Tape from California

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Tape from California is the fifth studio album by American folk singer Phil Ochs. It was released in July 1968 on A&M Records and marks a shift from straightforward protest songs to more orchestral and baroque arrangements. The album was recorded in early 1968 and runs 46 minutes and 55 seconds.

Style and reception
- The album moves away from pure protest toward richer, more varied textures.
- Critical reception was mixed: Rolling Stone gave a negative review, while AllMusic later awarded it 3 out of 5 stars.

Track listing (all songs by Phil Ochs)
Side One
- Tape From California – 6:45
- White Boots Marching in a Yellow Land – 3:35
- Half A Century High – 2:53
- Joe Hill – 7:18
- The War Is Over – 4:25

Side Two
- The Harder They Fall – 3:52
- When In Rome – 13:13
- Floods of Florence – 4:52

Personnel
- Phil Ochs – guitar, vocals
- Larry Marks – producer
- Joe Osborn – bass guitar on Tape From California
- Lincoln Mayorga – piano, keyboards
- Van Dyke Parks – piano, keyboards on Tape From California
- Ramblin’ Jack Elliott – flat-picked guitar on Joe Hill
- Ian Freebairn-Smith – arrangements

Context
- This album sits in Phil Ochs’s discography after Pleasures of the Harbor (1967) and before Rehearsals for Retirement (1969).