Customer Reviews

Cosmic Wheels/Essence to Essence

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

 

 

Cosmic Wheels was issued in Europe on CD for a very short time in the 1990s and went out of print shortly thereafter. Finally it's re released and available, this time as a twofer with Essense to Essense, the followup CD. Cosmic Wheels is Donovan's last great album, featuring his whimsical but still lyrical concerns with the earth, stars, astronomy, astrology, etc. There are some amazing and powerful orchestrations on this album, particularly on the title track, arranged by Chris Spedding. Great musicianship and songwriting on this overlooked and underrated album. Essense to Essense has some interesting material but is not nearly as good as Cosmic Wheels either in consistency of songwriting or in performance. Sound quality is good, thank God they refrained from using noise reduction, and this CD sounds quite acceptable.

I was glad to find these two albums paired together. I don't have to sell anyone on Cosmic Wheels, one of Donovan's better efforts from the 70's. But Essence to Essence has always been slammed as a weak album, with so-so production and subpar material. However, there are always hidden gems and this LP has a few. Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth and The Divine Daze of Deathless Delight remain two of my personal favorites. But if you are a true Donovan fan, or just now beginning to discover the wonder of his talent, then There Is An Ocean and

Sailing Homeward are absolute musts to have in your collection.

They both have minimal accompaniment and in my opinion that is when Donovan is at his best. Although he has made some great electric music over the years, all he really needs is an acoustic guitar and that great built-in vibrato voice of his to bring goose bumps to your skin. Listen and enjoy.

COSMIC WHEELS is one of my favorite recordings of all-time. My rating is just for that album as I'm unfamiliar with the follow up recording included on this CD. But COSMIC WHEELS is worth the price of admission on it's own, Donovan at his finest :)

Cosmic Wheels saw Donovan working again with his old producer Mickie Most. Some of the songs have an astrological theme since Donovan and his wife Linda were into astrology. There is the rocking title tune perhaps his most rockin' out tune since "Season of the Witch", the funny and often nauseating "Intergalatic Laxative" one of the songs Donovan fans love to hate. From the second CD produced by Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham there aren't too many great songs, but a few highlights such as "I Like You" the last Donovan song to make the pop charts and "Sailing Homeward" featuring Carole King on piano.

Contains Donovan's most stirring songs: "Cosmic Wheels," "Sleep," and "Wild Witch Lady." Ethereal, oneiric, beautiful.

Cosmic Wheels was Donovan's last LP to chart in the top 40 (#25 in the U.S.). Essence to Essence only made it to #174, and a few years later Donovan slid off the charts for good. While there are many reasons why this happened (and it happened to many of the 60s stars), Cosmic Wheels certainly has to take some of the blame. It really isn't that good when compared to his fabulous albums from the 60s. His lyrics lack the whimsy and poetry of his previous songs (something he wouldn't fully regain until his "Beat Cafe" CD 31 years later!), his music is lackluster, and the whole LP is just not compelling.

To top it off, the LP also contains the worse song that Donovan ever wrote - "Intergalactic Laxative." I like to think of this song as one of the final nails in the coffin, the song that instantly pushed Donovan from popular to has been. In an instant, Donovan goes from whimsical to crude, from hip to insipid, from mystical to juvenile. It's truly an embarrassing song, and it blights the entire LP.

So why 3 stars for this CD? Actually, it's for the Essence to Essence part of it because that LP has always had a certain charm to it. Certainly it can't hold a candle to his 60s LPs or to "Beat Cafe", but it's more consistent than Cosmic Wheels, and while the lyrics still aren't great, his music has a playfulness to it that makes it fun to listen to. Worthwhile songs include "Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth," "Yellow Star," and "Life is a Merry-Go-Round."

If you're just starting to get into Donovan, don't buy this CD. Start with one of his excellent best of CDs, either his greatest hits, or "Try for the Sun" or "Troubadour." If you want to explore Donovan's music further, try any of his masterpieces from the 60s, and get the remastered imports because the sound is fantastic. I also highly recommend "Beat Cafe" his 2004 CD which compares favorably with his 60s music. But if you're a Donovan die-hard, you might as well get this CD too.