Spirit of '67 [Deluxe Mono/Stereo Edition]

Paul Revere & The Raiders: Paul Revere, Mark Lindsay, Philip "Fang" Volk, Jim "Harpo" Valley, Michael "Smitty" Smith.
Producer: Terry Melcher.
Reissue producer: Bob Irwin.
Liner Note Author: Mike Stax .
Recording information: Columbia Square Studios, Hollywood, CA.
One of the truly great Paul Revere and the Raiders albums--SOMETHING HAPPENING, MIDNIGHT RIDE and REVOLUTION are the others--1966's SPIRIT OF '67 is sort of the group's RUBBER SOUL. More mature than their earlier albums, it's still got a solid bar-band heart. The opening track "Good Thing" is one of the Raiders' better singles, though it for some reason wasn't one of their bigger hits, as was the album's other single, the swaggering "Hungry."
Elsewhere, the album contains some solid Turtles-style soft pop alongside the stomping frat-rockers, and there's even a handful of folk-rockish social commentary songs such as "In My Community," "Our Candidate," and "The Great Airplane Strike." The different styles blend harmoniously, and the new artistic directions don't sound like commercial affections, but like a logical progression from the group's earlier records. This reissue contains three bonus tracks, including a swell alternate take of "Hungry."