The Fifth Dimension were too sugary for my personal tastes, but they did record a few, heavenly arranged gems like this one. The indestructable theme of trying to phone a lover after he/she left is a wonderful bonus.
from Magic Garden, available on CD
12 Feb 03 ·konsu: Alright! I was gonna recommend this one too. This song illustrates perfectly the CA sound that Webb & Bacharach were crafting. Some people mistake this for a B.B. tune, and it's no wonder...
"Magic Garden" is a great album to seek out by this group, if you've been afraid before.I also like "Requiem : 820 Latham" & "Paper Cup". 18 Apr 07 ·artlongjr: I LOVE the "Magic Garden" album...I have it on vinyl, but I was fortunate enough to to get it on CD when it was released-it's now out of print. The album is a Jimmy Webb/Fifth Dimension classic. The only thing holding it back from perfection is a Las Vegas-y cover of the Beatles' "Ticket to Ride" that sounds out of place with the other material, all of which was written by Webb. But that's OK, a lot of great albums have one duff track!
I like the Fifth Dimension's early material, "Magic Garden" is their second album, but I also like their first and third LP's. Unfortunately, in later years they became too "show-biz" sounding, which causes some people to overlook all of their material.
My track of choice in the excellent Silver Morning 1975 LP of this distinguished singer/songwriter. To the best of my knowledge, this is not a cover version, but a shining original. It comes in swinging 3/4 time, it's the most jazzy of the LP's tracks, it has a kinda dramatic soundtrack feel, it's simply great!
A great track from a truly great LP that I fear might have slipped through the cracks in the floorboards in the decade or so since it's release. TWP's "Queer" remains the band masterpiece, an ungodly amalgam of Can, Talking Heads, Roxy Music, King Tubby and De La Soul. This song perfectly highlights the record's/band's strengths - Mark Cox's cut and paste/dub programming, Andrew Gray's blistering guitar, Mick Allen's brilliant "Tom Waits sings the Mark E. Smith Songbook" voice/words, aided by then Throwing Muses Leslie Langston's sexy bass/backgrounds vocals. The song is both seductive and sinister - the spoonful of sugar being the its' "The Fall Plays The Burt Bacharach Songbook" shambling groove that helps down the medicine that is Mick Allen's venomous lyrics in re: America's inaction/indifference in the face of the AIDS crisis. Rarely has subject matter so heavy, been dealt with in such light/deft manner. I recommend the whole "Queer" LP - particularly the British edition , which differs in tracklisting and uses of samples. (It is likewise available on the band's fine - if somewhat short - best of "Everything is Beautiful 1983-1995"
28 Feb 03 ·konsu: I always liked these guys too. Queer did miss the mark in america for sure, although I think "Going South" got some airplay... I'm a big fan of the Birdwood Cage LP. A very underrated group from a very popular label.
In putting together a mix CD tentatively called "Far Out Sixties", this song immediately came to mind. Anybody who knows the Association from "Windy" or "Along Comes Mary" is in for a rude awakening when hearing this tune. It's quite a funky little jam with laid back, almost scatting vocals and droning sitars. So groovy you could picture the guys wearing love beads and nehru jackets while performing it!
28 Feb 03 ·konsu: Alright! I've compiled this one before too. I think the sitar/drum break at the top has been sampled more than a few times. The tune almost sounds like a tribute to Ravi Shankar & The Lovin' Spoonful simultaneously...Right On! 20 Oct 04 ·deaser26: This was a song written by my father, Michael Deasy Sr - who played guitar on most of the Association's stuff. He did a couple of psychedelic albums, Friar Tuck and his Psychedelic Guitar and Tanyet - both cutting edge classics. This song was an interesting exploration for the Association guys.
09 Mar 03 ·konsu: Yeah. This song has so much ragged beauty. The whole records just a circus of deranged,
delightful tracks. I also like "Maisy" ,"Wined & Dined" , & "Dominoes"... 28 Oct 05 ·n-jeff: I love it too, theres a fantastic version done for one of the John Peel sessions that Strange Fruit put out in the eighties, that is equally wayward, and equally good. Considering how slight it is, and how lacking in obvious "Psychedelic" conventions, it is surprisingly my favourite Barrett song.
