| Mystic Journey | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1996 | |||
| Studio | Derek Studios | |||
| Genre | Folk rock | |||
| Label | Rising Son [1] | |||
| Producer | Arlo Guthrie, Abe Guthrie | |||
| Arlo Guthrie chronology | ||||
| ||||
Mystic Journey is an album by the American musician Arlo Guthrie, released in 1996. [2] [3] It was Guthrie's first album of mostly new material in a decade. [4]
The album is dedicated to Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati, Guthrie's Hindu guru. [5]
The album was produced by Guthrie and his son, Abe. [6] [7] Cyril Pahinui played on the album. [8]
The songs were in part inspired by Guthrie's work as a hospice volunteer. [9] Many were written three to four years before the recording sessions. [10] "Moon Song" was written for The Byrds of Paradise , on which Guthrie starred. [11]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [12] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [13] |
| MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide |  [14] |
| (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide | [7] |
The Washington Post wrote that, "derivative as they are, these tunes nonetheless possess a charm of their own, and Guthrie slides into them as if they were an old pair of slippers." [15] The Wisconsin State Journal called Mystic Journey "an intimate, acoustic album about love, family and spiritualism." [16]
The Independent deemed "Doors to Heaven" "a well-meaning but horribly 'Imagine'-esque piece of whimsy." [17] The Toronto Star stated that "Arlo continues his life mission of slyly confounding fans and foes alike... This time around, it's done by recording a rootsy, folk rocking set of tunes, a long haul from the gently paced acoustic album most fans likely expected." [18] The Gazette determined that the album "contains relatively innocuous love songs for the Prairie Home Companion set." [19]
AllMusic wrote that "the lyrics also had a Dylanish twinge in their highly poetic, sometimes obscure language, though Guthrie commented on a variety of contemporary issues." [12] MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide considered the album "a richly crafted and introspective record that shows he's hardly played out." [14]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Moon Song" | |
| 2. | "Face of Time" | |
| 3. | "The Mystic Journey" | |
| 4. | "Under Cover of Night" | |
| 5. | "You Are the Song" | |
| 6. | "Doors to Heaven" | |
| 7. | "Wake Up Dead" | |
| 8. | "When a Soldier Makes It Home" | |
| 9. | "Stairs" | |
| 10. | "All This Stuff Takes Time" | |
| 11. | "I'll Be with You Tonight" |
Arlo Davy Guthrie is an American folk singer-songwriter. He is known for singing songs of protest against social injustice, and storytelling while performing songs, following the tradition of his father, Woody Guthrie. Guthrie's best-known work is his debut piece, "Alice's Restaurant Massacree", a satirical talking blues song about 18 minutes in length that has since become a Thanksgiving anthem. His only top-40 hit was a cover of Steve Goodman's "City of New Orleans". His song "Massachusetts" was named the official folk song of the state, in which he has lived most of his adult life. Guthrie has also made several acting appearances. He is the father of four children, who have also had careers as musicians.
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