The Third Rail
Epic BN 26327
1967
I always thought this was called "ID Music" as in identity, but reading the liner notes I learned that it really refers to id as in id and ego. The liner notes are pretty amazing perhaps the most pretentious ones I've ever read. Considering the bubblegummy nature of the music, I think it is safe to assume that they are a joke. "We have placed songs as mirrors to reflect, in an aquinian sense, the world" reads one sentence. I wonder how many of the original purchasers of this record had ever even heard of the word "aquinian". Elsewhere the album is compared to Conrad's "Heart of Darkness", the record's search for truth evokes a reference to Diogenes and it is all part of the "Id movement" whatever that means. Hilarious. I first encountered the Third Rail on the original "Nuggets" comp via "Run, Run, Run" which was one of the poppiest tunes on that record. If you like that song you will probably like this album as well although only the Jan and Deanish "Boppa Do Down Down" approaches the bubblegummy quality of "Run, Run, Run". The rest of the record is all over the place from the blue-eyed soul of "Jack Rabbit" to the pop-psych of the excellent "No Return" with lots of sunshine pop and even some chamber pop in between. All of the songs are good and there is a surprising amount of sophistication and social commentary in the lyrics. It is no masterpiece, but I thoroughly enjoy this record and it is never boring. I have a re-issue, but if you stumble across an original pressing, it might well be worth the price to pick it up. Recommended for Monkees fans who don't like the Davy Jones songs.
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