Do You Believe in Magic (album)
| Do You Believe in Magic | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by The Lovin' Spoonful | ||||
| Released | November 1965 | |||
| Recorded | Jun 1965-Sep 1965 | |||
| Genre | Folk rock[1] | |||
| Length | 29:58 | |||
| Label | Kama Sutra | |||
| Producer | Erik Jacobsen | |||
| The Lovin' Spoonful chronology | ||||
| ||||
Do You Believe in Magic is the debut album by the folk rock group The Lovin' Spoonful. It was released in November 1965, on the Kama Sutra label. The album features the hits "Do You Believe in Magic" (U.S. No. 9) and "Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind?" (U.S. No. 2).
Do You Believe in Magic was re-released on CD in 2002 with five bonus tracks.
Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
| MSN Music | A–[1] |
In his Allmusic review, music critic William Ruhlmann wrote "The album elaborated upon Sebastian's gentle, winning songwriting style... The album also revealed the group's jug band roots in its arrangements of traditional songs... The Spoonful would be remembered as a vehicle for Sebastian's songwriting, but Do You Believe in Magic was a well-rounded collection that demonstrated their effectiveness as a group."[2]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Do You Believe in Magic" | John Sebastian | 2:07 |
| 2. | "Blues in the Bottle" | Traditional | 2:12 |
| 3. | "Sportin' Life" | Traditional | 4:04 |
| 4. | "My Gal" | Traditional | 2:38 |
| 5. | "You Baby" | Barry Mann, Phil Spector, Cynthia Weil | 2:56 |
| 6. | "Fishin' Blues" | Traditional | 2:02 |
| 7. | "Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind?" | Sebastian | 1:59 |
| 8. | "Wild About My Lovin'" | Traditional | 2:36 |
| 9. | "Other Side of This Life" | Fred Neil | 2:30 |
| 10. | "Younger Girl" | Sebastian | 2:20 |
| 11. | "On the Road Again" | Sebastian | 1:51 |
| 12. | "Night Owl Blues" | Steve Boone, Joe Butler, Sebastian, Zal Yanovsky | 3:05 |
| Bonus tracks on 2002 reissue | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
| 13. | "Alley Oop" | Dallas Frazier | 2:17 |
| 14. | "Younger Girl" (Demo) | Sebastian | 2:39 |
| 15. | "Blues in the Bottle" (Alternate Vocal) | Traditional | 3:02 |
| 16. | "Wild About My Lovin'" (Alternate Vocal) | Traditional | 2:36 |
| 17. | "Other Side of This Life" (Instrumental) | Neil | 2:31 |
Personnel
- John Sebastian – vocals, guitar, autoharp, harmonica, organ
- Steve Boone – bass, vocals
- Joe Butler – drums, percussion, vocals
- Zal Yanovsky – electric and acoustic guitar, vocals
References
- 1 2 Christgau, Robert (March 29, 2013). "The Lovin' Spoonful". MSN Music. Retrieved March 30, 2013.
- 1 2 Ruhlman, William. "Do You Believe in Magic > Review". Allmusic. Retrieved June 15, 2011.