If you let the pigs decide it, they will put you in the sty
Mr. M. R. T. Dixon | Leicester, England | 09/10/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This album sits at no. 2 in my list of the greatest albums ever made. It really is that good!I have been listening to this album regularly for nearly 40 years, ever since it came out, and have never tired of it. It has stood the test of time better than many better selling contemporaries for sure. There is no other album that I can say that about. I never tire of the stunning acoustic guitar work, or trying to fathom the meanings of the lyrics.Even the name of the album is brilliantly chosen. The 5000 sprirts, well yes it is very spiritual as is all good music, and looks at things from different spiritual perspectives. The Layers of the Onion, yes, it is a bit like pass the parcel. When you think you understand something, you find there is a whole new layer of meaning underneath, and even after 39 years I can't claimto have got to the bottom of it.OK some of the songs are easy. The whimsical ones, like Little Cloud and the Hedgehog Song, and obvious ones like Painting box and The first Girl I loved. But do you fully understand the Eyes of Fate or even Chinese White? I love The Mad Hatters Song, since it is very Christian, and I am a Christian. It even mentions Jesus. The First Girl I Loved seems a very personal song, and very beautiful, but one that I and I am sure many others can relate to. And even if you don't, the guitar work is stunning. I was a young man back in the 1960s always seems to me to be the one track that doesn't fit. It is pure science fiction! Not particularly spiritual, or with any great depth, or with many "layers" but it could have been the basis of a novel. Yes it is a great album. If you don't know it buy it. But be warned, it is something you either love or hate. My wife does not like it at all, but then there are certain instruments she can't stand, and I think the oud is one (bagpipes is another, but there are not bagpipes on the 5000 spirits) My favourite of all of the ISB albums.Just in case you are wondering which is the one album I consider betterthan this , it is Pink Floyd's "Wish you were here"."
Classic!
Onegin | Portland OR | 07/19/2010
(5 out of 5 stars)
"There's been nothing like the ISB. Their introduction of an eclectic and exotic (for the time) variety of stringed instruments, and their distinctive writing and vocal styles, endeared them to me way back in the 1960's and it's still a pleasure to hear them. Their mixture of musical sophistication, poetry, mysticism, humor, and a certain innocence resonated with the times. This disc was the first with the two-man set-up, and contains the beautiful First Girl I Loved. Other standouts are Painting Box, No Sleep Blues, and Chinese White, to name three of many. In this configuration Williamson and Heron went on to record The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter, which many consider their best, and my favorite, Wee Tam/Big Huge. Light the incense, and enjoy!"