Michael Dobbins – Music For The Seeker
Bing Crosby drops acid and wakes up in a ditch outside an ashram with a long unkept beard and a clear plastic bag holding his personal belongings.
Confused, blinking against the desert sun, he senses that he must keep on seeking. Walking down the empty road, he comes upon a Stranger. The Stranger speaks of many things; of the Eck, and of the Sugmad. Most of all, he speaks of the Master, and when he does the Stranger’s cold eyes take on a mysterious glow.
Following the path shown to him by the Stranger, Bing Crosby soon reaches the hidden temple of the Master. He understands that his journey is over: he is home. Engulfed in the deep love of the Master and his Eckankar teachings, he feels a desire to express himself. So he picks up an acoustic guitar, and records a series of songs about his life as a Seeker, and about his love for the Master, and of the Eck, and of the Sugmad.
And this is when the Seeker remembers that he is Bing Crosby, and so he records his songs in the enchanting style of Bing, although they are Eastern spiritual folk. His opening program declaration, “The Seeker”, borrows a few ideas from “My Way”. Other tracks seem to echo certain christmas carols that Bing had popularized in his previous life.
With classical guitar arrangements giving him a sense of grandeur, he pours all the vocal authority of his redeemed soul into the music. Finally he can let everything out, and not hold anything back. Why should he? Does not the power of the universe flow naturally from the Sugmad?
Satisfied, he uses his last few dollars to release the album with a custom label. Alas, a back cover proved too expensive, and is left blank.
13 Comments
Why indeed should we hold anything back? I dig this review.
Greatness comes from not holding back. It’s the way of Eckankar, religion of light and sound of God:
http://www.eckankar.org/
Thanks… I also have some less poetic thoughts on this LP, but I’ll save those for later.
It takes two keys to unlock every review. Do they have kronar bins in Sweden?
Just got an upgrade (yep) of this great LP, an event which I celebrated by doing this review. The average cost of my 2 copies is as follows: first one FREEBIE THROW-IN, 2nd one $19 on eBay = $9.50. But I could easily see myself paying $50 for this one.
I’m not joking when I say I dig the Dobbins trip. “Two keys” is the best track, but “As One Soul” is unreal like an unplugged Kaplan Bros, and all over the guy’s mix of overblown croonerama and starry-eyed spiritual folk religiosity is hard to beat.
The sample track above isn’t the best on the album, but it serves my purposes well.
The Sugmad awaits.
Ahh, this would fit in perfectly among my similar records with sea shore sleeve’s. Need to find a copy! Excellent review as well
Magnus (in Gävle, Sweden)
Yeah, dat’s a generic one for sure… the guy must have been really low on $$$ (because he’d given it all to the Master), since there is neither a back cover, nor an insert. There’s basically just a track list & an address in Idaho, no other info whatsoever. I tried tracking him some years back, but “Michael Dobbins” is just too common a name.
Såg just att Brynäs vill byta ut Boorken :-)
i have it.
on 33 it didn’t work for me, on 45…wow!
great lp.
Lama….I think I sent you the freebie….Karma dictates that you pass it on…I wish I had listened to the LP at 45!!! Damn!!
Yes sir, got the freebie from the Dallas Mahanta some years back, after I posted a “sugmad awaits” prayer at another forum.
45 rpm sounds like a great idea, I’m going to try that.
I file this LP next to the Ylvisaker collection.
…
Mahanta. [mah-HAHN-tah]
A title to describe the highest state of God Consciousness on earth, often embodied in the Living ECK Master. He is the Living Word. An expression of the Spirit of God that is always with you.
Patrick wrote: Såg just att Brynäs vill byta ut Boorken
Vafalls! Varför!
Det undrar jag ocksÃ¥, men enligt kvällstidningarna sÃ¥… Dock är vi nog i fel forum här, minst sagt :-)
Great review! and song! Surprised Eckankar didn’t release this themselves ala the Sri Darwin Gross album which is also pretty great! I have an odd Eck single as well with channelled moaning vocals and piano and the flip being odd FX of wind chimes, waves, and distortion: a total gem. It’d be great to read an Eckankar discography , probably very fascinating as everything I’ve heard by this happy cult comes up gold
I had a Darwin Gross lined up in a trade for my spare Dobbins (internal trading among Eck devotees), but it fell thru… anyone have a Gross to offer I’ll Paypal you some bread for it.