The Album:
"Do You Believe in Magic" was the first hit for the Lovin' Spoonful,
reaching the Top Ten in 1965. Not only did that establish them as one of
the first and most important folk-rock groups, but the song itself has
also lasted as one of the very best rock songs to celebrate rock'n'roll
itself. Although it, and the Lovin' Spoonful, have been classified as
folk-rock, "Do You Believe in Magic" also owed a lot to pop, soul, and
the British Invasion in its magical blend. The folk elements, perhaps,
were in the jug band sense of fun that was a Lovin' Spoonful specialty,
as well as singer and composer John Sebastian's autoharp, an instrument
mostly associated with folk music.
The autoharp could be heard on the
catchy opening series of chords, which owed something to the British
Invasion in its cheery mix of cheery major and minor chords. Sebastian
has said, though, that the chord progressions of the song were largely
based on some of the ones being used by Motown in the mid-1960s. It was a
catchy tune, as many mid-1960s hits were, but it was different from
much else in the hit parade in its veneration of rock'n'roll as an
almost spiritual healing force. This reflected, of course, the joy of
dancing to rock'n'roll experienced by the teenagers that were the
group's primary fan base. But it also, if only indirectly, also
reflected the joy that folkies such as those in the Lovin' Spoonful were
discovering when they were led back to rock'n'roll by the Beatles and
other British groups. That's not to diminish the quality of the music
itself, highlighted by almost countryish flecks of electric guitar
responding to the lyrics throughout; a brief but memorable low, almost
growling guitar solo; and hauntingly bittersweet backup harmonies by the
group during the last parts of the verses.
Biography
Right on the tails of the Beau Brummels and the Byrds, the Lovin' Spoonful
were among the first American groups to challenge the domination of the
British Invasion bands in the mid-'60s. Between mid-1965 and the end of
1967, the group was astonishingly successful, issuing one classic hit
single after another, including "Do You Believe in Magic?," "You Didn't
Have to Be So Nice," "Daydream," "Summer in the City," "Rain on the
Roof," "Nashville Cats," and "Six O'Clock."
Like most of the folk-rockers, the Lovin' Spoonful were more pop and rock than folk, which didn't detract from their music at all. Much more than the Byrds, and even more than the Mamas & the Papas, the Spoonful
exhibited a brand of unabashedly melodic, cheery, and good-time music,
though their best single, "Summer in the City," was uncharacteristically
riff-driven and hard-driving. More influenced by blues and jug bands
than other folk-rock acts, their albums were spotty and their covers at
times downright weak. As glorious as their singles were, they lacked the
depth and innovation of the Byrds,
their chief competitors for the crown of best folk-rock band, and their
legacy hasn't been canonized with nearly as much reverence as their
West Coast counterparts.
Leader and principal songwriter John Sebastian was a young veteran of the Greenwich Village folk scene when he formed the band in 1965 with Zal Yanovsky, who'd already played primitive folk-rock of a sort with future members of the Mamas & the Papas in the Mugwumps. Sebastian
already had some recording experience under his belt, playing harmonica
(his father was a virtuoso classical harmonica player) on sessions by
folkies like Tom Rush and Fred Neil. The Spoonful were rounded out by Steve Boone on bass and Joe Butler on drums. After some tentative interest from Phil Spector (who considered producing them), they ended up signing with Kama Sutra. Sebastian's
autoharp (which would also decorate several subsequent tracks) helped
propel "Do You Believe in Magic?" into the Top Ten in late 1965.
The Lovin' Spoonful were torn asunder by a drug bust in 1967. Boone and Yanovsky
were arrested in California for marijuana possession, and evidently got
out of trouble by turning in their source. This didn't sit well with
the burgeoning counterculture, which called for a boycott of Spoonful product, although the effect on their sales may have been overestimated; most of the people who bought Spoonful records were average teenage Americans, not hippies. Yanovsky left the band in mid-1967, to be replaced by Jerry Yester, former producer of the Association. (allmusic.com, Richie Unterberger)
I will loosely post this five disc box in the next time between other posts. They are all in flac.This just for information. The first Spoonful album in my opinion is a real 60's classic and they had more. Okay hope you like it and...
Cheers!
Frank
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