Customer Reviews

52-Week High

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The best Flying Other Brothers album of this or any other year--though that is not to say that they can not still surpass this one. Clearly their stock has moved from the "value" to the "growth" category, though their earnings may not be multiple of anything (and they may not care much--find about their Pay it Forward program).

This album has a much more sophisticated sound, songwriting, and vastly improved vocals and production. The lyrics, always witty, have more variety and zing. As has been indicated in some of the other reviews, the uncredited piece five minutes after the last cut lets "Dubya" have it right where it hurts. No one can savage a Yalie like another Yalie, and there's a deep Blue streak in the band.

Besides that one, my favorite is "Serenity the Angel", which boasts an attractive chord sequence and tasteful female vocals--a clue to the solution the FOB's have come up with to the previously much-too-Dead (as in Grateful) vocal patterns: spread the wealth. There are 6 or 7 different lead vocalists on this album.

This is the best of the Flying Other Brothers CDs. Great rythym and harmonies. The album opener "TELL ME IT'S OKAY" sets the tone for a special musical journey into a soft rock high. It's refreshing to hear original music with heart and soul. Fabulous find.

I loved this album as soon as I started listening. It reminded me of driving up Mt Tamalpais in 1967, stoned in an old school bus to hear the Grateful Dead play. I started ripping songs onto my iTunes immediately. But when the album ended, it didn't really end. Three minutes after "On My Way" ended, on came a song that does what Tom Daschle and Dick Gephardt ought to be doing; it's a song that tells the actual honest-to-God truth about the illegitimate, appointed "president" and how someone so undeserving and unaccomplished managed to weasel his way into the White House. This musical story of the life of George Bush is the best political song since Country Joe & the Fish and it alone is worth the price of this CD. (Normally if I find 2 songs to rip on a new CD I consider myself lucky. I got 5 off this album!!)

They've been playing clubs and festivals around the country, growing into something pretty good. Part Little Feat, part Austin Lounge Lizards, but still based on California blues-rock, their latest album "52-week High" has it all.

Don't put this CD down after the last track plays. There's a hilarious, and very relevant, bonus selection you've got to hear. This may be the only 52-week high you see this fall, but your ears will profit.

Ok, "52 Week High" is not going to really bring back the good old days, but the band [...] sure tries to recreate the late `60s West Coast vibe that still ripples across the land. This is a clever collection of sometimes loose-knit songs, played with verve (if not always technical perfection). There is a lit bit of everything here and echoes of Quicksilver, The Dead, Jefferson Airplane, and myriad others infuse the soul of this recording. The lead vocals are a bit flat in spots, and sometimes the musical meanderings cause me to hit the skip button depending on my mood. Still a solid effort worth checking out from one of those bands that no doubt sounds better live than in the studio.

52 Week High is a very impressive second effort from the FOB's, demonstrating significant growth in their song writing, playing, confidence, and production skills. It is Big Fun to listen to it, and I think it has set a new record for consecutive weeks in my car's CD changer! The songs are catchy, often humorous, and quite varied in their styles. To me, the package is reminiscent of Phish at their best. "Tell Me Its OK" is a masterpiece that I regularly find myself singing in the shower. This is definitely worth checking out.