Bo Grumpus - Before the War (Reissue) (1968/2008)

This album has a lot going for it that one would hope for from a band working out of New York -- a sharp, rootsy approach to folk-rock, honed at the Greenwich Village clubs they were playing, coupled with flashes of elegance in the production accorded by Felix Pappalardi. The result is a somewhat flowery yet economical brand of melodic, folk-based psychedelia, that manages to be electric, spacy, and trippy, all at once. The production here gave the group a somewhat more florid sound than their actual performances, but it also dressed up the songs beautifully -- had it been heard by more people, Before the War might have been regarded as an East Coast rival to the Byrds' Notorious Byrd Brothers. As it is, the album apparently never sold, but the CD still deserves a listen.