Oar [Original recording remastered]

Amazon.com
The only solo album from this former Jefferson Airplane and Moby Grape cult hero is something of a legend. Cut in four days all by himself, it bombed upon its release in 1969. Nevertheless, Spence's legend has led to devotion from such fans as Tom Waits, Robert Plant, Beck, and R.E.M.. Oar features quiet, stark folk; odd turns of phrase; old-timey shuffles; playful swing; and pretty melodies croaked out from Spence's hoarse voice. Generally, the mood is blissed out, with the occasional apocalyptic dread ("Cripple Creek," "Books of Moses") and dissociated narratives ("Margaret-Tiger Rug," "Lawrence of Euphoria") that came naturally to the poor soul who spent time in psychiatric institutions prior to his death at age 52. This Sundazed reissue includes new liner notes, plus 10 additional tracks, including five previously unissued recordings. --Jason Gross

Product Description
Digitally remastered reissue of the now-legendary 1969 solo debut by this member of Moby Grape. Features 10 bonus tracks, all recorded during the last days of the heady and historic album sessions ('This Time He Has Come', 'It's The Best Thing For You', 'Keep Everything Under Your Hat', 'Furry Heroine (Halo Of Gold)', 'Givin' Up Things', 'If I'm Good', 'You Know', 'Doodle', 'Fountain' and 'I Think You And I'). 22 tracks total. 1999 release.

Oar,Alexander "Skip" Spence,Sundazed Music Inc.,Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop

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Oar [Original recording remastered]

Average customer rating: Strange and beautiful. Eccentric nugget preserved from extinction What Is The Sound Of One Oar Flopping? This Will Never Happen Again in the Pop Music Industry A soul crying out for love, like all souls do...

Oar Alexander "Skip" Spence Manufacturer: Sundazed Music Inc. ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Canada | North America | International | Styles | Music Singer-Songwriters | Pop | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music Folk Rock | Rock | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Psychedelic Rock | Classic Rock | Styles | Music Alternative Folk | Contemporary Folk | Folk | Styles | Music Similar Items: Moby Grape The United States of America Electric Music for the Mind and Body Wow/Grape Jam Vincebus Eruptum ASIN: B00000JJ2R Release Date: 1999-07-20

Tracks:

1. Little Hands
2. Cripple Creek
3. Diana
4. Margaret-Tiger Rug
5. Weighted Down (The Prison Song)
6. War In Peace
7. Broken Heart
8. All Come To Meet Her
9. Books Of Moses
10. Dixie Peach Promenade (Yin For Yang)
11. Lawrence Of Euphoria
12. Grey/Afro
13. This Time He Has Come
14. It's The Best Thing For You
15. Keep Everything Under Your Hat
16. Furry Heroine (Halo Of Gold)
17. Givin' Up Things
18. If I'm Good
19. You Know
20. Doodle
21. Fountain
22. I Think You And I

Amazon.com

The only solo album from this former Jefferson Airplane and Moby Grape cult hero is something of a legend. Cut in four days all by himself, it bombed upon its release in 1969. Nevertheless, Spence's legend has led to devotion from such fans as Tom Waits, Robert Plant, Beck, and R.E.M.. Oar features quiet, stark folk; odd turns of phrase; old-timey shuffles; playful swing; and pretty melodies croaked out from Spence's hoarse voice. Generally, the mood is blissed out, with the occasional apocalyptic dread ("Cripple Creek," "Books of Moses") and dissociated narratives ("Margaret-Tiger Rug," "Lawrence of Euphoria") that came naturally to the poor soul who spent time in psychiatric institutions prior to his death at age 52. This Sundazed reissue includes new liner notes, plus 10 additional tracks, including five previously unissued recordings. --Jason Gross

Album Description

Digitally remastered reissue of the now-legendary 1969 solo debut by this member of Moby Grape. Features 10 bonus tracks, all recorded during the last days of the heady and historic album sessions ('This Time He Has Come', 'It's The Best Thing For You', 'Keep Everything Under Your Hat', 'Furry Heroine (Halo Of Gold)', 'Givin' Up Things', 'If I'm Good', 'You Know', 'Doodle', 'Fountain' and 'I Think You And I'). 22 tracks total. 1999 release.

Customer Reviews:

Strange and beautiful........2007-07-09

Alexander "Skip" Spence was one of the great unheralded architcts of the 60s music scene. He was an exceptionally talented drummer, guitarist, and songwriter, whose compositions and performances combined the hippest modern sounds of the day with authentic elements of American roots music to create an earthy, original, and incredibly influential sound. As a founding member of three of the West Coast's most important groups (The Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jefferson Airplane, and Moby Grape, in that order), Spence was one of the key players in the San Fransisco-based psychedelic scene.

Spence also had his share of personal prolems- perhaps the most serious of these was his schizophrenia. In 1968 (after reportedly attempting to break into one of his fellow Grape members' hotel room with an axe), he was sent to the criminal ward at Bellvue Hospital in New York. When he got out six months later, he had little more than hospital-issue pyjamas and a notebook full of songs. Wanting to be alone with his music, Spence decided not to return to California, and instead rode down to Nashville, where he recorded what he'd written in Bellvue. The recording process was an incredibly solitary affair- Spence sang, played all of the instruments, and produced. The resultng album was Oar. After its release in 1969, Spence rode off on a motorcycle (don't ask me where he got it) and never recorded again.

With that in mind, it really is hard to see Oar as anything other than a glimpse into the mind of a doomed visionary. And really, that's what it is. The songs are stark and uncompromising, written and performed without the slightest concession to commerciality or accessibility. Listening to them, one gets the feeling that Spence was trying to create the most emotionally honest music he possibly could, to create a body of work that captured exactly who he was and how he felt at a given point in time. This doesn't make for an instantly accessable experience- that probably explains why the album sold so badly on initial release- but repeated listenings reveal a set of tense, poetic, and often beautiful songs, the work of a brilliant but deeply disturbed young man who was hanging somewhere on the edge of sanity.

The first thing you should know about the sound of Oar is that it's not really a psychedelic album- the songs are certainly unusual, full of strange rhythms, odd melodies, obscure lyrics, and other experimental flourashes, but these touches aren't the heart of Oar's concept. Instead, Spence takes most of his cues from folk, blues, country, gospel, and occasionally jazz, folding these various influences into a unique sound under the auspicies of his off-kilter approach to songwriting. The songs are quiet, performed mostly with accoustic guiars, gentle drums, and softly intoned vocals. They're also incredibly dense, with melodies hiding in the heavy production, with Spence's lyrical insights drifting among disjointed guitar chords and softly beating drums. "Margaret-Tiger Rug" is based on an inside-out vaudville melody and a bit of whispering, ponderous percussion which combines with Spence's eerily dark lyrics to form a genuinly unsettling song. The incredible "Books of Moses" is an apocalyptic accoustic blues, which matches a creeping, gospel-tinged guitar riff with Spence's hoarse, menacing vocal performance. "Broken Heart," "Dixie Peach Promenade," and "Weighted Down (The Prison Song)" are dark, atmospheric country numbers that seem to channel the dark ghost of Hank Williams. "Cripple Creek" is a heavy, halucinatory folk song with surreal, evocative lyrics, and "Little Hands" is a genuinly catchy almost-anthem for outcasts and wayward dreamers. "Diana" is an oddly gorgeous ballad that sees Spence painting pictures with the sheer sound of his voice while a guitar mumbles beneath. "War in Peace" is about as close as this album gets to psychedelia, with its siren song vocals and atmospheric electric guitar. "All Come to Meet Her" is a dreamy song that features some gently rolling rhythms and lilting guitars. "Lawrence From Euphoria" is a mean, oddly funny number that cleans the pallate and sets the stage for the album's incredible closer, the epic "Grey/Afro." Building itself up from a tense, omnious vocal melody to a full-n instrumental showcase, "Grey/Afro" is a stormy, atmospheric classic that shows off Spence's unique powers as a drummer.

This reissue of the album tacks on ten bonus tracks from the Oar sessions and includes some excellent exapanded liner notes (including two essays, Greil Marcus' review, and the record's original sleeve notes) makeing it the definitive edition of this lost classic. If you want to hear some truly original, unusual (or just plain good) music, you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy of Oar. If its songs repel you at first, give it time; it really is a great album.

Eccentric nugget preserved from extinction.......2007-01-11

Alexander "Skip" Spence, according to the liner notes in Oar, recorded the entire album himself in short sessions after checking out of a sanitarium. With a story like that, it's hard not to get interested in what promises to be a weird, inspired outing. You're in luck--although Spence's sometimes unfocused songwriting and his decision to play all of the instruments hold Oar back from being a flawless outing, it's a classic of 60's psychedelia and still holds up well nearly 40 years later.

Within the first three tracks, Spence shows his propensity for different singing voices, with an airy falsetto on the joyful "Little Hands," a Fred Neil-like baritone on the dark country folk of "Cripple Creek," and a wheezy, tired whisper on "Diana." Throughout the album he'll continue using these voices, and it works pretty well. The songs are mysterious, but not really in a scary way. "Margaret-Tiger Rug" marks one of a few lighthearted romps with some pretty clever lines and observations. "Weighted Down" is a dirge-like hippie anthem, and "War In Peace" grooves along with spacey echoes.

When he's not playing idiosyncratic folk and blues ("Books of Moses" is pretty darn bluesy), Spence is stretching out some genre-defying psychedelia, as on the epic closer, "Grey/Afro." It's a perfect soundtrack for chilling out, but Oar also holds up to active listening, with some pretty decent lyrics and playing (though sometimes the bass/drum playing is a bit pedestrian).

The bonus tracks, although there are many of them, are mostly songs that didn't make it on the album for good reason--they're incomplete ideas, played even less well than the album's weaker tracks. It's pretty interesting to have the entire sessions on one disc, though.

If you're a fan of the bands Spence was in before Oar, I'd recommend giving this a try, and I'd also recommend it to fans of weird psych folk in the style of Syd Barret. Have a fun trip . . .

What Is The Sound Of One Oar Flopping?.......2006-12-23

There's a reason Oar flopped when it was released back in 1969: it sucks! Thirty eight years later, with Skip Spence safely in his grave, some now give this pitiful mess *five* stars. Since you can't give more than five stars here, they're saying Oar is on a par with masterpieces like Sergeant Pepper... Dark Side of the Moon... Led Zeppelin 4....! (Just between you and me, I think the US government is still secretly drugging people.)

With all due respect to Skip's venerable memory, Oar is a painful aural experience. The first two tracks, Little Hands and Cripple Creek, are halfway good, and show some production values; but things quickly deteriorate from there. One gets the impression the rest of Oar was cobbled together in the recording studio just prior to taping - then put in the can after only one or two takes. Lastly, the bass playing and drumming are just gawdawful.

Yes, it's too bad that things ended up like they did for Skip. And it's hard not to sympathize with him - he flew high only to crash hard. But let's keep a sense of perspective: His tragedy did not translate into good music. One extra star in his memory.

This Will Never Happen Again in the Pop Music Industry.......2006-11-27

This is a rare album. People who love the album often discover its darkness during their own personal moments of darkness and despair. What makes this album special is that it either saves these people or it aggravates their condition. You can rise up or fall down in Skip's ashes with this thing. Everyone knows about the six months that led up to this oddity, but I would love to know more about the four days (or so) that took place inside the Columbia studios in Nashville. It just shocks me that a major label allowed this to happen. VERY reminiscent, albeit on a much smaller scale, of David Geffen's heavy funding of Gene Clark's lavishly overbudget "No Other". Geffen was hoping Gene would rekindle some of the Byrds magic, whereas someone at Columbia was hoping to cash in on Skippy's San Fran connection? Not sure what the story is with this. I know this album was not even two years removed from the Grape's glory days with Columbia, when major labels were crawling that famous intersection in SF looking to sign any band that walked.

More importantly, it happened. It's a story I doubt you will ever see happen again. I am sure the Columbia records brass must have laughed at this, what would be one of their all-time worst-sellers, but it got released. It didn't get canned, it got released. I would love to know the champions over at Columbia who made sure of it. We owe them a debt of gratitude.

"Said my being gone was the best thing for you..." Not for me, Skip...

A soul crying out for love, like all souls do..........2006-11-15

This is undeniably a tragic yet great album. A friend of mine can't play it anymore, because he can't stand hearing a soul in torment, which is what the album is. It's so naked emotionally. Spence just bears everything, his very being, his very soul. The only other albums that come close to this is Nick Drake's final studio album, Pink Moon, and Lee Hazlewood's emotionally wretching Requiem for an Almost Lady. I won't recount Spence's back story, for other reviewers have done it very well. The songs go right to your very being. There is no BS here. This was who Spence was at the time, warts and all. It is a testament to another sensitive, young soul destroyed by celebrity, the "business", drugs, etc., etc.. This was Spence's only real solo album, and it's a true masterpiece, mysterious, moving, and beautiful.

Average customer rating: It was good

More Oar: A Tribute to Alexander "Skip" Spence Various Artists Manufacturer: Birdman ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Lo-Fi | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Jangle Pop | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Experimental Rock | Rock | Alternative Styles | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Neo-Psychedelia | Rock | Alternative Styles | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Alternative Dance | Alternative Styles | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Alt-Country & Americana | Country | Styles | Music Outlaw & Progressive Country | Country | Styles | Music General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music General | Dance Pop | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Singer-Songwriters | Pop | Styles | Music Adult Alternative | Pop | Styles | Music Folk Rock | Rock | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music General | Compilations | Rock | Styles | Music Roots Rock | Rock | Styles | Music Album-Oriented Rock (AOR) | Classic Rock | Styles | Music Poetry | Poetry, Spoken Word & Interviews | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music Similar Items: Oar Sing a Song for You: A Tribute to Tim Buckley The Destroyed Room: B-Sides and Rarities Moby Grape Twelve ASIN: B000050HTL Release Date: 1999-07-06

Tracks:

1. Little Hands - Robert Plant
2. Cripple Creek - Mark Lanegan
3. Diana - Alejandro Escovedo
4. Margaret Tiger-Rug - The Durocs
5. Weighted Down (The Prison Song) - Jay Farrar & The Sir Omaha Quintet
6. War In Peace - Mudhoney
7. Broken Heart - Robyn Hitchcock
8. All Come To Meet Her - Diesel Park West
9. Books Of Moses - Tom Waits
10. Dixie Peach Promenade (Yin For Yang) - Greg Dulli
11. Lawrence Of Euphoria - The Ophelias
12. Grey-Afro - Flying Saucer Attack
13. This Time He Has Come - Alistair Galbraith
14. It's The Best Thing For You - Engine 54
15. Keep Everything Under Your Hat - Outrageous Cherry
16. Halo Of Gold - Beck
17. Doodle - The Minus 5

Album Description

1999 tribute the the overlooked musical genius of this former Moby Grape/Jefferson Airplane member who died just days after this project was completed. Features exclusive tracks from Beck, Robert Plant, Tom Waits, Mudhoney, Robyn Hitchcok, Diesel Park West, Greg Dulli (Afgan Whigs) and Flying Saucer Attack. 17 tracks total. The full title is 'More Oar - A Tribute To The Skip Spence Album'.

Customer Reviews:

It was good.......2001-08-24

It was a good CD, there is not much else to say. Not all of the songs were recognizeable, amazing, life-altering songs, but i enjoyed listening to this CD

Average customer rating:

The Situation Manufacturer: Oar Fin Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD ASIN: B000B9W3PK

Product Description

1. A Girl Like You 2. Dusk Til Dawn 3. Feeling So Strong 4. So In Love 5. Don't Throw Those Dreams Away 6. Across The River 7. Another Day 8. Howl Of The Night 9. Ain't No Rhythm Like Ours 10. End Of The Rainbow 11. Don't Fade Away

Average customer rating:

Under Cover Manufacturer: Oar-Fin Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD ASIN: B0002916CU

Product Description

Eric Allen & Royal Blue hail from Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Band is made up of Eric Allen - Vocals, Lead & Rhythm Guitar, Van Mattson - Lead and Rhythm Guitar, Brian Henz - Drums & Percussions & Mike Riddler - Bass. Track Listing: 1. Under Cover 2. Hey Baby 3. Tell Me 4. Noah's Blues 5. Brother's Charm 6. You're A Trip 7. Things We Do 8. Taxi Shuffle 9. Queen Of Her World 10. Spendin' Time

Average customer rating:

The Lady of the Ocean Wants to Play! Manufacturer: Oar Fin Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD ASIN: B000307A1E

Product Description

Fourteen tracks from San Francisco singer/songwriter Wendy Westman.

Average customer rating:

Evolve Manufacturer: Oar Fin ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD ASIN: B0009R3LM8

Average customer rating:

Acting Up Fanatics Manufacturer: Oarfin ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD ASIN: B0007L0CWS Release Date: 1997-01-01

Tracks:

1. Free Me
2. Take Five
3. White Horses
4. Jeanne
5. Hey Charlie
6. Money
7. Breakfast in Bed
8. Live It Out
9. Rattle My Cage
10. Peace and Harmony
11. Jack City

Product Description

Minneapolis band. 11 Tracks. 1.Free Me 2.Take Five 3.White Horses 4.Jeanne 5.Hey Charlie 6.Money 7.Breakfast In Bed 8.Live It Out 9.Rattle My Cage 10.Peace and Harmony 11.Jack City

Average customer rating:

Wlid Childhood Manufacturer: Oar Fin Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD ASIN: B000CK52QA

Product Description

Ten tracks: Take Me, Sweet Lovin', The Great Big Reptile, Set Me Free, Untied, Circle, Dreamers and Lovers, Stick It To Ya', Got Lucky, and Children of the Sun.

Average customer rating:

Oar Alexander Skip Spence Manufacturer: K-Tel Ent. ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD ASIN: B00000D0J9 Release Date: 1996-10-15

Tracks:

1. Little Hands
2. Cripple Creek
3. Diana
4. Margaret-Tiger Rug
5. Weighted Down (The Prison Song)
6. War In Peace
7. Broken Heart
8. All Come To Meet Her
9. Books Of Moses
10. Dixie Peach Promenade
11. Lawrence Of Euphoria
12. Grey/Afro
13. This Time He Has Come
14. It's The Best Thing For you
15. Keep Everything Under Your Hat
16. Halo Of Gold
17. Doodle

Average customer rating:

Sick Fun Manufacturer: Oar Fin Distribution ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD ASIN: B00079T5LE

Product Description

Minneapolis band. 12 tracks. 1. No Longer Blind 2. Knew You Were Dead 3. Stay High 4. What To Do 5. My Star 6.4:29 7. Throwaway 8. Princess Of No One 9. Not Grounded 10. Nothing At All 11. I Blame You 12. Backseat Baby

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9. Scenes One Through Thirteen
10. Seven More Minutes

Rap Music

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