Oar

Was super intrigued reading the Wikipedia article and was immediately disappointed.

pretty boring folk rock. After 11 songs i thought i must be close to done. Nope

Some songs had me grooving but overall not liking this album

This one was a little tough to follow for me. At times it skewed folk, which I liked. But other times I just got lost

60’er folk, måske lidt for demo-agtigt, dystert

I’ll say he lived up to his name with this one because I had the urge to skip most of this shit

Drunk man at the karaoke bar.

Way too long. Some interesting ideas but I'm glad it's over. 2.5

If there were no albums like “bridge over troubled” I probably rated current one better. But. In my opinion songwriting is meh, creativity is more meh. Just sounds without emotion

Odd. Not my thing

Oar – Skip Spence (1969) | Psychedelic Folk / Outsider Music | Avg: 4.7 | Favorite Song: “Books of Moses” This was a challenging listen. Oar is the kind of album where you can tell something very genuine is happening beneath the surface, but it’s so fragmented and unstable that it rarely fully connects. “Books of Moses” was the only track that really stood out to me. It’s haunting, focused, and finally gives the album some weight. Most of the other songs drift by like unfinished thoughts. There’s a constant sense of emotional collapse, which is interesting in theory but, in practice, makes the album feel more like a record of deterioration than something I’d want to revisit. I understand why it has a cult following: Oar is raw, personal, and completely unfiltered. But from a reviewer’s perspective, it’s also one of the most confusing albums I’ve encountered. It’s not that I need perfection, but I do need something to hold onto, and this album rarely offers that. If you’re really into outsider art, it might resonate differently, but for me, it felt more like an intriguing failure than a hidden treasure.

It's boring.

Columbia Records probably did the right thing by deleting this from their catalog. It’s a messy, meandering album that is a rough collection of demos and not a finished product. While I can understand the historical curiosity around it, as a listening experience, it’s tedious at best.

Sad drinking alone music. Not very interesting to me. 2/5.

I couldn’t really get into this from the get-go, and, unlike the Moby Grape album that came up, a third listen didn’t make me change my mind. Seems like a prime example of an album that could arguably be considered a ‘must hear’ because of the context around the artist’s state of mind etc, but that’s a very different thing from being one of the 1001 ‘best’ albums.

Reading about it really tracks with what it was. He just played for a while and they recorded it. It wasn't polished and it was a little random. It wasn't bad, but more just random as it went on. It feels like maybe they could have edited it some to make it more of an album, especially since he was still alive when this was released.

Kinda dragged but kinda liked it. Apparently he attacked the moby grape boys, what a backstory to this album.

This one started out decent but wow did it go off the rails. This dude just recorded whatever random shit he was playing Songs added to/on playlist: 0 2/5

It was... fine. I felt like it was *close* to the sort of music and genres I like: Fleet Foxes, Pink Floyd, Animal Collective etc., but it didn't quite hit the mark. I wanted to turn it off a few times.

Kinda zoned out for most of it. Tolerable, a couple good ones, but not super memorable. Best song: Cripple Creek Notable(s): Lawrence of Euphoria

Alexander “Skip” Spence, ein kanadisch-amerikanischer Singer-Songwriter, veröffentlichte 1969 sein einziges Soloalbum „Oar“. Die Aufnahmen entstanden vom 3. bis 12. Dezember 1968 im Columbia Recording Studios in Nashville, Tennessee, wo Spence sämtliche Instrumente selbst spielte und das Album eigenständig produzierte. Die Toningenieure waren Charlie Bradley, Don Meehan und Mike Figlio, gemischt wurde unter anderem von Don Meehan; David Rubinson verfasste die ursprünglichen Linernotes, blieb jedoch während der Sessions bewusst im Hintergrund. Stilistisch bewegt sich das Album im Spannungsfeld von Psychedelic Folk, Folk Rock und Psychedelic Rock – eine reduzierte, persönliche Klanglandschaft, durchzogen von introspektiven, manchmal verstörenden Momenten. Etwas bekanntere und prägende Titel sind etwa "Little Hands", "Weighted Down (The Prison Song)", "Broken Heart" und das längere, atmosphärische Stück "Grey/Afro". Als persönlicher Eindruck: Die Stimmung dieses Albums wirkt unmittelbar und ungeschönt – es vermittelt ein starkes Gefühl für Spences innere Verfassung in dieser Phase. Oar ist weniger ein wohlgestaltetes Studiowerk, vielmehr ein rohes Protokoll eines zutiefst persönlichen Moments. Insgesamt ist Oar ein eindringliches Werk, dessen lakonische Direktheit eindrucksvoll bleibt.

With minimal research I was expecting a pretty bad album. In reality its production method was ahead of its time, you have to understand what overproduced means before letting your heart accept something so raw. It has a few awesome moments, a few pieces that could've been knocked off. I'd rate it higher if it was a shorter play, but we're talking 69 minutes of what feels like a rough compilation of tracks, it can get excessive. I don't hate it. 2 stars.

This is #day360 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… how about a psychedelic folk rock record from a guy who tripped on LSD just a little bit too much? Well, I'm not really sure. Guess I'm landing on a low 2 out of 5. Looking forward to #day361.

Some psychedelic folk/rock with country tinges from Canda's own Syd Barrett. Not an album or artist I'd heard of before. Some interesting pieces but not a record I could really get into.

mid

Tom Petty slowed from 45 to 33 rpm. Nope

too long, and the mixing gave me a headache.

I really did not care for this. I had a hard time getting through the whole album.

An interesting album and even more interesting story about Skip!

Varied between fine and annoying, particularly the last track which was 9 minutes long and perfectly segued into a bonus track that sounded exactly the same. Don't know if it was the name or because it was recorded in Nashville but I was expecting country music for some reason, so ones glad when it didn't come. But for sort of trippy folk music you can do a lot better than this.

Never heard of skip but thought this started ok... Interesting story behind it. But it's way too long given that it's all quite samey. I'd lost interest about half way through and by the time I thought oh this actually sounds ok, Spotify was playing a different artist. 2

The story behind this album is way more compelling than the album itself. 2

Not great.

I thought it was going to be super boring, but it was just boring, so way better than expected. Jokes aside, is not just a standard folk album. Instead, it has some nice details, etc. But didn't stick to me on the first listen.

Not for me

Dude sings like he has a bunch of marbles in his mouth. No trouble to tell this dude played all instruments himself. Shitty music, worse singing. From the wiki article on the album: Described as "one of the most harrowing documents of pain and confusion ever made", the album was recorded after Spence had spent six months in Bellevue Hospital. Spence had been committed to Bellevue following a delusion-driven attempt to attack Moby Grape bandmates Don Stevenson and Jerry Miller with a fire axe. Does that sound like an important album? No, it's a pile. Dimnery with another dinger. Favorite songs: Broken Heart, Weighted Down (The Prison Song), Cripple Creek, Margaret-Tiger Rug Least favorite songs: Diana, War In Peace, This Time He Has Come 2/5

didn’t like his voice the songs were boring and the album was over an hour . No thanks

It was fine, but nothing special. It had some quiet moments where it was just vocals over low bass maybe and it reminded me of some of the transitions in a song by Melvins.

He sure had an abnormal & interesting life, but the music doesn’t do much for me. I considered a 3 during the first couple of songs but he lost me to monotony by the halfway mark.

2/5. It is wild to know this album came out in 1969, when it could easily fit in the post punk/quiet grunge era of the 90s. Now I wouldn't say it was great, as there was definitely some mental health issues affecting the music here but it does create the sought after sound of depression and fear. I feel sad listening to this, as it feels like a mix of someone who just needed help to possibly be successful, but also the muffled sound and vocals feels draining. The worst part is that it is not that good either, which is the most unfortunate part. Best Song: Books of Moses, Grey Afro, Little Hands

Definitely feels half-baked but there are some good ideas and songs on here. Won't listen to the whole thing through again. 5/10

a "skip" album for me... quite forgettable and the sauce probably lies in the lyrics where i don't pay attention to... nice mixing tho for the time

No soul at all for this album, not the most horrible album but just such a drag and felt like I wanted to Skip this.

What a read. Not a listen.

2.5/5. I sure wanted to “skip” every song, every grifter had a chance at success in the 60s. Boomer entitlement.

Honestly, just boring. It was nice, but nothing special. Just forgettable imo.

Im only on song 5, and I can tell that this is one of those important because of the times albums, but nowadays its just boring. I respect it and Its not horrible. But there are a lot of other albums from this time era that sound very similar to this, and this one doesn't do much better than any of them.

Yikes

It just feels so unfinished.

While the circumstances of this album certainly make it more interesting, and it’s impressive that Spence played all the instruments himself, the fact that this album was meant to be a demo shows. It feels very unfinished and doesn’t belong on this list. Which is a shame, because I really liked the Moby Grape album.

Skelfileg plata.

He should have left this album unfinished.

Went on quite the journey with this album to be honest. At times, there were songs that were really beautiful and very up my street. He has a lovely, quite rough but really enjoyable voice. However, I imagine because of the well documented struggles he was going through during this process, the album is really unfocused and variable in quality. I respect this a lot, but it's far from an easy listen, and drags quite hard towards the end.

At the core, this is a basic, uninspiring musical album. But knowing this album was made following his release from an inpatient mental hospital stay made me want to explore it further. Context shouldn't really matter but this time it does. That probably explains the album's inclusion on this list

When we listened to Moby Grape, I wondered why they seemed more forgotten by time than their contemporaries. Now I have a better idea of why. Alexander “Skip” Spence took too much LSD, attacked his bandmates with an axe, and went to a psychiatric hospital for six months. That’s where he wrote “Oar.” Do I really need to say any more about this album than that?

Books Of Moses is my favorite track amongst too many boring, mumbly, off tempo offerings.

I love long winding songs, and maybe it's because my water bottle was just run over by a campus bus, but I almost DNF'ed this album listening to Grey/Afro. I even took a break half way through it because my headphones died. I liked how this album had a completely different sound on each song for the first half, but I just wanted it to END the second half. This album is unequivocally not required to be listened to before dying.

Fühlte sich wesentlich länger als eine Stunde an. GÄHN

It was ok but a bit dull

Nice but a bit boring

Drugged out nonsense.

The background of the artist was kinda interesting, but the music was not.

Didn’t mind it but not really my taste. Can see how this was a big inspiration within the genre.

If we did not fetishize mental illness when it produces art (Van Gogh etc) this would not be on this list. There were occasional flashes that I appreciated but otherwise I found it self indulgent and rambling.

Not really my thing, per se, but it just seemed like a weak attempt at Nick Drake.

A difficult listen. With a late 60's release I can only speculate this was composed with the listeners use of acid in mind.

So at first I hated it, then around War in Peace I felt like it was growing on me but then the last third of the album was as bad as the first.

Mom: We got Syd Barett at home Syd Barett at home:

Just because someone sounds mentally unhinged, it doesn't mean they make brilliant music. And I just now decided to read a quick review which, in fact, refers to Spence as an "acid casualty" and tells a story of him freaking out and brandishing a fire axe in the studio. Sorry about that, but c'mon. Let's not mistake madness for genius.

Not a personal favorite as I'm not really looking for something this sparse, dreary and weird all the time, but it is interesting, especially with how it sounds predictive of a lot of indie music like slowcore. So it's almost making me curious as to who it influenced. Besides that idk if I take it for every song it has but maybe its just my mood

Like Syd Barrett's The Madcap Laughs, this album has got me thinking about whether rock critics have an uncomfortable tendency to romanticise mental illness as some sort of marker of authenticity. Or at least mental illness in white men - big thumbs up to the review saying that an album like this by a woman would never make it anywhere near the list.

Niet slecht, niet geweldig, wel veel te lang

This is dreadful.

I think the background to this album is a bit intresting, it gets you hooked to what it will sound like. I think the rythm is a bit boring and slow the lyrics doesnt really make sense to me. This is a more chill song so id reccomend lisetning to it when you just want to relax or youre in the car. Ill give the album a 5/10 m

I do not really like this album because it is not my style of music. The guitar lowkey sounds pretty good though.

the first song is not that good i dont really like how slow it is i also dont like how the words are said the words sound mumbled i also dont like how loud it is i would rather hear a loud rock song then hear a loud song like this. the next song is bad i dont like how the song sounds i also dont like how the words are said and there is not much more to say about this song i just dont like it. the last song is actually okay compared to the other songs It's not much different from the other songs but its better than them and i like how slow it is but i dont like how the words are said. overall i dont like this album i would not recommend it.

Never heard of him before. But an interesting album.

Wife slept through it. Me too, made the road trip awkward.

Having heard Moby Grape from the list, I can honestly say this feels like a dissproportionate reaction.

I quote from the book itself: we have also taken the step of excluding any bonus tracks from the track listings, as these were not part of the original package. Save yourself the time and stop after grey/afro. the rest is not in the book.

All the ideas, great voice and clear talent. Just not quite executed. Reminds me a lot of Len Houmous’ work around ‘65-68. He spent a lot of time in Vietnam. He wasn’t serving. Just found the holiday prices really reasonable. His music was very chaotic around then! 1.8

Daniel Johnson with more studio time.

Nä, nu har de bara hängt upp en mic i replokalen igen. Varför inte äta och repa låtarna? Dessutom svårt McCartney komplex i basen. Två!

The first three songs are okay, but after that it gets crazier and crazier. This really isn't the kind of stuff I prefer. Completely over-the-top psychedelic music with folk elements. No, sorry, but that can go. I wonder how it ended up on some list again. Two stars for an attempt at something crazy.

Sounds like fleeting transmissions from a fractured mind.

Good reason why I never heard of this before. Good reason why this was not promoted by Columbia Records. Good reason why this was at the time the lowest-selling album in Columbia Records history. Good reason why this was deleted from the Columbia catalogue within a year of its release. No good reason for this appearing here.

I don't hate this, but this is not that different from other American folk from that time, which I don't really like. It's too minimalistic, too monotonous, and not that exciting. On its own, the music is solid, but the style is just not for me. 5/10

Wish I hadn’t listened past the ten songs. The first part was ok. Seemed like he changed his voice for every song.

Some okay songs and cool vocal stuff but not a pleasant listen

Listenes to about a third. Not unlistenable by any means but it is nonetheless the kind of dull that gives you an irresistable urge to change the channel.

Þetta fannst mér alveg svakalega erfið plata að komast í gegnum. Tónlistin var ekki þannig séð slæm, bara mér fannst eins og hann væri allan tímann að reyna ofboðslega mikið að vera frábær tónlistarmaður af því að hann kann á gítar. Trúbador að reyna að verða frægur. Ekki fyrir mig takk.

I dunno. I thought given the background behind this album and all the crazy shit this guy did I would either get something really weird like Captain Beefheart or some beautiful lost gem like Nick Drake or something. I get a run of the mill mid 60s folk rock album. Meh.

Omg c'est insupportable arrrrrêêêêête tes lamentations maudit hippie qui pue du cul aaaaarrrrrgggghhh je suis si fatigué

Even his record company didn't want to really keep this album around and record companies will sell pretty much anything as long as it makes them money. This is one of those albums that has no redeeming quality other than to be considered a "lost masterpiece" by a troubled artist who really was trying to say something, but all of the troubles just prevented him from getting his message across. In reality, it's just a shit album by a troubled person who made a shit album because he had mental health issues. As I tend to say, this is not an offensive album but I have no idea why it is in this book. I wouldn't really recommend a song on here.

Could have skipped this one

this was a rough listen. im a pretty big psychedelia fan but this just wasn’t good

I don’t understand why this made it on the list.

This was a tough one to get through.

I mean.. I get that this was supposed to be a “draft”, but since I have to rate this like any other album - I wouldn’t listen to this again

Een of andere schorre hippie met iets te weinig talent en iets teveel zelfvertrouwen. Waarom moet ik dit horen?

Wat een saaie plaat. Dat is dan nog smaak. Maar laten we eerlijk zijn. In de categorie saaie platen staan er toch heel wat betere kwaliteit in de lijst. Volledig overbodige entry.

Op de wiki lees ik dat ze de band gewoon hebben laten lopen, toen "Skip" in de studio zat. Het zijn als het ware demo's, een soort jamsessie. En zo klinkt het ook een beetje, als een ratjetoe, een verzameling losse flodders. Er zitten best aardige stukken in, als ze wat opgepoetst worden (of als de gitaar gestemd wordt), en zo heeft het misschien wel potentie, maar nu is het toch een gek album. Er schijnt ook een tribute album te zijn waar bekende artiesten nummers van dit album coveren, dat lijkt me interessanter dan dit album zelf. Helaas, ik kom van een koude kermis thuis, want het is net wazig als Skip zelf. 2 sterren voor de moeite

Ok

Fine

Much like Big Star’s “Third”, this is an acid-haze album that’s been celebrated retrospectively. Not by me. A collection of unmemorable half-songs that ramble and then just stop. Just ain’t my thing.

As a singer songwriter album from 1969 it just sounds like an also ran to me. There are better examples, many examples from a songwriting point of view. Without the background would this have stayed the real low seller as was initially and been forgotten except for those who collect the genre. It seems the morbid fascination of others with the albums background maybe evaluates its prestige , but then doesn’t every mumbling songwriter album have their own background and many are in their own way just as fubar as this, but also with easily arguably better songs. It’s a decent, challenging listen but nothing outstanding, 2 Star.

Never paddle up shit creek without one

Boring. At times I could’ve let it get away with being lilting and gentle, but there was too much hoarse whispering and discordant moments for that. Personally, a candidate for being dropped from the list

Mush Mouth

When I was a kid I had one of those white noise cds. It was 60 minutes of rainforest sounds. And it was 10x more sonically interesting than whatever this was.

I was tempted to dismiss this as demos that should have remained as demos. But then Weighted Down kicked in. There's a richness and rawness here. Skip was clearly a troubled fella. I stuck with the album and rather enjoyed the downbeat feel. I've heard worse 90's misrerabilist indie shite.

This felt never ending

From the Wiki description, I had hopes this would be an obscure 60’s gem to discover. Also I know and kinda like some of Moby Grape’s stuff. Ah well, this was pretty horrible all around.

Dziwny album póki co, historia za nim stojąca ciekawa, gość po wyjściu z psychiatryka, gdy siekierą atakował członków swojego zespołu, dokonuje odkupienia. Niby psycho rock, folk, ale też jakieś eksperymenty.

No

Interesting but often too out there for me

Beginning wasn’t as bad as I expected, then it eventually became unlistenable. Like someone noodling around and mumbling. Two stars because at least the first few tracks were just mediocre, not awful.

This guys sometimes sounds like he's either dying or already undead. I actually really liked War in Peace though. Probably because it was so psychedelic

Rating: 5/10 Meh.

This starts a nicely melodic psychedelic folk country album with lots of creative songs. Takes a bit hit at the midway point.

This has very aggressive "Not my cup of tea" energy to it. Some songs run on too long, others are incredibly short, all while having simple and boring instrumentals and vocal work that was all over the place. Had the album been half the length, I'd have bumped this up a star, but by halfway through I couldn't wait for it to end. It started off okay, but never got any better. The irony of his nickname being Skip isn't lost on me.

A very stark, psychedelic folk album, definitely sounds like someone who was losing his grip. I thought that Spence's vocal tone was good on some of the more country-tinged songs, and I enjoyed Little Hands, Cripple Creek and Weighted Down, but the rest of the album didn't really do anything for me. The Book of Moses had some interesting production, and Grey/Afro made me feel kind of uncomfortable, which I think was the goal? If I was high maybe I would have liked more. Or tried to kill someone with fire axe. 2 stars.

almost fell asleep behind the wheel

I’m at a 2.5 that I’ll bump down to a 2. The Wikipedia article for this album cites someone as saying this is "one of the most harrowing documents of pain and confusion ever made". I will cite myself as saying this is “one of the documents of confusion ever made”. Don’t get me wrong, I read the backstory on Skip here, and his entire mental breakdown is a tragedy. I do think this music, to some degree, was created as a result of the entire ordeal. It’s not fully captured in song form here though, and I feel as if there’s areach being made to try and connect some of this music to his psyche. I do believe music can speak wonders to the condition of the heart and the soul, but this doesn’t do that – to my ears, on a good chunk of the tracks, this is just a slightly broken guy rambling on a guitar, and not a deeper inner look into his state of mind at the time, though it does come up on a few tracks. That’s not to say there’s not musicality here – 4 of the 12 tracks here got me good, for one reason or another: “Cripple Creek’, “Weighted Down”, “War in Peace”, & “Broken Heart”. It’s mostly in the storytelling, though “War in Peace” got me on that really weird and ethereal soundscape for 1969. Most of the album, though, is simply unpolished, and while a lot of that is a side effect of this album being comprised entirely of demo tracks, I think most of the tracks themselves are just kind of unremarkable to begin with. Scattered hints of melodies, scattered thoughts in the lyrics, mumbled confusion of the vocals… I just don’t really see a pathway where this could’ve been salvaged into a “complete” album, even if it had the time and effort that Skip Spence wanted. Hence, the 2. I gave it a long enough leash, but ultimately, if 8 of your 12 tracks are unremarkable at best or total duds at worst, it’s just not a compelling project. Honestly, based on the circumstances surrounding its release, this feels a bit exploitative, as if his producer was trying to make a quick buck with the best of intentions, but instead just aired some of his ramblings into the world in a way that likely shot his reputation down even further. It’s a really slow 44 minutes, and while it has a small gasp of breath from tracks 5 to 8, it’s just not enough to go to a 3, and a 3 is honestly the ceiling for this album anyway. I hope he found his peace when the time called for it, but I don't think this album should be cited in talking about this time period of his life.

Drift, dissonant, not one I need to hear again

Country *and* boring. Pass.

Dry. Shallow. Unresolved.

??? Apparently this guy was a member of Jefferson Airplane or something? They really just let anyone onto this list. I can't hate this too much though because some of the psychedelic stuff here is pretty cool plus the story behind the album makes me appreciate it more, but otherwise a lot of this album is annoying or repetitive unfortunately. I think this could've been something really great if it was like half as long.. Favorite track: War in Peace

A pervy, old, junkie writes a buncha dumb songs.

Interesting story, Interesting album in an unfinished, raw way. Could have had a lot to say, but at this point in time it just feels like a compilation of practice sessions.

#440. Skip Spence's story is much more interesting than his music. This acid casualty droning folk blues kinda thing is likely only interesting if you are also another acid casualty. 2/5: boring

This is a deeply weird album. I usually listen and then check the Wikipedia page, but in this case something made me look a couple of tracks in and the weirdness made sense. The usual sequence of events is to record a psychedelic folk rock album and then have a drug induced breakdown. Skip Spence attacked his former band mates with a fire axe after suffering severe delusions, spent six months in a secure institution and then recorded this when he got out.

This is a bit off-putting to say the least. This album is full of psychedelia and ideas, a bit too much over the place (I didn't expect to hear rain and someone nailing something?), and the voice is a bit too dull (or the guy was maybe too high). It might actually require several listenings to really make my mind, but I'm not intrigued enough to do so.

eh

Favorite Track: Weighted Down (The Prison Song)

it's psychedelic, and also makes me wants to sleep more. it goes left and right around my head. its just so tiring... 2/5

Oar arse

Recorded on a 3 track days after he came out of an institute for mental health recovery. At times it does sound like I'm accidentally playing a few different things at once. I think it's a grower, but there's definitely some bun tracks on here. I'm not sure I have three patience to learn to live this. It snowed me when I tried listening properly, but some of the tracks were fine as background music.

Well, that, happened! There are times when we may ask ourselves, can you separate the art from the artist... in this case, the art is the artist! We're being thrown into the abyss of Spence's mental state, and after a maddening hour, I never want to go back there.

My Turkey Day album was the Green Bean Casserole(and contrary to what my mind initially told me, this wasn't recorded by Sixpence None The Richer). I give the benefit of the doubt, since he was totally broken as a person, but there wasn't much here that appealed to me. Favorite Song: "Grey/Afro"

Well that was forgettable. I remember when I was a kid, I'd put the TV on and there would be some non descript hallmark movie on with a forgettable name, forgettable actors and a forgettable plot. But I still remember they kicked that poor dog. It's been a few hours since I listened to the album and all I remember of it, is a section of one song sounded a little like Cream, but done poorly.

Thought this was interesting, but overall not really my thing. The background was more interesting that the actual album. 2/5

An incredibly spaced-out folk album, with grand ideas that could have been executed way better.

Minnir óneitanlega á Madcap laughs með Syd Barett. Útúrsýrður maður fær að leika sér í stúdíó og gefa það út á plötu. Þessi er betri Madcap laughs, en samt ansi stefnulaus og vanpródúceruð. War in peace er töff, en annað nær varla flugi.

A wow, kakav opis albuma 😱 ovo će biti zanimljivo haha. Nikad čula za njega iskreno. Izgleda kao neki luđak na coveru 🫣. Početak me iznenadio moram priznati, očekivala sam nešto puno psihotičnije 😁 Dobra mi je ova prva stvar. Iduće pjesme su mi malo creepy, pogotovo kad čitam lyricse, došla je ta psihotična dimenzija izgleda 😂. Pa ne znam kako se osjećam u vezi ovoj albuma, pozadina je dosta uzbudljiva i nisam znala šta očekivati. Na trenutke mi je zanimljivo, na trenutke čudno ili dosadno. Zbunjena sam 😂. Dosta mi je kul da je snimao sve instrumente sam. War in Peace je baš dobra stvar. Uff da. Uglavnom, stvari koje vuku na country i u Cash stilu su mi dosadne, a ove više psihodelične su mi dosta dobre. Šteta da nije više išao u tom smjeru, leži mu. Nezz, što album ide dalje, to sam manje entuzijastična oko njega. Tome ne pridonosi činjenica da album traje preko sat vremena. Kompa, ako nisi Beatles, nemoj mi snimati albume duže od 45 min, pliz. 10 min later update: postajem nervozna. Poslušat ću do kraja samo zato što se nadam barem još jednoj dobroj pjesmi. Ma ej, naporan si. 2/5, 3/10.

4.5/10 Kad sam vidio godinu, ocekivao sam opet neko hipijevsko drndanje. Ovako sam dobio narkomansko drndanje, sto mi je ipak bolje. Skip Spence je bio bubnjar na prvom albumu Jefferson Airplanea, uzimao je puno droga i imao je mentalnih problema, schizofreniju pa cak bio i nasilan prema svojim kolegama na lose dane. Sve mi to ima smisla kad cujem ovaj album posto legenda kaze (po wikipediji) da cim je izasao iz mentalne ustanove je isti dan sam isao snimiti ovaj album. Jedina koja mi je bila zanimljiva je Lawrence Of Euphoria, i tu i tamo su naletjeli neki okej dijelovi u drugim stvarima. Ali od deprivacije nekog smislenog ritma kroz skoro cijeli album su mi se svidjele neke bazicne, napokon smislene stvari koje inace ne bi ni primjetio. Tako da.. bolest na stranu, nije mi ovo bas najbolje ali ako nista, istice mi se vise od onih par kantautorskih albuma koje smo imali ovdje iz istih godina.

no bueno, entiendo que fue medio una sesión grabada y experimental pero demasiado largo.

Starts off well but soon descends into a shambling mess. As did his life.

Just don't really like the iconic 60's sound

Meh

As a record this sounds about 50 years ahead of its time, but that doesnt mean i enjoyed it. The inaudible lyrics and relatively sparse soundscapes sound modern and im not surprised artists like Beck love this, but i didnt find any particular value in its lack of enagement

Echoes of Dylan, Joplin, Drake... And forebodings of Bill Callahan. Not very interesting despite the backstory.

Not my favorite

An album with a cool backstory (written in Bellevue Psychiatric ward after attacking his bandmates with an axe). Also an album that is mostly boring, grating, or weird. It seems deeply meaningful, but it is not very listenable.

Listening to this was a bit of a weird experience. Reading up on the origin story of this album it makes sense that it feels somewhat alien. Some pretty special stuff on there, and I could come back to this album if the stereo mixing wasn't that annoying to listen to on headphones. Drums in one ear, guitar and voice in another... why???

ugh, only a couple of songs were passable for me.

There was one good song in there and maybe a few with potential

Interesting listen. Sad story about ol’ Skip, but I don’t see how this warrants being in the top 500 albums of all time.

Psychedelic folk. The folk half is meh and the psychedlic half is rough listening.

This album was super weird, slow, trippy folk music. And such a looooooooooooong album. Tough to get through it, it’s really just boring.

Weird, not enjoyable.

This album is not really for me, some songs feel a bit too random and some songs have repetitive lyrics. There are a couple of good songs however. Standout tracks: Weighted Down, Broken Heart, All Come to Meet Her

One of those whose significance exceeds the musical content.

Pretty straight down the middle folk album. I dunno, I was pretty bored and didn’t come away feeling any different than before hearing it.

His nickname checks out.

I'd never heard anything by this artist before. It's definitely interesting, but not very much to my taste.

Oar is just a really weird one to me. Its one of those albums that has fairly decent music but the vocals leave something to be desired. There were quite a bit of good musical beats in this album especially towards the end. The main problem with this album though is that the vocals just feel very inconsistent. The album would often just flip flop around two different vocal styles which feels jarring when they change since they change at random points in the album. And neither vocal style is really all that good since they are both just really tough to hear. It nearly hits the margin of being okay but still remains mediocre. Best Song: Grey/Afro Worst Song: Diana

Strange album. First half had some okay songs, then the second half was more of a continuous test recording. Overall it was kind of bland. 2/5 Won’t listen again

Hmmmm. ... Boring

This is like, bad Bob Dylan. Moody folk music. Stand-out: All Come to Meet Her

So, this sounds like what it is, a mentally unwell man left to his own devices. There is a glimmer of a decent album in there. I mean, Skip thought these were demos, they were never meant to be released in this form. And they should have left it at the original length and not added the extra tracks which are mostly a mess

Definitely didn’t hate this but it was nothing special to me, I generally like new wave but nothing about this album stood out besides the mixing being weird

Couldn’t finish

Funky

Otro aporte a mi cultura musical. Se deja escuchar si te gusta la psicodelia con temas más folk o country. Me ha recordado a los Pink Floyd de Syd Barrett, sobre todo con lo mejor para mi que es el tema final: Grey/Afro.

It was cruel to make folks listen to this. Off beat, off key and not in a good way

I know Spence was the epitome of the 60s hippie musician, but this was just a slog.

The dude from moby grape juice recorded after being institutionalized. Im liked better than that and better that n sur barret I think. weird when he starts playing sunshine of your love

Not terrible, the tones and sounds were kind of cool it was so boring though and felt like such a chore to get through.

I guess I liked weighted down. Otherwise it made me sleepy as it was uninteresting.

A bit dismay

Too expermental

Just a bit depressing!

Oar is an interesting album. Singer/songwriter, at time I think he’s trying to be Leonard Cohen, at times Paul McCarthy, at times almost Johnny Cash. It’s eclectic. Deserves more listens 5.8/10

Everyone on this album sounds like they were dunk at the time of recording. The writing and lyrics sound like they could have been pretty good had they been tighter. It’s sad to think about what this album could have been, but it isn’t that. 2/5

Boring

I kinda liked Cripple Creek, but other than that this album sure is a 'skip'.

There’s a billion buskers in every major metropolitan area around the world who have fried their brains by dropping acid every day for a decade, and they all have been deeply influenced by Oar, but I’m positive none of them would recognize the name Skip Spence. Just like those buskers, there’s a moment or two on Oar where you hear a nugget of something that could have the potential to be the most beautiful song you’ve ever heard in your life. Unfortunately, those moments are fleeting, either ruined by insane nonsense or bland mumbling, and sometimes even both at the same time. I get how Oar could be seen as influential to lo-fi bedroom pop in retrospect, but I think that’s placing too much value on the ramblings of a literal madman. Don’t do drugs, kids.

This album is waving between annoyingly bad and okay songs. This album doesn't even have to be in the top 100 of 1969, so imagine being a part of this list.

Little Hands 3 Cripple Creek 2.8 Diana 2.5 Margaret/Tiger Rug 2 Weighted Down (The Prison Song) 2.1 War in Peace 2.3 Broken Heart 2 All Come to Meet Her 2.1 Books of Moses 3.1 Dixie Peach Promenade (Yin for Yang) 2.3 Lawrence of Euphoria 2.3 Grey/Afro 2.1 Score: 2.383333333

Think my dad likes this but I feel like bro could have cut this down so much

At first, I wondered why he hadn't practiced the songs before the recording rather than during, then I read about how it was made after he'd had a stay in a mental hospital, was intended as a demo but released as an album, and it all feels grubby and exploitative

Folk psicodélico. Un rollo. Un 2.

Wide vocal range but boring.

Jeg vaklede lidt mellem 1 og 2 og fandt så ud af, at den sidste tredjedel af det album jeg lyttede til var bonustracks, så det trak lidt op. Ufokuseret, forglemmeligt, men dog kun 44 minutter langt. Mindede mig en lille smule om Syd Barretts soloalbums

Nogen gange er det ret fedt og lyder som Leonard Cohen på mange flere stoffer, men en del af det er også bare underligt og lidt intetsigende!

Vildt eksperimenterende musik. Jeg tror at han har taget stoffer i hvert fald en gang. Jeg tænker at den her plade primært er på listen på grund af dens historie. Det er ikke lige noget jeg vender tilbage til lige foreløbigt.

A cheap Leonard Cohen wannabe who made himself look like a mental patient with this album cover photo. No thanks.

This one was really tough to rate. Did I enjoy listening to it? Not really. But is the story behind it fascinating? 100% Here's a snippet from the Wikipedia article: "Described as "one of the most harrowing documents of pain and confusion ever made", the album was recorded after Spence had spent six months in Bellevue Hospital. Spence had been committed to Bellevue following a delusion-driven attempt to attack Moby Grape bandmates Don Stevenson and Jerry Miller with a fire axe. "At the time of Spence's release from hospital, he had written a number of songs that he wanted to record. Producer David Rubinson suggested that Spence record at the Columbia studios in Nashville, where there was a particularly patient recording engineer, Mike Figlio. Rubinson instructed Figlio to keep the tapes running at all times, to record everything that Spence did. The majority of the tracks were recorded using a three-track recorder... According to Spence, the Nashville sessions were intended by him to only be a demo, which he gave to Rubinson with the intent that the songs would be fleshed out with full production for the actual album. Instead, Rubinson had the demo recordings released by Columbia." ------ I feel like that story aligns so well with the tone of the album. It was unpolished and raw, and some of the lyrics were unhinged or glimpses into a man with deep regret and confusion in a state of total vulnerability. I'm glad I listened to it and have this in my music history knowledge, but don't think I'll listen to it again.

An interesting historical artifact, but not that great.

I wanted to like this more than I did, especially given Skip Spence’s story. It does have its occasional moments, and I genuinely enjoyed some of it. But it doesn’t really hit without the heroin.

Listening to it felt like an eternity.

No idea why w was listening to this, so I read up on Mr. Spence here… quite a piece of work, album is still nearly unlistenable. Giving it a 2 because I appreciate the lore.

I had come to some conclusions after listening to the whole album and then read the reviews and found out that I was pretty much on target with where this album originated from. Although reading the background frames it in a different light, it doesn't change my impression that this is not a good album. There are some interesting things going on musically at times, but then other songs almost sound like covers. I didn't read anything that really told me why this album is included in this list.

Sounds like a demo tape but one of the more interesting folk albums this list has thrown my way

Weird album that is pretty dark but has some things you want to listen to again

The year this came out should be in my wheelhouse and starts out decent. However, gets mellow, droning and monotonous as it goes on.

Ok. Will probably never listen to it again

another one of those albums where the story of its creation is more interesting than the music itself.

it made me sad to read the description and there were like two songs with something going on. don't do acid unless you have proper set and setting

Tylsäksi jäi. 2/5

Hmh en jotenkin saanut kiinni, vaikka sinänsä kiinnostava tapaus

A little boring

This album has some serious downer vibes!

I read that the guy spent months in a hospital and this is what he made after he came out. It still doesn't make me like it. The only impressive thing is that he apparently played all the instruments himself.

I mean... Nice soft voice, but it's pretty boring hour of some guitar and some singing.

This is the first album I've come across where I've not heard of the artist. A random mix of 60s styles. A bit of Leonard Cohen low pitch vocals, more psych style reminiscent of early Pink Floyd and maybe a bit of Crosby, Stills and Nash. With 22 songs I got bored before the end. Although I like artists with similar sounds from around this time it did nothing for me 2/5

I like the guitar but most of the time this dude’s voice is unbearable. He sounds worse than Bob Dylan.

Bad Leonard Cohen ripoff

No thanks

Sounds like the sixth disc of a seven disc collection that gathers together all the lost studio snippets from a great artist, that only insufferable bores ever buy and no-one listens to. It feels like a collection of work-in-progress song ideas that would be played by a pretty average band in a studio while working on their third album that never gets released, whereas in actual fact it's a full-length major label release that made it onto the list of 1001 albums that I apparently have to listen to. Bollocks.

Sounded like a soft spoken dude noodling at a guitar for an hour.

some who wander really are lost

Didn't listen, but first and most popular song was not my vibe so i skip cuz got 2 more albums to listen to today B)

A bit too slow for me I think

Oh my god, I hated this. Bad voice, weird music. There is so much other better music from the 60s. Why is this here?

I found some interesting tidbits in here but don't imagine myself listening again, so 2.5

😴

Never heard of him or this before, and I can see why. It's a pretty non-descript, folky, singer-songwriter album. Like a low budget Leonard Cohen, similarly dreary and miserable but less clever and interesting. Feeling generous, so will bump him up to a low 2.

Not a fan of this one at all. Quite boring. Songs not that great. I could barely finish it.

I was a little confused by this album, it sounded like a muddy Jeff Buckley. I only gave it a re-listen after reading the insane backstory (which is likely why it even made this list). It's a lot of fragmented ramblings of a mad man but there's something interesting about his voice and the way you literally hear the breakdown and agony as the recording goes on. It's pretty incoherent by the end but that's all part of the madness.

Makes sense old Skip had just gotten out of a mental institute and recorded this. It is very convoluted but I give credit to Skip for being the solo performer on this album. Some of the lyrics are clever and some songs took on more life in stereo. Skip may have been drug/booze fueled on this album. Sure sounded like he took some Furry Heroine and recorded the last shorties.

I don’t know. Is this good? Or ‘good’? I don’t think it’s must listen. It’s more of a ‘oh you should hear this because of the circumstances’. Not ‘this album defined 20th and 21st century popular music in this way or that way.’ I mean I like it. But Willis Allan Ramsay, Joe South, late Elvis, the band, credence, the allmans and on and on seem more compelling. I don’t know. I think he needed more help than exploitation. I don’t know.

Look, I was a Moby Grape fan, & I can’t believe this guy wrote what is generally regarded as their greatest song Omaha. I listened to this twice. I like some of the music. But, generally speaking, I don’t think he was much of a vocalist - something I hate saying after I’ve just favourably reviewed a Bob Dylan album. I’ll never play it again.

La psicodelia y yo no nos entendemos.

Nothing special.

needed an editor 2.4

Another work with a wild Wikipedia entry lol. A solo project by a man who had just been released from the psychiatric hospital following an attempt to attack his previous band mates with an axe. Sounds like he's struggling at times on the more upbeat songs. I prefer the slower ones. Definitely could benefit from some editing, doesn't need to be over an hour long. Really starts to fall apart towards the end. Top songs: Weighted down

Boh si, non mi pare memorabile

Wish I liked it mate.

Nothing special

1.5 - Damn, this was boring. Sometimes his voice was okay at best, but other times it was annoying. It's been a while since I actually listened to this at the time of writing, but the only word that comes to mind is boring.

Folk bem parado, mas legalizinho. Voz e violão apenas. Bem antigueira, bem lembrou um pouco de longe as melodias de voz do hendrix e até um pouco de Led

So much potential wasted.

liked the sound sorta but overall meh

album was long and all songs sounded the same, i like folk music some of the time but this was boring in my opinion, light 5/strong 4

Oar? More like B-oar.

Poor Skip, it's an interesting back story and, I guess, an important document, 'Weighted down' indeed. You can hear the Thorazine. The original release ended with Grey/Afro, so did I. 2.5*

I wanted it to be over and it was only halfway done. 2.

This album seemed like I should like it just because of the story behind it and not because of the music. This was some mediocre folk to me. I feel a Townes van zandt album would’ve made a better submission for a folk album with good storytelling. This was not something I would revisit. 4.2/10

Not bad, but soooo loooong

I don't know. I can tell it's a guy baring his soul, but I don't think the results are all that special.

1001 album generator has really introduced me to a new genre: "You know your uncle made an album back in the days"-Folk is it a bad album, not really... is it a good album, not really... i really don't see why this should be included on this list. after 600, this list feels more like here are 1001 random albums

First listen Saved 3/12 Top track: Little Hands

folky, weird, kinda Bob Dylan esq without the lyrical prowess. Didnt love it, but happy to of heard it

Ah geez, depressing tale behind this one. There are a few optimistic moments (guitar solo in War in Peace, interpolation of Sunshine of Your Love), but the generally somber aura matches the struggles Skip was experiencing. The vocals and the songwriting each range from great to terrible, with the lyrics getting a bit of a bump due to the frequent use of double meanings (ha see what I did there!). Listened to: at home. Favorite tracks: Weighted Down, War in Peace

Seltsames Ding...

I did try but found this to be a bit of a folking mess

In a sense, that’s exactly what I expected an hour long demo from a man on a comedown from a nervous breakdown to sound like. Seems like it would have been a good album if it was edited.

Man this was painful to listen to. I can hear the hurt in him and it’s just.. not good. It’s sort of amazing this was green lighted back then. But all being said, glad I got to experience it.. one of the great things about this site.

Pretty boring - there’s probably a good album in there somewhere. The description sounded good, but the music sounded bad. 2/5

Interesting backstory but it doesn’t make it a good album

Uhhh didn't know half finished songs could be released. Shame he had mental health issues, but the music still sucks. 1.5/5

Meh

Feel like this is the background music for a movie set in the 60s or early 70s which I suppose is time appropriate. A bit too repetitive and lowkey for me to want to give it a second listen.

Oar is the only album by American singer-songwriter Alexander "Skip" Spence. Recorded over a week in Nashville all by himself, Skip poured his heart and damaged psyche into this album which was only supposed to be demo tapes used for further production. It is a psychedelic folk rock album with mostly nondiscernible lyrics as Skip wrote the songs during a stint at a hospital after a mental break. Although this was the lowest-selling album in Columbia Records history - because of zero promotion - this has been regarded as some of Skip's best musical works. Oar is an interesting album with quite the story behind it. But the music is pretty good and it was a fun listen. Folk rock fans and lovers of Nashville music should enjoy this album.

Weird experimental rock, seems like the Bjork of its time. It was okay, but I doubt I'll ever listen to it again.

It was ok though I can't understand why it made the list.

Meandering

Not really anything grabbing my attention about this one, not unpleasant to listen to though I suppose

2/5 not to my liking

The story of the album is far more interesting than the album itself. Its basically a collection of bedroom demos

So, this was fascinating. But it's really not a good album. I love Skip's vocals though. The rest is a sloppy mess.

A bit dark for my tastes but his voice is fantastic.

The music sounds newer than 1969 but I'm not sure why it's on the list. From purely musical side of enjoyment, it didn't really click with me.

Dark

Would be better with a head full of acid

Interesting background aside, nothing at all stuck with me from this one.

Skip recorded this as a demo only for his producer handing it to the record company who released it and was unable to sell it. Wonder why. There are a few interesting ideas on Oar but as a whole… Well it just isn’t an actual album.

Quel était cet enièMe album de merde, je me suis tapé 6 chansons bonus sans faire exprès ce qui ne va clairement pas arranger le cas de notre ami Alexander Spencer dit Skip

So freaking slow. I'm not sure how I feel about it, I don't think it's really my thing tbh.

The kind of album that could be a 1 or a 2. I never hated listening to it, but won’t recall a single thing from it.

I fell asleep because this album was so boring.

Another dull one.

It's a haunting experience, and frankly the experience of listening to Skip over the course of an hour certainly merits this being on the list as an 'album to listen to before you die'. That said, it's a ramble of music (likely because this was meant as a demo), and was a struggle for me to listen through. As someone else has said - it's tortured genius. Unfortunately, I just don't think it's for me, but I'm glad it's included.

The background of this album is fascinating, but I did not find that it translated to the music very well.

I guess this was influential to some artists that are more recognizable, but honestly this was just a depressing listen. Written during a 6 month stay at a mental institution following a violent mental breakdown, these recordings were intended by the artist to be demos, but ended up getting released. I guess it offers some insight and history, but I feel the impact was solely on its influence of others, rather than it being something tangible; honestly I just struggle to accept that this is somehow an essential listen.

Good for him for having pkayed all instrument. But it seems just too incoherent to me. 2 stars

It was fine. Interesting sound just didn’t do it for me

Not great. And becomes uncomfortable when you find out you're listening to a psychotic break. Like watching footage of a car crash.

Best Song: Weighted Down. Has a sort of mid-career Leonard Cohen vibe going for it, which I like. Worst Song: Grey/Afro. Lightly whispered rock is not for me. And what was that cacophonous, scattered ending? Overall: Mediocre early rock that at best feels half-baked. Nothing particularly coherent or interesting here.

I have a couple of bones to pick with this album. First, calling it psychedelic feels awfully inaccurate. It’s closer to a major depressive episode in which the only cure would be a huge spray of ketamine up the nose. I found the songs boring, and if not boring then annoying, save for a few select bits that actually were psychedelic— but these were so few and far between, so much more than the distance between the Sun and Jupiter. I don’t quite (note: at all) understand why the album had to be over an hour long. Why it had to be over 20 minutes long. It was like a guy on his first drug trip forcing you to sit in his basement while he played you ‘some tunes he’s been working on’ but you can’t get up and leave because then he might do something dangerous, like smash his head through a drum kit— or worse, make a whole album of songs from his experience. Ah, so maybe this album WAS psychedelic after all. Anyway, I didn’t enjoy this album. I gave it an extra star because of those rare moments where it was good and fun, but that star was given very, VERY reluctantly.

This reminded me of syd barret, mostly that lost, sad feeling i got from listening to this. 60s folk filled with darkness, very out there and no easy listening. But i'm sure there is are people who are really down for this.

I am usually a fan of psychedelic rock from the 60s, but this album was really boring. I only enjoyed one track and the rest were pretty forgettable. Favorite Song(s): "Little Hands"

I wasn't a massive fan of the album. Going into the album knowing nothing about it, it didn't appeal to my more modern ears. However, I can imagine it having wide influence on those had heard years ago. Given it's legendary status I will have to listen again.

needed more time in the oven, feels half-baked

3/10

Has some good moments. The thing I don't get about this is there are so many better (imo) psychedelic folk albums of this era. He certainly sounds in a lot of (emotional) pain, and that comes across in the music, but not in a way that I thought deserved to be on this list. 2/5.

First, I have to get out of the way that Diana is one of the most tear-jerking performances I've heard a folk song in a while. The place this guys' voice goes to in that song, man. We've all been there. That one blew me away the first time I heard it. This list is revealing a type of album which I love, which basically boils down to "Good find." Hidden gems. Overlooked performances, entire artists who just got dealt a bad hand in life. If you picked it up in a discount record bin, you'd feel like you won the lottery. I'd say Nick Drake is the ultimate "good find." As a writer and performer for the period, he has some fucking drop-dead gorgeous songs, but a lot that's kind of average for the troubadours of the era (I said it, sorry not sorry). As a whole artist? Pretty decent, sometimes brilliant. As an artist who was universally overlooked in his life, and discovered posthumously? You know how it goes. All this to say that, "Albums that are a Great Find" and "Album You Need to Listen to Before You Die" are two VERY different lists. And I like that this list has some of the former, but it does advertise itself as the latter, goddammit! This album is an extreme example of this disconnect. As an album, it's extremely disjointed, almost unlistenable at times, just drags and drags. You get exactly what's on the tin: a man with a beautiful talent for songwriting, suffering violent nervous breakdowns, has complete creative control over demos that were released practically without his permission. Moments of sheer brilliance, psychadelic strangeness ("War In Peace" is incredibly cool and weird). I feel uncomfortable through a lot of this record, and I don't think it's because I'm being challenged. I'm worrying for the person I'm listening to. A sad, mournful 2/5. Purely as an album. Because again, I'll be thinking of this for a long time, and I'll have the beginning of "All Come To Meet Her" floating in my head for years. But as an album, it's like staring straight into the abyss.

Druggy psychedelic folk. Moments of melodic and lyrical interest. Some lovely electric guitar work in spots. If there's misunderstood genius buried in here, it's buried deep.