The Millennium “Begin”
When I put this record on for the first time, I thought I had made a mistake. I mean, I thought I put in the wrong disc or something. I literally stopped the album, and ejected it to make sure I hadn’t put in some modern hip-hop breaks record instead.
That’s how this one opens, with that monstrous drum beat you just can’t imagine coming out of 1968. But things change fast. Curt Boettcher, a record producer who worked with The Association, The Boys and others, set out to record the album of his dreams with Begin. And it’s very psychedelic, very sunshine-happy, and very rockin’ all at the same time.
Of course, it was a commercial failure, but that hardly matters now. Check this one out as it’s the kind of album that turns heads.
Good luck finding it on its own though. You’ll need to buy Magic Time, the 3-cd bonus track ridden release, which is great really, but I still wish it was available on its own.
“It’s You”
Vinyl Reissue | 2008 | Sundazed | buy from sundazed ]
CD Reissue | 2008 | Sundazed | buy from sundazed ]
Also Recommended
Now available on its own (2012), CD reissue by Sundazed. This is a simply outstanding and unique album. Boettcher’s talent for creating distinctive sounds is obvious right from the start. There’s a lot to like about this collection but what I love most is the contrast between the complex, sophisticated songwriting and instrumentation and the featherlight High School Glee Club vocals and harmonies. British psych had nothing quite like this, it’s uniquely West Coast Of America stuff, “Sunshine pop” maybe, but that description sounds too flip and demeaning for this splendid recording. Highly recommended to all psych lovers.