The Zombies – Odessey and Oracle

RECOMMENDATION OF THE WEEK

The Zombies – Odessey and Oracle

This week’s Recommendation of the Week is one of the greatest psychedelic masterpieces of the 1960s, and one of the most underrated. It's one of my favorite albums ever, as it’s been a part of my life for over 30 years. Odessey and Oracle by The Zombies is a complex, intricate, incredibly beautiful concept album that is perfect in every way.

Released in April 1968, it went almost completely unnoticed. In fact, The Zombies had already disbanded and they considered this album a lost cause, a throw away experiment. It seems crazy to think about that, considering how amazing and wonderful this album is. It has been instrumental and influential in music ever since. It's an essential work and one that should be in everyone’s collection. As a record collector, it was a holy grail for many of us 20-30 years ago, with stereo copies rarely turning up and the ultra-rare UK Mono issue being similar in myth to Bigfoot, and as valuable as a photo of him! Okay, I am exaggerating a bit, but the UK Mono original has been one of the most sought after records in history.

Thankfully, Odessey and Oracle has been reissued with meticulous quality and available to all of us.

This album was far more than just a rare collectible. From start to finish, you can hear the complexities of each song and how this is much more than just another record from 1968. This is an Opus, a symphonic movement that creates a beautiful cacophony of sound, feeling, sense, and spirit. Looking at the vocals, the harmonies rival the mastery of Brian Wilson’s vision on The Beach Boys masterpieces Pet Sounds and Smiley Smile, two albums that have come to be known as pinnacle. On Odessey and Oracle, The Zombies created vocal harmonies that give an almost angelic feel throughout the album, guiding the listener through this epic journey. As you travel through the album, it is best to listen chronologically from start to finish, as the order is crucial to its essence. The tone plays into this mood like the magnitude and impact of a historical saga, like
“The Iliad” and “The Odyssey”. It also pulls great influence and inspiration from the Zodiac and from the feels, senses and textures of the four seasons. The vocals create the beauty, tension and atmosphere that sets the tone for each part of the journey.

Musically, The Zombies incorporate quite a bit of orchestral instrumentation, including strings, church organ swells, and a harpsichord. These all mix and blend perfectly with a standard 60s Rock sound of guitar, bass and drums. It simultaneously simplistic and really complex. There is also a melancholy that lingers throughout, and while not a sad record at all, there is always a hint of it. This only helps create the feeling of how this album really engages you. You can almost feel it wrap around you with a soft, warm embrace.

The album starts with “Care Of Cell 44”, a song with great hope and joyous exhilaration, with vocal and orchestral swells that give a dream-like feel. As it progresses through to “Hung Up On A Dream” and “Changes”, the hope starts to wane slightly, and tension and chaos start to build.  Thoughtful remembrance and reflection give the middle of the album a deep contemplative feel, and a dreamy disorientation that is almost overpowering, but keeps you nestled softly within like a warm, cozy blanket. Although doubt and confusion slightly set it, it never becomes hopeless. By the end of the journey, as our saga concludes with “Time Of The Season”, with darkness creeping in, but hope is very present, and the excitement and exhilaration of the beginning have fully returned. This saga ends well, but the melancholic tension remains, creating a feeling that really pulls at you, and you feel as if you have learned and experienced a lot on this musical journey.

This is quite an emotionally deep album, not in a lyrical sense but in how it works with your emotions. It is a great album for balance. It is an incredible album for thinking. I have sought solace in it countless times, as I have tried to figure out my next move or to gain more insight into a moment. It has a great calming effect for me and I find incredible comfort in it.

“Time Of The Season” was the hit on the album and is a renowned, popular 1960s masterpiece. It has been used countless times in shows, movies, documentaries and other media representations of the 1960s and helps to define the feel of the decade. It was part of the soundtrack for the summer of 1969, as the single became a hit almost a year after the album’s release. The popularity of it helped to bring more attention to The Zombies and their music, which created a small media frenzy. However, The Zombies had broken up and weren’t getting back together. Record companies scrambled to capture and capitalize on the surge in popularity of “Time Of The Season” and created fake “Zombies” bands that they would send out on tour. It’s very likely that most people in that era never saw the real band perform.

In an overall look at this album, you can see that it is cyclical and really never ending if you look at it that way. From “Care of Cell 44” to “Friends of Mine”, it follows an epic story of passion, heartache, tragedy and beauty, encompassing all the complex emotions involved, and it masterfully transitions to its finale, “Time Of The Season”, a seductive, almost chaotic conclusion, which completes the circle, returning to origin. You can listen to this album over and over again and maybe not even realize your many listens through.

Odessey and Oracle is quite the saga, an incredible emotional and spiritual journey, from a band that, essentially by accident,  created one of the greatest masterpieces in music history!

Essential Track: "Hung Up On a Dream"