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Fohhoh Bohob LP

 

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A large number of international collector catalogs, websites, blogs, etc., have reviews of Fohhoh Bohob. Some of the historical information (initial numbers pressed, year released, worth, etc.) is inaccurate in some cases, but you'll get an idea of the scope of it's popularity and respect.

As a side note, I always find it amusing that there are so many "reviewers" out there who hold up our efforts to ridiculously high "professional" standards; despite the earnestness with which we approached the recording of Bohob at the time, it was still just three suburban teenagers laying down their first tunes by themselves with minimal equipment in a living room over 35 years ago. For example, in one review, it states: "...it is a fairly unconventional mix...there is literally an absence of any constant signatured drum beat...and barely any bass drums." Well, my friend, perhaps that was because we only had about two or three microphones to use for the entire recording, so the kick drum had to take a sonic back seat.

As with every album in recorded history, either you resonate with it, or you don't. I have found that, over the years, those who like/love Fohhoh Bohob really get it. That's enough for me.

In any case, my oh-so-pithy comments and notes are in brackets [ ]. Here are a bunch of reviews to keep you busy for awhile:

A classic example of a private press release gaining a reputation far outside its initial impact, Fohhoh Bohob was recorded in enthusiastic amateur fashion by the three teenagers in the Patron Saints during early summer 1969 at member Paul D'Alton's house while the rest of his family was on vacation. As explained by de facto bandleader Eric Bergman in the liner notes to the 2007 reissue on Time-Lag, the goal of the trio was to get something out there on their own, even though they could only afford a quick pressing of a hundred copies. Nearly forty years on, the perfect charm of Fohhoh Bohob — a phrase the original liner notes claims means ‘greetings of the mouth' — remains immediate and intact. Combining enough technical skill and good enough equipment to result in a reasonable if low-key recording plus a jaunty sense of humor and young but not sloppy instrumental skills on the part of the band, the album's an immediate, gentle pleasure, perhaps one of the first rural psychedelic albums as such. The trio's love for any number of groups of the time is perfectly apparent — Bergman mentions such logical names as the Beatles, Hendrix and Paul Butterfield — but it's the reference to Moby Grape that makes the most sense, since this is almost the more upbeat, full band equivalent to Skip Spence's near simultaneously-recorded Oar. The rave-ups on "Flower" and "Relax" and the jaunty vaudevillian kick of "Do You Think About Me?" are merry treats, while the low-key, gentle singing from the deeper voiced Bergman and the slightly higher-pitched Jon Tuttle is alternately warmly inviting and hesistantly melancholy from both singers, depending on the song. ("White Light," Bergman's dreamy high point at the center of the album, handles both emotions quite well.) Clever, unexpected song structures help to give the album an even stronger mark — while not avant-garde per se, a number of songs eschew standard verse/chorus/verse structures for more complicated lyrical arrangements and musical tempos, all the more remarkable given the age of the performers. The 2007 CD reissue includes seven bonus songs, up from three from an earlier mid-nineties reissue — a well-received live version of "Do You Think About Me?" as well as an alternate studio mix, two 1975 era songs, "Reflections on a Warm Day" and "Nostalgia Trip," an alternate mix of "The Goodnight Song" and two otherwise unreleased songs from the original recording dates, "Shine On Heart" and "Do It Together."

Ned Raggett (reviewing the 2007 Fohhoh Bohob Deluxe CD reissue)

The Patron Saints-Fohhoh Bohob

The Patron Saints, a three-piece band from New York state, recorded one album, Fohhoh Bohob, during the summer of 1969. The entire self-produced project was taped at drummer Paul D'Alton's house while his parents were away on vacation.

Songwriters Eric Bergman and Jon Tuttle handled the guitar, bass, banjo, and piano chores on the nine songs, which carried a summery, acoustic vibe with a range of influences including the Who, Love, the Beatles, and Bob Dylan.

The band decided to go whole hog with their self-made album, using Tuttle's complicated cover drawing and an insert with fancy full-color graphics, but perversely could only could afford to press 100 copies! Needless to say, the album never had enough exposure to catch on with anyone "influential," at least at the time.

But years later, as these "private press" records have gained an audience, and have become super-desirable to a certain kind of rich and/or wild-eyed record collector, Fohhoh Bohob has reached a sort of notoriety. If you can even find someone who'll sell you their vinyl copy, it could cost you a couple thousand dollars. There may be as few as 20 of them left in existence.

Luckily for the rest of us, Eric Bergman put together a reissue, on CD, of the album in 1997 on his Maxfield label. He also has an amazingly thorough website, www.maxmulti.com, in which he relates the entire Patron Saints story as well as information on his other bands.

Jon Tuttle, later diagnosed with schizophrenia, died in the 1990s, and he's not around to benefit from the increased interest in the band...but you can hear his lovely "Nostalgia Trip" if you click here.

Stuart Shea (August, 2007)

THE PATRON SAINTS Fohhoh Bohob (Time-Lag)

Some way ahead of its time sounds here. Patron Saints' Fohhoh Bohob is one the definitive sought-after '60s private press albums, and if you shelled out three grand so you could own one of the 100 original copies, you can stop reading. Good, that makes none of you then. Recorded in the New York area in 1969, it shares the same naive DIY qualities as the Virgin Insanity albums we wrote up last year, with its limited bedroom-style recording resources and childlike creativity. Musically, Fohhoh Bohob is a barrage of styles but there's nothing too terribly psychedelic about it, if that's your bag. Instead, the three teenaged Patron Saints conjure up slightly stoned (not accusing these kids of smoking of course, just describing the general vibe here...), mystical folk that is really well written and bordering on the spiritual at times. Suitably rudimentary drums and fuzzy bass back up the din of 12-string guitars and ambitiously poetic lyrics, and there's autoharp and banjo thrown into the mix. Then there are some seriously off-the-wall old-timey influences recurring throughout, ragtime and music hall in particular, which in the end makes the album more psychedelic than most, just not by the book. A strange and amazing trip that's been lovingly and faithfully reproduced by Time-Lag (who also brought you the Satwa and Marconi Notaro reissues), complete with original booklet and construction paper sleeve, and a bonus 45 if you snatch up the limited LP version. [AK]

Other Music (reviewing the 2007 Fohhoh Bohob Deluxe reissue)

Loopy, free-flowing, folk-vaudeville genre collage with living room acoustics, topsy-turvy sensibilities, and a real spirit of fun; the band's sound is far too giddy and freewheeling to be pinned down to any one style, flitting from ragtime to airport lounge to glee club to Rogers & Hammerstein to wasted rural blues, all with a winsome abandon - I think of it as a 'renaissance fair hoedown', if that means anything to you, or the soundtrack to Timothy Leary's traveling medicine show - but the method to the madness is straight Borsch Belt music hall, complete with theatrical pauses, dramatic use of tempo, and even an accompanying libretto. Adventurous as all this may sound, the record is still melodic and welcoming, like psychedelia meeting the Prairie Home Companion; with most of the eclecticism confined to tempo changes and instrumental one-upsmanship, gentler audiences can rest easy. Moodwise, a green and dewy springtime vibe prevails throughout, carried by a ticklish piano and two sidewinding twelve-string guitars, and further adorned by a sparkling autoharp, some swishing tamborines, and even a choir of local crickets wafting through the "studio" window -- proud, pied April, dressed in all his trim! In a nutshell, this is something like a psychedelic send-up of golden age Disney barnyard music and should not be missed.

Playful, gladdening, and diverse as it is, the sunny feel and kitchen sink array of styles have led some critics to liken this LP to a homemade stab at a jubilant studio cornucopia like Sgt. Pepper or Forever Changes, a grand and far-flung celebration of music itself, but in place of the spectacle of jaded session players reducing flamenco to the lowest common denominator to indulge the addled self-regard of Arthur Lee, we have here the novelty of beautifully-skewed alternative high school geeks farting away their expensive classical training on a hare-brained folkadelic magnum opus. This gives Fohhoh a happy earnestness that suggests The Bachs in their first year at a free-love liberal arts college: laid, baked, and stonefree now, but ever-eager to share their experience. Such similarities extend from the roaring tunelessness that kicks off the first track to the Saints' wonderful junior vocalist Jon Tuttle [Eric's voice, actually], whose uncertain, swallowed, deer-in-the-headlights delivery is a dead match for Blake Allison, and whose lyrical contemplation on "Andrea" has all the bedroom soliloquy of "My Independence Day" or "Minister to a Mind Diseased". Though the album is still a little too dandy at times, most glaringly in the player-piano brauhaus stylings of "Do You Think About Me" and the sometimes dippy vocals, such blemishes are genuine enough that they still add to the album's sincerity and appeal.

Serene, quixotic, and fanciful all at once, this is a swell record, and one of the crown jewels of the beacon that is the private press teensike canon. Just like Kristyl, Zerfas, and the Concrete Rubber Band's Risen Savior, this album glows with the hopeful rapture of its authors, a group of awesome kids alive with the desire to share their vision with the world, rapt in the anticipation that their audience would devote as much care and thought to the appreciation of their music as the group did to its conception. It wasn't to be, of course, in this cold and distant world: the band was more interested in playing than in plugging themselves, so their contemporaries were oblivious, and in its contentious critical afterline Fohhoh has been dogged by the bottom-feeding audio Nazis and autistic genre pedants who infest psychedelic 'criticism'. If your critical faculties weren't paralyzed at the age of nine by the Beatles' first appearance on Ed Sullivan, however, you'll find a lot to love here; admittedly patchy and strictly speaking not a masterpiece, this is still more enjoyable than many albums that are. Plump for the deluxe LP repro, still affordable as of 2006, which improves the sound and adds a wealth of lovingly-assembled documentation of the band's career.

radioskaf (Matvei) (September, 2007)

And onto The Patron Saints reissue called Fohhoh Bohob. This one comes on CD and LP with bonus 7". Nice! This is some super rare classic 1969 psych pop album which has been rescued from obscurity and brought to your attention by those nice folks at Time Lag. It's really off kilter sounding psych pop. It straddles genres as well from samba to folk to some more fuzzed out pop. I think it's one of those records you need to spend a lot of time with before the obvious joy within bound out and smack you in the face. Nice!

This record left our Phil feeling happy.

normanrecords
(reviewing the 2007 Fohhoh Bohob Deluxe LP reissue)

FOHHOH BOHOB (Expanded Edition)-The Patron Saints
A largely unheard psychedelic gem from the end of the 60s -- originally private pressed by the group of suburban NY teenagers responsible for the wild sound! There's a cosmic rock groove and a bit of doe-eyed innocence in these cute odes to mind expansion -- with freewheeling guitars, hand percussion, keys and a conversational vocal style that sounds like a wildly tripping, speak-singing Neil Young! Titles include "Flower", "Nostalgia Trip", "Reflections", "Do You Think About Me?", "While Light", Relax", "My Lonely Friend", "Andrea", "The Goodnight Song" -- plus bonus tracks that include demos and live recordings! (Limited edition. Great gatefold cover sleeve!)

Dusty Groove America
(reviewing the 2007 Fohhoh Bohob Deluxe LP reissue)

PATRON SAINTS FOHHOH BOHOB (REISSUE, W/ 7", & SONGBOOK)
Originally a private press floating around in the psychedelic underground, the PATRON SAINTS' "Fohhoh Bohob" is a lo-fi masterpiece! The band recorded this in an apartment in a little over two weeks. The product of these three teenagers with some DIY ingenuity has yielded a well-crafted pop album in the same vein as the KINKS. With an array of instrumentation such as banjo, guitars, a unique upright piano sound, and at times humerous vocals this album is anything but dull. Their influences range from the BEATLES, MOBY GRAPE, or SKIP SPENCE, and the PATRON SAINTS create a truly original, self-released album. This reissue LP comes with a bonus 45 and a detailed song booklet. Amazing!!!

Reckless Records

Patron Saints - Fohhoh Bohob CD (Time Lag)

First impression of the cover: "what does that say?" The title is Fohhoh Bohob, an african phrase meaning "greeting of the mouth". Second impression: this is one of the heaviest sigle lps I have ever handled - and I don't mean in the musical sense. This is the art form we know (and love) as Time-Lag at its absolute apogee. You get an audiophile grade lp, an A4 folder of song lyrics and notes and a 7" all in an exact replica of the 1969 paste-on sleeve, for that's when this music was made. What of the music? In '69, few even dreamt of homemade albums, but this teenage trio not only achieved such a dream and ran off 100 copies of the result, but they did it with real songwriting talent and ambitious arrangements. I guess you could describe it as a kind of folk-psych, with influences from old jug bands. I was about to say there's a tinge of Jonathan Richman here, but Patron Saints predates J.R, so that would be unfair on them. A wondrous official re-issue of an l.p. which, in it's original form, sells for literally thousands of dollars. (Please note: the cd contains all the same tracks as the LP plus 7", and has 4 extra bonus tracks) (JC)

boa melody bar
(reviewing the 2007 Fohhoh Bohob Deluxe LP reissue)

Deluxe Edition of this super rare, 1969 USA private recording (single 100 copies). Authentic folk underground with homemade atmosphere and deliciously amateur. Exact reproduction of hard cardboard cover, remastered analog sound, 180 vinyl, identical insert book to the original one. It includes 7" single with unreleased bonus cuts that they were not included in the LP. Limited edition of 1000 copies.

Guerssen
(reviewing the 2007 Fohhoh Bohob Deluxe LP reissue)

Deluxe exact repro edition of this legendary 1969 private press LP that touches on classic outsider avatars like Department Store Santas, Fugs, Shadow Ring et al with a shot of heavy hitters like The Kinks, post-Smile Beach Boys, Modern Lovers...

volcanic tongue
(reviewing the 2007 Fohhoh Bohob Deluxe reissue)

Innocence and wonder were often feigned during the heyday of psychedelia, but rarely were the real things as omnipresent as on this slice of oh-so-charming home-made psike-pop; the amateur recording techniques, ivory tinkling and earnest drama club geek vocals really make it work so well, but there are still some very fine tunes underneath.

TheHorbgorbler
(reviewing the 2007 Fohhoh Bohob Deluxe reissue)

The Patron Saints:

Eric Bergman: guitar, bass, percussion, vocals (ABC)
Jonathan Tuttle: guitar, piano, bass, vocals (AB)
Paul D’Alton: drums, percussion (A)
Joe Ivins: drums, percussion, vocals (BC)
John Doerschuk: guitar, piano, vocals (BC)
Kirk Foster: bass, guitar, vocals (BC)

Album: 1 (A) Fohhoh Bohob (Patron Saint Records, JT-1001) 1969 R4/R5

NB: (1) Originally issued in thick white sleeve with front and rear paper slicks glued on by hand. Some copies [all actually; many were lost over the years] came with booklet (R5). Bootleg in Austria in 1994 (300 copies with photocopied booklet), and in 1997, an official reissue was produced from the master tapes by Eric Bergman and American Sound Records (106202-3), 500 numbered copies with booklet and bonus 7” single of unreleased material. In addition, Fohhoh Bohob has been made available on CD with three bonus tracks (Patron Saint PSCD-101), 1997 and more recently, two compilations of unreleased recordings have appeared: Proto Bohob (Patron Saint PSCD-104), 1999, consisting of early demos from 1969, and The Latimer Sessions (Patron Saint PSCD-105/106), 2000, which is unreleased material from 1970-1973 by lineups (B) and (C) listed above.

“American Sound” [in collaboration with Patron Saint Records] is an appropriate label for the reissue of this rare New York album, ’cause records like this don’t exist anywhere else on Earth. Exactly why the “do it yourself” approach to record making is (nearly) wholly an American phenomenon isn’t clear, but it is undeniably what keeps collectors on the hunt. (It’s probably why you’re reading this review!). When someone assembles a list of records from Europe, for example, that were made for reasons other than commercial enterprise, very few trees will die to publish it.

Considering that they named their album “Fohhoh Bohob” (Patron Saints slang term for what is currently known as a “lewinsky”), we know that the band had no delusions of rock stardom*. They probably never dreamed that the album they recorded in their parents’ living room would be worth a thousand bucks someday either, but it is in this arena that they have bitch-slapped their top-40 contemporaries and pushed ’em down the stairs!

Fohhoh Bohob was produced by the band over the course of a few weeks in the summer of 1969, and it doesn’t sound too much like anything else. There are moments where it could be The Velvet Underground, perhaps Pearls Before Swine, maybe Sidetrack or even Faine Jade influencing them, but one gets the impression that these guys made their own maps. There are a few places where the band seems to flounder, but they are overwhelmed by other passages where their ability to impress is apparent and effective. It’s not a masterpiece, but it is a very unique and unusual record, and many collectors rate it very highly as a result. As only 100 were originally pressed, don’t wait for one to pop up...grab the reissue which has much better sound anyway; the original isn’t the best pressing.

Of the two compilations of unreleased material, The Latimer Sessions (a double CD release) is highly recommended. While Proto Bohob is what one would expect after hearing their 1969 album, this double CD of later recordings is a real revelation. The Patron Saints definitely got better and better over the next few years-the quirky, underground vision is still there, but their ability to render the ideas as a band is markedly improved. With well over two hours of material to offer, this is remarkably consistent throughout. Incidentally, in case you figured the band was moving up in stature during this period, perish the thought! They were actually demoted from the living room to the basement!

Eric Bergman also issued two solo albums that fall outside the scope of this particular review: Modern Phonography (Patron Saint PS-1), 1978, and Sending Out Signals (Patron Saint PS-2), 1982. Both albums have been compiled on CD with bonus material (Patron Saint PSCD-102/103), 1998.

Jon Tuttle passed away in 1994.

The Patron Saints’ Reflections On A Warm Day can be found on Love, Peace and Poetry, Volume 1.

Clark Faville

* we did actually, in an obviously deluded and naïve manner!

THE PATRON SAINTS
FOHHOH BOHOB
(AMERICAN SOUND RECORDINGS)


Naming your album after a slang expression for a blow-job sounds like a recipe for disaster, but this self-released 1969 pop-psych nugget became a (‘scuse the pun) word-of-mouth legend, with original copies now selling for insane amounts. Recorded at home while a band-member’s parents were away on vacation, this NY garage group overcame severe technical limitations to create an East Coast lysergic pop homage to Arthur Lee and Love. Incredibly catchy with a heartfelt, bittersweet undertow, the songs are further enlivened by eccentric arrangements and random reverb splashes worthy of Lee “Scratch” Perry. The erratic tape-splices and false vaudeville-style endings on “The Goodnight Song” invoke a deranged Musique Concrete vibe reminiscent of “Lumpy Gravy” era Zappa. With a full libretto and a bonus 7” of unreleased tracks, this lovingly-packaged vinyl reissue is (dare I say it) a mouth-watering delight to be savoured by both aficionados and the curious.

KEK-W

PATRON SAINTS “FOHHOH BOHOB” lp & 7inch (self released) long gone, self produced, exact reissue, of what to my ears is one of the very finest examples of 60s private press folk/psych. recorded in a living room in new york by 3 teenagers in 1969, and self released in an edition of only 100 copies. amazingly thoughtful, introspective, naive, and beautifully produced psychedelic folkrock. two great singers, great songs, fuzz, creative recording tricks, piano, 12 string, banjo, and an all around sweet vibration... this reissue is just like the original pressing, put together by founding member eric bergman, with mind-blowing primitive paste-on artwork & 9 page libretto booklet... also includes a bonus 7” ep with 2 killer tracks left off the original lp. numbered edition of 500 that’s been out of print for 5+ years... highest recommendation!

by Nemo Bidstrup, time-lagrecords.com

Patron Saints, whose 1969 private press album "fohhoh bohob" is something that I've been listening to a lot lately, after having luckily stumbled across a cheap used copy, not knowing anything about this item, I picked it up by chance.

Apparently only 100 copies were pressed originally, 60 of which were made public, the rest going to friends, family, and promotional interests. Comes as no surprise, then, that the original copies went for well over a thousand dollars (on the new Patron Saints site, i think it is referenced that a copy was for sale for $2,500)

The surprising part about this record, however, is that it doesn't sound like a period piece-maybe it has something to do with this band being from Chappaqua, New York (I remember reading that they were Long Island based...but anyhow)-an interesting place where there are clear mainstream connections to NYC, but also outsider's charm (it seems like most music with 'strange' flourishes from past eras are from suburbs of the metropolitan areas, as opposed to the country, or the metropolitan areas themselves).

In fact, in many ways it reminds me of the 90's psychpop stuff I used to listen to in highschool (elephant 6, early tower recordings), but with a more melodic/spiritual and earnest edge, and completely bereft of irony (unlike those recent groups). There are a few missteps, however, songs like nostalgia trip (especially), and my lonely friend, the goodbye song, and a few others (including the bonus track, 'shine on heart') are examples of crystalline fragile off-key psych-pop genius, incredibly wispy, bare and at the same time heavy and pastoral.

The production, too helps this, and it is a fairly unconventional mix...there is literally an absence of any constant signatured drum beat...and barely any bass drums. Instead, percussion is limited to cymbal washes, and muffled tinny percussion that starts and stops almost unexpectedly. It appears that either the drummer was not proficient technically (which I prefer to a 'skilled' drummer) or was going for a textural percussion sound, clearly benefitting the emotions of the record.

Some of the lyrics exhibit what I perceived to be influenced by Western Christian faith, and needless to say, I find any proselytizing to be troublesome. However, Eric, one of the two original songwriters (unfortunately, the other songwriter, Jon Tuttle, whose songs I enjoyed most-he's responsible for Nostalgia Trip, My Lonely Friend, Goodbye Song...passed away in 1994) explained to me that there was no Christian influence, and the lyrics are expressive of general spirituality and questioning of 'something greater'. This puts my mind at ease! (Makes it acceptable to enjoy Fohhoh Bohob the way it should be enjoyed...)

In any case, Eric is reforming most of the remaining band members, and apparently is mixing a reunion Patron Saints record; he's a nice guy, who likes to talk to people who enjoy his music, (I haven't heard anything else involving him, however). He can be reached at his maxmulti.com website. Haven't heard any other Patron Saints, either, though I'm curious about Latimer Sessions. For some reason, his discs, although pressed in relatively small editions -500 each, to my knowledge(small pressings for professional cds), are only available through amazon; i found mine used. Time Lag Distribution had carried the vinyl reissue of fohhoh bohob (also pressed in an edition of 500 copies), although Nemo tells me they are out of stock.

So, this comes highly recommended, it is neither as stoned, or 'out there' as some snippets on the web indicate (I also only caught one drug reference), nor is it by any means a straight late 60's psych record. As it's reissued in a paltry edition, and the vinyl reissue is hard to find (which leads me to believe the initial copies have been sold), I recommend picking it up...otherwise, you'll be paying a lot for it (or downloading it from a file-sharing service...) Though, for some reason, I think the Patron Saints have eluded mass collector recognition, are still pretty much only esteemed within the really obscure-pricey collector's markets, those in the know, and people like me who've come across it by accident, and have been unexpectedly delighted with the listening experience (by the end of Nostalgia Trip-second song on the album, I knew I was listening to the kind of record that immediately distinguishes itself from others).

If anyone expresses interest, I will post an mp3 of one of my favorite songs from Fohhoh Bohob.

by Jacob at explodingbubblelake.com

Please look at my friend Jacob's new blog, Exploding Bubble Lake.

Up now is a analysis/review of the album Fohhoh Bohob, by Long Island [well, close] psych troupe, The Patron Saints.

Jacob debunks any suspicions of Xtian undertones and points out that "it seems like most music with 'strange' flourishes from past eras are from suburbs of the metropolitan areas, as opposed to the country, or the metropolitan areas themselves." Hmmmm! I would rate this album as undeserving of its obscurity, which means that it is pretty good and recommended. Here is one track:

Patron Saints - Nostalgic Trip
Excellent percussion (pitiful, reverbed tambourine taps) and possibly-post-historically-disillusioned lyrics (possibly stoned-in-history-class):

"Take me back 1,000 years
spread my soul through time
let me view the present and the past
and love it cause it's mine"

Blog-City

patron saints - "fohhoh bohob" this is a great piece of homemade 70s folk rock crud. sound quality is a bit like the first velvet underground album. totally amateur band but with big ideas and alot of heart. isn't that how all the best ones are? morays aren't really hippie though lean in a strange barnyard/backyard green fields laidback kind of direction. interesting lyrics, whole thing just a really cool homemade project. i can smell the lemonade and stale cigarette smoke on the screen porch where they must have recorded this. p.s. whoa crazy webpage here made by one of the members. tons of info. way cool, and for the record it was recorded in parents living room. close enough. only 100 made!

by Jack Dee

PATRON SAINTS - Fohhoh Bohob, USA 1969 (AMERICAN SOUND)-LP plus single plus massive booklet and other extras, 500 numbered copies
This is one of our favored albums ever. If you like art-rock, psychedelic with a twisted edge, go for this one. We received the 10 last copies in stock - so this one is sold out at AMERICAN SOUND. Well-played songs, amazing compositions which are special even now, after all these years.

by Thomas Hartlage, psychedelic-music.com

PATRON SAINTS; Fohhoh Bohob (Private US 69) 60 copies made New York real psych. gem. Real mind-bending sound, weird, echoing vocals...Unique, sincere feel that takes some time (and maybe something else) to fully absorb the depth of their statements. Completely cover design than the reissue. One of a kind and big bucks are welcomed here...

THE PATRON SAINTS-Fohhoh Bohob (Private, re-) M/M; Thick paste-on cover 300 pressing of impossibly rare late 60's garage-psych. If you're looking for something unusually different...whew! VERY stoned, far-out psych, kinda wacky, after a couple 3 spins you get the hang and becomes even a charming old relic of extreme psychedelia. Never saw an original, must be worth at least $1000+. Think it's from '68. Could only get a few. Rare, soon extinct.

PATRON SAINTS-Fohhoh Bohob (private '69) exact deluxe reissue of garage folkrock psych monster with repro of insert booklet, even a bonus EP of unissued tracks. This is one of the absolute rarest 60s US private pressings of merit, with only 60 made originally...kudos to Mike up in Mass. for pulling this beauty off.

Here's an example of a record that was re-released recently: Fohhoh Bohob by The Patron Saints. Here is one of rarest records of all psychedelic rock - only 100 copies of this record were produced in 1969, which was recorded in the living room of the parents of one of the members. It is a record that did not have pretensions to be what it is: a monster of psychedelic rock, not only for its originality, but also for its naivety. None of the young men in the band dreamed that one day their record would go for values approaching 3000 dollars.

I do not have 3000 dollars to shell out for a record; 3000 dollars is a lot of money. However, there are many people who easily pay this much to have a record like this in their house. It is almost as much as buying a painting; instead of giving value to landscapes, we give value to sound. Relative to the wallet, relative to the interest that we have in the record; it is all relative. At this moment, I can't afford to take 3000 dollars out of my bank account, but I'd like to have the record. How I deal with this quandary? With new editions/reissues.

These generally have better quality, and as happened in the case of the 1997 LP reissue of Fohhoh Bohob, the original artists supplied the original masters to be worked with digitally, added bonus songs never before published, and added a booklet and sheet with amazing precious information given by the members of the band. The old question of the "original versus reissue" is slowly changing into a different situation. What's probably going to happen with this increasing quality of the reissues, is that the reissues are going to be as important as the originals and not substitutes. [translated and edited from Portugese to English to the best of my internet-assisted meager abilities.]

http://hitdabreakz.blogspot.com

PATRON SAINTS fohhoh bohob (orig mono)(lp+7"booklet) (us 69 new york folky psych weird head music very rare ala isb)[$2400-3400]

PATRON SAINTS-"Fobohohob" (American Sound 1997) might have the title misspelled as it's not in front of me as I write this; a legit and fantastic reissue of astoundingly rare NY psychedelic folk from early 70's and very difficult to describe as the happier it sounds the darker it gets, a certain twist to the whole affair that has attracted collectors to the tune of $2000 in the past; taken from the remastered studio tapes this sounds significantly better than the original and way superior to the Austrian boot from 2 or 3 years back, it also comes with an exact reproduction of the original sleeve and the original booklet (that actually has a couple original lp labels affixed to it AND a bonus 7-inch e.p. that adds another 20 or so minutes of unreleased original tracks that equal the lp; better known after its inclusion on the new "Love, Peace & Poetry" US comp this is one of my favorites and it's nice to see it this well done.

Patron Saints: Fohhoh Bohob LP (Ahotz, 69; American Sound re, 97; Patron Saint re, 97), amazing deep Real People hippie trip, stoned college dorm sound.

PATRON SAINTS-Fohhoh Bohob-private-VG++/VG++ to EX; w/ lyric booklet; ORIGINAL copy, thick cvr w/pasteon slicks; minor h2o stain at bottom doesn’t reach the slicks, which are pretty clean; disc hasn’t been played much but has some odd surface / storage marks that make occasional random clicks or light pops (I think this came from years of storage with the stapled lyric booklet pressing against the innersleeve, which luckily was there all this time); well, you probably know the music, wonderful gentle psychedelia, make me an OFFER!

Legit master tapes reissue of NY dark psychedelic folk w/early ESP vibe; comes with a book, bonus 7-inch w/2 unreleased tracks--limited and lovely -- sure to be among the top-10 reissues of 1997!

PATRON SAINTS-Fohhoh Bohob (Private 69 US) Yikes!!! Beyond rare original copy of NY garage acid folk with perfect lost in time feel, echoing vocals, psych guitar, rumored to made in 60 copies [100, actually] and easily sold in USA for $2000+! This copy has the homemade black and white cover; a bit dirty, otherwise very nice, no ring or split seams on others; record has some visual marks, but plays strong EX; has only some clicks in some spots. Oh, yes...has the original lyrics handmade booklet as well! Please...serious cash/trade offers!

Patron Saints  N Y "Fohhoh Bohob" 1969 (Ahotz/JT 1001 Austria/vinyl US/CD Patron Saint)
A truly unique trip and hard to describe, but it's sort of local/real people folkpsych with an array of influences ranging from ragtime to 40s schlager sentimentality to hippie confusion, like tuning into a radio station from another world. Well-written, amazing and deep, you need to hear it. Member Eric Bergman has confirmed the original pressing as 100 copies. Note hidden message along the borders of the back sleeve. The first re is ltd ed of 300 and has a modified front sleeve. The 2nd re and CD are legal and have excellent bonus tracks.

This album was way ahead of its time, kind of like Virgin Insanity, as nothing else sounded like it then, but now there have been a bunch of 90s indie bands that cover the same territory. The sloppy, almost inept performances will either appeal to you or they won’t. The mix of old-fashioned musical styles is interesting. There’s a feel here of a songwriter who had a million ideas but nowhere near enough musical talent to project them correctly, and the result actually more original and fascinating than what they had hoped... or just boring, depending on your perspective. Not for everyone.

Patron Saints Fohhoh Bohob LP NEW $30 usa psych (97, paste-on re; libretto, bonus 45, 500#d) the ultimate local flower folk psych lp. legit re by the band.

Fohhoh Bohob
Patron Saint Records, JT-1001, USA, 1969

ULTRA RARE ORIGINAL US COPY OF THIS ACID PSYCH LP FROM LATE '60s. It NEVER turns up!!! Original copies like this are IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND! Only 60 or 100 copies were made in 1969. It comes in a fantastic homemade B/W cover. Music is truly amazing! This copy is used but still VERY enjoyable! Good luck!!!

Record: VG+/Cover: VG+

PATRON SAINTS-Fohhoh Bohob-private(U.S., '69)
Insane real psych jewel limited to 60 copies. Contains the even rarer hand-constructed, hand-spray painted booklet signed by group member Jon Tuttle thanking his parents for their support. Twisted vocals and DEEP lyrics. Odd marks (looks like this loon signed the vinyl through the first song and a half of side one cause ticks and pops. Remainder of the album is a nice EX, so graded accordingly. (S1 VG+,S2 EX/FC EX+,BC EX,WIN,SPS,SRW,WOBC) $2500. 

PATRON SAINTS: Fohhoh Bohob (private US 69/reissue) long gone 300 limited numbered reissue of this mega-rare New York lost-in-time garage acid flower psych folk gem…LP is new except for a scratch in 1 track that cause a few tiny tics…it contains also all the inserts…EX/M-35.

You can barely call this bad boy psych; there's a fair amount cribbed from the firm of Lee and MacLean, but just as much music-hall/recital-type stuff, like Cream's lighter moments. The first couple times I listened to this, I thought these guys sounded vocally like a bunch of jocks trying to make sensitive rock on the sly. The enunciation is something, I gotta tell you. But after a few plays its less immediate charms came to the fore. I'm still not going to pretend it's a classic - like you give a damn, ha - but the boys shew a great sense of dynamics as well as a florid touch on the ivories 'n' acoustic. "Do You Think About Me" is the major mis-step, a jaunty knock at th' hillbillies that won't truck in my part of the country. But "White Light," "Andrea" and "My Friend" attain a kind of sad-sack epicness (the latter is particularly emo, but give it time - the sum weight of the couplets add up to TRUTH). I kind of wish these fine gentlemen - genially maintaining their legacy after four decades - had decided to go for some sort of Gatsbyesque gothic. I mean, fine piano + upstate New York + recording in a  mansion + deliberate diction could have = upper-crust guest-room masterpiece. But screw what I want, this is a winner.

The big tragedy is that "Shine on Heart" wasn't able to be included on the original, since it was so long and all, but those original pressings can't be valued much higher, hm? Just a sad praise chorus, sung sadly but played con bounce. Jon Tuttle's solo is stunningly brave. It's pretty much the high point... "Do It Together" is a springy, botched number in the "Thirteen" vein - "we can get munchies together," haw. There's a couple after-the-fact takes that show how the guys improved as musicians... some ridiculous strumming but the songs sound even more immature six years on... some things don't need to be recaptured, just celebrated as they were. But man, that strumming...

Want to know how Fohhoh Bohob came to exist? Read on..

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