Customer Reviews

Beat Goes on

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Recently I pulled out the classic psychedelic album "Vanilla Fudge" for a listen. I began to wonder if the band had ever made any other albums, and I found that they had. In my research I quickly saw that this one, "The Beat Goes On", was universally slammed by nearly everyone, even ardent Fudge fans. They called it pretentious, incoherent and in general worthless. So of course, this is the one that I ended up choosing to buy.

And I love it, with one major reservation, which I will get to in a minute. What we have here is an amalgamation of music, historical references, and other miscellaneous pop culture data. It's not for everyone's tastes. When you listen to it, hopefully with a wide open mind, you need to remember several things. The album is based on 4 cardinal principles of the 60's: experimentation, political involvement, adoration of The Beatles and "letting it all hang out", or, if you prefer, openness and honesty. It is not a rock album. It is not a pop album. Nor is it a cloned sequel to "Vanilla Fudge", which probably accounts for a lot of the negative reaction to it.

I'm impressed by the music in Phases One & Two (also the Intro that precedes them). It is music for music's own sake, not for forging a hit single or developing an image to sell. Just talented musicians appreciating music in the abstract, playing with it, seeing what they can create. A multitude of musical genres are called up at will and used, however briefly. There is classical, old American standards, swing, Elvis, and a Beatles medley. (There is one point in the Beethoven variations where a truly inspired, dramatic moment is reached.) And throughout the CD we hear Sonny & Cher's hit "The Beat Goes On" performed in many different ways. I admit that I wish some of the pieces could go on longer, but then a new one appears and my attention is carried away with the stream.

When we reach Phase Three, we are into territory that reminds me of "Revolution No. 9" from The Beatles' White Album, although this is a lot less subtle, to say the least. Here's the problem: while I don't mind hearing snippets of speeches made by world leaders and others (actually, they are pretty interesting), I don't like the fact that at this point, the music becomes intermittent - sometimes totally absent, sometimes faded WAY into the background. This was a mistake. The album is called "The Beat Goes On", and if I had been a part of its creation, I would have reminded them that the MUSIC must go on too. This does not ruin the album, but it causes a break in the artistic flow that could have been avoided. After this "talky" phase, Phase Four consists of more interesting, sometimes exotic, music, intertwined with recitations by the band members and then an interview in which they give their opinions on a variety of subjects, including the Black Panthers, sex, The Beatles (of course!) and ice cream. Once we arrive at the Bonus Phases, we are back to normal, with a rocking Beatles cover ("You Can't Do That") and an additional song written by Mark Stein, a surprisingly almost gentle (?!) ballad. At the very end, they sign off just as they did on "Vanilla Fudge", with The Beatles' lyrics "Nothing is real...nothing to get hung about..."

Whatever the band was trying to say with this album, I'm glad that they went out on a limb with it. It took me almost 40 years to discover it, but I am delighted to have unearthed this strange slab of 60's psychedelia.

Guys (and I'm sure anyone reviewing this album is male, just like myself), you know this is not their best. But as a huge fan, I would NEVER part with it.

1. There aren't any real "songs". It's a scattershot sound collage featuring anything and everything under the sun that would make it interesting. The voices of world leaders, the band reciting pre-written mantras and reflections, and Beatles and Sonny Bono covers. Like I said, not their best, however geniune the intention.

2. The group was at odds with Shadow Morton on this one. Shadow made his own album, apart from the group's input, and it shows. It's an anomaly in the group's catalogue, although all of the "musical" parts sound like the group, before and after. The concept, however, does not belong to the band and bears no resemblance to the group's other works, some of which were very obtuse but proved to have direction when listened to in completion (even "Break Song").

3. That's a great story that the reviewer from Framingham told, however. He must have been a big fan, and at 28 years old, I wish I had been there (or maybe not, as I would be 60 today).

Overall, not their best. Get REAL stoned and spin this one. There are a few tight passages, and when the band does jam for fifty seconds, it retains all of the charm which got this band signed and popular in the first place.

TBGO is a concept album, not fully realized perhaps, but crafted with genuine effort. It was almost anti-commercial, with nothing on it that could receive air play. It didn't get criticial acclaim in part because the band had neither the talent nor the technology to turn it into what it might have been. But it has an elemental charm for all its roughness and it still lingers with me 30+ years later. There are some interesting sound bytes and musical collages that can still evoke strong emotion when heard today. Those who were there will remember it best...

Checking the net, it seems that nobody likes this record, even the musicians of the group. I don't agree. In general I`m not a fan of Vanilly Fudge. Comparing the first album "Vanilla Gudge" and "Shades of Deep Purple". Both working on mainly famous compositions of the Beatles etc.; in a very strange way with a leaden organ, both first albums, I find the "Deep Purple" debut much more succeeded and melodic: Deep Purple admitted, that they had copied the success-recept of Vanilla Fudge, but welldone (just listen to "Help" and "Hey Joe"). Wandered away enough .... But "The Beat goes on" is something else. I was really empressed listening to it for the first time, I tried to read beside it, but my whole concentration was centered by this sound. There is a lot of classical music in it. It sounds sinister and weird, like a movie-soundtrack introducing oneself to a new changing world. The whole century seems to pass by, voices of politicians, etc. You can feel how much cultural life was changing in those times; compared for instance with the change from "Dance of the Vampires" to "Rosemaries Baby" in movies. For me just worth to buy it because of the tracks "Sketch", "Moonlight sernenade" of Beethoven, and the leaden frightening repeating sound of Bonos "Beat goes on". Not a hit record, but a succeeded soundtrack (at least partially) for films, for instance for series like "History of the 20th century".

I heard "Voices in Time!" played on the radio JUST ONCE in the late 60's! (That is a true statement!) The song was very unusual because of the historical sound bites intermixed with the music. A local "late night" DJ on WBZ in Boston (I believe the name of the DJ was Dave Maynard but maybe it was Dick Summer) played some selections off the album to show how this group was trying to be more serious or "experimental!"

Never being a big fan of this group but a big fan of history, I could always remember the name of the song but not the artist!(I think I was 15 or 16 years old at the time listening to the show through an earphone connected to my 4 transistor radio! I did not have the money to buy the album at the time even if I could have found it!)

Later as I grew older, I began to look for it. First I thought it was King Crimson, then the Moody Blues. Those reference books in the music stores were a waste of time. No one I knew was a Vanilla Fudge fan and in fact the band was passe by that time anyhow!

Thank God for Google search! After looking for this song in vain for over 35 years (Repeat: I literally had not heard that cut of music again until I bought this album this year), my quest is complete! It is so funny how obsessed I was about that moment in "Time" but I never did forgot that cut off that album. It must have been the DJ demonstrating how music was changing at the time (Sgt. Pepper).

This is just insane!

PS: I also remember the DJ thought this album was a failure! Not quite!

this is an unbelievable album. take that for what you will. in my list of must haves, this is there, for very few other albums pack the entertainment value that this does. every step of the way, the fudge pack a mean punch, whether it be to early americana, the beatles, franklin roosevelt, or the joys of sex and/or ice cream, not to mention elevating the endless versions of the title track (by sonny bono, natch) to an art form. (okay so that art form may be finger painting, but i knows what i likes). i'd like to think that mark, carmine, tim & vinnie were the true masterminds behind this, despite the presence of shadow morton behind the console, because this is nothing if not sincere. nothing on this album is tongue in cheek; they say it & play it because they mean it. THAT's the quality that make this so impressive (did i just say "quality" in reference to this? go figure...) THROW ALL YOUR ART ROCK OUT THE WINDOW & BUY THIS!

V.F. were experiencing there heart felt satisfaction of having become one of the No. 1 psychedelic bands in the U.S. They decided to anchor their success by completing an album which speaks of generic musical success. From Mozart to In the Mood, thru WWII, and up thru the Beatles, the Beat Goes On. Great Concept, better than average harmony, good improvisation, but miles above where they should have been and tens of miles above the potential listener. In the Groove!

To start with, I'm not a Vanilla Fudge fan. I can see how fans of the group might be disappointed with this experimental album, but since I never was exposed to the earlier stuff I had no preconceptions to be tainted with. I first heard this album when I was 13 and I fell in love with it. At that age I was fascinated with the historical spoken interludes and the bands trip through the history of popular music with their clever little medleys. It was very educational to my 13-year old ears. Listening to it now 40 years later it comes off as somewhat pretentious and campy, but that's what artistic overindulgence in the 60's was all about. John Lennon and Yoko Ono's "Wedding Album" or "Unfinished Music" albums were also pretentious, not very musical, and not very entertaining either. I still enjoy listening to The Beat Goes On. The Beethoven Fur Elise segment is magnificent. It even has the voice of Thomas Edison quoting "Mary Had A Little Lamb" (not the original, but from a 1930's newsreel). The one spot that falls flat is their awful Elvis impersonation on "Hound Dog", which is thankfully short.

as a child of the 50's and a teen in the 60's record collecting (yes, vinyl lp's)was a passion and I had probably 3000 albums. When cd's took over I was compelled to update my favorite albums. It has taken several years and the LAST gem was "the beat goes on" by vanilla fudge. I searched for years and finally thought I'd found it years ago via Best Buy who informed me that it was not available. Thanks to Amazon it is now in my collection.

I love Vanilla Fudge, and just got this album. It has to be the disappointment of the decade. It sucks. It's full of covers, tedious sections, speaking, filler, just plain crap all around. The few places it sounds like they are going to pick up the pace, they don't.

I think these guys might have been on something bad when they recorded this one!

Save your money, and if you are actually a VF fan like me, be sure to get Vanilla Fudge, Renaissance, Near The Beginning and Rock & Roll. All great albums, but this one is terrible.