Give a Monkey a Brain and He'll Swear He's the Center of the Universe

Fishbone

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 25, 1993)
• Original Release Date: May 25, 1993
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0000028PD
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #41,448 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  #58 in	Music > Rock > Funk Rock
  #83 in	Music > R&B > Funk > Metal
  #87 in	Music > Alternative Rock > Hardcore & Punk > Ska Punk

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Who do YOU Serve?", March 19, 2004

By	"emilio319xxx" (Miami, Florida United States) - See all my reviews

...First of all, I am a huge fan of Fishbone...or at least I WAS until Kendall Jones and Chris Dowd left and the band started releasing sub-par material left and right ("Give a Monkey a Brain" was their last great album, in my opinion). If you are not familiar with Fishbone, you may want to first purchase "Truth and Soul" and/or "In Your Face" (which are both fantastic albums and more "commercial" sounding than this one) before you dive into the heavy-duty nuttmeg of "Give a Monkey..."
I think this album along with "Reality of My Surroundings" are Fishbone's greatest...This one is their heaviest, featuring a few "metal" songs ("Swim", "Servitude", and "End the Reign"). These songs are some of the greatest on the album but I think some fans couldn't hang with that..."Unyielding Conditioning" (ska) and "Lemon Meringue" (soul/funk) are two of the most well written songs ever by Fishbone. "Nutt Megalomaniac" is funky as hell. "They All Have Abandoned Their Hopes" is a hauntingly apocalyptic song...one of my favorites. "Warmth of Your Breath" is definitely NOT a love song. It's a funky little speed metal ditty directed at certain police officers...
The entire cd is awesome, no weak songs. The musicianship is outstanding...Norwood's bass lines are as funky as ever (especially on "Lemon Meringue")...Kendall Jones and John Bigham lay down some great guitar and Angelo Moore and Chris Dowd's vocals are some of their best work ever. This album sounds fresh to this day...Fishbone WAS one of the most underrated bands ever and they never got the success a group of this magnitude deserved. This was the last album they did with Kendall Jones and Chris Dowd and, for me at least, their departure marked the end of Fishbone as we knew it. I have the albums that followed and while they have some good songs here and there they don't come close to matching Fishbone when they were in their heyday. Kendall Jones' songwriting skills are sorely missed on all the albums that followed.
"Give A Monkey..." is a like an all-you-can-eat buffet for the ears but it will take most people several listens to uncover all the sonic nuggets that are hidden.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unassailable...!!!!, January 23, 2004

By	Campbell Roark "tri-zeta" (from under the floorboards and through the woods...) - See all my reviews

My fave Fishbone album. This one has it all- a seamless, and I mean seamless, blend of styles. I'm not talking Mr. Bungle mix of styles (not that it's a bad thing- far from it, long live the cult of Patton) I'm talking each song sounds like the pinacle of whatever genre Fishbone happen to inhabitting/shredding at that given moment.

Take your pick- maelstrom-metal, funk, ska, reggae, psychedelia, and even a hint at Gospel (No Fear- stylisticaly- is a gospel song... well, the organ just makes it sound like Gospel, or in this case Gospel-funk rock without the odious 'oh-please-breathe-on-me-oh-God lyrics and afro-american yodeling that passes for gospel singing... militant atheist that I am...)

On ONE FREAKIN ALBUM!!!! They manage to summon the mothership, send out the best mosh-anthem I have EVER heard, Channel the ghosts of Eddie Hazel and Sid Vicious (in one song no less), crank out one of the few reggae tunes I can stomach, skank-their way to paradise in a way that most 3rd wave skasters can only drool at, Out Kool both Kool AND The Gang and invent a cure for sanity and the drab pabulum that chokes media of all species.

I mean, it's just impossible to take any of the 'hard' bands out there seriously after putting their albums next to this. They seem flat, monochromatic, lifeless, dull. Unfunky. Lyricallly Fishbone may not be the most original but they play to their strengths, are inventive and funny and certainly capable of stuff as poignant/eloquent as anything that 'Dear Charlotte' have ever penned.

And yet, this album kinda tanked (despite their prominent Lollapalooza placement... I don't get it- that was the first year that People bitched about Lollapalooza- year 3... but Primus? Dinosaur Jr? and Fishbone? It was one of the best shows I'd ever seen, ah but I digress...)

These guys couldn't fail even if they were drop-kicked into the studio with Avril, baby Spice, Nick carter, the result wold still leave you wondering what the hell assulted you and left you wanting more...

Oh, I'm 25 years old and have been to more concerts than I can recall and still will unhesitatingly state that Fishbone put on THE BEST live show I have ever seen- I don't care what your bag is, The Bone will stuff it for you. And they play for hours. You will leave the venue sore and deaf and maybe (as I have been known to do) you will drive a couple hours to see them again the next night in a different town or state.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars amazing, July 24, 2003

By	weapon_h "weapon_h" (Scottsdale, AZ USA) - See all my reviews

This album has aged amazingly well - whenever I'm in the mood for Fishbone, I put this one on. Although "Truth & Soul" is probably their best, it sounds a bit dated today. "Monkey" is simply amazing in its breadth, from the crunching metal of "Servitude" (which at first I didn't like but might now be my favorite track) to the more melodic rock of "Black Flowers" and "No Fear", to the straight-up P-Funk style "Lemon Meringue", to the fantastic sunny ska of "Unyielding Conditioning", quite possibly one of the happiest-sounding tunes ever recorded (though with somber lyrics). This is the last album recorded before the weirdness with Kendall caused the band to turn into the "speed metal with horns" incarnation. This album captures that ferocity balanced with the melodic hooks of their previous works. You gotta love it.