MUSICAL THEATRE Revolutionary Revelation RARE '69 psych

$

50

WHAT WE HAVE HERE IS…

The Musical Theatre "UNA REVELACION REVOLUCIONARIA" ("A Revolutionary Revelation")

Original ARGENTINIAN pressing from 1969 on the EPIC label, STEREO 210.207

Cover:  VG++, super clean, some crimping/creasing

Vinyl:  LOOKS LIKE NEW, plays NEAR MINT!

SIMPLY THE BEST PRESERVED EXAMPLE OF THIS MEGA-RARITY I'VE EVER HAD!

LISTEN TO THE ACTUAL RECORD YOU'RE BIDDING ON BY CLICKING ON THE ICONS BELOW.  PLEASE BE PATIENT, AS LOAD TIMES VARY.

Don’t ever accuse God of not being in touch.  Back in 1969, looking for ways to make His world a better place, the Almighty dropped a holy suggestion box in front of a bunch of musical theatre majors.  This was the result – “A Revolutionary Revelation” by the Musical Theatre – a super-rare late 60’s psychedelic revue that sounds like Godspell performed by the Cowsills, assuming the Cowsills were anarchist counterrevolutionaries.  Turns out God may have been listening, because several things these outspoken kids ask for have actually come to pass.  Too bad they didn’t ask Him to strike down any attempts at a Scott Baio reality show.  I guess even they didn’t see that one coming.

The album begins, naturally, with a pleasant, harmonic invitation to a “Revolution” – and even though, on the surface, these clean-cut flower children sound like an especially groovy episode of “Schoolhouse Rock,” don’t let ‘em fool you for a second.  They’re taking a much more proactive, hands-on approach to “revolution” than John Lennon ever did:

“We want action right now!  It’s the new against the old!

And we’re gonna win it!

And we’re gonna change the world, and everybody in it too!”

Gotta give the little buggers points for determination, that’s for sure.  But what exactly do they have in mind when they say “change the world”?  Well, they’re only happy to spell that out in the very next song, a funky little psych rock number called “We Want.”  And while we’re at it, since this was released way back in 1969, let’s see how many presents on their wish list actually came true:

“On Martin Luther’s birthday, we want a holiday!”  (Hey, they got that one!)

“We want to end the marijuana laws!”  (Didn’t get it)

“We want a change like Illinois for homosexuality!” (Sorta got it)

“Stop the wars in foreign lands and on our city streets!” (Uh…good luck with that one)

Between songs, God keeps asking the theatre majors what He can do to bring about these changes, and, to their credit, the kids don’t fire back with “I don’t know – you’re God, you figure it out.”  Instead, they’ve got plans, and it’s amazing just how ahead of their time they are.  For example, they foresee a world where everyone’s linked via computers, on the electro-psych acid tripper “Computer World,” which sounds like a lost outtake from the Fifty Foot Hose album, or Joe Byrd and the Field Hippies.  And once again, they were dead on.  < /SPAN>Sadly, they neglected to mention that 85 percent of the world’s population would choose to be connected to Naughty Kate, Sexy Teen Sandy and the entire cast of Dirty Nurses Dorm.

They also foresaw the advent of a “Love Pill”, one that would end hatred and bigotry just by swallowing it.  Set to a great fuzzed-out Paul Revere and the Raiders garage pop melody, “Love Pill” crackles with venom like a Broadway production of the Nuggets box set, lead vocalist spitting out personal threats to anyone caught abusing their power:

“We’ll give it to our leaders, when their egos get too great.

And we’ll give it to the racist, when he tries to further hate.”

Nice sentiments, for sure, but if the kids were still struggling to “end the marijuana laws” four songs back, do you really think Washington is gonna embrace the introduction of “a tiny, shiny love pill”, “a crystal bead” or “a whole new kick”?  They didn’t, and our teenage Nostradami missed another one.  Even today, we still don’t have a magic pill that ends corruption, racism and war, but at least we do have a “love pill.”  It’s called Viagra.

Lest you think these master thespians are all sweetness and light and sunshine pop harmonies, they let loose with some wailing fuzz guitar and stompin’ loud primal garage rock on the scorching “There Must Be a Better Way of Life.”  Buzzing fuzz licks zip around like swarms of wasps on a barnstorming mission.  It wakes up the Big Man, apparently, as he comes out of his Seventh Day slumber and reaches the alarming conclusion that…well, I’ll let the Musical Theatre tell you themselves:

“We’ve had a cure for everything, but now we’ve got to find a capsule that’s a panacea…for…all…mankind!”

God:  “And you think that pills are the answer for all of society?”

Flower Child 1:  “Yeah man, I’m diggin’ it.  Higher, higher!”

Flower Child 2:  “No one’s come up with anything better yet!”

And that, my friends, is the final solution to our “Revolutionary Revelation.”  The cure for all of society’s ills.  Drugs.  Medication.  The panacea of a generation.  God himself apparently agreed, and today, we have the result – an overmedicated, pill-popping hypochondriac society.  It all started here, in 1969, when a bunch of musical theatre majors convinced the Almighty himself that the answer to the world’s problems lie in the labs of Merck and GlaxoSmithKline.  No wonder Scott Baio has a reality show.

The less exciting stuff

I ship albums media mail to keep shipping costs down, singles and all other items shipped first class.  I require delivery confirmation on all domestic shipments in order to confirm shipment and track the status of your order.  Items shipped abroad are shipped small parcel air mail.  Shipping costs vary as to weight of parcel, and I will always send an invoice at the close of each auction.  I accept payments through Paypal, or you can send checks and money orders made out in US dollars.  Items paid by check are held 14 days for the check to clear.

I try to grade as best as I can, and I list as many blemishes/imperfections I can find (writing, ringwear, scuff marks, etc.) – Also, please note that I DO listen to these albums – I may not listen to every track, but my grades are based on LISTENING, not just looking at it, since chances are you’ll be listening to the record you buy, not just looking at it.  Most of the albums I sell are the ones I’ve enjoyed for years – and I treat my records with kid gloves.  But sounds speak louder than words, so check out the sound clips below – they’re from the actual record you’re bidding on. 

SHIPPING AND PACKAGING

Listen, I buy a bunch of records too (when I’m not getting outbid at the last second, which is more often than not) – and I know what it’s like to get a rare, one-of-a-kind album packaged dangerously in a flimsy bubblewrap package.  I hate that too.  So rest assured, I ALWAYS package albums with stiff cardboard reinforcements, same for 45s.  And yes, the records are removed from the sleeves (for albums).  I ship out once a week, every Friday, because I have a regular day job.  But I’d be willing to give that up if you’d all be so kind as to bid my items up to stupidly high amounts. 

And finally, I include delivery confirmation on all shipments inside the US.  This is my proof of shipment, and also helps us to track your package if it doesn’t arrive when it should.  I will email you within 2 days of shipment and give you the confirmation number at that time.  Insurance is always optional, but for larger orders, it’s highly recommended.  Unfortunately, there isn’t a cost-effective way of tracking parcels to foreign countries yet, and shipping times vary depending on your country’s postal system.  Italy in particular seems to be really bad at delivering packages quickly, or delivering packages at all, now that you mention it.  I will always email you when your package ships, but once it’s on its way, please don’t ask me when it will arrive because I don’t know.  If the world’s postal systems can ever agree on a universal tracking system that’s affordable, I’ll be the first to use it.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN…

I will always leave positive feedback for successful transactions, and would appreciate the same in return.  All I ask of you is the following – please pay for your items within 14 days of the close of auction.  Compared to other sellers, that’s a generous amount of time, so if you don’t pay within 2 weeks, then I have to assume something’s wrong.  You’ll get an Ebay payment reminder at that point, and possibly a decapitated horse head in your bed.  If, after 30 days, you still haven’t forked up the cash, I’ll relist the item and yell at you if I ever see you in town.