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Before The Dream Faded - The Misunderstood

One Day at a Time | Texas, USA | 12/17/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Hi folks! I was the bass player for the original Misunderstood, and decided to make a short posting here. I'd like to thank everyone who has written kindly of our music, and continues to hold it in high esteem. I'd also like to point out that there continues to be a tremendous amount of mis-information about us, some of which is contained in other reviews on this site.For one thing, "I Unseen" is emphatically NOT simply our version of the Byrds "I Come and Stand at Every Door"! We wrote AND recorded it months before the Byrds ever went into the studio to do their version of the Pete Seeger song (lyrics by Turkish poet Nazim Hikmet)...and we still have the dated acetate to prove it. That may be a small point, but for those of you who are interested in the truth, there it is.Another bit of truth has to do with the rather free use of our name after the real band collapsed due to a combination of the US draft and incredibly bad management. ANY music with the name The Misunderstood attached that was created after the songs from the London sessions (the ones on "After the Dream Faded") is emphatically NOT The Misunderstood. Rather, it's simply someone's greedy and unethical attempt to capitalize on whatever reputation we were able to establish, and includes, at most, only one band member from the original group. I'm not recommending that you not purchase it; I'm only forewarning you that the music is not of the same style (and many would say, same caliber) as what we created. It's just a name - not the essence.Those bits of history corrected, I again thank those of you who value our music, and encourage you to purchase and enjoy it...we certainly had a great time writing/playing/recording it. And just so you won't think this is a shameless commercial plug, please know that none of us receive ANY royalties whatsoever from the sales of our CDs. That was taken away from us, just like they tried to take away the dream...but the dream lives on...with those of you who continue to listen, and in our hearts too, as we continue to create new music. Many blessings to you all!!!P.S. Please excuse me for giving our music a 5-star rating, but I still really like it, even after all these many years.... :)"

The Misunderstood: They Coulda Been A Contender

Gavin B. | St. Louis MO | 02/10/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

""Before the Dream Faded" may be the closest thing to the Dead Sea Scrolls for devotees of early psychedelic music and garage rock. "Before the Dream Faded" is a rare document of a marginally famous band that was at ground zero of the underground music movement. It's a shame that Amazon doesn't include "Before the Dream Faded" on their list of Essential Rock and Roll CDs. The lack of recognition the Misunderstood from rock critics with a shallow knowledge of rock and roll shows that "misunderstood" has evolved into an almost prophetic name for this great band.



The expert playing and musical finesse of the Misunderstood made the garage band label a misnomer The Misunderstood had a bluesy psychedelic sound well in front big guns of UK Sixties psychedelica, like Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd and even the Yardbirds. The Misunderstood's music was a Molotov cocktail mixed with equal parts raw blues and mind bending psychedelic guitar. One need only to listen to the Misunderstood to find the point of inspiration for Jeff Beck when he'd play his ear splitting, guitar shattering "rave-ups" with the Yardbirds.



Glen Ross Campbell (not the "Witchta Lineman" dude) was an expert guitarist who doubled on steel guitar. The addition of UK guitarist Tony Hill when the Misunderstood moved to London in '66 gave the band a full throttle guitar sound. Steve Whiting on bass and Rick Moe on drums provided a muscular rhythm section that gave the Misunderstood a sound as powerful as a roundhouse punch.



I was encouraged to read the review of Steve Whiting (see Spotlight Reviews) the original bass player for the Misunderstood. I'm always amazed that musicians like Steve Whiting keep the faith after getting shafted by fast buck moguls and producers who run the business end of music. Steve is absolutely right ....any recorded material by Glen Ross Campbell under the guise of the Misunderstood is inferior to by the original band. This album, "Before the Dream Faded", contains all the tracks associated with the Misunderstood's 24 karat gold legacy.

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The Dream Lives On

Hans Pfaall | Connecticut, USA | 07/28/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Like others, I strongly recommend this album. The second half is decent 1965/66 era American garage rock. However, as others have noted, the best cuts on the album are the first six tracks. They were recorded in London in 1966, and represent the group's creative peak. In my opinion, those six tracks stand with the finest psychedelic rock ever created.



In some respects, the Misunderstood could be considered an American version of the Yardbirds. Like that innovative British group, the Misunderstood mixed blues, raga, the Middle East and rave-ups. However, they were louder and crazier than the Yardbirds on the whole. The guitar work often went into territory unexplored within rock (or any) context, and this was due largely to Glenn Ross Campbell's unique usage of the steel guitar. He was able to produce unheard-of-for-the-time tones, including distortion, noise and feedback with an unusual method of guitar playing. His playing was revolutionary, unlike anything heard before or since.



The group also recorded pretty early in the psychedelic era. Even though Children of the Sun was released as late as 1969, the London tracks were recorded in mid/late 1966, before Hendrix waxed his initial late 1966 recordings. This renders the Misunderstood's performances and guitar work as groundbreaking. The Misunderstood may indeed have been the loudest group of their era, if only for a short time. At the time of their recording, arguably only the Yardbirds and the Who had seriously experimented with feedback and guitar noise. The Misunderstood pushed the envelope and took those innovations to greater heights. Indeed, they had a cosmic and otherworldly quality in their music, as well as their lyrics.



The group's interpretation of 'Who Do You Love' was quite interesting, a psychedelic update of the Bo Diddley classic. To the Misunderstood's credit, they matched the demented lyrics of the song with a mind-blowing band performance. 'I Unseen' was an excellent rendition of Hikmet's poem, and arguably superior to the Byrds' later attempt. I argue this because mind-melting guitar noise and feedback are perhaps more effective in conveying the emotional words, which represent a protest against nuclear warfare. They also used an eerie harmonica for this track.



The lyrics in some of the original songs perhaps had some protest that could be detected, about either a lack of spiritual fulfillment in this world, or a feeling of disappointment with others not willing to go along with their spiritual explorations. This was most apparent in 'I Can Take You to the Sun,' where the singer intones ''I can take you to the sun, but you don't want to go.'' This sentiment may also be in line with the band's actual history, as several external forces (among them the US Draft board) would serve to break this version of the band up. For this reason, Before the Dream Faded is aptly titled.



The peak the Misunderstood had did not last long, but fortunately it has been captured for all to hear. If you're looking for a great lost psychedelic band of the 60's, look no further.

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