 "Simply Great " | 2007-04-14 |
| - Reviewed By jansley |
I just can't say enough good things about this band and about this collection (the US version). I first became aware of Strawbs in the mid 70's when the "Ghosts" album came out. It's strange but in the middle of Nebraska, the song "Don't Try To Change Me" received alot of radio airplay and seemed to be their American breakout song even though it strangely is not on this collection. I then bought "Hero and Heroine" and loved "Round and Round" and thought "Out in the Cold" was one of the most intimate and sexual love songs I'd ever heard (how things have changed indeed!).
For some reason this band kind of disappeared after "Ghosts", although I bought the "Nomadness" and "Deep Cuts" LP's and liked them but not as much as "Ghosts" or "Hero and Heroine". With this collection it was great to hear their earlier songs that I had not heard before, especially "New World", "Down By the Sea" and "Lay Down". I sat in awe with mouth wide open when I heard "Down By The Sea". Difficult to believe that even though I had bought 4 of their vinyl albums back in the 70's, I had never heard this song before until about a month ago when I bought this collection. What a treat to have heard such an incredible song that I didn't even know it existed!
The remastering is exquisite, the selections are presented in chronological order, and they are listed in the booklet in a way I wish all collections would do (year, time, album each song was on). And Cousin's comments about some of the songs are great. The second CD rocks a little more than the first, which is softer folk rock, but everything is great.
This is glorious, well-crafted and INTERESTING music, similar to early Jethro Tull in my opinion. I love Cousin's distinctive high-pitched vocals and these guys made the best use of the mellotron of any band. They also on later songs had excellent electric guitar riffs, similar to The Who's "Pinball Wizard" or Tull's "Locomotive Breath" and that's what initially drew me to the band. But it's not really the kind of music I'd play loud with windows down while cruisin thru a 'Sonic' drive in. The vocals are too 'high British' for that. But for listening alone, it just doesn't get much better than this. Very highly recommended. |
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| "Halcyon Days, Indeed!" | 2005-08-24 |
| - Reviewed By breiel |
"Halcyon Days: The A&M Years" (US release) while not necessarily the definitive compilation of The Straws is certainly one of the best. Many of their more popular songs from the albums Strawbs to Nomadness are featured in this 2-CD album. Over 35 songs ar featured, including a few songs from Dave Cousins' Two Weeks Last Summer.
The track selection is solid throughout. There are folk flavoured songs like "Witchwood", "The Battle" and "The Hangman & The Papist", rock ditties like "Round and Round" and "Lay Down", the psychedelic "Queen of Dreams", the spiritual "Benedictus" and the classically inflected "Tears & Pavan" and "Autumn".
Cousins' poetics and music is simply enthralling. The keyboard wizardry of Rick Wakeman is on show before he joined Yes. The grittier, harder sound of Ford and Hudson is also evident. Only the lovely voice of the late Sandy Denny is not heard here.
Indispensable to this album is a 24-page booklet. It provides an excellent overview of the group's history. Cousins sheds meaning on many of the songs he authored. And pictures of various members are interspersed throughout.
Halcyon Days is an excellent album. Don't hesitate to buy it if you can find it, new or used. |
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| "All their own work, the very best of..." | 2001-07-12 |
| - Reviewed By wmfeagin |
| My introduction to the Strawbs, in college in 1988, was the track "Deadly Nightshade" from their 1978 LP Deadlines. I was not impressed; but I decided that this was not representative of the band and vowed to seek out their other albums. It took me over ten years, but when I found Halcyon Days in a record store in Memphis, I knew I had to check it out. I was not disappointed. This collection was my introduction to the band's years on A&M, and the sheer range of the material is stunning, to say the least. Beginning with the folk-influenced tracks of their 1969 debut, through the "gothic" period delineated by Grave New World, Bursting at the Seams, Hero & Heroine and Ghosts, to the more freeform work of Nomadness, these 35 tracks show the band's development into a mature and respected prog-rock band. Dave Cousins' impassioned and dramatic lyrics are offset by John Ford and Richard Hudson's more whimsical sing-alongs ("Part of the Union," a real tubthumper) and the thoughtful, introspective works of Tony Hooper and Dave Lambert. There is not a dud on this collection. All of the A&M albums are available as imports, the first two from Si-Wan Records in Korea (though you must act quickly to get copies of them), with the exception of Nomadness, which has not yet been remastered, and may very well not be. Essential. |
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| "Excellent collection, A&M but, why stop here....?" | 2001-06-17 |
| - Reviewed By proudlyunhipp |
| Yes, I couldn't imagine this collection being done any better (chronological, and no fade-outs to separate from other tracks of the original albums.) It's put together better than the UK version, however, the UK version has some rare b-sides and Hudson-Ford tracks. The individual albums are available on A&M in the UK. (Amazon will be happy to get them for you). I don't think A&M in america cares about Strawbs. Or even Rick Wakeman (once a member of Strawbs). Everyone knows that Rick Wakeman and Keith Emerson are the most famous keyboardists in the world. But A&M, still hasn't released all of Wakeman's albums on CD. They've really dropped the ball. I guess we'll just have to get the imports of what is available on CD. Halcyon Days is the collection I loan out to friends. Even they say: "Is this all there is?" They'd rather buy the individual albums on import CD, than to buy Halcyon Days. C'mon A&M, Halcyon Days, is only a sampler package. People want more! Strawbs are to England, what the Grateful Dead was to America. (except Strawbs tell cool stories, not talk about the joys of drug abuse and self-anguish). People still follow Strawbs aroound England as the still tour. Oh well, Halcyon Days is all A&M in america has got to offer. It is a great 2 1/2 hours of their best. I recommend it. |
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| "The best Progressive Folk Rock band in the world!" | 2001-06-17 |
| - Reviewed By proudlyunhipp |
| I couldn't imagine this collection being done any better (chronological, and no fade-outs to separate from other tracks of the original albums.) It's put together better than the UK version, however, the UK version has some rare b-sides and Hudson-Ford tracks. The individual albums are available on A&M in the UK. (Amazon will be happy to get them for you). I don't think A&M in america cares about the Strawbs. Or even Rick Wakeman (once a member of Strawbs). Everyone knows that Rick Wakeman and Keith Emerson are the most famous keyboardists in the world. But A&M (in america), still hasn't released all of Wakeman's albums on CD. They've really dropped the ball. I guess we'll just have to get the imports of what is available on CD. Halcyon Days is the collection I loan out to friends. Even they ask me "Do you have anymore?" I have to burn copies and give it to them because the Strawbs are so scarce in the US. Some may buy the expensive imports, but they usually ask me to make them copies, because, now even "Halcyon Days" is hard to find. I guess, expecting A&M to release any Hudson-Ford CD's would be totally out of the question. Even the UK hasn't done this yet (as of 2005). Strawbs are to England, what the Grateful Dead was to America. (except Strawbs tell cool stories, not talk about the joys of drug abuse and self-anguish). People still follow Strawbs around England as they do still tour. And they are still releasing rather decent respectable albums (although I do wish they would stop doing re-recordings of their previously released songs. This is so unnecessary.) Oh well, Halcyon Days may be out of print, but a smaller collection from the "20th Century Masters" has released "The Millenium Collection" on the Strawbs as this is now all that america has got to offer. "Halycon Days" is a great tight collection. I recommend it, but Good Luck finding it now. |
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 "Difinitive Strawbs Collection" | 2001-01-05 |
| - Reviewed By ithkos |
| The Strawbs were not just a fine band - they were several! The earliest bluegrass-flavoured manifestation is not represented here, but the development from introspective acoustic balladeers, to purveyors of folky anthems, to epic prog-rockers, and almost back again via flirtations with the pop charts, are all here on this very satisfying collection. The distinguishing feature throughout each lineup is, of course, Dave Cousins' remarkable voice. Standouts include "The Man Who Called Himself Jesus" and "The Battle" from the first "real" Strawbs album (OK, the Sandy Denny one has its moments), the brilliant single "Lay Down", and longtime favourite "The Hangman and the Papist", but every track is worthwhile. |
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