If
this 20-song, 78-minute compilation is less compelling than its two
predecessors, it's only because it represents a period in the Hollies'
history in which the group lost its decade-long grip on the pop charts,
even as they retained their fan base. The producers have interspersed
the key hits and B-sides with what they regard as important album tracks
and throw in a handful of previously unissued songs for a good
cross-section of what is probably, for many of us, the least familiar
period in the group's history of recording. The first track, "The Day
That Curly Billy Shot Down Crazy Sam McGee," was an attempt to emulate
the sound of their earlier hit "Long Cool Woman (In a Black Dress),"
which succeeded only part way, reaching the Top 30 in England.
"Transatlantic Westbound Jet," a rare Bobby Elliott/Terry Sylvester
collaboration, in this version featuring Allan Clarke on lead vocals,
and the bouncy (and previously unissued) rocker "Iceberg" lead us to the
group's last major international hit, "The Air That I Breathe." The
album and B-side tracks that follow are enjoyable enough, the
Calypso-flavored "Layin' to the Music" being the best of the cuts
leading into "4th of July Asbury Park (Sandy)," which is followed by a
delightful rumba-style rock number, "Come Down to the Shore," which sees
its first release on this CD, although they never succeeded remotely
the way "The Air That I Breathe" did. Another superb (and previously
lost) outtake, "Samuel," makes its debut here as well, featuring some
newly-recorded Tony Hicks guitar parts. An unusually large portion of
the rest of the disc is devoted to tracks off of the Five Three
One-Double Seven O Four album from 1979, but these pale next to the
radiant harmonies and overall exuberance of the group's 1981 reunion
with co-founder Graham Nash on "Take My Love and Run," which deserved a
lot more chart action than it ever saw. As late as the mid-1980s, as
this compilation shows, the group was creating brilliant pop/rock, and
it's worth getting to "Too Many Hearts Get Broken," "Find Me a Family,"
and "No Rules." The sound is state of the art, and the annotation is
informative and entertaining.
01. The Day That Curly Billy Shot Down Crazy Sam McGee
02. Transatlantic Westbound Jet
03. Tip of the Iceberg
04. The Air That I Breathe
05. Give Me Time
06. Son of a Rotten Gambler
07. Layin' to the Music (Sandy)
08. 4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)
09. Come Down to the Shore
10. I'm Down
11. Samuel
12. Crocodile Woman (She Bites)
13. Harlequin
14. Say It Ain't So Joe
15. Lovin' You Ain't Easy
16. Satellite 3
17. Take My Love and Run
18. Too Many Hearts Get Broken
19. Find Me a Family
20. No Rules
01. The Day That Curly Billy Shot Down Crazy Sam McGee
02. Transatlantic Westbound Jet
03. Tip of the Iceberg
04. The Air That I Breathe
05. Give Me Time
06. Son of a Rotten Gambler
07. Layin' to the Music (Sandy)
08. 4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)
09. Come Down to the Shore
10. I'm Down
11. Samuel
12. Crocodile Woman (She Bites)
13. Harlequin
14. Say It Ain't So Joe
15. Lovin' You Ain't Easy
16. Satellite 3
17. Take My Love and Run
18. Too Many Hearts Get Broken
19. Find Me a Family
20. No Rules
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