View source for The Magic Garden

{{other uses}}
{{More citations needed|date=August 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2025}}
{{Infobox album
| name       = The Magic Garden
| type       = Album
| artist     = [[the 5th Dimension]]
| cover      = The 5th Dimension - The Magic Garden.jpg
| border     = yes
| alt        =
| released   = {{Start date|1967|12|}}
| recorded   = July 15{{snd}}November 1967
| venue      =
| studio     = [[United Western Recorders|United Western]], Los Angeles
| genre      = 
* [[Soul music|Pop soul]]<ref name="AM"/>
* [[Psychedelic music|psychedelia]]<ref name="AM"/>
* [[orchestral pop]]<ref name= "Stanley 2013">{{cite book|first=Bob |last=Stanley|title=Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop|chapter= Pop Gets Sophisticated: Soft Rock|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9emZAAAAQBAJ&pg=PT7|date=13 September 2013|publisher=Faber & Faber|isbn=978-0-571-28198-5|page=245}}</ref>
| length     = {{Duration|m=35|s=29}}
| label      = [[Soul City Records (U.S. label)|Soul City Records]]
| producer   = [[Bones Howe]]
| prev_title = [[Up, Up and Away (The 5th Dimension album)|Up, Up and Away]]
| prev_year  = 1967
| next_title = [[Stoned Soul Picnic (The 5th Dimension album)|Stoned Soul Picnic]]
| next_year  = 1968
| misc       = {{Singles
 | name        = The Magic Garden
 | type        = studio
 | single1     = Paper Cup
 | single1date = 1967
 | single2     = Carpet Man
 | single2date = 1968
 | single3     = [[The Girls' Song]]
 | single3date = 1970
}}
}}
{{Music ratings
| rev1      = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1Score ={{Rating|3|5}}<ref name="AM">{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-magic-garden-mw0000606090|title=The 5th Dimension – ''The Magic Garden'': Review |publisher=AllMusic}}</ref>
| noprose=yes
|}}
'''''The Magic Garden''''' is the second album by the American [[pop music|pop]] group [[the 5th Dimension]], released in 1967. A [[concept album]], it tells the story of a couple's love and the end of their relationship. In more recent discussions of the album, that love affair is said to be about [[Jimmy Webb]] — who composed all but one of the album's songs — and his time with singer and then-girlfriend Susan Horton (the song "Dreams/Pax/Nepenthe" refers to a Susan). The album's one track not credited to Jimmy Webb, a cover of [[Lennon–McCartney]]'s "[[Ticket to Ride (song)|Ticket to Ride]]", was originally intended for the group's debut album, ''[[Up, Up and Away (The 5th Dimension album)|Up, Up and Away]]''.

Following the success of ''Up, Up and Away'', which spawned two Top-20 singles on the Billboard Pop Chart, expectations were high for ''The Magic Garden''. The album just missed the Billboard Hot 100, and no Top 20 singles emerged from it in the US. The first single, "Paper Cup", rose only to #34. "Carpet Man", the album's second single, landed at #29 in the US but found great success in Canada, charting at #3 on Toronto's CHUM chart and #11 on the RPM chart, in March 1968. The group performed the song on ''[[Kraft Music Hall]]'' (on an episode hosted by [[John Davidson (entertainer)|John Davidson]]) and ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]''.

However, over the years ''The Magic Garden'' has gained cult album status.

==The Worst That Could Happen==
One of the album's cuts, "[[The Worst That Could Happen]]", was released as a single by [[Johnny Maestro & the Brooklyn Bridge|the Brooklyn Bridge]] in December 1968, charting top 40 on Billboard in January and becoming a top 3 hit in the US. The 5th Dimension would have to wait for their next album, ''[[Stoned Soul Picnic (The 5th Dimension album)|Stoned Soul Picnic]]'', to achieve the same chart placement. To capitalize on the success of "The Worst That Could Happen", Soul City Records re-released ''The Magic Garden'' as ''The Worst That Could Happen''. for the US market. The re-release reverses the front and back covers of the original LP. The vinyl label still retained ''The Magic Garden'' title, Soul City label and catalog number.

Although the original ''Magic Garden'' album was released in mono in both the US (SCM-91001) and UK (LBL 83098), the reissue as ''The Worst That Could Happen'' was only released in stereo (SCS-92001).<ref>{{Cite web |title=The 5th Dimension - The Magic Garden (1967, Vinyl) - Discogs |url=https://www.discogs.com/release/2205448-The-5th-Dimension-The-Magic-Garden |access-date=February 14, 2023 |website=Wikipedia}}</ref>  [[File:Cover_of_The_Worst_That_Could_Happen_album_by_The_5th_Dimension.jpg|thumb|right|The album, retitled ''The Worst That Could Happen''.  The front cover is an image originally used on the back cover of ''The Magic Garden''.]]

==Track listing==
All songs were written by [[Jimmy Webb]], except where noted.

;Side one
#"Prologue"&nbsp;– 1:24
#"The Magic Garden"&nbsp;– 2:48
#"Summer's Daughter"&nbsp;– 3:03
#"Dreams/Pax/Nepenthe"&nbsp;– 3:24
#"Carpet Man"&nbsp;– 3:16
#"[[Ticket to Ride (song)|Ticket to Ride]]" ([[John Lennon]], [[Paul McCartney]])&nbsp;– 4:00

;Side two
#"Requiem: 820 Latham"&nbsp;– 4:26
#"[[The Girls' Song]]"&nbsp;– 4:09
#"[[The Worst That Could Happen]]"&nbsp;– 2:37
#"Orange Air"&nbsp;– 2:38
#"Paper Cup"&nbsp;– 2:48
#"Epilogue"&nbsp;– :56

==Personnel==
* [[Billy Davis Jr.]] – lead vocals (track 9), background vocals 
* [[Florence LaRue]] – lead vocals (tracks 5, 8), background vocals 
* [[Marilyn McCoo]] – lead vocals (track 5, 8), background vocals 
* [[Lamonte McLemore]] – background vocals
* [[Ron Townson]] – background vocals
* [[Jimmy Webb]] – orchestra conductor
* [[Mike Deasy]], [[Tommy Tedesco]], [[Dennis Budimir]], [[Johnny Rivers]] - guitar
* [[Joe Osborn]] - bass guitar
* [[Hal Blaine]] - drums
* [[Larry Knechtel]] - keyboards<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/The-5th-Dimension-The-Magic-Garden/release/1864992|title=The 5th Dimension* - The Magic Garden|website=Discogs}}</ref>

==Charts==

===Album===
''[[Billboard magazine|Billboard]]'' (United States)
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Chart
!Position
|-
|1968
|Black Albums
|43
|-
|1968
|Pop Albums
|105
|-
|}

===Singles===
''Billboard'' (United States)
{| class="wikitable"
!Year
!Single
!Chart
!Position
|-
|1967
|"Paper Cup"
|Pop Singles
|34
|-
|1968
|"Carpet Man"
|Pop Singles
|29
|-
|1970
|"The Girls' Song"
|Pop Singles
|43
|-
|}

==Cultural impact==
"Carpet Man" has been covered by the Nocturnes, the Charade, the Parking Lot, and by the founder of the 5th Dimension's Soul City record label, [[Johnny Rivers]]. 
[[Dusty Springfield]] recorded a cover of "The Magic Garden", which surfaced on a Springfield anthology in the 1990s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/Dusty-Springfield-The-Dusty-Springfield-Anthology/release/440672|title=Dusty Springfield - The Dusty Springfield Anthology|website=Discogs}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Clear}}
{{The 5th Dimension}}
{{Jimmy Webb}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magic Garden, The}}
[[Category:The 5th Dimension albums]]
[[Category:1967 albums]]
[[Category:Albums conducted by Jimmy Webb]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Bones Howe]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Jimmy Webb]]
[[Category:Soul City Records (American label) albums]]
[[Category:Albums recorded at United Western Recorders]]
[[Category:Orchestral pop albums]]