Country Joe: Recommended Listening

COUNTRY JOE MCDONALD: MORE THAN WOODSTOCK---
ABOUT 40 ALBUMS MORE
by Rip Rense here

Plus!

Sidebar:
Recommended Country Joe Listening: a Rense guide

With Country Joe and the Fish:
Every McDonald song with the group is worthwhile. Period. A few recommendations, and the albums in which they appear.

Electric Music for the Mind and Body, 1967:
https://youtu.be/i9Rcu7ORp7Q?si=cyFx0UCLQdncev_9
Bass Strings, Flying High, Death Sound Blues, Section 43.
Live: Bass Strings, 2004:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnCZs6TI498

“I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-to-Die,” 1967:
https://youtu.be/7aPJIpRNTiQ?si=SOA4tS1c5qg6QVaP
Thought Dream, Pat’s Song, Who am I?

Together, 1968:
https://youtu.be/hovr_yFcCVM?si=KkqHkMwo5WFrBgR7
An Untitled Protest, The Harlem Song.

Here We Are Again, 1969:
https://youtu.be/WrRlmeOhV2U?si=P1HqweBXT8hN6BUN
Here I Go Again, For No Reason.

CJ Fish, 1970:
https://youtu.be/5ucoL-z7UPI?si=egtY13AHaZrM0FOm
Mara, Hang On.

Reunion, 1977:
https://youtu.be/biOmcZg9Luw?si=ANivWzdqtE3uYYLh
Come to the Reunion, Time Flies By.

Solo Country Joe Albums:

Thinking of Woody Guthrie (1969, Vanguard 6546)
Charming, with some of Nashville’s best.
https://youtu.be/C6DuC5eC_Sc?si=EAKvLHtOMdcVOcJQ

War War War, the poems of Robert W. Service (1971, Vanguard 79315)
Compelling and original, powerful denunciation of war.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rexTsQ3SPM

Paris Sessions (1973, Vanguard 79328)
With the quasi-all-girl band, witty, touching, and engaging.
https://youtu.be/VjrDVDfNFmw?si=XEZOBZEHgY8rqC5-
related: Paris sessions band in concert:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwh_rhw43Sk

Country Joe (1974, Vanguard 79348)
A potent batch of original songs, with guest star musicians.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfkLfjlvwyk

Paradise with an Ocean View (1975, Fantasy 9495)
Lavishly produced strong songs, from biting to anthemic.
https://youtu.be/lkwqLm0uPsc?si=cUgEa8BFbgStkQRM

Goodbye Blues (1977, Fantasy 9525)
Produced with a range of musical character, possibly his most compelling solo album.
https://www.discogs.com/release/2747583-Country-Joe-McDonald-Goodbye-Blues

Leisure Suite (1979, Fantasy 9586)
Rock-inflected, with a biting commentary and epic outer space saga.
https://www.allmusic.com/album/leisure-suite-mw0000851324

On My Own (1981, Rag Baby 1012)
A lovely collection of original songs backed by acoustic guitar only, including a setting of Ray Bradbury’s poem, “The Halloween Tree,” and Joe playing trombone on “Slide Trombone Blues.”
https://open.spotify.com/album/7r2d4Nez3i6nExCuNcssBp

In Space
On-line only, a compendium of all his space-themed tunes---good fun, plus the curiously moving, “Travelling.”
( https://countryjoe.com/space.htm )

Superstitious Blues (1991, Rag Baby 1028)
Nine songs only, but all pleasing, with powerful moments.
https://youtu.be/hMOb6lh_TpY?si=-Panj_bJpoYWXBFE

www.countryjoe.com (2000, Rag Baby 1032)
An excellent, wide-ranging new batch of works, with acoustic guitar and blues harp, as Joe hit 56.
https://youtu.be/nu7fpoLVhvU?si=0lPZxeQBSgSEJA6l

Time Flies By (2012, Rag Baby 1041)
Joe revisits many of his favorite songs from his career and reinvents them in a jug band format.
https://youtu.be/gMZJ8q2SkRE?si=bwQoJIyQvdooyayd

50 (2017 Rag Baby 1042)
A surprisingly substantial collection of new work from 76-year-old McDonald as he hit fifty years of song; his last album.
https://youtu.be/DAwSWY3_2yQ?si=L6wT4hmEk7ozmXER

SELECTED SONGS

Commentary:
Superbird
https://youtu.be/55z2_y2lUYM?si=ENkv6kU3_YUUwT6r

I Feel Like I'm Fixin' to Die Rag
https://youtu.be/gitw96kb2bI?si=J1z7htLdkRdXeES1

Living in The Future in a Plastic Dome
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQ65g331a94

Tricky Dicky
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qL8oNXn2LS4

The Call (words by Robert W. Service)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UcHT4xEVTWc

The Man from Athabasca (words by Robert W. Service)
https://youtu.be/xZ8Lbp7Khf0?si=PFtU57Z2FBCsc2b6

Save the Whales
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3pg8Espqk4

Blood on the Ice
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvHR1IRSJwk

Primitive People
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkg-2B6IvQ8

La Di Da
(A great, searing put down of trust-fund “limosine liberals,” opening with “One. . .two. . .hey, fuck YOU!”---not available on-line, from the out-of-print Leisure Suite album---available on eBay. "And you're so la-di-da groovy that you make me sick /with your la-di-da right-on politics. . .")

Wilderness Trail
(The greatest anti-hunting anthem ever written, on the out-of-print “Goodbye
Blues” album.)
https://www.discogs.com/release/2747583-Country-Joe-McDonald-Goodbye-Blues

A Vietnam Veteran Still Alive
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOh0SigvwTw

Clara Barton
(with Jerry Garcia)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wytu0DlsxNc

Lady With the Lamp
(with Jerry Garcia)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqllHapkvLo

Thank The Nurse
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jweq-qcP6_k

Katrina
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PHQ7EXB1UM

Era of Guns
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP7miWIfD0U

Wit, Wisdom, Whimsy:
Movieola:
https://youtu.be/OEOwTHyGD3M?si=6BYaFeefeZ7TOGE_

UFO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzvtEtZZ014

Clone Song
https://youtu.be/zZE5Oe9d9hE?si=P2WO8pY6rjb0SjuB

Making Money in Chile
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08AiWgaTAL0

Holy Roller
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOJYOCttSvs

Space Patrol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym3p-OctIzM

It’s Finally Over
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BfHW5eGmL4
live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SldtQaUT6nQ

Who's Gonna Fry Your Eggs?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjSl--n2Vnk

Hang On
https://youtu.be/Abb5al9P5Ho?si=HhDpnw2zjvAAl3rc

Breakfast for Two
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ne-4lQJ1fk

Doo Wap Oh
(Country Joe with The Persuasions)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqoy-o_rx3Q

Space Patrol
https://youtu.be/ym3p-OctIzM?si=oC8lntEmjEZGQkeh

Hold On, It's Coming
https://youtu.be/HGcw6_2uwIo?si=6DmLLGW7WZxk71Bm

All My Love in Vain
https://youtu.be/bJi8_PLpX4E?si=uzlZRGaPJb9QNEGA

Ballads and Anthems:
Tell Me Where You're Going (written in 1964)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyGxZe9GeP4

Goodbye Blues (with Blair Hardman, in 1964)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O386u4nBFcI

Summer of Love
(With the reunited Country Joe and the Fish, minus Barry "The Fish" Melton. Chicken Hirsh, drums; David Cohen, lead guitar, Bruce Barthol, bass.)
https://youtu.be/qomsRSbqn5k?si=VJMv1mIYQBqvjMdQ
solo version:
https://youtu.be/koPyfeG3YD4?si=50KAZad26bb-g-X5