Once upon a time, in a magical time called the 60s, in a far-out land known as L.A., an aspiring Hollywood stuntman known as James Edward Baker discovered a higher calling and started dabbling in vegetarianism, yoga, and utopian spiritual practices. Before long, Baker had changed his name to Father Yod (or YaHoWha) and was living in the Hollywood Hills, serving as the spiritual guide to 13 wives and hundreds of other young believers. And yea (as they say in the Bible), he was ONE COOL DUDE. Father Yod ran a top notch vegetarian restaurant in Laurel Canyon called The Source (which was also the name of his family of spiritual practitioners); it was one of the first health food restaurants in the US, and frequented by the likes of John Lennon, Frank Zappa, and Warren Beatty. Father Yod was also the lead singer of his commune’s experimental psych rock band, Ya Ho Wa 13. So here was a guy who was about peace, love, and rockin’ out — and he lived it all to the fullest.
The records Father Yod and his people made have been underground classics for decades. Father Yod and The Source Family moved from L.A. to San Francisco to Hawaii during the 1970s, and over that period of wandering, they made nine albums. Fans could purchase records at The Source restaurant. Sadly, the daring and prolific Father Yod died in a hang-gliding accident in Hawaii in the mid-70s, leaving behind his wives, hundreds of true believers, and hours and hours of unreleased tracks. Fortunately for us, the good people over at Drag City began unearthing some of Father Yod and The Source Family’s material back in 2008 and releasing several albums of psychedelic bliss. Now, they’ve got another trip down the rabbit hole lined up, in the form of a double-LP set of epically grooving/epically informative bootleg jams, The Thought Adjusters. Coinciding with the release of a new, non-Drag City documentary film on The Source Family that’s running through the festival circuit this year, The Thought Adjusters will make you start recontextualizing reality once it drops May 22.
Tracklisting:
A1. Bells
A2. Seed of Yahowa
A3. The Goddess Earth (All My Sons Are Jesus)
B1. Sleepy Heads
C1. Osiris/Isis
C2. Spin Around Part 1
D1. Spin Around Part 2
• The Source Foundation: http://www.yahowha.org
• Drag City: http://www.dragcity.com
More about: Father Yod & The Source Family
