10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Cowsills arrived with their first MGM album in 1967., February 14, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Cowsills (Audio CD)
The 1967 album that showcases the Cowsills' first great 45, "The Rain, the Park and other Things," offers a winsome trip back to the greatest year of 60s pop music. While "Rain" is the outstanding track on this album, several others will interest fans of their sound (which features some of the brightest harmonies of the 60s). Here it's all the boys (later on the "Mini-Mom" Barbara and her daughter Susan got in on it). Highlights of this album include "Dreams of Linda" and "La Rue du Soleil," about an attraction to a jeune fille in a Paris street cafe that ends disappointingly (it has a charming accordion background). Fans of Hendrix and Joplin will find this material bland (Hendrix trashed the Beach Boys too), but those who retain some 60s innocence will get into it. I reheard all my Cowsills albums last month, and in replaying this one I was pleasantly surprised by side 2, which I hadn't listened to closely. Razor & Tie did us a favor issuing it -- I just wish some other Cowsills albums, like Captain Sad and His Ship of Fools (1968) and II X II (1971), could get onto CD. The Cowsills' bright sound suffers badly on scratched vinyl. R&T has done a solid job remastering this one. Recommended, especially to those who like their hits and want to hear more.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Cowsills Fans Only, June 21, 1998
By A Customer
This review is from: Cowsills (Audio CD)
Though it contains their breakthrough hit ("The Rain, The Park, and Other Things") and the elusive theme from "Love American Style," only diehard fans of the family should pick this up, as most of the songs are not up to the quality of later hits. Good sound and interesting liner notes.
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Only for die-hard Cowsills fans; even then is not worth buying, August 5, 2009
This review is from: Cowsills (Audio CD)
This review is for the Razor & Tie version (catalogue # RE 2037). I bought it purely for "The Rain, The Park And Other Things", as it's one of my favourite songs. Unfortunately I found little else of interest on this disc (except if you were a *serious* Cowsills fan). Note that it does not include "Indian Lake" or "Hair".
Pros: Mastering was done by the great Steve Hoffman. As such the sound quality is fantastic with a very natural, analogue feel.
Cons: "The Rain, The Park And Other Things" is the stereo mix and is FAR inferior to the mono mix. The harmonies ("I love the flower girl"... etc.) in the chorus are very buried in the mix and the instruments dominate the vocals throughout the entire song. You can get the mono mix of "The Rain, The Park And Other Things" on
45's on CD, Vol. 3 (1966-1969).
N.B: The track listing provided by Amazon is incorrect. My CD is as follows (asterisk denotes changes in the Amazon provided track listing; hash denotes bonus tracks):
1. The Rain, The Park And Other Things
2. Pennies*
3. La Rue Du Soleil*
4. Thinkin' About The Other Side*
5. Dreams of Linda*
6. River Blue*
7. Gettin' Into That Sunny, Sunny Feelin' Again*
8. That's My Time of Day*
9. Troubled Roses*
10. (Stop, Look) Is Anyone There?*
11. How Can I Make You See*
12. (Come 'Round Here) I'm The One You Need*
13. Love American Style* [#]
14. The Impossible Years* [#]
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