Customer Reviews

Hums of the Lovin'

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
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First the bad news: 25 minutes and no extra tracks. On the other hand albums were selling for $2.98 in mono and $3.98 in stereo back in 1966. The album has only gone up 3 bucks in price in 40 years. Not a bad deal.

Since the songs aren't listed I'll include them here. Sadly this was the last LP with Zal Yanovsky for reasons that should be explored elsewhere.

1. Lovin' You--written and sung by John. Bobby Darin covered this one.
2. Bes' Friends--another laid back song by John "They say the honeymoon is where the romance ends. . ."
3. Voodoo in My Basement--another song by John with a great "creepy" middle section
4. Darlin' Companion--another laid back one sung by John
5. Henry Thomas--written and sung by John. A tribute to Henry whose song "Fishin' Blues" is on the first LP.
6. Full Measure--written and sung by Joe. This one features a harmonium.
7. You and Me and Rain on the Roof--Another hit written and sung by John
8. Cocoanut Grove--written and sung by John, another quiet moody piece.
9. Nashville Cats--Another hit written and sung by John
10. 4 Eyes--Written and sung by John. About the misery of wearing glasses. "How many fingers, ha ha ha!!"
11. Summer In the City--Their only # 1 written and sung by John

So here it is in all it's glory. Guranteed to make you smile.

These guys are mid-60's Americans and use a strange array of acoustic and electric instruments, such as accordion, slide whistle, autoharp, and probably anything they could salvage from the studio. My favorites are on the second side (of the LP): "You and Me and Rain on the Roof" and "Coconut Grove." They evoke a kind of emotion I've not heard from anybody else. They used a lot of tape (spring?) reverb, so some of the instruments sound sort of garbled. Lyrically, they were like a lot of Flower Children - that is, neo-Romantic; but with definite modern humor, as in "My Dear Henry" and "Four Eyes." I think their real credo comes out in "Full Measure," which is about giving rather than taking (hippie altruism). Probably, "Summer in the City" would've been the biggest hit off this one. They're probably better known for "Daydream" off Daydream. I own both albums, but I prefer _Hums_ for some reason. Rest assured: the mix on this CD is very clean; I was amazed. Any defects are on the source tape. I'd recommend it to anyone who needs a mood lifter.

Shush with the Byrds and Moby Grape. Most assuredly fine bands but the Spoonful tapped into the country-rock genus first with the romantic charm of "Rain On the Roof", the amusingly humble "Nashville Cats" and the down-home bent of "Darling Companion". But more importantly, their third album was a well-balanced effort that spanned so many American musical traditions. This stands as their masterpiece and every track has magic - loose with some grit. John Sebastian's self-mocking "4 Eyes" has survived on momentum highlighted by Zal Yanovsky's bottleneck guitar. The folkish ballad, "Coconut Grove", has remained simultaneously warm and haunting. Sometimes they bordered on the puerile but their powers of lunacy peaked on "Henry Thomas" and "Voodoo In My Basement", without them getting branded as novelty numbers. The ambitious "Summer In the City" is ehh, one of the best songs, like evahh... On this highly original composition, they drew from George Gershwin's "An American In Paris" and refurbished stunning sound effects into vigorous rock. John Sebastian's voice and Joe Butler's drums are as hot as the pavement that this song elicits. This record was their first and only indication that they were regarding the LP as a serious and separate entity from the single. Furthermore, they didn't retreat from any of the pleasures of living which was really the ethos they established with their music. Believe in their magic!