1999's More Oar pays tribute to one of psychedelia's brightest lights,
Skip Spence. His 1969 album Oar is a psych-folk classic, as well as a
collector's item, ranking as one of Columbia's lowest-selling albums when
it was originally released. This tribute marks the 30th anniversary of
Oar's release and features performances from Spence fans as prominent
as Robert Plant, Beck, and Tom Waits, and as underground as the Minus
Five, Flying Saucer Attack, and Outrageous Cherry.
More Oar explores the folk, country, and rock elements of the original,
ranging from Robert Plant's hushed, acoustic "Little Hands"
to the smorgasbord of samples on Beck's "Halo Of Gold." Mudhoney's
"War in Peace" and Outrageous Cherry's "Keep It All Under
Your Hat" deliver straight-up garage-psych, while the Durocs "Margaret
Tiger-Rug" and the Ophelias' "Lawrence of Euphoria" explore
the vaudevillian side of psychedelia. Flying Saucer Attack and Alistair
Galbraith deliver two of the most darkly acid-tinged tracks on the album,
"Grey-Afro" and "This Time He Has Come;" the Minus
5's "Doodle" and Diesel Park West's "All Come yo Meet Her"
the sunnier side of psychedelia. Though More Oar was intended as a tribute
to the landmark album, Spence's death earlier in the year adds even more
significance to this heartfelt, eclectic homage.