Future

This record has taken some flak over the years, presumably from garage rock purists who don't care for the inclusion of horns and harps. I don't understand that. To my ears this is among the quintessential psychedelic records. This Big Beat reissue sounds fantastic and the inclusion of a ton of bonus material (1 1/2 discs worth) makes it a must have for fans of the Seeds and psychedelia in general. I will mention a few highlights.It is interesting to hear how 'Contact High' morphed into 'Now A Man' for release on the original LP. The slashing, almost metal guitar on 'Gypsy Plays His Drums' is a real treat. The mono mixes are interesting and I'm glad they were included. '900 Million People Daily All Making Love' is a trance-inducing beauty and it sounds better here than on the 'Travel With Your Mind' compilation, which is likely out of print anyway. In short, I have played this two-disc set a lot since receiving it, rejoicing in the fantastic sound and the wonderful music included. This is a must-have for anyone seriously interested in psychedelic music.

I’ve been a huge Seeds fan since I first heard Pushin’ Too Hard. On the other hand, I’ve been known to say things tongue in cheek that might be considered disparaging toward them, but that was never meant in a condescending or malicious way. I will say that I’ve always considered their music accessible in that they were the ultimate garage band. It was stuff us kids could play. If these guys could do it, we could too! On the other hand, I, as well as most of my friends, were basing these opinions entirely on their 45’s because we never heard their albums. Sure, we saw those albums in the stores, but being the kids we were, we needed to save our cash for the more “serious” bands of the day! Sorry for The Seeds, it took almost fifty years to finally get serious about them and really appreciate what they did. Now, here I am with the second…yes I say, the second version of Future. I bought the first version of the CD two decades ago in Oklahoma and listened to it quite a bit. This being their “worst” album, even according to them (well the survivors, anyway). Yet, despite that, as a completest, I couldn’t resist picking up this double-down version just to get the extra stuff plus all the story behind it all in the outstanding booklet. Folks, this is a real treasure and after repeated listens to the different versions of the same album and the sessions, I’ve come to appreciate the musicians much more than I ever did back in the day. Daryl Hooper, Jan Savage and Rick Andridge have gone up a bunch of notches on my musical scale. These guys were the real deal. Not only that, but despite the dud here and there, I’ve found myself getting into the songs on Future more and more. For what was a dismal failure for the band and a whacked out experiment for Sky Saxon, probably despite him, there was some good come out of all of this. As I’ve got into The Seeds more and more, I’ve come to the conclusion that I more tolerate Sky’s vocals and get into the music, rather than the other way around. While Sky is the front man, the attention getter, I can only take so much of his snarling and whining and almost off-pitch vocals. Of course, that’s also part of the punk charm as well. Maybe if I was a girl and was seeing him gyrate on stage, I’d think different. On the other hand, listening to the swirling keyboards and the pulsating guitar which is often felt more than heard, all held together with the pounding drumming, the melodies and rhythms come together into a whole. Future is a lot better than it was given credit for. This compilation of the original album, takes and outtakes is a real treasure and a must have for any Seeds fan. Highly recommended.

The label BIG BEAT continues their Seeds collection with "Future", which was the band's 3rd L.P. release. The Album was released in July, 1967, and came in a luxurious Gatefold sleeve that featured an oil painting by local fan and female artist Sassin. The lyrics were printed on pictures of sunflowers and the L.P. also included cut-out flower stickers that represented each song for fans to cut out and paste wherever they wanted. The Album presented The Seeds as the originators of "Flower Power", and included new sounds with additional instruments that included harpsichord, gong, harp, tabla drum, cellos, sitars, tuba, flugel horn, violins, xylophone, flutes, maracas, and even a bullwhip, as snapped by Sky Saxon. At this time, the group also fell under the influence and guidance of "Lord" Tim Hudson, who was a transplanted Brit D.J. who took up residence as a D.J. on radio station KFWB in Los Angeles. Hudson also changed the image of the group from Bohemian to Mod, switching from denim & leather to Mod togs and Bell-bottoms. This was also the time when Sky started taking a lot of L.S.D., which further separated him from the other 3 members of The Seeds. The Lysergic influences are very evident in the songs, which overall, were not as strong as those in the 1st 2 L.P.'s. Still, the L.P. has enough fine moments to merit it's reputation as somewhat of a "flawed gem". Immediately upon the opening of the L.P. with "Intro/March Of The Flower Children, one can sense the change in direction of the music. Quality tracks include "Travel With Your Mind", "Out Of The Question", "Flower Lady And Her Assistant", "Now A Man", "A Thousand Shadows", "Two Fingers Pointing At You", "Six Dreams", and the nearly 8 minute finale, "Fallin'. So for better or for worse, The Seeds were now labeled as the originators of "Flower Power". In view of all of the many quality L.P.'s that surfaced in 1967, such as the debut L.P. by The Doors, Sgt. Pepper by The Beatles, and the debut L.P. by The Jimi Hendrix Experience, "Future" holds up rather well. Of course, this 2 cd set also includes the stereo album master and other mono mixes, as well as a 2nd cd of early takes, and alternate mixes that demonstrated, beneath the overdubs, the band's classic rock 'n roll heartbeat remained quite strong. Disc 2 is titled "Contact High": the "Future" sessions. The last track on the 2nd disc is titled "900 Million People Daily All Making Love", and it is the full length version that clocks at just under 10 minutes. It was the group's only 1968 single but I find it an excellent selection. One should also acknowledge that "Flower Power" was the important link between Garage-Punk and full blown Psychedelia. This 2 cd set comes with an excellent annotated 40 page booklet written by Alec Palao with contributions by guitarist Jan Savage. The remastered sound is indeed excellent for both Mono and Stereo mixes. If you are not already a Seeds fan, "Future" is not likely to convince you to jump aboard. But for those who are drawn to the somewhat irrational but yet compelling world of Sky Saxon, the L.P. is yet another invocation of his fractured genius. The new sound mix as well as the excellent 40 page booklet which is jammed with many rare photos, most of which are in color, certainly sealed the deal with me. Disc 1 tracks in at nearly 79 minutes, and disc 2 is 57 minutes long. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!! SMRZ!!!

Brought back great memories from the 60s.An album that perfectly reflects the crazy times of changes in music during that time.

terzo ed ultimo eccezionale album di questa mitica band californiana.autori di un rock psichedelico di primissima qualità disco da avere per gli amanti della psichedelia anni sessanta

Mitte der 1960er Jahre galten The Seeds geradezu als Prototyp einer US-Garagenband. Bereits die erste LP von 1966 enthielt den Genre-Hit "Pushing Too Hard". Das zweite, bereits mit psychedelischen Einsprengseln versehene, dabei wesentlich besser produzierte Album "A Web Of Sound" gilt längst als Klassiker. Später, im Zuge der Hippiebewegung, passte die Band um Sky Saxon ihren Sound zunehmend der damals aktuellen Richtung an und veröffentlichte 1967 mit "Future" ihr drittes, mit bislang höchstem Aufwand hergestellte Album. Während jedoch andere Künstler längst daran gingen, das LP-Format neu zu denken und als konzeptuelle Basis zu definieren, verharrten The Seeds - wenn auch stilistisch durchaus auf dem Stand der Zeit - eher in den Mustern der Vergangenheit und nutzten das Medium Schallplatte weiterhin wie eine bloße Sammelstelle für Singles. Das wäre nicht weiter von Belang, hätte das Material insgesamt die entsprechende Qualität. Doch leider enthält "Future" neben den zum Teil brillianten Aufnahmen der ersten LP-Seite (die Songfolge 1-7, von "Intro" bis "Now A Man") eben auch solche, die deutlich weniger originell wirken und beim näheren Hinhören den Eindruck erwecken, als seien sie bloße Outtakes aus den Sessions vorgenannter Glanzlichter. So ist "Falling" kaum viel mehr als eine Art Zweitversion von "Flower Lady & Her Assistant", und mit "A Thousand Shadows" und "Two Fingers Pointing At You" finden sich gleich zwei Nummern, die mit ihrer Akkordfolge sofort das oben genannte "Pushig Too Hard" aus dem ersten Album in Erinnerung rufen, ohne auch nur eine Ahnung von dessen Intensität zu vermitteln. Für die genannten ersten sieben Nummern - herausragend neben "Flower Lady" sei noch "Out Of The Question" erwähnt - lohnt sich das Anhören in jedem Fall, den Rest jedoch kann man sich meiner Ansicht nach schenken. Die sehr schön gestaltete Deluxe-Ausgabe mit 2 CDs wartet erwartungsgemäß mit reichhaltigem Bonus-und Fotomaterial auf, Besser ausgestattet wird man "Future" von the Seeds wohl nicht mehr bekommen. Auch die Klangqualität der Extra-Tracks ist überwiegend gut.

Sky goes all out flower power on this one. From the booklet it seems like the other bandmembers didn't appreciate that too much.But i do.They started out more like a garagerock type of band, that's true. But in 1967 everything was permited. A Tuba here and a harpsichord there. I like that.The second disc has some tracks without the overdubs. So you can make your own choice.Some say they only had one song, "Pushin too hard" and the rest is just variations of that one.Maybe so, but it's a great song nevertheless.

Excellent re-issue of the original album plus bonus tracks