Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
great, April 23, 2001
From 1968, "The Family That Plays Together Stays Together" marked the first major breakthrough for Spirit, one of the late 60's most underrated (and still is) bands. On it, their mix of fuzzed jazz psychedelia that was introduced on their self-titled lp, sounds tighter and better than any of their material to that point. The surprise top 25 hit "I Got a Line On You" b/w "She Smiled" began an ecclectic collection of tunes, ranging from the gorgeous Jay Ferguson (lead singer) penned "Silky Sam" and "A Dream Within a Dream," to organist John Locke's wonderfully jazzed up "Space Chile," to guitarist Randy California and drummer (and stepfather to Randy) Ed Cassidy's funny "It's All the Same."The results are breathtaking, and very much unlike the rest of the psychedelia made during that period. With Spirit, one gets an intelligently and professionally made lp that takes on all genres of music- jazz, blues, strings, as well as rock n roll. Spirit made music by their own rules- and it worked. Hard core fans of the late 60's sound know full well who Spirit were. Budding guitarists should listen to Randy California for influence, as should drummers to Ed Cassidy. Those who like surprises with their music will also enjoy this lp. While their best lp, the amazing "12 Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus," was a few years away, "The Family the Plays Together Stays Together" is a wonderful listen and a great introduction to this most wonderfully unusual L.A. band.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
the best psychedelic jazz rock album ever., October 29, 2004
for long i was sure that credential should go to either 12 dreams of doctor sardonicus by spirit, or forever changes by love - but over time, i have come to the conclusion that this particular little gem takes that title.
despite the very radio friendly, "i got a line on you", the family that plays together is slightly inaccesseible, a lot of the structures and melodies take a little time to get used to. but they grab you at the first go. this is a must buy for experienced rock lovers, who appreciate good music. definitely not recommended for people who think bon jovi is the greatest rock star of all time, or that bruce springsteen is the boss.
this is an album for connoisseurs who know how to appreciate music. a work of sublime beauty and genius.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I should've tried Spirit much earlier, May 3, 2005
OK, so I've been aware of this band for ages. After all, turn on the classic FM rock dial and you're bound to hear "I Got a Line On You" or "Nature's Way". It's only now that I bought any of their albums. I have acquire The Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus, and this one, The Family That Plays Together.
The Family That Plays Together was their second album and gave Spirit their first wide exposure, because the album's opening song was none other than "I Got a Line On You", which became a hit for them. This band is odd for one having one member a generation older than the rest. The band featured guitarist Randy California, who was at that point 17 years old, and drummer Ed Cassidy, who was his stepdad (married to his mother), and around 20 years or so older than the rest of the band. Most other people Ed Cassidy's age were more likely to yell at their kids to "Turn off that noise" (like when they're listening to the Beatles), but in Randy California's case, that was different, Ed Cassidy encouraged his music habit and both helped form a band. Of course, lets not forget the rest of the band: Jay Ferguson, John Locke, and Mark Christopher-Andes. Most other people Ed Cassidy's age were more into Lawrence Welk and Bing Crosby and thought rock and roll, like of the Beatles (or Spirit for that matter) was the downfall of civilization.
There is so much more to this album than just "I Got a Line On You". "It Shall Be" is a wonderful, atmospheric number with John Locke giving us some electric piano, and nice use of orcestrations. There are some more rocking passages as well with horns. "Silky Sam" is another one of those mellow orchestrated pieces, with the unexpectedly dissonant passage in the middle (much like what many prog rock bands a few years later would be doing). "The Drunkard" has a rather baroque feel, with an even stronger classical-feel, as it's very dominated by strings. "All the Same" is a rather fun number, with lots of nice electric piano and catchy melodies, one of my favorites on this album and for some reason often overlooked. "Jewish", penned by Randy California, is a real odd number. It's sung in Hebrew (how often do you come across a rock song sung in that language?). We should also know that California himself was Jewish (his real name was Randy Wolfe), so I guess he was exploring his Jewish roots in that song. The final song, "Aren't You Glad", ends in a rather dramatic fashion, more or less the album's epic. When I hear the more mellow, orchestral numbers like "It Shall Be" and "Silky Sam", I keep imagining that John Locke should be using a Mellotron, Spirit would have sounded great using one, but they used real strings (which still sounds great) after all the Mellotron wasn't made commercially available in America until around 1972, but the Chamberlin was available then (and only a band like the Beach Boys made the occasional use of one at that time).
Spirit is one of those few West Coast psych bands that would appeal to people who otherwise are generally not fans of that genre. They avoided the most of those psychedelic cliches (ie. "flowers and beads" and "canyons of your mind"), probably because they realize in even just a couple years time, people would laugh at that stuff if they wrote "canyons of your mind" type of music. So their music ended up not being so dated as so many of their West Coast contemporaries of the time.
The Family That Plays Together is a wonderful album, if you never heard this album, get it, you'll find out there's much more to Spirit than just "I Got a Line On You" as this album proves!
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