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Start Date: November 15, 2022
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FORD THEATRE

Ford Theatre made a couple of psychedelic albums for ABC in the late '60s that were average period pieces, but respectable on that modest level. In their use of winding minor-key melodies, hard rock guitar-organ interplay, extended guitar soloing, and earnest, ambitious lyrics, they were similar to other Boston psychedelic bands of the time, but more authentic. They were not one of the bands gathered up and promoted as part of the Bosstown Sound hype, for one thing.Ford Theatre evolved out of the Boston band the Joyful Noise, and were signed by Bob Thiele of ABC Records after Thiele had been contacted on their behalf by a DJ at Boston's WBZ. Thiele produced Ford Theatre's first album, Trilogy for the Masses, which was centered around two lengthy multi-sectioned pieces, "101 Harrison Street (Who to Belong To)" and "From a Back Door Window (The Search)." 

"TRILOGY FOR THE MASSES"

Produced by Bob Thiele

1968     LP     ABC RECORDS     STEREO   ABCS-658

PRINTED IN U.S.A.     ORIGINAL PRESSING

GATEFOLD COVER + COMPANY INNER SLEEVE

THICK CARDBOARD COVER (AMERICAN STYLE)

NOTES: There is another US release that includes "A Product Of.." in the rim text.

Barcode and Other Identifiers

Barcode: none

LABEL: ABC - BLACK LABEL w/LOGO on TOP - SILVER TEXT (White on rim)

Catalog on cover: ABCS-658

Catalog on labels: ABCS-658-A / ABCS-658-B

Matrix / Runout (Side A, Etched): ABCS-658-A LW ┍L

Matrix / Runout (Side B, Etched): ABCS-658-B LW ┍L

On labels: rim text "ABC Records, Inc., New York, N.Y. 10019 ● Made in USA"

 Written by: Magee & Palmer

Published by: D'Azure Music/Karmeny Lyann Music-ASCAP

On Inside panels: Tracklist + Credits

Notes by Tom Phillips Contributor Editor Jazz & Pop Magazine

A product of ABC Records.......Made in USA

On back cover: Lyrics

tracklisting

Side A: THEME FOR THE MASSES - 101 HARRISON STREET / EXCERPT

BACK TO PHILADELPHIA / THE RACE

Side B: THE RACE / FROM A BACK DOOR WINDOW (The Search) / THEME FOR THE MASSES

POSTLUDE: LOOKING BACK

grading

RECORD VG+/EX (please, read above description)

SLEEVE G+ but (please, see pictures and read above description)

Ford Theatre was typical of the sound of Boston psychedelic rock circa 1968: dark, foreboding, somber songs, sometimes quite long, with sub-California acid rock guitar, and more weight on the organ than many bands of the period carried. Certainly the instrumental break on the 14-minute "Wake Up in the Morning" owes a lot to Doors songs like "Light My Fire." The gothic, classically influenced "Theme for the Masses" is reprised a couple of times after it opens the album, giving the record a thematic aura that really isn't borne out by the contents. It's easy to imagine audiences grooving out to the lengthy breaks on "101 Harrison Street (Who You Belong To)" on those nights when there weren't any major headliners passing through town, settling for a reasonable approximation of psychedelic rock heavyweights. "Back to Philadelphia" takes a funkier, more straight-ahead approach, though the lyrics maintain a sense of displacement and disillusionment that permeates much of the music and lyrics. "Postlude Looking Back" closes the album on a gentler, almost countrified note, though again with the sort of muted gloom characteristic of the rest of the material. On the whole, not a bad acquisition for the insatiable psychedelic collector looking for something typical of the era...(AllMusic)