychedelic blues rock with lots of guitar solos...I also assume that I'll enjoy this. Review: There is definitely some great guitar work on this album. The first half of the record is just a jam on Who Do You Love broken up into multiple instrumental parts, and the second half continues the same mostly instrumental vibe. This is just okay to me. I'm sure these guys were awesome live, but on a studio album they come off a little boring. Lots of guitar noodling that doesn't really go anywhere. Maybe this lack of songs is why their contemporaries like the Grateful Dead and the Allman Bros had 50 year careers and Quicksilver Messenger Service were left as a largely forgotten also ran. As for the playlist, the best song on here is the multi-part Who Do You Love, but that's broken into different tracks that won't translate well to a playlist. I'm adding the first Who Do You Love as well as the next track What You Love which is a really good guitar jam. I'll also add Mona which is an original although it sounds very similar to the Grateful Dead's take on Not Fade Away All in all these guys were an early jamband and I love jambands! However, like with most jambands, they're style just doesn't translate very well to studio recordings. Maybe I can find a live show to listen to.
An interesting take on the ol psychedelic rock, not the strongest outing but it did have some worthwhile songs added to playlists.
This album is very of its time. It's blues influenced psychedelic jam band noodling. The first half is a cover of Bo Diddley's 'Who do you Love?' broken up into several movements and played live. The second half is a few more tracks mostly written by the band. The musicianship is good and the band is tight, but these extended jam tracks just don't do it for me. It may have been a different experience live, but it just doesn't translate well on tape and over 50 years later.
THis was almost a bit psychedelic, I enjoyed it
Not worth the time of day.
Nice Classic rock. Good guitar solo. Bass lines are fun too. 3 stars
Decent quality of sound, but not really remarkable
Thunka thunka thunka cow boy music.
Ok
kinda boring rock-n-roll