Small Faces: Ogden's Nut Gone Flake : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake ! ! ! ! ! (The one and only). It's wonderful, it's great, it's fabulous, and it's real ! ! ! ! ! It's full of fairy takes and groovy afternoons, of giant kissable flies and love, and mostly lots of happiness and joy. "Brightest Selection" the front cover says and so it is, the brightest and craziest rock in too long of a time.

But to begin, a few basic facts: Ogden's Nut Gone Flake is the name or a record manufactured by the Small Faces (from Olde England, the land of public schools and school boys, and music halls and pubs), who are totally responsible for the musical content of Ogden. The real question is: who is responsible for the packaging concept and design? The package (for that is what it can only be described as) is something for a prelude to the music inside—briefly it is a phony tobacco container, a circular one, which folds out into five circles joined together. These ten surfaces are covered with pictures of tobacco, Small Faces, and other things. It is fairly safe to assume that if one likes the package of Ogden, the music will also be liked.

The music is happy and unabashedly so, the Small Faces don't have to make excuses or pretend to be cynical or even prophetic, happiness is enough for them. They come naturally on by magic, "wish away your worries and problems," they seem to say and in case you need help, they're ready and willing.

Both sides of Ogden magically transport the listener to equally worriless and problemless places: side one takes the listener through time to "Lazy Sunday" and side two takes the listener through space to "Happydaystoytown." The second side is probably the first fairy tale recorded by a rock band. It's about "Happiness Stan" and his quest for the lost half of the moon; he befriends a hungry fly who gratefully flies Stan to "Mad John" (after being magically changed into a giant fly). Mad John shows Stan the lost half of the moon and as an extra bonus shows him "Happydaystoytown." In format "Happiness Stan" is very much like the Who's "Quick One" but also has the delightful of a highly English narrator speaking in the style of John Lennon In His Own Write. "A real mindblast."

The other side begins with "Ogdens' Nut Gone Flake," which is a far better instrumental than I thought the Small Faces could put out, and ends with "Lazy Sunday." It's all real nice and truthfully freaky, a refreshing change from a lot of the "progressive" garbage we've been hearing recently. Everybody owes it to themselves to get this record and be refreshed. It's surprising.