Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus

Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus
Studio album by Spirit
Released November 27, 1970
Recorded April–October 1970
Genre Psychedelic rock[1]
Length 38:58
Label Epic
Producer David Briggs
Spirit chronology
Clear
(1969)Clear1969		 Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus
(1970)		 Feedback
(1972)Feedback1972
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Robert ChristgauB link

Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus is the fourth album by the American psychedelic rock group Spirit. It was produced by David Briggs, who is best known for his work with Neil Young. The original LP was released in 1970 by Epic. The band's lowest charting album to that point, it peaked at #63 on the Billboard 200 in February 1971, spending only fourteen weeks on the chart. However, it sold well as a catalog item and became the band's only album to ultimately attain a RIAA gold certification in the U.S., achieving that status in 1976.[3] On the Canadian RPM Magazine Top 100 charts, the album reached #49 and was in the top 100 for 10 weeks.[4]

"Nature's Way" became one of Spirit's signature songs, but was not a big hit at the time, peaking at #111 on the Billboard pop charts in 1971. To capitalize on the album's enduring appeal, "Mr. Skin" (the B-side of "Nature's Way") was released as an A-side in 1973 and also charted, peaking at #92.

The album was re-issued on CD in 1996 by Sony in remastered form, with bonus tracks.

Reception

Writing in Rolling Stone, Nick Tosches opined that the album was a "blockbuster" despite some shortcomings.[5]

Track listing

All songs written by Randy California except noted:

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Prelude – Nothin' to Hide" 3:41
2."Nature's Way" 2:30
3."Animal Zoo"Ferguson3:20
4."Love Has Found a Way"California, Locke2:42
5."Why Can't I Be Free?" 1:03
6."Mr. Skin"Ferguson3:50
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
7."Space Child"Locke3:26
8."When I Touch You"Ferguson5:35
9."Street Worm"Ferguson3:40
10."Life Has Just Begun" 3:22
11."Morning Will Come" 2:58
12."Soldier" 2:43
Total length:38:58
Bonus tracks on the 1996 reissue
Bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Rougher Road" †¹"  
14."Animal Zoo (mono single version) †"Ferguson 
15."Morning Will Come (mono version) †¹"  
16."Red Light Roll On (mono single version) †"  
  • † - Tracks specific to the 1996 reissue
  • ¹ - Previously unreleased material

Personnel

Spirit

Additional personnel

  • Matt Andes - Dobro (on "Nothin' to Hide")

Production

  • David Briggs - Producer
  • Vic Anesini - Mastering
  • Adam Block - Project Director
  • David Blumberg - Horn Arrangements ("Mr. Skin", "Morning Will Come")
  • Ira Cohen - Photography
  • Jeff Smith - Package Design
  • Bob Irwin - Compilation Producer

Charts

Album

Year Chart Position
1971 Billboard 200 63
1971 RPM TOP 100 49

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Sir Robbo's Double Dipped Dozen: a psychedelic summer selection" (PDF). Cyclic Defrost. November 1998. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
  2. ↑ Unterberger, Richie. "Spirit - Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus". AllMusic. Retrieved 2013-02-20.
  3. ↑ RIAA Database
  4. ↑ title RPM Magazine
  5. ↑ Tosches, Nick (4 March 1971). "Spirit: Twelve Dreams Of Dr. Sardonicus : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 10 April 2009. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.