Opening with a conversational set-up about going to a party, this song soon shifts into repetitions of the title over an energetic soul/rock foundation, with occasional interjections of other lines drastically outweighed by the chorus. Certainly catchy, with a good swing to it, but a little too thin on content to be more than a novelty.
Performed by a side-project of Sun Ra’s Arkestra, this album opens with a cover of the Batman TV series theme before moving on into interpretations of various elements from the Batman universe (e.g., “Penguin’s Umbrella”, “Batmobile Wheels”, and “The Bat Cave”). The songs are performed in a blues rock style, with faint touches of jazz to the looseness of playing and riff treatments, and are generally kept quick, with most in the two-to-three-minute range (the ~7-minute “Batman and Robin Over the Roofs” being the exception).
Though the guitar-work gets the spotlight, the rest of the instruments put in strong showings, with the occasional use of ‘guest’ instruments (like a harmonica for “Joker is Wild”) lending some extra spice to the mix. Some minor reuse of lead melodies, along with the main stable of the instruments not changing up too much throughout the album, does lead to some redundant flavoring, but for the most part, the quality of the playing helps lift the otherwise fairly insubstantial nature of the tribute.
One of three albums released in 1966 by Sandy Nelson, Superdrums! shows the drummer and his backing band covering a dozen hit songs while keeping them short (only the title track runs over three minutes). Despite the title’s suggestion of the drums getting the spotlight, just as much attention is given to the guitar, while the bass and electric organ plug in their parts with clean incorporation.
The songs are kept instrumental (outside of a few chorus-point shouts), usually ending with a fade-out, and there’s an upbeat energy to the playing that feels almost surf-rockish at times. Occasional blurts of horn pick things up with some extra flair, and while there isn’t much depth to the album, it’s played with enough energy and brevity to come off as a fun little indulgence.
Here’s the cover art used for the stereo edition.
And the reissue cover art.
Scrambled Brains 