I acquired this record one day when my dad let me pick through his collection. I had overlooked this one, and he handed it to me as if I should not have done that. And for whatever reason (the many skips on track one perhaps) this is my first listen through it.

There aren’t surprises to anyone familiar with his band The Lovin’ Spoonful, but it’s bouncing, optimistic pop music is more alluring than I would have guessed. Much of the record is the sort of relaxed, sunny day music that these winter blues call for (You’re a Big Boy Now practically wrote Jack Johnson’s entire career).

But the line between wide eyed optimism and hackneyed “gee golly” schlock is thin, and Sebastian is not immune to losing his balance. Rainbow All Over Your Blues, for instance, should have been reconsidered. But these tracks succeed more often than they fail: How Have You Been, with its droning organ, autoharp, and melancholy vocals, is an extraordinary study in mood tension, like a sunburn on a tropical vacation. Overall, this is not a record that should have been ignored for seven years.