"Moby Grape's career was a long, sad series of minor disasters,
in which nearly anything that could have gone wrong did (poor handling
by their record company, a variety of legal problems, a truly regrettable
deal with their manager, creative and personal differences among the band
members, and the tragic breakdown of guitarist and songwriter Skip Spence),
but their self-titled debut album was their one moment of unqualified
triumph. Moby Grape is one of the finest (perhaps the finest) album to
come out of the San Francisco psychedelic scene, brimming with great songs
and fresh ideas while blessedly avoiding the pitfalls that pock marked
the work of their contemporaries -- no long, unfocused jams, no self-indulgent
philosophy, and no attempts to sonically recreate the sound of an acid
trip. Instead, Moby Grape built their sound around the brilliantly interwoven
guitar work of Jerry Miller, Peter Lewis, and Skip Spence, and the clear,
bright harmonies of all five members (drummer Don Stevenson and bassist
Bob Mosely sang just as well as they held down the backbeat). As songwriters,
the group blended straight-ahead rock & roll, smart pop, blues, country,
and folk accents into a flavorful brew that was all their own, with a
clever melodic sense that reflected the lysergic energy surrounding them
without drowning in it. And producer David Rubinson got it all on tape
in a manner which captured the band's infectious energy and soaring melodies
with uncluttered clarity, while subtly exploring the possibilities of
the stereo mixing process. "Omaha," "Fall on You,"
"Hey Grandma," and "8:05" sound like obvious hits
(and might have been if Columbia hadn't released them as singles all at
once), but the truth is there isn't a dud track to be found here, and
time has been extremely kind to this record. Moby Grape is as refreshing
today as it was upon first release, and if fate prevented the group from
making a follow-up that was as consistently strong, for one brief shining
moment Moby Grape proved to the world they were one of America's great
bands. While history remembers the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane
as being more important, the truth is neither group ever made an album
quite this good."
(by Mark Deming, All
Music Guide)
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What a beautiful mess Moby Grape were, and what an amazing noise they
made on their debut album, a stunning artifact of San Francisco rock at
its '67 peak. Jerry Miller, Peter Lewis, Don Stevenson, Bob Mosley and
Skip Spence all sang like demons and wrote crisp pop songs packed with
lysergic country-blues excitement. And the band's three guitarists --
Miller, Spence and Lewis -- created a network of lightning that made songs
such as "Omaha," "Changes" and "Hey Grandma"
shine and sizzle. Columbia hyped this album to near death (issuing five
singles at once), but the music is just as thrilling now as it was in
'67. This is genuine hippie power pop.
(Rolling Stone)
Total album sales: Under 500,000 // Peak chart position: 24
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