The Family That Plays Together
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| The Family That Plays Together | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | December 1968 | |||
| Recorded | March 11–September 18, 1968 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 34:44 | |||
| Label | Ode | |||
| Producer | Lou Adler | |||
| Spirit chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Family That Plays Together | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Rolling Stone | (positive)[2] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [3] |
The Family That Plays Together is the second album by the rock band Spirit. The album was released on Ode Records in December 1968. It shows the group expanding on their early psychedelic rock style and moving toward what might be described as an early form of progressive rock. It was voted number 575 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums 3rd Edition (2000).
Tracks such as "It Shall Be" and "Silky Sam" demonstrate the ease with which the ensemble can incorporate jazz into their idiosyncratic form of rock, while "Jewish" and "Aren't You Glad" show the band's competence in exploiting both world music and jam rock. "Poor Richard," "Jewish," and "All the Same" feature double tracked lead guitars played by Randy California.
During this time the band lived together in a house in Topanga, California, near Los Angeles. The album's title was also inspired by the stepson-stepfather relationship between the lead guitarist Randy California and percussionist Ed Cassidy. It alludes to the slogan "The family that prays together stays together", created by ad-writer Al Scalpone for the Family Rosary Crusade and popular in American and British rhetoric beginning in the 1940s.
The album's arrangements were created by Marty Paich, who also arranged and conducted Spirit's eponymous debut album and their third album, Clear, as well as Model Shop (the soundtrack to a film of the same name, which was recorded after "Family" but not released until 2004).
The album cover was shot at the Sunset Highland Motel, located at 6830 Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, California, just across from Hollywood High School.
"Jewish" is performed with Hebrew lyrics that are taken from the traditional song "Hine Ma Tov", based on King David's Psalm 133.[4]
Release history[]
After the first issue, the stereo master tapes for this album were locked away in storage and made unavailable. Because of this, subsequent CD releases by Sony, as well as the recent vinyl reissue by Sundazed Records, are taken from new stereo mixes made from the original multi-track tapes by Bob Irwin, Randy California and Ed Cassidy in 1996. Liner notes on the 1996 CD reissue state that it was "mixed and mastered by Vic Anesini, Sony Music Studios, New York". (The tracks that appeared on the Time Circle, 1968–1972 compilation were remixed as well, though those mixes are different.)
The 1996 CD reissue also contains five bonus tracks. Two of these appeared on the Time Circle, 1968–1972 compilation, while the other three are previously unissued.
In 2017, Audio Fidelity reissued the album as a numbered limited edition hybrid SACD. This was the first release to use the original stereo mixes since the 1970s. This edition also includes bonus tracks in the same mixes as on the 1996 reissue.
Track listing[]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Got a Line on You" | Randy California | 2:39 |
| 2. | "It Shall Be" |
| 3:24 |
| 3. | "Poor Richard" | Jay Ferguson | 2:31 |
| 4. | "Silky Sam" | Ferguson | 4:57 |
| 5. | "Drunkard" | Ferguson | 2:27 |
| 6. | "Darlin' If" | California | 3:37 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7. | "It's All The Same" |
| 4:41 |
| 8. | "Jewish" | California | 3:23 |
| 9. | "Dream Within A Dream" | Ferguson | 3:13 |
| 10. | "She Smiles" | Ferguson | 2:30 |
| 11. | "Aren't You Glad" | Ferguson | 5:25 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Fog (instrumental)" |
| 2:23 |
| 13. | "So Little To Say" | Ferguson | 2:58 |
| 14. | "Mellow Fellow (instrumental)" | Locke | 3:46 |
| 15. | "Now Or Anywhere" | Ferguson | 4:20 |
| 16. | "Space Chile (instrumental)" | Locke | 6:25 |
Personnel[]
Spirit[]
- Jay Ferguson - lead vocals, keyboards, percussion
- Randy California - lead guitar, lead vocals, backing vocals, bass
- John Locke - keyboards
- Mark Andes - bass, backing vocals
- Ed Cassidy - drums, percussion
Production[]
- Lou Adler - producer
- Bob Irwin - producer
- Marty Paich - horn arrangements, string arrangements
- Vic Anesini - mastering, mixing (reissue)
- Armin Stiener - engineer
- Adam Block - project director
- Tom Wilkes - art direction
- Guy Webster - photography
Charts[]
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Billboard 200 | 22 |
| 1969 | RPM Magazine Top 50 | 46 |
| 1972 | Billboard 200 | 189 |
Singles
| Song | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| "I Got A Line On You" | RPM Magazine | 28 |
References[]
- ^ Allmusic review
- ^ Hansen, Barret (March 15, 1969). "Records". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 10, 2008. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0857125958.
- ^ Bernarde, Scott (2003). Stars of David: Rock'n'roll's Jewish Stories. UPNE. pp. 164–169. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
Authority control  |
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- Spirit (band) albums
- 1968 albums
- Epic Records albums
- Legacy Recordings albums
- Albums produced by Lou Adler
- Sony Records albums
- Sundazed Records albums
- Albums arranged by Marty Paich