Customer Reviews

Wonderful World Of

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The best 'cover' album ever made! The 'Mints preform simply stunning versions of some of the best, and for the most part obscure, pop songs ever made. Highlights are the obscure Turtles song "Love In The City" and the seldom-heard Stories song "Darling". Now available as a much less- UK import, there's no excuse for you to not add this to your collection NOW!

The Wondermints manage to convey all the zaniness, energy, experimentation, and, yes, childlike wonder of the 1960s and 1970s without any of the lazy, druggy self-indulgence that occasionally marred the astral travels of those decades. This album, like Todd Rundgren's "Faithful," pays homage to beloved and influential music, though in this case the music draws heavily from cult favorites, overlooked jewels (like Brian Wilson's sublime "Guess I'm Dumb"), or completely left-field choices like "Barbarella." Prepare to be entertained--and maybe find some soulmates.

Listen to the samples! Personal favorites are covers of two great songs whose original versions were also underrated in their own day: "Love in the City" by the Turtles (whose version featured some incredible power-drumming by Johnny Barbata before he toured with CSN&Y ["Four Way Street"] and later joined Jefferson Starship ["Red Octopus"]); and "Louise," an all-out raver from Paul Revere & the Raiders ("Spirit of 67"). The multi-layered harmonies on both are killer, but the Wondermints revved theirs up. Check out the bass riff in the second verse: it's the Raiders' hit "Hungry"--on steroids. Too much!
This was the collection that made me want to purchase the entire Wondermints' catalog.

This is a fantastic collection of unusual covers. The album consists of absolute power pop (songs such as "My Friend Jack") mixed with a few lounge pieces ("Don't Go Breaking My Heart"). Personal favourite is "Barbarella", a sappy psychedelic song. This is defiantly worth purchasing if you like bands such as jellyfish, beach boys, floyd. In fact the wondermints have spent the past couple of years working with Brian Wilson on his new Pet sounds and Smile tours/albums. Also checkout the wondermints "Bali" and "Mind if we make love to you" albums (these albums consist of their own tracks and are brilliant).