Spirit - The Family That Plays Together

Hugely uneven

I no longer listen to a lot of music from those days, but Dr. Sardonicus is a CD from that era that still gets an occasional spin. It has no bad tracks, and several great ones. I bought that LP in 1972, played it to death, and replaced it as soon as it was available again on CD. (Which means I don't have the remastered and extra tracks versions.) I bought this LP a couple of years later, and while I liked it, I never warmed to it as much as Dr. S. The sound was thinner, the quality of writing was lesser, the tightly controlled and yet insane creative energy and wacky arrangments heard later had not matured, and there seemed a bit too much self-indulgent noodling around.

I still feel the same way. There are several good tracks on here, and I Got A Line On You is indeed one of the finest pop songs of that (or any other) era, but there is a whiney dirge-like quality that just doesn't attract me. Nothing dreadful, but Dr. Sardonicus is a triumph, and this is not. Listen to "It's All the Same" and tell me you didn't get bored. I sure did..... And "Silky Sam?" Come on, guys, this was hackneyed even in 1968. So, one glorious song, a couple of very good ones, and a few too many dogs. Acceptable, but not eternal. March 26, 2008

This classic sounds better than ever

Certainly "The Family That Plays Together" along with "12 Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus" are Spirit's finest two albums. Here we have "Family" remastered for CD with crystal clear sound and several heretofore unreleased bonus cuts. A must for any Spirit fan, and for the uninitiated - Spirit, along with Love (oddly both L.A. groups) - were the 60's greatest underrated bands. Check it out. February 23, 2008

the family that plays together

"Spirit" was an incredibly talented and innovative group from the late sixties that were not mainstream enough to make it "big". Their songs covered about every subject under the sun and the group is just as much at home with jazz as they are with rock and pop. They are one of the few sixties bands who do not sound dated today. The album includes several previously unissued cuts that are every bit as good as the original offerings from 1968. "I GOT A LINE ON YOU" is the hit single off of this album and is their most commercially successful offering. For those who only know SPIRIT by this song, ALL THE SAME, JEWISH, AREN'T YOU GLAD, and SHE SMILES will be pleasant discoveries. The previously unissued and jazzy FOG and the enigmatic NOW OR ANYWHERE are surprising omissions from the original work. After SARDONICUS, this would be SPIRIT at their best. December 6, 2007

Something Really Good

I first encountered Spirit in 1978 when I ended up working a at pizza joint with Larry "Fuzzy" Knight's wife and had the opportunity to see the revamped Spirit trio perfom live at several venues. Since I was too poor at the time to buy a lot of albums, I picked up this one in a used bargin bin. At that time I was only interested in cool guitar riffs, so I would just listen to the same 3 scratchy songs on this LP over and over at first. Over the years I came to really appreciate all the music here and was delighted to buy this CD and actually be able to hear the whole thing without skips.

This album has gradually worked it's way into my all time top 10 album list. Virtually every song is an interesting study in music without barriers, from rock to bluesy jazz to classical motifs. The songs flow in a fascinating manner into one another and produce a smooth, mellow, slightly melancholy feeling. The background horns and strings are tasty. California's droning minor scale licks are great to dream to without falling asleep. I don't indulge in the old wacky weed anymore, but whenever I listen to this I feel like I've just had a big hit of something really good and it takes time for me to emerge back into the "real" world.

This CD has 5 bonus tracks that, unlike most bonus stuff, are actually worth listening to and fit into the overall feel of the CD. Three are instrumentals: Fog is a short pretty thing, Mellow Fellow and Space Chile give the band a chance to jam a bit and both have some nice solo drumming by Cassidy, which is always a pleasure.

I'd say that if you enjoy the music from this era this is a really fine CD that you will want to own. By all means, if you have not heard Spirit you owe yourself the experience; if you know Spirit then this should already be in your collection. September 14, 2007

Expand your Spirit Collection

If you are already a "SPIRIT" fan, this is a nice addition to your collection. New to "SPIRIT"? I suggest you buy a greatest hits and work backward. A band that had an age range from 15-40 sumptin' and spun off into later bands, is well worth every track.
July 16, 2007

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