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John Mayall — Television Eye
Album: Back to the Roots
Avg rating:
6.6

Your rating:
Total ratings: 386









Released: 1970
Length: 7:21
Plays (last 30 days): 0
Television eye hypnotizing me in my bed
I've got no time to sleep,
my eyes are getting blood-shot red
You've got me in your power,
staring at your many channeled head

Television eye
before you got me hooked
I used to read
Now you're by my bedside
shining empty lights on me

'Round the clock commercials,
trying to sell me things I'll never need

It's hard to turn you off,
even though you never turn me on
You're trying to slow my thinking,
feeling like my mind is nearly gone
Television eye,
had me in your power too long
Comments (54)add comment
Harvey Mandell on guitar.
Doesn"t get much better than this, psychedlic blues & funk all rolled into one!
 
Need to play more John Mayall{#Bananajam}
The Snake!

Harveymandel.jpg

quite cool man (wicked pecs too : )
These days it would be smartphone/tablet eye. Mobile devices are far more enthralling/enslaving than TV ever was - just witness the number of smombies you see on the street looking down at their devices instead of at the world they're moving through. And folk wonder why zombie movies are so popular these days?
Top shelf guitar from Harvey Mandell.
 idiot_wind wrote:
Is that Robin Trower? 

 
Yeah, I was wondering the same thing, but according to Wiki, this would be Harvey Mandel on this track. 
Great sound, great music anyway {#Smile}
Is that Robin Trower? 
Great!
 lily33 wrote:
seems like a dream's got me hyp-no-tized!!
dang...this is awesome.
 
quite cool Mayall, works every time 
Well, this rocks.
Cancelled the cable TV subscription almost two years ago and upped the broadband for the internet connection.

We still watch plenty of streaming video including stuff that get put out over television channels.  There are still annoying commercials — the info-mercials of Canadian pipeline companies are enough to drive a person crazy and I am resource friendly guy — but far fewer commercials than before. 
 RedGuitar wrote:
Harvey 'Snake' Mandel was a great guitar player.  He's in the Woodstock film, playing with Canned Heat.
Did some good solo work, too! 
 
Harvey is an "is," not a "was." I saw him a couple of years ago at WestFest, a 40th anniversary Woodstock commemorative event in Golden Gate Park.  



Leslie West was there, too (and had lost a ton of weight!). The Merry Pranksters did some schtick, and Stanley "Mouse" Miller  had a booth where he was hawking his posters. I was a very fun event.
Cant believe I have never heard this ... I possess two of his early albums, too.   Just as good as 'room to move'.
Just takes you away from this world..................
Nice music —- but the extended jibber-jabber tv crap at the end is awful.  I imagine they put that there to make some sort of point, but it winds up just being annoying.
 Poacher wrote:

Not really. . . I own a TV that I run iTunes through at home and watch movies on and occasionally play BBC programs that interest me via their online replay service. (I don't own cable, or even have a TV arial!) What I was really referring to is that I have opted out of having commercials played to me and decide what I want to watch. Of course, this has only really become possible recently with decent broadband connections. 

Another advantage of course is living in the UK where one can still view high quality commercial free BBC (long may it last!). 

As a result, the amount of advertising I am subjected to is a tiny fraction of what an average person gets in their face. This includes not reading printed media as much as possible. . . and my life is far better for it. 
 
Good for you, poacher!  I threw out my old (non-cable) TV when I moved a couple of years ago and after 2 months, I didn't miss it. It's amazing how much time it can waste and it can be a really monkey on your back.  (Sorry if I sound like the guy in the Onion!)

Oh, by the way Bill, can we have Japan "Television".

 Smoove_D wrote:
 Poacher wrote:
I watch NO commercial TV (or radio for that matter) . . . and my life is far better for it. 

Are you one of these guys?

Area Man Constantly Mentioning He Doesn't Own A Television

 
Not really. . . I own a TV that I run iTunes through at home and watch movies on and occasionally play BBC programs that interest me via their online replay service. (I don't own cable, or even have a TV arial!) What I was really referring to is that I have opted out of having commercials played to me and decide what I want to watch. Of course, this has only really become possible recently with decent broadband connections. 

Another advantage of course is living in the UK where one can still view high quality commercial free BBC (long may it last!). 

As a result, the amount of advertising I am subjected to is a tiny fraction of what an average person gets in their face. This includes not reading printed media as much as possible. . . and my life is far better for it. 


 gprinc wrote:
Nice guitar work from Harvey Mandel.
 
Harvey 'Snake' Mandel was a great guitar player.  He's in the Woodstock film, playing with Canned Heat.
Did some good solo work, too! 

 Poacher wrote:
I watch NO commercial TV (or radio for that matter) . . . and my life is far better for it. 

Are you one of these guys?

Area Man Constantly Mentioning He Doesn't Own A Television




lots of nice.
Nice guitar work from Harvey Mandel.
I watch NO commercial TV (or radio for that matter) . . . and my life is far better for it. 
Gets me in touch with something I'm not sure which. Thank god we'll be seeing a lot less SUV/PU/car commercials from now on.

nice.........
nice to hear this again, reminds me of when I lived in LA in the 70's and the seemingly endless stream of car commercials on tv.

EXCELLENT CHOICE Bill....
MM13
(High in the lo country)
Posted: Jan 03, 2008 - 06:37 < Reply >

algrif wrote: Is Clapton on this track ??
No, according to a track listing I found, it's Harvey Mandel who played lead on this track

Harvey played with Canned Heat, among others...
Great groove from one of the great bands of its era....
Classic blues, contemporary message. Truly the bee's knees, the kipper's knickers, and the dog's cojones. 8 from the Nottingham jury. Oh, and it's nice to know that someone else loathes TV too... :o)
Very, very cool!
algrif wrote:
Is Clapton on this track ??
No, according to a track listing I found, it's Harvey Mandel who played lead on this track
dreadpixie wrote:
what... what.... what is this shite?
This is the unique jazzy blues of of a British blues legend my son.
A solid 9 at least! John Mayall is a god!
"And a baby's arm holding an apple."
algrif wrote:
Is Clapton on this track ??
He's on the personnel for this album, but I can't say he is on this particular track. See posts below....
jagdriver wrote:
But it's not Eric. My guess is maybe Mick Taylor, but even that, I think, is in error.
Yeah, the wide intervals make me think "M Taylor" but it's not as smooth as his usual stuff. Guitarists listed are: Eric Clapton, Mick Taylor, Harvey Mandel, Jerry McGee (guitar);
Pyro wrote:
Some of Mayall and Claptons best work, IMO.
But it's not Eric. Think Harvey " The Snake" Mandel, which is why his quitar has that terrific "Canned Heat" snarl. Johnny Almond (Mark-Almond Band) on sax, Keef Hartley (Keef Hartley Band) on drums, that other Taylor--Larry--on bass.
what... what.... what is this shite?
Bought this LP a hundred years ago for this track alone. Not too impressed with the rest of the tracks on this CD, but this one's a keeper.
goo wrote:
This makes me want to hear to some Frank Zappa. Zappa would take this to another level.
We're working on it.
This makes me want to hear to some Frank Zappa. Zappa would take this to another level.
Very cool!!
algrif wrote:
Is Clapton on this track ??
yes..just after he did Layla
wow, used to listen to this album over and over!
Sweet segue from Elvis C.!
Pyro wrote:
Some of Mayall and Claptons best work, IMO.
Is Clapton on this track ??
One of the masters . . .
He could sing me a lullaby any night -
that metallica cover a few back is still hurting me
Some of Mayall and Claptons best work, IMO.
Great music to come back to from That holiday.
Go Johnny go