''Everything Playing'' is the fourth studio album and sixth overall by

the Lovin' Spoonful The Lovin' Spoonful is an American rock band popular during the mid- to late-1960s. Founded in New York City in 1965 by lead singer/songwriter John Sebastian and guitarist Zal Yanovsky, the band is widely known for a number of hits, including ...

(including two soundtrack albums), released in 1967.

History

''Everything Playing'' was the first album featuring guitarist Jerry Yester (replacing

Zal Yanovsky Zalman Yanovsky (December 19, 1944 – December 13, 2002) was a Canadian folk-rock musician. Born in Toronto, he was the son of political cartoonist Avrom Yanovsky and teacher Nechama Yanovsky (née Gemeril), who died in 1958. He played lead guit ...

who left shortly after recording "Six O'Clock") and the last commercial album as a quartet; principal songwriter and lead singer

John Sebastian John Benson Sebastian (born March 17, 1944) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and harmonicist who founded the rock band The Lovin' Spoonful. He made an impromptu appearance at the Woodstock festival in 1969Steve Boone Steve Boone (born September 23, 1943, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina) is an American bass guitarist and music producer, who is both a founding member and current member of the folk-rock group The Lovin' Spoonful. Steve co-wrote two of the groups' ...

on lead vocal: "Priscilla Millionaira". Three of the songs made the Top 40: "Six O'Clock," "She Is Still a Mystery," and "Money". John Sebastian sang "Younger Generation" in his unscheduled appearance at

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock. Billed as "an Aq ...

, dedicating it to an audience member whose wife or girlfriend had had a baby at the festival.Fornatale, Pete
''Back to the Garden: The Story of Woodstock.''
Touchstone, 2009, p. 51–52. . The songs were recorded at Mirasound Studios in Manhattan using a prototype

16-track Multitrack recording (MTR), also known as multitracking or tracking, is a method of sound recording developed in 1955 that allows for the separate recording of multiple sound sources or of sound sources recorded at different times to create a ...

tape recorder An audio tape recorder, also known as a tape deck, tape player or tape machine or simply a tape recorder, is a sound recording and reproduction device that records and plays back sounds usually using magnetic tape for storage. In its present ...

which was custom built for the studio by

Ampex Ampex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff as a spin-off of Dalmo-Victor. The name AMPEX is a portmanteau, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence.AbramsoThe History ...

. This was one of the earliest recordings to use 16-track technology. ''Everything Playing'' was re-issued on CD in 2003 with three bonus tracks — alternate versions of songs from the original recording.

Reception

In his

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

review, music critic William Ruhlman wrote of the album "When Sebastian wasn't at the mic, the singing could be mediocre, and the group was often all over the map in its attempt at musical sophistication, but the record was saved by Sebastian's writing and singing."

Track listing

All songs by

John Sebastian John Benson Sebastian (born March 17, 1944) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and harmonicist who founded the rock band The Lovin' Spoonful. He made an impromptu appearance at the Woodstock festival in 1969Joe Butler Joseph Campbell Butler (born September 16, 1941) is an American drummer and stage actor. He was a founding member of The Lovin' Spoonful, who had seven top 10 hits between 1965 and 1966. Early life Joe Butler was born on September 16, 1941, ...

) – 3:04 # "Only Pretty, What a Pity" (Butler, Jerry Yester) – 3:04 # "Try a Little Bit" – 3:04 # "Close Your Eyes" (Sebastian, Yester) – 2:44 2003 Reissue Bonus Tracks #

"She Is Still a Mystery (Alternate Version)" – 3:11 # "Only Pretty, What a Pity (Alternate Version)" – 2:57 # "Try a Little Bit (Alternate Version)" – 3:02

Personnel

– bass, vocals *

Joe Butler Joseph Campbell Butler (born September 16, 1941) is an American drummer and stage actor. He was a founding member of The Lovin' Spoonful, who had seven top 10 hits between 1965 and 1966. Early life Joe Butler was born on September 16, 1941, ...

– drums, percussion, vocals * Jerry Yester – guitar, banjo, vocals, keyboards *

- guitar on "Six O'Clock"

References

{{Authority control The Lovin' Spoonful albums 1967 albums Kama Sutra Records albums Albums produced by Joe Wissert