"Country Joe" McDonald (January 1, 1942 – March 7, 2026) passed away today.
He was an American singer, songwriter, musician and film composer, who was the lead singer and co-founder of the 1960s psychedelic folk-rock group Country Joe and the Fish.
Country Joe and the Fish was an American psychedelic rock band formed in Berkeley, California, in 1965. They were among the influential groups in the San Francisco music scene during the mid-to-late 1960s.
Much of their music was written by members Country Joe McDonald and Barry "The Fish" Melton, with lyrics pointedly addressing issues of importance to the counterculture, such as anti-war protests, free love, and recreational drug use. Through a combination of psychedelia and electronic music, the band's sound was marked by innovative guitar melodies and distorted organ-driven instrumentals which were significant to the development of acid rock.
The band self-produced two EPs that drew attention on the underground circuit before signing to Vanguard Records in 1966.
Their debut album, "Electric Music for the Mind and Body", followed in '67. It contained their only nationally charting single, "Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine", as well as their most experimental arrangements. Their second album, "I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die", was released in late '67; its title track, with its dark humor & satire, became their signature tune and is among the era's most recognizable protest songs. Further success followed, including McDonald's solo appearance as well as an appearance at Woodstock.
EPs
Talking Issue No. 1: Songs of Opposition, Rag Baby (1965)
Country Joe and the Fish, Rag Baby (1966)
Studio albums
Electric Music for the Mind and Body (1967)
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I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die (1967)
Together (1968)
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Here We Are Again (1969)
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CJ Fish (1970)
Reunion (1977)
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