Ambrosia was rock band that was formed in Los Angeles in 1970. Though the band formed in 1970, their first album wasn’t released until 1975. As a fan of the Grateful Dead, the keyboardist Bruce Hornsby, who played with the Dead for a bit in the 1990s, had a brief stint in Ambrosia in the early 1980s. Ambrosia had five of their singles reach the top 40s in the charts in the late 1970s. Though the band split up in the early 1980s after about a 12 year run, the group reunited with four original members in 1989. This album, Ambrosia (1975), is the group’s debut album, and contains a song that made it to the top 20 in the charts. I’m pretty excited to give this one a listen, so with said, I’m going to jump on into the music.
“Nice, Nice, Very NIce” starts with a big, strong bass line that is accompanied by some sweet high hats. Holy smokes, the guitar comes in with a nearly funk sound reminiscent of Stevie Wonder on the clavinet, and the organs soon come swirling in and hooking me into the song in the process. Oh wow, the vocals have an interesting accent to them that sounds as though they’re trying to mimic and enhance the sound of Donovan’s voice. This track reminds me of an evolved version of a progressive rock sound from the early 1970s, and I’m really digging it so far. Oh wow, the soundscape softens up really nicely and introduces some really sweet acoustic guitar. The vocals seem to echo across the soundscape in the different layers of the track. Holy smokes, there’s an instrumental jam with some really groovy instrumentation that ranges between a tight, orchestral rock feel and a smooth psychedelic rock feel. Oh wow, there’s either a saxophone of some sort or a synth that mimics the sound of a saxophone, or perhaps both, which brings a sort of early 1980s rock feel and somehow pulls me further into the listening experience in the process. Wow, great track, and I’m excited to hear more.
“Time Waits for No One” starts with a super smooth segue from the previous track with some interesting percussion that sounds as though someone is winding a clock. Oh wow, the different guitars and keyboards into the soundscape with a similar winding sound. Wow, this is super groovy. I’m really reminded of the late 1960s and early 1970s psychedelia-influenced progressive rock bands, but this album seems to have a higher production quality compared to some of those albums. Oh wow, this track keeps evolving to a point where the soundscape approaches a sort of Tex-Mex on-the-border sound that naturally segues into a slow, psychedelic jazz and soft rock fusion sound. Wow, great track.
“Holdin’ On to Yesterday” starts out with a really groovy bass line, a super tight beat, and some really mellow keys. Oh wow, a guitar comes in and seems to drip into the soundscape. Oh wow, the organs have a really groovy swirling sound that seem to continually rise alongside the chorus vocals, nearly sounding like a church organ mixed with a church choir. Holy smokes, the guitar solo starts out with a bit of stutter that gradually melts together in a sort of style that reminds me of David Gilmour. Oh wow, this song is super groovy. The more I listen to the track, the more I draw similarities to Pink Floyd. Oh wow, I really dig the end of the song. Great track.
Holy smokes, “World Leave Me Alone” gets grooving right away with some really interesting blues rock sounds from the electric and acoustic guitars that are set to a big beat. I really dig that bass-y synth that bubbles up from the bottom of the soundscape. I’m really reminded again of the prog rock styles of both David Gilmour and Roger Waters, though I think this song causes me to think of the Roger Waters album I listened to recently in particular. Holy smokes, there’s a really interesting coda near the end of the song that nearly picks up a sort of bright and somewhat mellow EDM sound before getting back into the riff to finish the song. Great track.
“Make Us All Aware” starts out with gradually building and somewhat ominous sound effects that eventually give way to a really sweet movement with some lighthearted piano, a dynamic beat, and a really groovy bass line while the vocals gradually melt into the soundscape with harmonizations that make me think of Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys. Oh wow, some really far out synth effects guide the soundscape into spacey territory while the rest of the instrumentation propels the soundscape forward. Super sweet track.
Oh wow, “Lover Arrive” begins with a seamless segue from the previous track into some really sweet piano. Oh wow, there’s a flute (or perhaps a mellotron) that comes into the soundscape that somehow sweetens the song more. The vocals really complement the sweetness of the piano and the flute nicely. Holy smokes, there are more sweet layers added in the form of a harp, cello, and some swirling organs at different points in the tune. Wow, great track.
“Mama Frog” gets started with a countdown on what sounds like the bass, and after the countdown the drums get into a really groovy swing with some tight accompanying instrumentation that makes me think of Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention. Oh wow, the track gets grooving into a somewhat dark, synth-filled jam that I’m really digging. Oh wow, there’s a section in the song that features some synth bass, some experimental sound effects, and a dark, eerie narration of the poem, “Jabberwocky”, by Lewis Carroll. Oh wow, the poem ends and the instrumentation almost sounds like it’s simultaneously unwinding and sucking together. Wow, super sweet track.
Oh wow, “Drink of Water” starts with a mixture of lifting church organs, gospel chorus vocals, and some really sweet bass and guitar work. Oh wow, the guitar work has such a sweet tone that feels like it’s somehow lifting up the soundscape as the song continues. This song almost feels as the band is tying the album together with a religious experience in the form of this super groovy jam. Holy smokes, the tune mellows out into a really peaceful movement that almost sounds like the instrumentation somehow forms a tranquil river around you. Wow, great track, and a great way to end the album.
Holy smokes, this album is sweet. The listening experience is one that sounds like both a well-crafted and natural evolution of the music within, as well as the progressive rock genre as a whole in the timeline from the late 1960s and working through the early 1970s. If you’re into progressive rock at all and are a fan of the psychedelic prog rock groups from the late 1960s, then you might want to consider checking out this album. If you do decide to give this album a listen, I sincerely do hope that you enjoy the experience at least as much as I did.
-A