The Moray Eels Eat The Holy Modal Rounders

The Moray Eels Eat the Holy Modal Rounders is the fourth studio album by the New York psychedelic folk band the Holy Modal Rounders, released in 1968 through Elektra Records. Although Peter Stampfel does not regard the album highly, it has received positive reviews and its opener, "Bird Song," was notably included in the 1969 film Easy Rider.

Recording
Before the album's recording, the Holy Modal Rounders were effectively broken up. After their brief stint with the Fugs in 1965, Peter Stampfel and Steve Weber worked separately and had only reunited for the recording of Indian War Whoop and two gigs. Stampfel himself was working with a new band The Moray Eels, which ultimately inspired the name of the album. The group included his girlfriend Antonia (who co-wrote some of the songs for the album), Sam Shepard on drums, Richard Tyler on piano, and John Annis on bass.

Despite the band's lack of activity, Elektra producer Frazier Mohawk, a fan of the group, approached the duo to record a new album. Although Stampfel was reluctant to record with Weber again, the Moray Eels were signed to Elektra with the stipulation that Weber would join the recordings. The album's recording took place in California, where the band briefly relocated. Although Stampfel emphasized to Mohawk the need to force Weber to practice beforehand, rehearsals did not occur and the band ultimately entered the studio without a clear idea of what songs they were going to record. Sessions quickly became unorganized and both the band and Mohawk used an excessive amount of drugs throughout the album's recording.

The album was mixed without Stampfel in attendance. The engineers decided to make the album more "psychedelic" by not including grooves in between songs, much to the chagrin of Stampfel, who noted the songs would no longer have radio potential. Ultimately, "Bird Song" received some airplay because it was the first song on the album.

After the recording of the album, the Moray Eels and Weber merged and began performing as the Holy Modal Rounders. In late 1968, they opened for Pink Floyd and Ike & Tina Turner while still in California before they headed back east to New York City. On their way back, they stopped in Boston, where they opened for the Velvet Underground in January 1969.

Reception
Ritchie Unterberger, who wrote the liner notes for the 2002 reissue, regarded "Half a Mind" as rivaling "some of Syd Barrett's solo work" as well as describing the album as "a triumph, a melange of mind-melting acid folk that might have hung together by a thread, but was usually exhilarating, with a cracked, brain-damaged mystique all its own." Al Campbell of AllMusic positively reviewed the album's highlights as "otherworldly compositions" and that the album was "unabashed in its own eccentricity."

Stampfel himself does not regard the album in the highest esteem. He noted it reflected the music taste of Mohawk more so than of the Holy Modal Rounders and that the excessive drug use and Weber's refusal to rehearse led to the album being a mixed bag.

Popular culture
"Bird Song" was featured in the 1969 film Easy Rider directed by Dennis Hopper. The song caught the attention of Peter Fonda who heard it on the radio and thought it would be a perfect fit for the movie. The melody is lifted from Ray Price's "You Done Me Wrong" from 1956.

The American band Space Needle named their second album The Moray Eels Eat the Space Needle in reference to the album title.

Personnel

 * The Holy Modal Rounders
 * Sam Shepard – percussion
 * Peter Stampfel – banjo, electric violin, vocals
 * Richard Tyler – piano
 * Steve Weber – guitar, vocals


 * Additional musicians and production
 * William S. Harvey – art direction
 * Bob Labla – engineering
 * Robin Labla – engineering
 * Frazier Mohawk – production
 * John Wesley Annis – bass guitar & drums

Release history
This release includes extensive liner notes, including interviews and photographs