The 500 - #124 - Moby Grape - Moby Grape

I was inspired by a podcast called The 500 hosted by New York-based comedian Josh Adam Meyers. His goal, and mine, is to explore Rolling Stone Magazine's 2012 edition of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

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Album: #124
Album Title: Self-Titled Debut
Artist: Moby Grape
Genre: Psychedelic Rock, Power Pop, Country Rock
Recorded: CBC Studios, Hollywood, California

Released: June, 1967

My age at release: 1
How familiar was I with it before this week: Not at all
Is it on the 2020 list? No
Song I am putting on my Spotify Playlist: 8:05

Moby Grape album cover for their debut release

Features the band and manager Matthew Katz

I had never heard of Moby Grape. Not a song, not a story, not even a passing reference. The name might as well have been a lesser known character from one of Hanna‑Barbera's many animated series. Moby Grape could have been a chum of the character Jabberjaw or a participant in the Wacky Races animated series, riding alongside Penelope Pitstop as they try to overtake Dick Dastardly.

Some of the Hanna Barbera characters.

When I mentioned the band's name to my wife, she logically assumed I was talking about a new record called Grape, by the electronica, trip-hop artist Moby. 

Album cover for Play, by Moby - at #341 on The 500.

Shortly after I posted on social media that Moby Grape’s 1967 debut was next up in my journey through 2012 ‘s Rolling Stone Magazine's 500 Greatest Albums, something surprising happened. A few friends, who know music well, let me know that they had only recently discovered the group, or were familiar with just a few songs by them. In all cases, they had become fans of the American rock band from San Francisco.

Back in the 1960s, the corner of Haight and Ashbury in San Francisco was the
epicenter for counter-culture, psychedelia and music.

And once you start digging, you realize how strange that Moby Grape slipped through the cracks for so many of us. Their debut record, released on June 6, 1967, by Columbia Records, was recorded in just six weeks and blended psychedelic rock, power pop, country rock, blues, and folk. The group was a rarity, featuring laser‑tight musicianship from five members, all of whom sang and contributed to the song writing.

Critics at the time recognized the band’s versatility. The record contains short, punchy rock songs, including Hey Grandma, Mr. Blues and Omaha. But also has contrasting gentle acoustic moments and harmonies that brushed up against country‑rock before the genre even had a name. The album peaked at #24 on the Billboard 200 in 1967. It was a respectable achievement, though far from capturing the heights of recognition that even artists in the music power hub of San Francisco felt they deserved.

Album jacket for the single release of Hey Grandma and
Come In The Morning.

The band was a kind of supergroup, assembled out of the rising mid‑'60s West Coast explosion. Formed in late 1966, the lineup brought together three gifted guitarists -- Jerry Miller, Peter Lewis, and Canadian‑born Skip Spence. Bassist Bob Mosley and drummer Don Stevenson rounded out the quintet. All five wrote, sang, and played, which gave them an almost over‑abundance of creative energy. Their early shows around San Francisco generated a buzz strong enough to spark a bidding war among labels, ultimately landing them at Columbia.

Moby Grape (l-r) Spence, Miller, Mosley, Lewis, Stevenson.

So, what went wrong, and how did we miss them? Given the talent and buzz, the band should’ve been unstoppable. Yet everything seemed to go wrong at once. Their manager, Matthew Katz, created years of legal and personal turmoil, including battles over the band’s own name, while Columbia Records sabotaged the album’s momentum by releasing five singles on the same day, confusing radio stations and diluting what should’ve been a breakthrough.

On top of that, Skip Spence’s mental health rapidly declined, and he was hospitalized. Add in the internal conflict among five songwriters pulling in different directions; their arrival in the chaotic San Francisco scene where psychedelic giants favored long jams over Moby Grape’s tight, punchy songs -- and their downfall starts to look tragically inevitable. They made one extraordinary record, filled with the sound of a band that could’ve shaped the era, and, then, through a mix of mismanagement, misfires, and sheer bad luck, the opportunity for greatness slipped away.

Canadian drummer Alexander "Skip" Spence was considered
a bright light of the psychedelic scene. He played on records with
Jefferson Airplane, Quicksilver Messager Service, as well as Moby Grape.

One friend told me that although he was aware Moby Grape existed, he did not follow them further because of the group’s name. He reasoned  that "because of the silly name, they would be a bunch of hippy posers trying to latch onto the San Francisco psychedelic scene". The name itself is a punch line to an equally silly joke that the band had bantered about one day: "What's big and purple and lives in the sea?" A: "Moby Grape."

This got me thinking: "Which bands sound nothing like their name?" Some groups choose monikers that telegraph their genre. Metallica, Slayer and Motorhead sound exactly like the thunderous metal you'd expect. Their names practically scream distortion pedals and black T‑shirts. But plenty of other bands picked names that give you zero clues about what they actually sound like.

A few that always come to mind for me are:

Hoobastank, who sound like hard rock or nu-metal, but actually wrote the emotional ballad The Reason, which has become a standard at weddings.

Vampire Weekend sound like a goth-emo collective or a metal band sporting fake blood and capes. They are actually write preppy, upper‑east‑side indie jams with Afro‑pop guitars and collegiate charm.

The Violent Femmes conjure images of a west coast all-female "Riot Grrrl" punk rock quartet who write songs with unapologetic feminist fury. Instead, they play a mix of acoustic, folk-inspired punk with lyrics that are more quirky and clever than violent or angry.

How about you?

Are you familiar with Moby Grape?

What bands do, or don't sound like their name?

Despite the talent, the praise, the songs, and the promise,  Moby Grape somehow remained a band many of us only discovered by accident, decades later. However, this entire musical journey by blog has been one of discovery, and Moby Grape is now part of my extensive listening catalogue.