The Association "Birthday" 1968

               Uh oh, did someone say soft psych masterpiece?  I have a running joke here at the house with my wife about soft psych.  Whenever I play an album, and she realizes what it is, she gives me a look that I have come to recognize.  On her irritating music scale, soft psych is in the 49% range.  It’s not grating for her, but it is just left of pleasant.  I always say, “But, it’s soft psych.” in a pathetic wanting voice.  Unfortunately, that does little to improve the situation.  She is not a huge fan, but tolerates my love of the genre very well.  She has even grown to like several albums by bands like The Millennium, The Free Design, and (today’s featured artist) The Association.  Soft psych is definitely an acquired taste.  You could compare it to a sweet bourbon or brandy.  The first time you try it, you are overwhelmed by its sweetness, and complexity.  However, once your pallet has matured, you can sit back and enjoy its glowing, sugary warmth. 

                “Birthday” by the Association was released in 1968, and stands as a crowning achievement for both the band and this great year in music.  While other albums were focusing on far out sounds and instrumentation, The Association spent most of its time polishing their vocal arrangements.  The result is one of the more complex vocal albums of the time.  I feel like the harmonies are far denser than other records of the era, and considering the era was known for dense vocals, that’s saying something.  When I listen to a song such as “Like Always,” I am struck by how the vocals function.  The background instruments are just simple drums, piano and bass.  The vocals act like an organ filling up the space, and provide a smoothing effect.  Move over to the bridge of the song and we get another effect.  The vocals have a jumping quality that sound more like a bouncy string quartet.    

    

            “Everything that Touches You” was a top ten hit when the album was released.  My buddy Vic had this song on a mix at his wedding, and we shared an appreciative glance as it played.  The perky, percussive bass line starts things off, but once again, it’s the vocals that carry the song through.  The tail of the song ends with a multi-layered lyric which repeats, “Love, love love, everything is love.”  I often hear that the super optimistic 60’s gave way to the cynical 70’s.  I wonder what it must have felt like to hear such a wonderfully simple proclamation of love back in a time when an entire generation of people believed that only music and love could change the world.  Imagine being a 16 year old kid sitting in your room listening to this song.  The singers are thousands of miles away sending you a harmonized message of love.  Now there’s a reason to get up in the mornin’.

                 There are also some other interesting lyrics on record.  “Time for Livin'” feels like a pretty good approximation of the Buddhist philosophy.  Every lyric explains how the singer cut through the garbage around himself and got into the present moment.  “I took off my watch and found I had all the time in the word.”  In a time when our cell phones take us so far out of the present moment, I feel like this song is more relevant than ever.  This sentiment is also echoed in “The Bus Song.”

                We also get some experiments with some interesting song structure and chord changes in “The Bus Song.”  I love how the last word of the chorus (it actually feel like you are falling) slips right back into the introduction of the song.  There is also an extended middle section that sounds like it was simply cut and pasted into the middle of the song.  It features some sleepy 'barbershop' type harmonies.  Listening to the very last chord of the song also pays off because there is a surprise inverted major 7^th chord (maybe with a 3^rd in the bass) that ends the song.  I like to think of it as a super tiny encore.     

Tones:  The vocals have a toasty quality that makes you feel like you've taken several deep breaths.  Hearing these guys breathing in and out while they are singing actually will slow down your heart beat and get you breathing easier.  I also noticed a lustful harmonica tone in “Birthday Morning” that I really loved.  It really floats the most positive qualities of wood and metal together.

Cover Note:  It’s blatantly psychedelic in both color and pop.   I also love how serious their facial expressions are.  It makes it feel a lot less goofy than some of the fun time, jumpy, throw your arms in the air and grin, album covers that I have seen (I’m looking at you Cowsills “We Can Fly”).

Price paid:  This was one of the first psych LP’s I ever bought and it was $3.00.  I know I bought another copy for my buddy Dave too.  It’s an underrated record, with one hit song, by an underrated band (a nice combo for record collectors).  That means you too should be able to find it easily.  I would hold off if it was $10.00, $7.00 should be your absolute max. 

Bottom line:  Soft Psych will put you into that nice middle territory with your family.  Most won’t love it, but most won’t hate it.  But be warned.  Just like candy, the average person can burn out quickly on soft psych.  There is a song called “Rose Petals, Incense and a Kitten” for crying out loud.  Don’t push your luck. You have been warned.