Frat Boys On Acid

When teen prom bands heard Sgt. Pepper they realized their snappy suits, ruffled shirt collars, and keg-party dance moves were starting to look straight outta Squaresville. More worryingly, they noticed the chicks in the audience drifting away to the long-hair dudes slouching in the shadows. Ever mindful of the need to improve artistically and continue to get laid, they retreated to the studio to craft their own Sgt. Peppers.

Paul Revere & The Raiders were among the first to be second in line with their superfine Something Happening album, which naturally stiffed, alienating their milkshake teenybopper fanbase without convincing acid-dropping heads they were riding the FURTHUR bus. It also had a grotesquely cheap cover (not the gorgeous Peter Max design you get here ABSOLUTELY FREE) just to kill any possibility of an impulse buy. Do an image search if you want to see just how important sleeve design is, and how dumb record companies could be.

John Fred & His Playboy Band were, if possible, squarer than a square dance in the town square of Squaresville, Square County. Obviously uncomfortable with the Age of Aquarius, they took a deep breath, draped themselves with love beads, and came up with their generation-defining and status-quo-threatening Permanently Stated album. And they had the nous [French for us - Ed.] to dress it up in a fab sleeve, too. That's one of the first uses of that computery/psychedelic font on a pop album, like you care.

It says something bad about me that I enjoy both these albums as much as their "real thing" inspiration. They're guileless, mindless fun, and their transparent opportunism is part of their charm. And musically, they're professionally put together (both these bands knew how to deliver a great show) and a treat for the ears.

Downloads are weighted with the usual CD-era penalty tracks, compromising their artistic integrity but pleasing the lazy freeloader in all of us.