Music : Sunshine Superman

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Rating:

- Donovans Psychedelic masterpiece
Psychedelic Rock! Yes kiddies, this is one, even though it seems like a Keltic/folk rock/pop album.

During the First Psychedelic Era, 1966, Donovan's laid back, happy, Summerland masterpiece was used to relax and calm down people whose heads had gotten into bad places due to bad influences. It still works for stress. It continues to be suitable (mostly) for the whole family. Donovan chose to express his ideas through 19 century Romantic, poetic images (mostly, except "the Trip"). What other images are there have been woven into the dream, you may not know they are there if you don't know where to look.

Pleasant, Contemplative, Exotic beauty from end to end. The rejected Sunshine hero of the title track who is sure his girlfriend will want him back, a girl with her hair caught in a Ferris Wheel, diving kingfishers, the cold wind in the Season of the Witch. Yes, "Fat Angel" was written to Mama Cass and mentions the Jefferson Airplane, then an unknown/alternative/underground/ rock group. People need to avoid coffee and other stimulants and relax more! In "The Trip" Donovan tells us "the seagull says, as I look to way out then,/ 'the whole wide human race is taking far too much methadrine!'". It was true in '66, it's even more true now!

Note: Dylan's music was thought to be preachy. "Blowin in the Wind" and "Hard Rain's a gonna fall" made the politically correct liberals feel self-righteous and sactimonious, but Donovan wasn't Dylan. Donovan was entertainment! You can't fault a giraffe for not being a pig.

Not a bad song. Donovan's masterpiece.

Rating:

- This album defines the '60s
I was listening to Donovan on Dec. 8th, 1980 when I heard the news. Luckily one icon of the '60s is still alive and I got to see him in '88. This album is his best; every song on it a '60s classic. I especially like The Trip. I performed that and others from this album in High School. Bert Blues is cool and the title track. This album is essentially an actualization of the '60s psychedelic ego, and defines it's own brand of coolness, not the prepackaged coolness we have in the '90s; the type where they do market research to figure out what's cool. Donovan is cool; if you think otherwise you cannot transcend the vegetable consciousness of the '90s.

Rating:

- You know
For those that love Donovan, picking a favorite album is very hard. You just keep buying the Donovan CDs you don't have, and appriciate them all. Of course, the quality of our lives would improve with the release of OPEN ROAD on cd, but who knows when or if that will happen (If you do know, e-mail me). Why is it that some of the best artists ever like Donovan and the Beach Boys can't keep all their music in print? Fight the powers that be

Rating:

- in a word-celeste
This Donovan album is his "white album". Its the defining album of Donovans career and Celeste is the greatest song I have ever heard. It is a pure gem both lyrically and instrumentally. Its a shame no sample of the song is given here. If it were it would be enough for you to buy the album without a seconds thought. It's pure art in music. If you ever get the chance to see Donovan its well worth the ticket price. I'm in my twenties and I love his music. I grew up with my father playing this album all of the time. I have great memories of this album and I hope you get it so Donovan's art can touch you and your children as it has touched me.

Rating:

- these reviewers know what they are talking about
Many artist's are harmed by a single hit that causes their whole career to be misinterpeted (e.g. Bobby McFerrin). Donovan's "hippy-dippy" image was actually earned in the late sixties with Atlantis and some frankly painful live shows. Listen to the triptych of songs "3 King Fishers", "Ferris Wheel", and "Bert's Blues" and hear an inventive artist who was his own worst enemy. (I was going to say that these songs are virtually unknown, but the two preceding reviews mention some of them.)

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