Country Joe & The Fish - The Collected Country Joe & The Fish - 1965 to 1970

Country Joe and the Fish was an American psychedelic rock band formed in Berkeley, California, in 1965. The band was among the influential groups in the San Francisco music scene during the mid- to late 1960s. Much of the band's music was written by founding members Country Joe McDonald and Barry "The Fish" Melton, with lyrics pointedly addressing issues of importance to the counterculture, such as anti-war protests, free love, and recreational drug use. Through a combination of psychedelia and electronic music, the band's sound was marked by innovative guitar melodies and distorted organ-driven instrumentals which were significant to the development of acid rock.

The band self-produced two EPs that drew attention on the underground circuit before signing to Vanguard Records in 1966. Their debut album, Electric Music for the Mind and Body, followed in 1967. It contained their only nationally charting single, "Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine", and their most experimental arrangements. Their second album, I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die, was released in late 1967; its title track, with its dark humor and satire, became their signature tune and is among the era's most recognizable protest songs. Further success followed, including McDonald's appearance at Woodstock, but the group's lineup underwent changes until its disbandment in 1970. Members of the band continue in the music industry as solo recording artists and sporadically reconvene.

This exemplary 19-cut collection (with discography!) is a good place to start, with three tracks off the seminal Rag Baby EP, plus Fish favorites like Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine; The Fish Cheer/I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die Rag , and more.


Tracklist:

1 Superbird 3:09
2 Bass Strings 3:57
3 Section 43 6:42
4 Flying High 2:38
5 Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine 4:20
6 Death Sound Blues 4:22
7 Porpoise Mouth 2:49
8 Sad And Lonely Times 2:22
9 The 'Fish' Cheer / I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die Rag 3:41
10 Rock Coast Blues 3:39
11 Janis 2:36
12 Eastern Jam 4:21
13 Good Guys / Bad Guys Cheer 0:43
14 Rock And Soul Music 6:45
15 An Untitled Protest 2:45
16 Here I Go Again 3:23
17 Maria 3:30
18 Crystal Blues 5:44
19 Rockin' Round The World 3:37

Country Joe & The Fish - The Collected Country Joe & The Fish - 1965 to 1970

(320 kbps, cover art included)