Vintage - The Very Best Of Moby Grape | Moby Grape | Its nice to have all this Grape in one place!

Vintage - The Very Best Of Moby Grape | Moby Grape | Oh, what could have been....

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Vintage - The Very...

	Vintage - The Very Best Of Moby Grape Moby Grape Sony, 1993 average customer review:based on 14 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Its nice to have all this Grape in one place!

The San Francisco group "Moby Grape" consisted of 5 talented singer-songwriting musicians who blended rock, soul, country, blues and folk. Their self-titled debut album was stunning and definitely deserves it's classic status.
Unfortunately a few factors worked against the group: the wide diversity of styles set them apart from their contemporaries but probably alienated some listeners; they were also way over-hyped and they had such an odd blend of personalities (particularly the unstable Skip Spence).
It can't be denied that their musical output after the first album was a very mixed bag, but despite the fact that they never got close to matching the quality of the first record every album contains some excellent music. This is why a retrospective like this is the best way to appreciate their music. It's especially good for those new to the group and fans like me who have a bunch of old LP's and have longed for a compilation of their better material.
Thankfully, most of the "good stuff" is here, including the entire debut album, some rarities and a few curiosities. The individual members are well represented: lead guitarist Jerry Miller shines on songs like "Can't Be So Bad" and "Miller's Blues" and he shares the songwriting credit along with drummer Don Stevenson on some of their best songs like "Hey Grandma", "8:05", "Ain't No Use" and "Murder in My Heart For the Judge". (It's also no surprise that many place Miller in the same guitar league as Hendrix, Santana and Bloomfield). Bass player Bob Mosley's soulful voice is dynomite on "Mr. Blues", "Murder In My Heart.." and "Truckin' Man". Peter Lewis(son of the late movie-TV star Loretta Young) is probably the best singer-songwriter in the group and is great on "Ain't That a Shame", "Sittin' By The Window", "Right Before My Eyes" and uses his unique vocal vibrato to good effect on "What's To Choose". Last but not least, creative and slightly unhinged, Skip Spence rocks on the classic "Omaha", does a nice live version of "Changes" and has 2 different versions of his strange "Seeing".
Individually they were all talented, but when they really gelled as a group it would be hard to find a better rhythm section and 3 guitars that blended so well. You then add vocal harmonies that can positively give you the chills and you've got Moby Grape at it's best.
The one thing this CD can't reproduce is the adrenaline rush of seeing the group live; Mosley with his bass hanging down to his knees, Miller all over his hollow bodied electric guitar, the 4 and 5 part harmonies and, although he was never my favorite on record, in concert the whirling dervish Skip Spence always stole the show.

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Oh, what could have been....

This is a great introduction to one of the saddest stories in rock and roll. This band, Moby Grape, had some of the rawest, most amazing talent ever assembled in a rock band. You can hear it on their first album especially. The power, the great songwriting, production, everything. But it was a mess from the beginning. Columbia Records ended up releasing 8 (!) singles of them at once, confusing and irritating radio programmers across the nation. It gave the Grape a bad reputation that is only starting to subside now. There were numerous other conflicts (you can read about them in the great liner notes here), but ultimately it gets down to, what about the music? The music is fantastic.

The first disc has most of the great songs, including the blistering songs Fall on You, Omaha, and Hey Grandma. 8:05 is a beautiful song, and even the silly ditties Big and Naked, If I Want To are great as well. These guys had killer vocal harmonies and great guitar interplay, and they had the genius of Alexander "Skip" Spence, who seemed to be both a guru and a guitarist to them. But due to management snafus and personality conflicts (many of them the result of heavy drug use, particularly on the part of Spence), the band only managed a few more albums. They still get together for periodic reunions, but it's a shame they never went further, as they had something really unique.

This is the best set you can get for an introduction to the Grape. Some of their studio albums are ridiculously overpriced. Track this down if you can.

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Great Grape!

These guys were the quintessinal San Francisco Band - even though they co-existed with the Dead and the Airplane (not to mention Quicksilver), they had it all as musicians, singers, and writers. Too bad they were poorly marketed - I believe that their debut album came out as the same time as Sgt. Pepper in '67. In fact, I vaguely remember buying both in May or June of that year. These guys could play Blues, Rock, Country, Jazz, - even Swing - you name it, they could play it - and played it well they did. But, if I can paraphrase the CD's pamphlet, bad timing and marketing ruined them right from the start. Just give this a listen and you'll be hooked - their songs don't even sound dated - and they range in tempo and key - each one is completely different and enjoyable. I would consider the Grape as one of the best, if not the best, unsung heros of rock and roll. If you listen to these two CDs and walk away unimpressed, then it is my opinion that you are absolutely deaf.

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as hard as this was to get my hands on...

...i expected more.

so what is this> this is a 2-disc package of moby grape's good stuff. everything you need in one place. moby grape was the 60s san francisco psychedelic band you never heard, but it was also arguably the best. buffalo springfield, creedence clearwater (admittedly a far superior band), grateful dead, all of these SF bands went on to attain worldwide fame, and though moby grape should've been neck and neck with them, terrible management, misdirected promotion, and inner turmoil destroyed them before they even had a chance. the debut album, included here in its entirity, is considered one of the greatest albums of the 60s, indeed, one of the greatest debut albums of all time. and it is very good, but i've never been a huge fan of harmonized vocals...i much prefer a single prominent lead singer. nonetheless, this is a near-perfect record. the rest of the stuff is good too, and some of it i like even more, as they eventually drifted away from the harmonies-only approach. if you like the grateful dead and buffalo springfield and crosby stills & nash, you'll like this even more.

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see all the other reviews for the history lesson

The Summer of Love was not easy on all of its revellers, regardless of their innate musical brilliance. Moby Grape definitely got the short end of the stick.

Considering the musicality of such catchy rock numbers as the quick-fingered "Aint No Use" or the resolute "I Am Not Willing," it's stunning their name isn't dropped more frequently with the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, or even Quicksilver Messenger Service. They could rock harder than most of their contemporaries, often were more delicate and concise too, and had the added firepower of 3-part vocal harmonies which put them in a league with the Byrds.

All the right ingredients can be present and still not result in success or acclaim. These are the hits you never heard, and an unfiltered taste of the San Francisco sound in the late sixties.

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