JDIZZY's 365 # 265: The Dolphins

The Dolphins - Fred Neil (1966)

Three keys to musical immortality:

1. Make four pivotal albums of a genre.

2. Compose "Everybody's Talkin' ".

3. Never record again.

Fred Neil followed these rules to a proverbial "T". After 1967's Sessions, his fourth record, he did just that. He walked away from the music world to focus on his other passion: Dolphins.

I kid you not.

My favorite song of his also happens to be about his post-songwriting career. It is psychedelic a year before Sgt. Pepper. It is staggering in its language of love and its comparison with marine life. It is used to brutal effect during a scene in the last season of The Sopranos where Christopher slips slowly back into drug use. It is covered brilliantly by the late, great Tim Buckley. It is a song that is alive and well, and will be remembered for eons longer than Mr. Neil's recording career lasted.

Which is more than can be said for the collective works of Fred Durst.

That was a cheap shot, but honestly, it was the first name that popped into my head.

I'll make it better: Chocolate Starfish & the Hot Dog Flavored Water is actually a really decent album!

I got nothing.



Two great covers follow.