Reviews (page 2 of 7)
Fun record. I like a little BS&T from time to time. Uncle Pete Cullum was a fan back in the day is how I discovered them
Cool stuff all around, good album with great vibes
There was something very familiar about this psychedelic funk jazz rock from the late 60’s… and then near the end of the album, ‘Spinning Wheel’ and ‘You’ve Made Me So Very Happy’ played. Aside from those hits, not really my thing. 2.5/5.0
Thoughts before listening: R&B meets psychedelic rock is my take on early Blood, Sweat, and Tears. I believe they came from the same San Fran hippie scene that spawned the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, etc, but were more horn driven than focused on long guitar solos. More of a party band than an LSD freak out soundtrack. Review: Yeah so I guess the story of BS&T is that they started as psychedelic jazz-rock group, but by this album had evolved into a smoother, more hit focused group. This is fine. Lots of horn driven songs with soulful vocals, and there is a surprising classical element to the music here to go along with the jazz-rock. This makes it feel like more of a prog album at times, although the pop hits are decidedly not prog. I guess I'll give this 3-stars.
Kinda all over the place, but kinda good. It’s a bit of a mess, but also pretty fun and it works in a way. First few minutes of the last live track are horrendous. It’s a million different genres and never really hits a groove but it also kinda fucks. You can feel the great musicianship.
Music for nerds (baby boomer nerds)
This is a tough one to rate. Some of the songs didn't make much impression, but I remember listening to the radio hits with my mom, and they're still so good.
Great album with classic hits and references to other bands. Strong three stars.
Mixed feelings about this. “You’ve Made Me Feel…” is maybe the best song on the album, and I love the musicianship on “Blues, Part 2” and maybe in a couple of other spots. Love the sound and sound of the lead vocals. However, overall is sounds too vaudeville to me throughout. Understand how they’re blending jazz influences and horns pre-Chicago in, but a lot sounds like “Tommy Can You Hear Me?” (which may have come later) on every song. In summary, has its good moments in spots but not overall. I wouldn’t get this on vinyl.
They’re good players and the singer is good. The hits are pretty decent. A lot of it just doesn’t interest me a whole lot.
Such a cool album. Hearing some of the Beatles baroque stuff as well as Steely Dan
This was a really cool album. It’s a great combination of jazz, rock, and blues, with some of the psychedelic influences and sounds of its time mixed in. I really enjoyed how seamlessly they blended all these elements and how upbeat and energetic the album is. I’m definitely going to check out more from these guys.
This was such a fun listen. Specifically what caught my attention first were the horns in smiling phases. The rest of the track was pretty good too, but those horns were just awesome. Sometimes in winter was very pretty. The flute really carried it. More and more was decent. I liked how urgent And When I Die felt. I quite liked Spinning Wheel. You’ve made me so very happy was also quite nice. The way it played with pace was cool. 3.5/5 ⭐️ 226/1089
Never heard entire album, and it was a treat.As a kid in the 60's, some of these songs got a lot of airtime,,, and became bring. But many years later I really got a better appreciation for BST. I enjoyed!
Kjennskap: 5% Helt greit. Kaos med mange forskjellige sjangre.
This album was weird in a lot of ways but somehow it grew on my as it went. I never realized how much BST influenced the bands that came around that time and just after. There was such a big push into the 70s of melding rock and jazz that became prog rock and so much of it can be heard here. Thought I’d be bored but ended up digging it
While I was listening, I enjoyed it. But I remember nothing.
Boring country music
3/5. One of the first things I thought with this album is “this kinda reminds me of the band Chicago” which was apparently on the right track since the producer of this record went on to produce some of their stuff. Blood, Sweat and Tears is a solid enough jazz-rock record, though oddly enough for me the highlight is not the instrumentation, it’s the vocals which I feel work really well here, there’s a grit to them that works great with the stories being told in the lyrics. The instrumentals are functional and obviously well-played but also sometimes feel very non-distinct, I don’t think I’d be able to pick them out from a crowd of other jazz-rock groups. But still a solid listen.
3.5
3.0
A mixed bag of lounge bar music.
And When I Die God Bless the Child Spinning Wheel You've Made Me So Very Happy
Really good! 3.5/5
not as good as Joni Mitchell’s Blue
The blood is the blood you'd have to squeeze from a stone before I'd ever willingly listen to this ever again. The sweat is the sweat pouring from my forehead as I have nightmares thinking about the time I listened to this record. The tears are the tears I cried when I first heard this and thought about all the things I could have been doing instead that were more interesting or less painful, e.g., watching paint dry, or sticking needles in my eyes.
Some really fun stuff, some stuff that feels a little like a slog. I will need to revisit at some point. 3.5/5
1ra cancion y wtf es la del meme de tiktok? ahora parece la overture de wicked ufff this is fun its so theatrical I love it
Interesting, I liked it more than I expected to.
This album has an identity crises. It’s all over the map musically with nothing to tie it together. Individually some of the songs are good but they just don’t make sense together.
Great instrumentals throughout and the vocals are on point. Is it dated? Absolutely. Is it full of energy and high performance? For sure. This won’t make it to my playlist, but it’s good music.
I am growing weary of white people with organs and brass sections… music for older couples to scrapbook by …
Mess of an album, very disappointing. Blood, Sweat, and Tears can definately jam when they choose to, they have a great vibe and good songs. This album doesn't portray that at all, there a few good ones on here but most of the album doesn't have that great jam bar band feel they do so well.
A bit of a stylistic hodgepodge. Sounds like they wanted to be taken seriously as artists while still trying to generate pop hits. Some of this hits the mark, some falls flat. Overall a reasonably enjoyable listen.
‘Variations on a theme’ starts the album on soft and soulful route. ‘Smiling phases then has some great sax, nice vocals and good breakdowns When it got round to ‘And when I die’ it felt like a collection of showtimes hitting me one after the other. ‘Spinning wheel’ and ‘you made me so very happy’ went down well. Just felt like the album was a bit all over the place. The crowd for the 2 live tracks seemed too polite, almost like they should have been on the tables dancing and bouncing away tapping their feet! Fave track- ‘and when I die’ Least fave- ‘the 2 live tracks’ 6/10 I could listen again easily but I wouldn’t actively choose to.
Blood Sweat & Tears Yes, production is amazing, especially that horn section. But the selection of songs is weird. Is it soul, R&B, prog, jazz, blues, rock, pop, what? Drummer and bassist are tight as fuck, mind. Best Track was Spinning Wheel. Did make me want to go hang wallpaper though. Really enjoyed all the soloing and cream snippets in Blues Pt. 2 as well. Worst Track - And When I Die. 6/10
A damn fine record.
Jazz again
Сара није слушала, брала малину Марко 3-
interesting blend of sounds tbh, saved 0/12
Get ready for some brass. Listening to this reminded me of Chicago, although I guess both groups would've debuted around the same time. BS&T kind of jump around a bit on this album specifically, though, making the listening experience a bit uneven. It's also just straight up cheesy at points too. I do enjoy some cheese from time to time, but some days you're just not in the mood for cheese. "Spinning Wheel" was fun though.
Unfocused but ambitious and it never languishes into indulgent noodlings. Plus they just sound like they’re having a blast! You’ve Made Me So Very Happy is a mint classic rock radio gem.
This beat Abbey Road for the Album of the Year Grammy. A travesty to end all travesties. Don't get me wrong, BS&T cooks up some great stuff here, but I'm bitter all the same. I have no idea what this album is about. It approaches every possible genre, from rock to soul to fully orchestral to everything in between. It's genuinely endless entertainment. Twists and turns abound, even where nobody asked for them. As another reviewer wrote: "Extremely unfocused, but when they decide to have fun, it's a blast." Variations on a Theme is the orchestral track in question. It pays homage to Erik Satie's Trois Gymnopédies, which I would appreciate, except that piece is so darn overrepresented in Romantic/Modern "classical" music that I can't be too impressed. The flutes are nice, though. The band sounds more like what you'd expect in the next track, Smiling Phases. Some excellent bass and piano playing. Actually, every instrument shines here, including the confident, bassy vocalist. Around halfway through the song, BS&T diverges into pure unadulterated jazz. Musical ideas get introduced and developed a little haphazardly, but given you don't see much of that in modern mainstream music, I think it counts as a positive. in Sometimes in Winter, the (very appropriate) re-introduction of the flute makes me think of King Crimson, Pink Floyd, and other late-60s projects that started using orchestral instruments in all their studio material. More and More is straight-up "big band soul". It's worth mentioning again how great the basswork is – not just how it's played (excellently) but how crisp the recording sounds. And When I Die contains a little less experimentation than its predecessors, but there's still plenty to enjoy. An almost obnoxiously whimsical and peppy mood, a cool keyboard solo, several drastic tempo changes. These guys aren't afraid to take risks in the name of fun. God Bless the Child marks yet another bluesy big-band track (think You Shook Me, Willie Dixon/Muddy Waters), with more tempo changes, nods to soul and jazz, the whole shebang. Vocally, it's what Billy Joel often strived for but never quite achieved. It changes genre several times too. We get a perplexing switch-up from jazz-soul to samba about halfway through. Spinning Wheel continues along much the same lines, though it's more energetic and musically interesting. Great trumpet hits and solo/soli lines. Then You've Made Me So Very Happy, apparently the other biggest "hit" from the album, is very similar. But with more organs and slightly cheesier lyrics. The finale, Blues, Pt. 2, is fine, I guess. The abrupt fadeout into what should've been a bonus track (the same Erik Satie cover again) is stupid. 4/5 Key tracks: Smiling Phases, More and More, Spinning Wheel
Didn't like this. Good band, but not for me.
This didn't do much for me. A bit of a mess, and as many styles as there are tracks.
This is a rare record where there are just two flugelhorn players. I usually don't mess around with bands that have less than 3 guys on the fluge. I mean if you're serious about music, you've got your flugelhorn boys, you've got at least two people in what I like to call "bassoon corner" and then if there's room on the bus, you can have drums or whatever. Seeing this band is so "stripped down" I was hesitant to push play, and that hesitation was punished by a beautiful intro and then of course deeply validated by the stinky 70's singing throughout this bad boy. We've got eerie keyboard passages and some wicked jazz tracks, but the actual "song songs" are rock bottom Las Vegas pageantry. The only way I can describe them is "gross." Like they feel as though they stink. How can music literally stink? Well, Blood, Sweat & Tears attempt to answer the question with an affirmative. The relatively musky odour of this release has me wondering if even a third flugelhorn would've saved this. Oh who am I kidding? Of course it would've. 1.5-2 HIGHLIGHTS: Somebody really has to wash out this van
Got disappointing. The band can obviously do a lot, but when they stretch it isn’t particularly inspiring. When they don’t stretch, it gets boring.
spinning wheel and happy are both are 4 star songs on a 2 star album
It's a weird mix of genres. Not sure I was in the mood for it however.
Solid. Reminds me a lot of early Chicago but a little bit cheesy on the vocal style at times. Of its time. The expanded edition live tracks are much better in my opinion. Shows more personality.
Märkligy
Blues. Funk. Jazz. Rock, Psychedelic. Prog. Flutes and horns. Eclectic collection with great vocals interspersed with great orchestration. Spinning Wheel alone is worth the price of admission. Yeah, some of the tracks are long and slow, but still well arranged and played beautifully. 4⭐️
Damn the arrangement is crazy. It's a confusing album sometimes as the genres seem to change suddenly.
David Clayton Thomas and his contemporaries were a staple in my household growing up. My parents used to go to Yorkville and Yonge st to see these bands. This album is weird but it’s so good. They are silly but really excellent at their respective instruments. It’s a good time with some solid hits.
I was unfamiliar with this group prior to this list, and boy howdy was I impressed. From the outset, they picked what is easily my favorite piano piece, jazzing it up a touch and turning it discordant as they proceeded into their next track. The mixture of classical, jazz, funk, ragtime, country and just a smidge of folk with some rock tossed in for good measure is wonderfully executed throughout. They played around with stylings and nailed each one. It was so much fun track to track. I genuinely loved this album and hope you did as well.
Pretty forgettable
Quite enjoyed some, others were just fine.
This album is the soundtrack to rust colored corduroy overalls with yellow and green striped turtlenecks with bowl cuts, PBS documentary introductions, dusty fall sunsets, avocado appliances, wood panelling and shag carpets, cigarette smoke in the drapes, dust floating through the air as a sunbeam cuts through the room, a university film department and rust colored Pintos. Okay, it's not always all of that...but it sure starts that way. And the song More and More comes on and, whoa, this rips. The horns punch, the singer has some grit. It moves and there's some power here. If the whole album were more songs like this, I think I'd have a very different reaction to it. The next song is "When I Die" and it's like...did you just put on straw hats and suspenders and are you at a saloon? What the fuck? And God Bless The Child is fine until...is this a fucking samba beat? Merengue? Who asked for this? Spinning Wheel is the moment where it's like "Oh, I know this song." And while it's dated, it's still got some funk. A hook that's undeniable, but even then it delves into some weirdness that doesn't serve the song and keep it going with that initial intro. Why does it delve into carnival beats? The singer has a great voice, it's undeniable. These are not bad musicians, not at all. And while I'm struggling to understand why this album is on this list, it has some good moments...even great moments. But it's nothing that I want to come back to. I initially was gonna give this a 2 but I'll bump it up to a 3 out of the respect for the singer's voice and the musicianship.
Great album. Lot of killer tunes. But, then some marginal instrumental tunes. Have to give it a 3.
Blood Sweat n Tears: Very interesting album! I can’t tell if it’s really cool, experimental, and unique, or exceptionally lame and cheesy. But it definitely is somewhere between the two. Very unique instrumentation and structure to songs on the album, definitely makes no effort to fit into a box which I really like and respect. Any album that covers Erik Satie gets a bonus point. I owe this one a second listen, but for now I’m going for an 8.5/10!
This is a right old melange of jazz, rock, pop and more besides, creating something...confusing. Right down to the song titles, it makes almost no sense at all. It's a shame that none of it is quite good enough to really warrant further inspection.
This is a decent album. Reminded me of early Chicago, which I like. I wouldn’t have voted for it to win the Grammy for album of the year over Abbey Road but I know people were kind of over the Beatles by 1970. With the benefit of hindsight, I think that was a mistake, but I get it. This is a good album.
One of the more unique albums on this list. Interesting genre-blending style and covers of some famous songs. A bit scattered brained and strange at times but an okay listen overall
Interesting intersection of rock and jazz. Overall enjoyable, though quite a few slow songs seem to confuse the general vibe.
slušam, na petoj sam pjesmi, i ovo je zasad TAKAV jebeni vajb! mislim da je kraj 60-ih i možda početak 70-ih bio toliko otvoren za različita eksperimentiranja i da su se nekako nakon toga postavila pravila za određene žanrove itd. pa nešto ovakvo zvuči nezamislivo danas, a istovremeno staro... no zasad mi se dosta sviđa! evo nakon slušanja... sve u svemu dosta dobro! malo je negdje napola izgubilo dio tog šarma, ali je s instrumentalima pretkraj opet oživjelo... nije savršen i ne mogu zamisliti da će mi postati neko remek-djelo, ali svakako se ovomu želim još koji put ušno vratiti. četvorka je, vjerujem, itekako zaslužena
Started slow but became such a great listen.
3.5
This album was bananas, but I was a fan of everything on display here for the most part. The mood changes are a little jarring, but some of the songs here are excellent.
I really enjoyed this album for the most part, and recognized a few songs I knew. There were a couple songs I hit skip on, so I can’t rate it higher than a 3.5 / 5
Look, I am going to be upfront and honest about this review....... I HATE Blood, Sweat & Tears. I hate that guys voice. Is this a fair rating? Maybe not but they are my reviews based on how I feel about them. 2 stars and thats being generous. This is one of the few popular bands I will actually get up instantly to turn off.
One of the best things of the last fifteen years is that you never hear about this band anymore. This really should have stayed as a brief moment in the 60's and stay there.
541/1089 - It was ok but "Spinning Wheel" was far better than everything else on the album (except when it went into the Disneyland It's a Small World Afterall section at the end).
Did they cover a Minecraft theme on the first song? It’s sounds so calming and then the next one after with the trumpets is interesting sounding.
hooooly fuck. actually genius. easy easy 5 blues pt ii is essential. world class song
I recognize a bunch of these tracks by title, but I've never listened to this album start-to-finish. This is pretty solid, there are a few tracks which felt a little more dull than the others, so it's not quite "great." I'm glad this site made me sit down to listen to it.
I dug this. Fusing all kinds of sounds together worked pretty well. It’s not a perfect album but I think it’s pretty strong
it's fine
одразу чути, що американці - як на мене, то в плані такого душевного піднесення в музиці, британці сильно не дотягують. Думаю, тут є чому завдячити релігії та культурі церкви в Америці. В цьому плані брити цілком бездушні, лол. Сам альбом був насичений, голос співака потужний та приємний, різноманіття в музиці захоплює. Улюблений трек - And When I Die. Скинула другу американцю, сказав, що з кожним роком ця пісня подобається все більше! (типу ближче до смерті). Багатьох років життя тобі, Деннісу! Коротш не датягує мені троха до 5, враження зіпсував дуже довгий повільний трек Blues Pt2.
meh
And When I Die God Bless the Child
Blood, Sweat & Tears is one of those bands that everyone has heard of, but for me personally, I couldn't name one of their songs. Of course when this album came up, at least two of the songs were songs that I was very familiar with and have heard many times. But if you asked me I couldn't have told you who the artist was. The production on this album was top notch and the musicians were amazing. The album felt pretty all over the place. A lot of the songs were very jazzy. Almost a Chicago feel with the jazzy - almost Broadway'ish - rock and lots of horns. It was fine to listen to and a couple of very classic songs, but won't be on my regular playlist.
++: Variations on a Theme by Erik Satie, Smiling Phases, More and More, And When I Die, Spinning Wheel, Variations on a Theme by Erik Satie +: God Bless the Child, You've Made Me So Very Happy +-: Sometimes in Winter, Blues - Part II 7,9/10
Based on very little (if anything) I had always thought these cats were kind of 70s pop soul, like a dime store Family Stone (obvs no Sly here). Happy to be corrected! I’d definitely put this almost-fusion above whatever I imagined I was getting into. This is good & some of it I’d call very good. I’m putting it at 3 & 1/3
More classic rock to fill out this list. This genre is all over this list at the expense of other genres like the vast array of electronic genres. I mean it's ok but there are far better albums out there that aren't classic rock.
Ime valjda poznam, ampak dejansko pa pomojem še nism poslušala nič (zanimivo mi je, da od Erik Satie igrajo? Mi pa ful ni všeč ime. A že obstaja kak punk band po imenu Piss, Spit & Cum?). Ok, so far (pri "And When I Die" sem) kul. Variira med jazzovskimi vplivi, mal Scott Walker vibes, kul vokali, glasbeno zanimivo. Anyway, loved it, pomojem sm po neki cajta najdla nov album, ki si ga loh dodam med favorite. (Še par komentarjev za nazaj: "You've Made Me So Very Happy" poznam! Pozabila sem, da je od njih. Pa všeč mi je blo, kako je v bistvu komad z naslovom "Blues – Part II" bolj neka jazz improvizacija (z "Sunshine of Your Love" melodijo od Cream vmes!)) - kasneje sm še enkrat preposlušala album & mu zmanjšala oceno, ha
This was fun! Jazzy, folky, kind of cheesy. I recognized a lot of these songs, because they’ve been homaged and covered for years.
A strange assemblage. I'm afraid it didn't do much for me, even with the stolen Erik Satie valor. Maybe if I were in a different mood. [Edit: Later, in a different mood, it grew on me a little.]
Didn't really do much for me tbh. Not bad, just boring.
Ok, not like the best thing I've ever heard lol
This is a pretty amazing album. Sits PERFECTLY between the psychedelic era and the excesses of the aspirational 70s. This sold SO MANY RECORDS, and that is a bit surprising considering the complexity and artistry of some of these arrangements. Might best be described as Progressive pop. My only complaint is that STUPID carousel music break in the middle of Spinnin' Wheel.
This is really good asf
The three strong hits here land it at a 3. “And when I die” always puts me in a good mood strangely.
A really confusing listen. I mean…quadruple platinum? Really? At the time it was probably considered to be progressive, but this one was all over the map for me. Just when they want you to get down and funky, the wispy flutes come in making me think I need to frolic around the forest like a jazz rock wood nymph.
Interesting listen. A bit all over the place and not sure if it’s something I’ll come back to but generally enjoyed it. Crazy at times I was getting very tom jones or Neil diamond type vibes. Other times it sounded like The Guess WHO (maybe dudes voice is very similar).
This was odd and I kinda liked it. 3.5/5
These guys were musicians
The Erik Satie cover knocked my socks off, and the more straightforward rock seemed a little tame by comparison
More jazzy than I thought it would be.
I feel like they put a lot into this. wish I had the words for it, it's on the tip of my tongue...
Mix of styles, jazz, rock and a bit of soul. Some is pretty good, some I didn't care for.
Nice Jazz rock album
7.6
Listened
Technically, the recording is great, the musicianship is tight and articulate, this record is really well done. But, on the other hand, sometimes it sounds like Schoolhouse Rocks and sometimes it sounds like the soundtrack from some obscure dramatic film from the 70's that no one needs to remember; it's a little "all over the map" in terms of genre and style. I don't love listening to it, even though they do really good work from a technical standpoint. 6/10
Bizarre but enjoyable. I think this caught me just at the right time as I am on the way back from a classical concert so the classical intros and longer form instrumental work tickles my fancy right now. It’s somehow expressive and jazzy but without being too bloated or “difficult”. Sure, it’s jazz so it’s never going to be a completely tight composition but it’s got some shape to it and some great musicianship. On tonight’s listening a 4 but probably a highly volatile review, I’d probably struggle on another listen.
It's quite an astonishing collection of sounds and music. My problem is that it seems a little off-centre almost all the way through. Too much like a film score, too funky, too church-like, too anything that doesn't immediately strike me as something that can stand the test of time and be universally appreciated. Blues, Pt. 2 is a classic example. It's like listening to a dull church Sunday service while waiting for all the guests to arrive and take their seats. Then you have a quite excellent guitar and drum jam, and you're transported to some kind of over-the-top jazz screech, followed by a perfectly reasonable sax solo. It gets a little seedy-sounding in the middle-to-late section, and by the end of that passage it's like some kind of 70s erotica, with the trumpets flaring again in an almost orgasmic flourish. The final minutes of the nearly 12-minute song end with a classic slow blues dialogue/vocal section, the possessed kind that's calling to the spirits (you know the type). It's a jumble sale of music, and it's not bad. Sometimes, though, you just can't be arsed to wade through the shit to get to the good stuff.
A very weird mix of genres munged into a single album. It wasn't ever bad, but was it ever that good? As it lurched from classical to blues to crooning jazz, I never felt fully averse but equally never felt fully engaged. It is quite an early album so I guess they were deep into the experimentation that was more reasonable at the time. It's cool in a way, but what mood do you need to be in to pick this off the shelf? Not enough good in this to make it stand out.
81/100. This is just a really fun record. They naturally blend so many different genres together. You get jazz, rock, soul, pop, blues and even little touches of classical music all living together, and it just works. The horns are the real stars of the show for me. They are not just slapped on top of rock songs, they are completely baked into the identity of the whole album. Boundaries can definitely preserve traditions, but they can also stop some really interesting conversations from ever happening.
I've never heard of Blood, Sweat & Tears, but I did recognize You've Made Me So Very Happy. I prefer Brenda Holloway's original version, but I think theirs is more well known. As it turns out, most of these songs are covers/variations/interpolations of others' works, ranging from classical to Motown to rock and roll staple, Sunshine Of Your Love. Somehow, it all works! And original song Spinning Wheel is fantastic. They are a tight group of musicians and I think you can tell they had fun playing these songs together. I would listen again.
Impressive playing, boring music
Variations on a Theme by Erik Satie (1st and 2nd Movements) 3 Smiling Phases 3.3 Sometimes in Winter 3.1 More and More 3.3 And When I Die 3.5 God Bless the Child 3.4 Spinning Wheel 3.5 You've Made Me So Very Happy 3.5 Blues - Part II 3.3 Variations on a Theme by Erik Satie (1st Movements) 3 Score: 3.29
I have no idea how to rate this. Some songs are really catchy, some songs are syrupy and sound like the soundtrack to a 60s sitcom. I guess it's 3 stars? I don't care if I ever hear it again, and I probably never needed to hear it in the first place, but I'm not mad at it.
tight, groovy and a happy vibe!
Feels too much like the kind of 60s stuff my mum thinks is better than The Beatles.
I had never heard of this band - and also never heard of the jazz rock music sub genre in the late 60s. I'm so glad I do know them now. This is a fantastic album made in the late 60s by some very talented musicians. The organ, the bass, the guitars, all sounding pretty damn great to my ears. Also really like his voice.
Maybe this wasn’t my absolute favorite songwriting, but I really loved the lead singers voice and delivery. A funky early Chicago type vibe. Reminds me a lot of Jesus Christ Superstar at times. This one feels like one that I’ll revisit again. 4/5.
Don't really know what to make of it. It wasn't particularly coherent but it also wasn't bad but also not outstanding or anything
this… did nothing for me I’m afraid. I was glad when it was over. ALSO just when you THINK it’s over the last song is almost TWENTY MINUTES LONG so enjoy that.
Non
J'ai beaucoup aimé la DA
197. ok
Jazz / Prog nonsense. I think. I’m not even sure what the fuck that was. But not worthy of a second listen to try and figure it out.
Mine for listening to this mess or theirs for writing and recording this? There were a few bright spots in each song then it all turned a bit jazzy. It sounded like a band having an identity crisis. This was a 1970 Grammy award winner? Astounding decision making.
This has some moments in it for sure. This is 3.5 rounded up for sure, I mean like this instrumentation is solid af for most of it, but I feel like the songs wouldn't hit individually, so I can't really love it.
Muy ecléctico. Inicio de disco solido!
It’s a bit all over the place genre wise, but it’s not a bad album. I do like a couple of the songs quite a bit. 3/5
Bit all over the place
Nothing about this really stood out, but I feel like this is base of a sound that I would go on to like once it got refined later.
A fine wine, this record.
his is definitely one of those bands where you recognize a lot of their songs but don't know it's them who sing it. I've definitely heard "And When I Die" before, and it's easily the most upbeat song I've ever heard about death. Also, not gonna lie, the horns on "Spinning Wheel" always made me think this was a Chicago song. I had no idea they performed "You've Made Me So Very Happy" either. I really enjoyed their "Variations on a Theme by Erik Satie" too, which adds a cool, classy touch to the tracklist. It's a great blend of jazz, rock, and pop that holds up surprisingly well. Favorite song: "Spinning Wheel"
Good varied album, some decent tracks without being outstanding
Decent without ever grabbing me
This is a gem man!!!!! Just so blown away by how much I enjoyed this little mix of jazz rock and whatever else they felt like throwing my way. Really solid album.
Wow. What a tight outfit! The version I listened to has a couple of live tracks as well, and the musicianship was indistinguishable from the studio version. I was deeply amused and delighted at the variations on a theme opening. What a flex.
This album answers the question of "what if you gave CCR a horn section?" I never knew that CCR needed a horn section, but I'm now very glad to know what that sounds like. By virtue of being CCR with horns, I'm contractually obligated to give this album a small amount of saxophone bonus points for the random sax solos thrown in there. Anyways, I can always appreciate a song that takes forever to throw in vocals, and Blues Pt. 2 takes 7 entire minutes for the guy to start singing. The whole song is like 80% soloing, it's great. This album definitely has the weakest version of God Bless the Child I've ever heard, though.
Apart from the 2 big hits, I found this a frustrating and unrewarding album. Quite dated and weird (not in a good way!). Maybe the worst version of God Bless The Child I have ever heard?!
Quite good, but it outstays its welcome a bit. Anyway. I like trains.
The music itself is a rather good grab at late 60's rock without getting itself painted in a single corner. But where the real value lies is in the story of this band. The book mentions it in passing as an "ill-fated Nixon-backed european tour". But that one sentence covers a ploy by the Nixon administration to get this lefty leaning band to perform propaganda in eastern europe under threat of deporting the canadian singer. It is completely insane. It meant the catastrophic end of this band but is but a footnote in all the crazy stuff the US government got up to at the time. A bonus point for a crazy story.
What goes up, must come down. 7/10
They really did just play the same thing for over an hour. The theme was cool, but not for that long...
Shoutout to one of the best opening tracks. For when I want to listen to Chicago but not actually listen to Chicago. I probably won’t remember this in a week, but it was nice while it was here.
There was a moment where it felt like I was listening to a song on the Katamari Damacy soundtrack so it gets a bonus star
Hm nah I appreciate the idea of the album, but it didn't hid it right
Incredibly odd album, I think I need more time to wrap my head around it. It's sometimes gorgeous, mostly interesting, but there is no cohesiveness whatsoever, and I do care a bit about that when looking at an album. But it is interesting, and not boring, I'm glad I heard it
Just wasn’t feeling it as a whole experience. Songs are fine on their own but as an album it kinda sucks
ugh
Another weird offering from the 1960s, and I'm not clear what makes this such an essential listen. Mostly seemed to be what sounds like big-band music to me, with an over-zealous vocalist whose style and sound really aren't to my taste. Plus, an over-indulgent track second-last, and bookended by unnecessary Satie renditions. Hard to understand how this sold four million copies - there was other music around at this time, right?
Interesting - not something I'd likely listen to again - but solid enough.
High school version of me would have ATE THIS SHIT UP! The rock-jazz fusion was everything I was craving and listened to artists in that same vein like Haken and Dream Theater. I ruck with this album a lot.
Decent - a few classics!
Super interesting album. Like the use of classical and jazz. Rating: 7.5/10 Favorite Song: Variations on a Theme
No thank you
Mid ahhhhh. Some fun instrumentals but a piece of work. That item you find at the garage sale and start excited about but put away and never really come back to. Drink: cold cup of instant coffee with a bitter taste but like 2 creamers so certainly edible. Rating is 5.7/10
+1 because the opening sounds like the intro to Zelda or some other video game I can't place. 4/5
Probably fresh when it came out but not sure it holds up
Such high highs with low lows, making an okay album with glimmers if genius
I am not very versed in the ways of jazz, which is why I couldn't stop hearing The Muppet Christmas Carol in many of the horns sections of this album. Once you hear it, you can't unhear it. Sorry if I've now ruined it for you.
The instrumentation is great, but there's better versions out there of everything they attempt here. Bit of a skip, nothing stood out to me apart from Blues pt. 2.
The Gymnopedie cover was a crazy move
I've always loved this album, but it's been a while since I listened end to end. Its a rule breaker. So many tracks that clearly weren't made for radio play, but which together tell such a story. An Album album
no thanks. as much as I love a playful organ its a little too much. It annoys me, because I know my argument is going to sound stupid. There is just too much music going on in here. Also this ethereal storytelling psychadelic rock type stuff just loses me so quickly. I really do appreciate aspects of the production, the organ, harmonica, percussions all sound great.The horn section comes in hot, even though it sounds like a marching band at times, but it completely eclipses the yell-talking of the vocals, and the lyrics themselves are nothing really to write home about. And When I Die was probably my favorite song here, and I wish this was the tone they stuck with, even though its a little ragtimey.
Fine. Sounded weirdly like Jesus Christ Superstar at times
More and More I find myself listening to albums like these.
Awesome. Happy to have heard it and will listen again.
I thought I knew them, but then halfway through though no maybe they just sound like someone I know and then the hit came on and I was like oh yeah....So it was fine
They saved the hits for the end, making me think “how do I know these guys?” until “oh, that song, and that song.” This was fine, I like the little circus act they break out here and there. It’s quirky and hot messy enough to be interesting.
First off, there’s a 19 minute version of Smiling Phases on the expanded edition that I’m excited to hear. Second, the first thing should tip you off as to how much i enjoyed this. So pleasant, funky, jazzy and brassy all the way through. Cool shit.
This is who did Spinning Wheel? No shit? I used to play that song in Middle School "Jazz" band. Also, this is a good choice for the list. It won album of the year in 1970 and has seemingly been completely forgotten about in music discourse.
Ni slabo
I wasn't sure what to expect, but I certainly wasn't expecting this bizarre lounge rock confection. It has bits of every kind of music jumbled together and coated in layers of cheese. I guess it is never boring, but I can't say I enjoyed it. And why did they open and close with bits of Erik Satie, a composer whose sparseness could hardly be further removed from this excess?
3 stars I’m embarrassed to say that I got into BS&T from listening to Adam Carolla rave about them on Loveline when I was 13. I was into ska at the time so I loved music with horns and got their greatest hits CD. Ended up liking it at the time. This album shows up in a lot of bargain bins and thrift stores. It’s not an album that has stood the test of time as a classic album that took home album of the year over Abbey Road. But it’s not garbage. This album makes up about half of the Greatest Hits CD I had those years ago. It can be a bit cheesy, but the songs are decently written. The jazzy instrumental stuff doesn’t fit in with the rest, but you could do much worse than this.
Enjoyable listen! I know Spinning Wheel & You’ve Made Me So Very Happy and enjoyed the other songs. Good bit of Jazz influence / sounds here. I’ll probably explore more of Blood, Sweat & Tears work in the future.
Best Track - "You've Made Me So Very Happy"
Fine, nothing really stuck with me.
A little weird, a little groovy, but overall a good time.
What a bunch of self-indulgent crap. Their playing was tight: good for them. However, the arrangements and composition were a meandering sap-fest that made no sense at all. If this does it for you, then great. But for the rest of us.....
This one’s not for me, sorry. Another album I don’t understand why it’s here. But then again, who am I to decide who deserves a spot on this list? It was a huge struggle to get to the end, but I made it… though I think I lost a lot of blood, because I feel pretty weak :-(
Sunday May 24th, 2026. This album was great. I am a sucker for real instruments, and some of the hornline licks in this album were so freaking good. There is almost some classical influence in the chord structure while also remaining in a rock style and it works super well. I also enjoy the piano parts and lyrics. This is definitely a unique style and I like it. 9/10.
Very messy, but very fun. Love the vocalists and instrumentals, but whoever’s on bass absolutely steals the show. It’s definitely cheesy at times, but I think the reason I end up liking this more than Chicago’s similar jazz-pop style is that BS&T doesn’t give the feeling that they’re trying to or think they’re cool. They just have fun, and it’s hard not to have fun with them.
It's like music for old people who don't really exist anymore.
Classic example of the late 60's horn section-forward genre similar to Chicago. Lots of experimentation and mixing of elements of jazz and psychedelica and rock. Despite impressive individual musicianship, the overall sum is not greater than the parts and the whole album falls a bit flat.
This album has some really great songs on it! The biggest highlights are songs like “more and more”, “variations on a theme by Erik Satie”, and I also liked “you’ve made me so very happy”. I enjoy the enthusiastic merging of genres. And all the instrumentation is wildly talented and gifted! My only real complaint about this album is that it’s just kind of a vibe, like it doesn’t have a like a stand out hit it’s just a bunch of well seasoned musicians going to town without making a huge hit. Genuinely a solid album but alittle dry and boring to be blunt.
This made me so very happy.
Honestly liked this one a lot for more of a jazz album.
This is a great album that's like 5 genres. It does each of them really well.
Pretty decent, would have been a 3 star had it not been for Spinning Wheel and the bass player carrying everyone!
Groupe inconnu. L'album propose un mélange de styles (rock, funk, jazz) très entrainant et réussi. Dans la plupart des morceaux le groupe introduit des passages instrumentaux avec d'excellents chorus (clavier, cuivres, guitare). La section rythmique est excellente, en particulier la basse, remarquable dans beaucoup de morceaux (changement de style, par exemple funk puis walking en passant par du rock). J'ai particulièrement apprécié les morceaux les plus dynamiques, en particulier "Smiling Phases", un petit peu moins les plus lents, même si les chorus rattrapent ces morceaux. Mention spéciale aussi pour "Blues – Part II" et ses chorus+solos. Je ré-écouterais avec plaisir cet album, il va même rejoindre ma collection. =>4/5
4/5
Sounds like a movie theme. Not unpleasant but quite hard to find a mood for this. The variation theme is a known one
Didn't do much for me beyond the first track
Is this just Chicago if it was better? This album rocks. It is a reminder that I love instruments and half of a singer's job is charisma. What a blast.
This is an album. It is cohesive, but not repetitive. It comes across that these guys are having fun, love making music, and do it well. Perfect vocalist for the job. This is an example of what is possible. It doesn't fit so nicely in a box and that seems to make a lot of people uncomfortable. Trumpets make me so very happy.
DEcent album with some standards.
It was interesting to see how big a seller this record was. I can see why. The singles really get stuck in your head and this offers a pretty accessible version of its sound, which is dominated by a slick and heavy r&b sound, with rock and gospel influences. It was a sound that a lot of bands were embracing around this time. It contains a number of fairly eclectic tracks as well, including an arrangement of a theme by Eric Satie that opens and closes the record. There are also moments where there is a strong jazz influence. Overall, it's a solid record made by very talented musicians, but there is something a little too slick about it for me. Still very listenable.
Blood, Sweat & Tears is the second album from Blood, Sweat & Tears and definitely one that needs a few listens before you fully form an opinion on it. At first it feels like a bit of a mess, constantly jumping between styles and ideas, but strangely that ends up being both a negative and part of the album’s charm. Overall, I found it a really enjoyable listen. It’s difficult to place the album into one clear genre. There are elements of jazz, rock, funk and even big band music all mixed together, sometimes within the same track. It feels chaotic at times, but in a good way — almost like a perfectly controlled mess. The musicianship throughout is excellent and the bass in particular really stands out across the album. That said, the long instrumentals do drag things down a little for me. A couple of tracks feel overindulgent and could easily have been trimmed without hurting the overall album. Still, despite those moments, I enjoyed this album a lot more than I expected to and it’s definitely one I’ll come back to again. Favourite tracks: “More and More” and “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy” are brilliant Least favourite tracks: The long instrumentals really let the album down at times Album artwork: Standard album cover
Really cool album! Never heard of it before today but the combination of 60s rock and big brass really works for me, at least on most of the tracks. Feels like proto prog with the long songs that shift style and tone dramatically throughout. Best Song: God Bless the Child Worst Song: And When I Die
Experimental in ways good and bad. You can hear the genesis of something like prog rock in here, but it’s incredibly unfocused and doesn’t really cohere as an album. Way too many cases of them just kind of noodling on their instruments to seemingly no real end, some deeply cheesy vocals even by the standard of the time. Glad I got to listen to this one and kind of fill out some music history, but probably not one I’m coming back to.
Funkadelic asked “can a funk band make rock music” in their genre-busting, but Blood Sweat and Tears asked “can a jazz band make rock, blues, soul, proto-funk, proto-prog, big band pop etc. etc.” - needless to say, somehow in all of that fusion of all these ingredients I like, there’s a sort of cohesion in here, or at least enough of one for me to fall in love with it, and it keeps an accessibility despite the experiment of it all. If you’re listening out, it’s easy to sort of pull at different songs to go “oh And When I Die sounds a bit like the Vegas Elvis arrangements, You’ve Made Me So Very Happy starts sounding kinda Otis Redding, Blues Part 2 does literally have Sunshine of Your Love for a minute” but hey, that’s fusion for you, if I didn’t like that I wouldn’t like Steely Dan either. No wonder I happily listened to it twice this afternoon.
bello, gentile e vivo, perfetto per cucinare e fare il soffritto, album che ho apprezzato un sacco.
Dad rocks final boss
Never heard any of this before, except for Spinning Wheel. Sometimes comes on like a more pretentious and less-melodically-direct Small Faces. Sometimes heads into schmaltz. All with an undercurrent of high school brass band jazz. This all sounds very disparaging though it's really not meant to. It's quite a nice warm sound, and a fairly rewarding listen. Just not one I'm sure I'll return to. There are simply other bands making soul, blues, pop, or jazz that I'd rather hear.
Interesting music that is wonderfully executed! What a gem!
Amazing jazz-rock album. Sure, the last track overstays its welcome by a lot but it does not degrade an album filled with such a groovy sound.
There are some interesting sounds in the album but overall this album is pretty boring for me. And some parts just sound like a bunch of random noises.
Nothing wrong with mixing things up but on too many of the mid-song style changes you can hear the gears grinding, undermining some very nice tunes.
The musicianship on this album is S-tier, which is made even more obvious on the live tracks included on the deluxe edition. The pop leaning tracks on here stand the test of time and hit HARD, and the jazz elements throughout are absolutely incredible. Of course I'm familiar with the big singles on here and because of them, I was expecting some sort of Neil Diamond type of record, but instead it's this lush, groovy, jazz fusion pop banger.
Not really into prog
No es el género de música que escucho. No me gustó
What a wild album! Was not expecting this. Enjoyable!
I've come to the realization that I don't really care for Blood, Sweat & Tears
I like the hits I know, the others not so much.
Surprised to hear the opening track! This is exactly why I stick with this challenge. Moments like this one.
Variations on a theme had me worried, it reminded me of the day someone got a classical music cd by a disco orchestra for my dad by mistake (we laughed a lot that Christmas). This is middle of the road easy listening (and i like easy listening a lot)
Pretty good
These instruments can scare away, but it was actually a very interesting journey.
Going in, I thought this would be a strong 3/5 and maybe even a 4/5. By the time we got to the "Yee Haw" section of the album it was pretty clear this album was going to come in below expectations. Rating: A very, very weak 3/5.
Nestled amidst the well produced jam sessions turned songs, there is little here to revisit. I can't decided whether the philosophical, homespun, folk religious ponderings are serious though weak, pretentious and false, or parody. And in the end, I didn't care.
This is the type of album where you hear a really good song and then get disappointed and assume most of the rest of the songs aren’t going to be able to top the one you just heard. But nope, the next song is just as much of a masterpiece as the last. Anyone who doesn’t think that this album is worth at least 7 stars shall be pulverized immediately. 15 trillion stars Was this album better than yesterday’s album, The Infotainment Scan by The Fall? Yes.
I went into this cold, but based on the band name I was expecting some stodgy blues rock. Instead it's more jazzy and spacious, with great use of horns. The 10 minute penultimate track was a bit too much of a meandering, stoner jam for me, but still overall it exceeded my admittedly low expectations.
Probably needs a second listen. Felt random in a bad way, but I liked it
3.5
Really good album that I definitely didn't think would be as good as it was. Definitely will get back to this one. Best song was Smiling Phase as it opened up the album after the intro with such a blast.
Love some of these to bits, mainly because my parents introduced them to me way, way back. Others were just endured.
mange gode klassikere! blir gjenhør
This is a great album.
güzeldi ya aktı spn şarkısı bombastik bi şeydi
Blood, sweat and tears is what's needed to get through this pretentious mess. Strangled vocals pretending to add emotion, pseudo classical/jazz horns, cod-psychedelic lyrics, boring tunes. This album can fuck right off. Best Tracks: And When I Die; Spinning Wheel; You've Made Me So Very Happy
Классные дядьки. Сперва я испугался и три дня не заходил, а зря, хороший альбом.
I loved this album. The brass was punchy, the singer was very soulful and the talent was exquisite.
I can't listen to that kind of music, I'm not sensitive enough, don't understand, not in my field of interest, just no.
LOVE the jazziness if the album & horns. Hello, Spinning Wheel & You've Made Me So Very Happy
I liked most of this album
I don't really know this band except for the two big songs that are both on this album. I didn't really like the first few tracks, but once "And When I Die" hits, it was all good. That song and "Spinning Wheel" are remarkable and also deeply weird. With "God Bless the Child" in between, we're in four-star album territory. Little drum solo and we're out. Good night.
Great horn section. Groovy!
Great example of don't judge an album by its cover. I did not think I would enjoy this as much as I did, but it was fantastic.
Just beautiful music. Reminds me of Santana at times the way the group plays together and I love Santana. Will be adding this my listening rotation IMMEDIATELY.
Soundið er næs og brassið gott, en sum lögin eru ekki mjög eftirminnileg. God bless the child útgáfan er bara la-la. Spinning whee byrjar frábærlega en ég hef aldrei fílað stefnuleysið í lokin. Chopin upphafið er næs You've made me so very happy finnst mér frábært, en það er ekki nóg í fjarka.
People got it right with Chicago lite. Chicago is already a two don from soul groups of the day with their neo-soul masked as pop. This is just a more boring version. It was a time of exploration.
I had been aware of this and seen it in used record stars as long as I can remember, but had never listened. It was fun to recognize the sample for Public Enemy's "Nighttrain" on the ooookay "Spinning Wheel," but I pretty much completely agree with the Rolling Stone review by Jon Landau: "The listener responds to the illusion that he is hearing something new when in fact he is hearing mediocre rock, OK jazz, etc., thrown together in a contrived and purposeless way."
Many saxofoons and tronpets
Spinning Wheel is decent, the rest is pretty meh. I'll go 2.5 - round down because 3 is too high.
It’s aigt
This was okay blues nothing bad nothing great
not bad
I enjoyed this album. It had me thinking this were psychedelic met big band. It is so late 60’s.
Kind of interesting, in a this is exactly what people think of the 60s kind of way. But exciting enough for me. The best tracks were the Satie rendition and a version of 'You Make Me So Very Happy' which is far inferior to Alton Ellis'.
low 4 its a nice listen but i wont be coming back
Too bombastic for my taste, guess I like lower key jazz. Did enjoy And When I Die though
Classic rock and timeless. Some of it is too horn-heavy for me. Overall a ripping collection of high powered passion.
Slightly odd album with each song going in a different direction and leading to a bit of a weird 'mish-mash'. The opener and closer - 'Variation of a Theme', are both lovely whimsical, nostalgic instrumental pieces. There are some great songs in the middle - 'Spinning Wheel' and 'You've made me so Very Happy'. But there are so many left turns into odd stylistic choices such as organs, and the 12 minute 'Blues Pt 2' is tough to listen to in the context of the album. Doubtless great musicianship on show and some proper highlights, but a tough album to listen to from start to finish. 6/10
Very solid tho not as amazing as I expected. Just a bit derivative
C+
60s vibes
This album was like a dive bar in the cascades. Not exactly my favorite sound but I heard some inspiring stuff. Favorite track off the album was More and More - Live at Cafe Au Go Go, NY.
Macho, nascent proggy rock generously sprinkled with big band, jazz, and blues sounds.
1. erik - 3 2. zmiling - 1 3. uuinter - 2 4. more - 1 5. die - 1 6. child - 2 7. uuheel - 1 8. happy - 3 9. bluez- 2
If Chicago is Chicago, then this is... well, some less-populated city in Illinois that I would mention if there were another city in Illinois. Decent enjoyment for an early glimpse into "what happens if you put the shiny yellow instruments into rock music?" No songs to love, but music to like.
Sounds very much like ccr and those style of bands Pretty fine 3/5 probably There was a few that were pretty good but a majority of the tracks were just… there Favorites: sometimes in winter
Oh this is FUN. Can see why this style of music isn't replicated often, but such a cool experiment. Really I just love anything that sounds Jazzy Favorite Song: You've Made Me So Very Happy
This is the best album I've gotten on this list in a while. Several bangers. I will be listening again.
This one was enjoyable to listen to! Love the Trois Gymnopedies covers at the beginning and end. Some songs definitely felt more jazzy compared to others which was a nice dichotomy.
All over the place and not incredibly memorable, but not bad.
Aimless circus music. I liked Blues Part II tho and can’t deny the talent.
I thought it started out kind of strong, but then they started waffling around. I even checked my phone once to see if it had switched to autoplay because each song sounded so disconnected from the one before it, I was confused. This is an EXTREMELY light 3, like a 2.6.
Quite cheesy at times but also had some great peaks and the drumming was rly good
Very eclectic and ambitious album. But doesn’t do anything for me.
wow they really just didn’t have to make this … and yet they did! what correlation do any of these songs have to each other? they’re not even distant cousins… i’m so confused. musically there’s a lot of talent but i just don’t know what i’m meant to be feeling when i listen to this and that kinda frustrated me.
Last thing I needed was a soft jazz version of In A Gadda Da Vida fronted by the guy from The Commitments.
alright, not my thing
Some pretty good songs, but overall a lot that didn't really catch me.
5/10
Oli taas liian ”progea” mun makuuni. Hyviä biisejä oli ”And When I Die” ja ”Spinning Wheel”. Tällä levyllä oli aika kummalliset rumpusoundit, aivan liian diskanttiset ja rytmi välillä ikäänkuin katosi kun muut soittimet tuli miksauksessa päälle.
Strong start but this really didn’t hold me, learning that was the original spinning wheel was nice though!
Surprisingly good, really disliked the first track but the rest is really good. Maybe slightly long.
Interesting, particularly their attempt to incorporate brass into their overall sound. Some really good bits--for instance I really like part of "More and More", but overall I think they failed to really incorporate brass in an interesting way. It is like much of the song presentation and structure is backward facing to big band style rather than really creating something new. Probably belongs on this list none-the-less.
This was really fun
The middle of the album sends me back to my childhood (Spinning Wheel), but as an adult I see how prog-adjacent this album is. The album is bookended by prog rock themed pieces that would be at home on an ELP album. Really really enjoyed this.
A tight, well structured album. I definitely thought “spinning wheel” was a Chicago song.
This was cool. Kinda jazzy, kinda poppy, kinda bluesy, kinda jam bandish. I used to sing the song you made me so very happy to my little sister to annoy her. The other one I used to sing was the growing pain theme song. I don’t know if I should give this 4 stars. But I’m gonna anyway.
was kinda sick, i was into it Will I listen to again: 80%
Not sure what it was trying to be really. I liked the production though
Not sure this aged well
3.5 - pretty good
This became annoying really quickly. There's one and a half good songs here, surrounded by self-indulgent tedium. I will always maintain that there is no place for a drum solo on any studio album, it's just there to waste time.
Very chill, slow, good for evening, Christian lyrics-okay
I found this mostly forgettable and occasionally annoying. The hits were all well and good, but the mid NOLA jazz and some of the cheesy covers brought this down. 2.4/5 -> 2/5
Didn’t like it at all. All over the place stylistically with a mishmash of all the things I hate - jazz, overblown horns, funk, drum solos. Nope.
Beautiful opening- I love all the instruments. And When I Die was excellent. Spinning Wheel is a classic. What a great album! I will listen again. I am already suggesting my friends jam it. You've Made Me So Very Happy!
Bookended with borrowed classical flourishes, the album quickly dives into psychedelia before veering off to Broadway—something in the vein of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. From there it slips into crooning, then suddenly detours into samba. It’s all over the place. I recognised “Spinning Wheel,” though I hadn’t realised it was theirs as my only exposure had been old TV variety coveres by the likes of Shirley Bassey or Frankie Vaughan. Then comes their take on “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy.” After that, we’re in church (and I do love a bit of organ), before shifting into straight jazz, and finally landing on a direct lift of Sunshine of Your Love. This is quite a journey of an album. I enjoyed the ride—but I’ve no real desire to take it again.
bello
Just okay
Pretty good, musical album. Vocals were unnessecary, the rest of the musicians were quite good.
Fun, jazzy big band rock. Just about the whole album was great. More and More, Spinning Wheel and And When I Die were the highlights for me but Blues Pt 2 might be the only track I'd skip.
Pirma minecraft daina, likusios oke.
Just solid late 60s classic rock. Nothing special. A few hits. 2.85
did not expect variations on a theme by erik satie
Very cowboy. Good for a dusty trip
This album was great. Thought I’d never heard of the band and then Spinning Wheel came on and I know that one. Also really enjoyed You’ve Made Me So Very Happy. Just had a good time with this record and will definitely listen again
I’m sure someone likes this kind of music but I don’t
I really hear different facets of this band’s sound depending on my mood. I can appreciate the soul influences and the big band/ brassy orchestral flourishes in spots, but today it just sounds like Tom Jones or some other Vegas schlock.