Changing Horses

Artist: The Incredible String Band
Label: Elektra
Category: Music

Average customer rating:

Format: Import
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1

UPC: 075596154925
EAN: 0075596154925
ASIN: B0000257OT

Release Date: 2006-02-28

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British Folk

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Tracks:

Big Ted
White Bird
Dust Be Diamonds
Sleepers, Awake!
Mr. and Mrs.
Creation

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Wee Tam / Big Huge
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Customer Reviews:

More Myths from Hippie Central. Great Stuff........2005-06-04

`Changing Horses' is the fourth / fifth album by the four member Incredible String Band with Robin Williamson and Mike Heron being joined for the third time by Rose and Licorice on base and guitar respectively. As with every previous album, the lion's share of the songwriting is done by Williamson, whose songs also tend to be far more deeply steeped in myth, both traditional and created. One gets the feeling that Williamson was baptised with a copy of `The Golden Bough' rather than the `Holy Bible'. I also tend to prefer Williamson's songs over Heron's in general, but this album contains `White Bird', which may very well be Heron's best effort. It is certainly his best song on TISB albums up to this point. It is almost a shame that a great song of the same name by Linda and David LaFlamme of `It's A Beautiful Day' came out about the same time. I checked my old Columbia LP of `It's A Beautiful Day' and can find no copywrite date, but I recall hearing the LaFlamme's version first.

In looking at the original release dates of the first five TISB albums, I'm surprised at how close together they are for a group which I'm sure had only a fringe audience at best. On the other hand, I'm sure they and their handlers at Elektra believed that it was best to get the releases out there while the audience was buying.

After all these years of listening to TISB on vinyl and CD, it has finally dawned on me as I reviewed `The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter' that practically all their work can be seen as a musical analogue to `The Hobbit', `Alice in Wonderland', and `Winnie the Pooh', all stories nominally written for children but probably enjoyed much more by adults, especially adults with a countercultural persuasion. These are all songs from hippie central!

Aside from `White Bird', the most outstanding number on this album is `Creation', Robin Williamson's version of Genesis for the `New Age'. In structure, the song is very similar to `Maya', the first cut on `Wee Tam', where there most lines in the song lay out a series. In this case, it is the days of the week as they were created by a distaff diety.

My impression when I originally bought this album in 1969 was that this The Incredible String Band was giving us more of the same high quality tunes and performances, but that there was not a lot of development in evidence. This was in the days when two years separated the Beatles `I Wanna Hold Your Hand' and `Please Please Me' from Eleanor Rigby' and `Yesterday'. Strong progression of style was `de rigeur'.

In retrospect, we know that The Incredible String Band' never did develop much beyond their style established in these half dozen or so albums between 1967 and 1971. Robin Williamson has retreated to doing old Celtic storytelling and covers of traditional songs which served as his original inspiration. We can give thanks to the fact that we have these on CD after all these years.

Highly recommended for all unrepentant hippies everywhere.

I'm still amazed.......2003-08-25

If there ever was something that change my life. It was definily this band. How modest they are to call themselves the Incredible Stringband when in fact they are/were the Incredible innovators of 'my thoughts' in all my early years, that is from the age of 13 well, until now. If anybody had an impact onmy life Robin certainly did. For many years ago, in Copenhagen, I meet licorice in a park, I wasgoing the same evening to a concert with the I.S.B. And there I was..... together with Licorice.. what a thrill... Until this day I remember that day. And the concert was great. There was light everywere and I mean light,because wereever the ISB played, there was light. I love these persons I know that they loved me. If ever you should listen to music, and offcourse you are, DO'NT MISS THIS. I love you but the maker he loves you the best.

THE BEGINNING OF CHANGES..........2003-03-11

CHANGING HORSES was originally released in 1969, not that long after the ISBýs WEE TAM/BIG HUGE double-LP release (separated into two individual albums for release in the good olý USA). Some of the gentle mood of WT/BH carried over into this recording, but for the most part it feels like the growth process that it is ý the band was extending its instrumental reach into electric guitars (included on 3 of the 6 tracks). The listener could almost ýfeelý what was to come with future releases ý the bandýs personnel would change and expand, and they would become more of a ýrocký outfit by the time EARTHSPAN was released in 1972. The changes were welcomed by some and dreaded by others.

The set opens with ýBig Tedý, a Robin Williamson composition devoted to the life and death of a pig ý done up in his inimitable style, and including some great, gently humorous lines. ýWhite birdý, a 14-minute-plus Mike Heron opus, follows ý the booklet reproduces Mikeýs artwork as well as his calligraphy accompanying this song. The song goes through some nice, interesting changes, and overall works very well. ýDust be diamondsý is next ý the first collaboration between Mike and Robin to appear on any of their records ý with Robin taking the lead vocal. ýSleepers awake!ý follows ý a Mike Heron composition, sung a capella by the four members of the band in their beautiful sounds-like-a-rehearsal style. The voice blend into a lovely mix, and those of the girls are particularly effective in this setting. ýMr. & Mrs.ý is next, another Robin Williamson composition. The arrangement here is the closest to a ýrocký band that appears on this record ý but itýs not at all overbearing, and seems to suit the song well. The lyrics are a bit hard to understand ý itýs always been a disappointment to me that only two of the songs (the aforementioned ýWhite birdý and ýCreationý) were included in print. The swirling Leslies on the organ played by Licorice on this track are a great touch. ýCreationý ends the album, a long (over 16 minutes) work composed by Robin. Itýs an ambitious track, working elements of several creation myths into the lyrics, and itýs successful overall. My only problem with this track (and this is a personal peeve, not a serious criticism of the bandýs work) is the inclusion of the ýmegaphoneý effect on Robinýs vocal near the end of the piece ý itýs a little too self-consciously vaudevillian for my tastes (he resorts to it again on a later album).

Robin and Mike were amazing prolific writers ý thus the frequency of the ISB releases, 12 (13 if you count WEE TAM/BIG HUGE as two) releases between 1966-1973. This is an astonishing output that doesnýt even include compilations. There are more, recordings from early in their career and recordings made since they got back together a couple of years ago. They went through a lot of changes in a short period of time ý but their work was generally of high quality, and always interesting, always pushing whatever envelope in which they imagined themselves ý much to the listenersý delight. This is one of their better efforts, close to their best ý definitely a great asset to my collection.

overall Incredible String Band rating.......2001-02-28

This album being a personal favourite, for its extended transcendental meditative trance numbers, White Bird and Creation, only gives you an idea of the ground Robin Williamson and Mike Heron are capable of breaking. Its interesting for me to look back and see how I got turned on. It wasn't immediate acceptance, me being only 21,it was over my head--I wasn't at that level yet. Couple years later, I started to see(mostly for the lively blend/fusion of eastern influence and folk-rock including innovations on the sitar). Williamson's lyrics are beyond reproach from even Bob Dylan as is his completely unique and supplemental singing style--East is as far as music goes. And the Incredible String Band is as far as Eastern goes. I now acclaim Robin Williamson as the greatest music artist(and least acknowledged) perhaps in all of history. Accompanied by Mike Heron, on any of a half a dozen instruments, this is the most farthest reaching experimentation and exploration of the ultimate limit in music. But most people we'll never even come close to "seeing". I'm deeply effended when uncultured/uneducated individuals insult their genious with rude, negative verbal insults and unsubstantiated, uneducated comparisons to the Bealtes who , of course, is probably the only band this person ever heard of(And this sorry excuse for anything claimed to be from and "know" the 60's-don't make me sick. The Beatles never had what these guys do. The comparison to me is ludicrous. Assists from Licorice and Rose are more than just whip creme and a cherry. The Incredible String Band recorded many great albums. Whether or not you listen to them depends on what you're looking for. But do you know genious when you see it?

A Classic never fades.......2000-08-19

This cd is a classic ISB cd. It is not as good as previous releases but it is still a must have for all ISB fans. Mr. and Mrs. are and Creation are among my favorites. This cd is a departure from the norm and is a nice change of pace from the everyday folk singers releasing cd's now. ISB music still remains original and cutting edge, 30 years after it was released.

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