It would be the first production with Tom Wilson and Country Joe & the Fish's last studio album for Vanguard Records.

[2] After extensive touring with a new lineup, including Big Brother and the Holding Company guitarist Peter Albin, the makeshift group returned to the recording studio.

As for the band, Country Joe and the Fish underwent a personnel change for this album adding drummer Greg Dewey, bassist Doug Metzner, and keyboardist Mark Kapner in place of David Cohen and Gary "Chicken" Hirsh.

Primary composers Barry "The Fish" Melton and "Country Joe" McDonald remained, resulting in an album that retained the sound and style of the original lineup.

Vanguard Records attempted to make the band more mainstream and this was the closest result that the group could produce as it is still very much underground.