Their Organic Majesty's Request - Electric Eels (The)

Advantages: An interesting and enjoyable musical experiment from the 1960s
Disadvantages: Somewhat dated and indulgent

..., hedonism and public vilification in the tabloids, and for band founding-member Brian Jones it was the beginning of the end. It was also a year when the Stones flirted briefly with the musical genre of that moment, psychedelia. The result of that flirtation was a weird album of fairy-tale tunes that during its production had the working title of Cosmic Christmas. It was then decided to call it Her Satanic Majesty Requests and Requires, but the Stones' record company, Decca, objected, guessing that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II might not be too pleased with such a title. So on its release (Dec 1967) the album was given the more gender-neutral title of Their Satanic Majesties Request. The album shone briefly in the sun (it sold very well) before being mauled by enough critics to ensure that it was buried out of sight. It was seen by many... Read review

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Advantages: She's a rainbow is a wonderful song
Disadvantages: A bit twiddly and self-absorbed in parts

...“Their Satanic Majesties Request” was quite a departure for the Rolling Stones, even when it was released in the 60s. Nopwadays, comparing it to the rest of their huge back catalogue it still remains a bit of an oddity – quite different. So don’t expect it to be full of their usual rootsy R & B based rock. What you get instead is a psychedelic album, full of experimental doodling – basically they were trying to produce their own album to rival Sgt Pepper, and in that sense, it didn’t really work. Having said that, I don’t think it’s a bad album, and I do still enjoy listening to it, as long as I remember to program out a couple of tracks (these are “Gomper” and “2000 miles”, both of which just seem like inconsequential filler tracks to me). The album is often... Read review

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Advantages: Some of the best psychedelia ever written.
Disadvantages: Nothing like their other albums.

...the eastern influence from Sgt. Pepper (the same influence that every other band took at the time anyway), and everything else has far more in common with Piper at the Gates of Dawn or Mr. Fantasy. The screeching guitars in Citadel even reflect the American psychedelic acid rock movement of the time. Their Satanic Majesties Request is one of the rare albums where the famous tracks are generally the strongest ones on the album, which is both a good thing and a bad thing. Bad, because, In Another Land aside, there are no surprise classics on the record. Good, because 2000 Man, She's A Rainbow and 2000 Light Years From Home are astoundingly good songs. The former, with its mind-bendingly syncopated drums and two seemingly unrelated musical sections, is the most straight up standard of the three. She's A Rainbow, a gorgeous piano-led number, has... Read review

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