Request: Garage Rock/Psychedelic/Folk Rock Rock: Mouse And The Traps ‎– The Fraternity Years 1966 - 1968 (1997 Big Beat)

Fraternity Years is the first Mouse & the Traps compilation of a truly official nature, taken right from the master tapes. The 25 tracks do miss a few of their least essential cuts, like the awful country novelty "Would You Believe," their mediocre final single for Bell, and the "Psychotic Reaction" single they recorded under the pseudonym of Positively 13 O'Clock.

But everything else is here, with the neat bonuses of a 1967 single credited to another pseudonym (Chris St. John) and seven interesting, previously unreleased sides, including the moving folk-rock-protest number "Nobody Cares" and a you-gotta-hear-it-to-believe-it cover of "You Are My Sunshine" (set to the arrangement of James Brown's "I Got You"!).

The lengthy liner notes present the best history of the group ever written, capping an excellent reissue of a fine band who were probably too chameleon-like to find their niche in the national market. (Richie Unterberger, allmusic.com)

"A Public Execution," the first song here, is so Dylan-like that many who heard it believed that Dylan was indeed singing. Nope, just Mouse's singing style.

Favs beyond the above song, "You Don't Love Me (You Don't Care)," "You Are My Sunshine," "Cryin' Inside," "I Wonder Where the Birds Fly," "Like I Know You Do," "All For You," and especially the Brit-influenced "I've Got Her Love" and "Promises Promises."

The psychedelic "I Satisfy" is cool so is the jazzy feel of "Requiem For Sarah." "L.O.V.E. Love" is...well, lovely. A lot of knockout music here some of which should have hit the national charts. All in all, the only song on the CD that grates is the baroque "Hand in Hand" where Mouse's Dylanesque vocal seems out of place.

The band adds enough attitude and energy to make their covers of "I'm a Man," "Ya Ya" and "Mohair Sam" enjoyable.

This is another band who enjoyed regional success and who played with names such as the Byrds, The Box Tops and Yardbirds but for various reasons couldn't break to the national level, which is a shame.(allmusic reader review by James Cole)

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