Customer Reviews

I Got Stoned and I Missed It: The Best From Shel Silverstein 1971-1979

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Shel Silverstein was a witty, often very spot-on songwriter....mostly. Dr. Hook was a witty, outrageously funny band....mostly. And this collection of Dr. Hook serenading the listener with several songs from the pen of Shel Silverstein is, well, mostly outrageously funny and often very spot-on. But not always.

The first 16 selections on this CD are the best; you get completely gonzo stuff like "Roland The Roadie And Gertrude The Groupie," "Marie Lavauk" and their biggest seller, "Cover Of The 'Rolling Stone'" ("Wanna buy 5 copies for my mother!") cheek-to-jowl with more conventional but still well-done songs like "Sylvia's Mother" (which stays just on the edge of soap opera without actually falling in), "The Ballad Of Lucy Jordan" (later a hit for Marianne Faithfull), "The Wonderful Soupstone" and "Carry Me, Carrie." Those are all terrific. What's not so terrific are later Hook/Silverstein match-ups like "I Don't Want To Be Alone Tonight," "More Like The Movies" and "Pleasure And Pain," where big-time mawkishness sets in and the lewd campiness that was the band's strength is purged and flattened completely. All it really means, though, was that even the mighty were/are allowed to stumble now and again and if you've ever yearned for a time tunnel back to a period where you could be culturally incorrect and get away with it (cf. "Freakin' At The Freaker's Ball"), this may well be what you're looking for.

dr hook was only the greatest, most versatile group of their century. they seemed to play anything well, from dope to love songs, and the love songs were always from the heart. no other group has ever come close to their talents. its a shame that they had to break up. i too this day still go and see dr hook featuring ray sawyer whenever they play, and at their age, they still rock.

If you are a Dr. Hook fan this is a great cd to have. It has a lot of the old songs on it that Dr. Hook is known for. If you are a fan of Dr. Hook I would buy this cd. Sandy McClaflin

The best of Shel Silverstein. He drew for playboy, he wrote & drew many childrens books, and wrote many Dr. Hook songs.Even if you aren't a fan of Dr. Hook music you still can't beat the lyrics. He is witty & creative with few to compare by.

Shel Silverstein wrote lots of things, including kid's books. These tunes are most definately for the adults! They are witty and clever and performed with giddy, gritty glee.