Continuing on with my delving into the Bosstown sound era, Ford Theatre was a psychedelic rock band formed in 1966 from The Continentals, which itself formed in 1961, and the band originated in Boston, Massachusetts. The band released a couple of albums before parting ways in 1971, the second of which is what I’ll be listening to tonight. I can’t find a whole lot more information on the band, so I’m going to go ahead and jump into the music.
“Introduction” starts out in an almost symphonic fashion, and movements akin to classical genres. The electric guitar gradually melts in with some chimes to stir the guitar into the tune a bit, and really creates a peaceful intro for the album.
“Time Changes” has a really interesting sound to it, as the band genre fall into this sort of frolicking track that features light psychedelic touches from the guitar, chimes, and organ while remaining a very pleasant sort of folksy softer rock tune. I’m definitely enjoying this one. The strings bring a really pleasant roundedness to this one. Oh wow, the intensity just kicked up a notch. I really dig the way the vocals and drums sound in the mix. Wow, this tune is pretty sweet in the way it’s melted and slowly progressed into something a bit more psychedelic.
Oh wow, “Interlude One” segues into the playing very nicely with the warm, deep acoustic guitar. This is a bit strange, as the vocals are telling something of story at the moment in a very conversational manner. Really interesting tune.
Oh wow, “That’s My Girl” has an almost bluesy inflection to this rollicking somewhat psychedelic rock and roll. The piano is super tasty, while the electric guitar plays some short staccato’d chops to give the tune some rhythm. Oh wow, this horn part is absolutely deliciously awesome. I’m really digging how much this tune seems to progress over the track. Oh wow, the piano at the very end is super groovy.
“Wake Up In The Morning” has a very gentle feel at the beginning. Oh wow, this sounds like a really tasty personal psychedelic ballad. The strings on this one bring a really nice sweetness that are counterbalanced by the bluesy pseudo-psychedelia of the piano parts. Oh wow, the guitar sounds like it’s almost crying out to a certain extent. The drums and bass are super tasty in this one, as the drums develop into somewhat of a shuffle and the bass really bridges the gap between the drums and other instrumentation quite well. Absolutely awesome song.
“I’ve Got the Fever” has a classic 60s psychedelic blues-inflected rock tune, complete with a bit of twangy distortion in the guitar and chorus vocals that sort of tie the song together. The lead vocals shout into the song quite well in an almost proclamatory fashion. This one has a really tasty almost California-esque psychedelic surf rock sound to it. The bass sort of plucks around and stirs the song in a really groovy sound. Oh wow, the waves of discordant piano in the background cause ripples through the rest of the instrumentation that work well with the organs to keep things somewhat cohesive. Oh wow, the wah-wah on the one guitar is super tasty. This is one groovy, epic psychedelic jam. The horns add some great flavor as the jam continually builds with no stop in sight. The drums have a wonderfully steady feel until they build up to epic rolls – super groovy. Definitely an awesome tune.
“Crash” starts in an absolutely deliciously groovy and psychedelic fashion. There’s chatter all around while the organs/keyboard swirl around in an almost bubblingly swishy fashion, while the tremelo effect on the guitar really gives things a strange steadiness complemented by the drums and bass. Finally, it’s topped off with some super tasty horns.
Oh wow, “At the Station” is almost like a country rock tune with a really groovy back beat and twanginess in both the guitar and vocals. That piano has a really saloon-like rollicking nature to it, and I’m really digging it. This honestly reminds me of The Byrds or The Flying Burrito Brothers. Wow, this tune is pretty sweet, and honestly totally unexpected and completely fresh. There’s almost a dreaminess to the guitars as they sort of melt into one another, trading off some lines throughout the tune. The outro of the tune is a train rolling down the line, with someone telling you that, essentially, side A of the album just finished.
Oh wow, “Back to Philadelphia” starts out with some extremely tasty bluesy psychedelic rock that slowly builds on itself as the music swirls around the soundscape. Oh wow, the music is making me make faces as I’m getting down to the playing in this one. There’s such a patient assuredness to the vocals in this one as the guitars wah-wah around and the organs swirl the tune together. The horns only add to the epic patience of this song, creating a really groovy song in total. Honestly it’s got a little funk to it, and reminds me quite a bit of Allen Toussaint. Wow, this tune is super tasty and even more groovy.
“Clifford’s Dilemma” has an almost bluesy jazz club feel to it as the playing sort of takes its time to build. A super bright stringed instrument comes in and beckons the song along a sweet line for a moment, after which the tune sounds even bluesier as it returns to the original melody. There’s definitely a somewhat optimistic sound from this instrumental track, however.
“Jefferson Airplane” starts out with some super cool drum fills, which drops the tune into a psyched out groovy jam with the guitars, organs, and drums. The bass line is pretty sweet as it sounds like it does some super tasty and subtle steering of the main melody. The organs continue shimmering throughout the tune, while the wah-wahs on the guitar really make the song drip with flavor. I really dig the drum fills that keep the song rolling steady throughout. The vocals are super sweet in this one to, and definitely have a lot of musicality to them in this one. Definitely a deliciously groovy tune.
“I Feel Uncertain” has an almost soft, frolicking rock sound to this one, with the band seemingly taking things back around to the beginning of the album. Oh wow, the playing is absolutely lovely from this one, especially as the bass and acoustic guitars seem to sync up and form a super tasty coalition of music. Things feel like they’re starting to wind down a little bit on this album, and the sweetness of this track simply adds to the deliciousness of the album.
“Interlude Two” continues the story started earlier in the album with the first interlude, though it feels like there was a lot of the story told from within the other songs as well. Definitely an interesting continuation in the album.
“Good Thing / Outroduction” definitely has a really optimistic conclusory feeling in the music in this one. The band definitely feels like they’re pulling into the station, especially the quick rolls from the drums. The optimistic ending to this album almost reminds me particularly of The Beatles. Oh wow, the dreaminess of the harps at the end in combination with the optimistic ending to the story that the band told throughout the album really has a hopeful feeling to it. Definitely a sweet end to this album.
Wow, this album was really awesome. This album was a great psychedelic progressive rock album, and definitely continued the story and playing in a very natural flow throughout the composition. If you’re into psychedelic rock or early progressive rock, this might be one you want to consider checking out. There are definitely some unique and tasty elements to the playing in this one that will make me want to listen to the album again sometime. I’ll be looking into getting this one on vinyl too. If you do decide to give this one a listen, I sincerely hope that you enjoy the listening experience at least as much as I did.
-A