I begin PYRITE RADIO – where I explore curios, also-rans and terrible songs that shouldn’t be let anywhere near a golden record – with this piece of preachy weirdness from 1971.
‘Once You Understand‘ was put together by two studio dudes under the band name Think. It’s an endlessly repeating refrain – ‘Things get a little easier, once you understand’ – which sounds like something out of Godspell or Hair, building slowly as more voices and instruments join the fray, all set against the spoken word backdrop of parent/teen disfunction. Death comes at the end, as we listen in on a father being informed of his son’s death from an overdose. Sobbing occurs, then the refrain returns for one last kick in the teeth. It’s awful, makes no sense and I love it, but only in the same way I love Sinbad of the Seven Seas with Lou Ferrigno.
Jonathan Scott 