It's a Beautiful Day - It's a Beautiful Day

A very good artifact of '60s psychedelia

Although they didn't achieve the success of other late-60's psychedelic bands like the Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead, It's A Beautiful Day released a couple very good albums near the end of the decade. Much like Jethro Tull had distinguished themselves from other bands during this time with Ian Anderson's flute, It's A Beautiful Day did this with their excellent violinist David LaFlamme. His long solo is truly the highlight of their biggest hit single, "White Bird." The songs "A Hot Summer Day" and "Wasted Union Blues" could have fit in on the best Jefferson Airplane albums as the first two is a breezy pop tune ala Surrealistic Pillow while the latter's noisier arrangements recall Volunteers. "Bombay Calling" is another great track highlighted by its memorable rhythm line and LaFlamme's violin. The remaining songs tend to drag as "Bulgaria" doesn't work until the violin comes in at the end and "Time Is", is a long jam that certainly has its moments. All told, there is much to love on It's A Beautiful Day if you're into the late '60s psychedelic sound. If you want to save some bucks, it's much cheaper to download each track from here or EMusic than it is to buy the $23 cd. April 3, 2008

It's a Beautiful Day for real

It was great to hear this album once again,espically digital. It has brought back many old memories. The sound is terrific. I have played it a lot at home and recently went to a reunion party for a bunch of old hippies ,like myself, and everyone loved it. Thanks for making it so wasy to locate my old favorites!! March 11, 2008

Thank Goodness For MP3 Sales Option!!!!

I bought this album when it was new in 1969 and saw them live later, with a couple of other groups that you may have heard of... Foghat and The Doobie Brothers.

It's A Beautiful Day's sound was the embodiment of the Berkley-San Francisco era. This initial offering, in my humble opinion, was by far the best compilation. The unheard of (at that time) use of violin and other orchestra sounds, blending in with haunting vocals by Pattie Santos and David LaFlamme, their harmonies resulted in a wonderful fantastic sound. Although they never achieved the fame of some of the other area bands, their influence could be heard by The Jefferson Airplane as well as many other groups, as each worked to gain their own style and sound.

I haven't seen my copy of the album since the early 1980s. I have watched Fee-Bay and Amazon to find a non-bootlegged REASONABLE priced copy for years. I've had a 40 gig iPod for four years and had 5,667 songs and had never purchase a single song by MP3. I'd always copied CDs, as my collection grew over the years. Today, I now have 5,674 with this purchase.

Thanks to Amazon's reasonable download rates ($6.73) I am very pleased, especially when you consider I paid $3 to $4 for the original when it was new in 1969.

In short, this is an era CLASSIC that is a must own for anyone who ever thought of themselves as hippies, flower children, ect.
February 5, 2008

It's a Beautiful Day in the Summer of Love.

Who could ever forget this quintessential Sixties' album? San Francisco band, It's a Beautiful Day, released its self-titled Summer of Love album in 1969, and it remains a personal favorite today. Best known for the vocals and violin of David LaFlamme and the vocals of Pattie Santos, the album is a fusion of rock, jazz, folk, classical and world beat. The album sounds as amazingly vibrant today as it did when it was released nearly forty years ago. While it includes the band's biggest hit, "White Bird," the album also includes two equally great songs, "Hot Summer Day" and "Time Is." Complete album tracks include:

1. White Bird (6:08)
2. Hot Summer Day (5:47)
3. Wasted Union Blues (4:05)
4. Girl With No Eyes (3:48)
5. Bombay Calling (4:30)
6. Bulgaria (6:13)
7. Time Is (9:34)

G. Merritt
January 27, 2008

Oh No! Oh Yes!

Oh No! I missed out and can't buy the CD of It's A Beautiful Day by It's A Beautiful Day.

Oh Yes! They offer it for download! It was great, I downloaded the CD in a matter of minutes and was soon out in my studio, building stained glass and enjoying tracks I hadn't heard since my high school days.

Yes, the music's as good as I remembered, and I didn't even have to wait! Wish I could purchase all my music this way (maybe I can)

Surprisingly, the most well known and popular song on the alum, White Bird, is one of my least favorite (I still like it, just not as much as others) I heard a version of "Time Is" on a tv show recently, so it's been remade, but the original is still just as fun. And I have to admit, I still like that fuzzy guitar sound at the beginning of "Wasted Union Blues." I think it was a great value and I'd buy it again! January 23, 2008

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