Family Entertainment – FAMILY****

The Weaver’s Answer/Observations From A Hill/Hung Up Down/Summer 67/How-Hi-The-Li/Second Generation Woman/From Past Archives/Dim/Processions/Face In The Cloud/Emotions

Family Entertainment was the follow up album from idiosyncratic British progressive group Family and is similar in character to their first. Future releases would not be to the same standard. (UK:6)

"Family were an act with an enormous amount of potential, but they mixed the very good by sailing far too close to the forgettable on a few occasions. The combination of musicians on their second album weave a fine blend of instrumentation, but the truth is the band truly peaked after two albums. Family Entertainment is a collection of semi psyched up progressive rock, with some finely layered tunes merged with a kind of filler, a real disposable filler, but luckily the good moments on this effort make it a worthwhile album and outweigh the weak spots."

"The group picks up where Music In A Doll's House left off, moving beyond psychedelia and pushing toward folk, country, and straight rock - very diverse influences here. Second Generation Woman is a fast, irresistible rocker that shows just how they could tackle any kind of music with great skill and dexterity. Other favourites are The Weaver's Answer and Hung Up Down - both show Roger Chapman's bleating growl in spades."

"To succeed during that time, a band had to really deliver the goods; be exciting, different, consistent and play with unparalleled enthusiasm. Family never sacrificed any of these prerequisites for commercialism or predictability and delivered an essential and riveting set of songs that wove their magic spell."

"A fine follow-up to their debut, perhaps just a wee bit off the pace, but quite delightful nonetheless. Again, very diverse, with styles ranging from standard rock, to pop, to country, and even eastern flavoured material, psych influences and some use of strings, all with good period trappings."

"As progressive rock evolved, one section turned to the complex structure, another to the magniloquent atmosphere. Family belonged in the latter group, typified by the theatrical flavoured progressive rock of The Weaver's Answer, a treat also evident in the folk-rock Observations From A Hill, which was played from the perspective of the performing troupe."