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The Mickie Most Years: 1964-1972


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Excellent overview by cheerful 60's Hermans Hermits!
Review date: 2008-09-14 Rating: 10 out of 10

Herman's Hermits were almost as successful in the UK as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones; achieving a similar breakthrough in the USA with their catalogue of happy, catchy tunes which made their impact at first hearing, aided by the group's attractive close harmony vocal style which was smoother and more compatible than their rivals. This was especially true of their chosen easy listening songs which appealed to a wider audience, although livelier elements were often at work for the youngsters. However, it has to be said their cute and mischievous Manchester-born front-man had much to do with supplying the necessary feel-good factor whenever the lads appeared on television and in movies during the colourful Sixties.

According to statistics, Herman's Hermits had ten Top Ten hits with a further seven Top Twenty singles and twenty-six such exhilarating sides were recently released by EMI as THE BEST OF HERMAN'S HERMITS.

This expansive four-CD box-set also includes them, with its title number, I'M INTO SOMETHING GOOD - recently purloined by Halifax Bank for TV adverts, heading THERE'S A KIND OF HUSH, SOMETHING'S HAPPENING, SILHOUETTES and NO MILK TODAY amongst the hits squeezed within its 121 tracks and over five hours playing time. That also means inclusion of all the album and EP tracks, film soundtracks, "B" sides, and some previously unreleased performances; adding charismatic Herman's solo sides after he reverted to his real name Peter Noone - all shot through with pop fervour and added simple charm with much credit due to their record producer, Mickie Most.

This release is definitely a must for devout fans, obsessive collector's and those who relate to or were involved in the cosmic shift in the axis of popular music during the crowded world of Sixties pop.


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Reviews


5 for the songs, 2.5 for sound and package
Review date: 2008-09-10 Rating: 10 out of 10

Charles, I started writing my review when I found that you've written everything I wanted to!

So, I'll only add one thing: for me, the best sound of HH's songs is in the Repertoire digipack collection. If you compared the sound quality of Both Sides and There's A Kind Of Hush with EMI's, the difference is very clear. I just don't understand why the first album, in Repertoire version (release few years before) has a bad, bad sound, losing the battle with the EMI release of 1997.

You must have also the "blue collection" from EMI's Compacts For Pleasure. This CD was released in 1990, before the remastering-mania, and the sound is exactly the masters, without noise reduction and filtering. It's, in my opinion, at least, the Hermits CD with the best sound. I have to confess that I hate remastered CDs...This CD also has two rarities: the complete intro version of My Reservation's Been Confirmed and a long fade-out version of For Love.

In your list of the "dream box" I would add these two versions above more the dry-mix (no reverb) of Something Is Happening and the version of The Man With the Cigar with the count-in included.

Best regards,

Leonardo.



What Is Wrong, What Is Right
Review date: 2008-08-26 Rating: 8 out of 10

What is right:
Almost everything recorded by the Hermits is here with a few exceptions (see below). There are also a handful of rare and unreleased tracks plus another handful of singles and unreleased tracks from Peter Noone's early solo career. The "full" catalog has been reissued a couple of times, first by Repertoire, and second by Toshiba Japan: each reissuing a UK Hermits LP supplemented by bonus tracks containing non-LP singles, EP tracks, US-only tracks, etc. At roughly US $10 per CD if purchased from AmazonUK, this set is the lowest cost alternative to either of the earlier reissues.

What is missing:
1. The alternate (and stereo) version of Listen People from the "When The Boys Meet The Girls" soundtrack, presumably because the rights are not owned by EMI. This track is available on the out-of-print Rhino CD "Hollywood's Best: The 60's"
2. The single versions of "Hold On!" and "Leaning On The Lamp Post", which are available on the ABKCO "Retrospective" CD.
3. A few other slightly alternate mixes (East West, Dandy, Kind of Hush) also available on "Retrospective".
4. Missing stereo tracks: All tracks from "Hold On!" were available in true stereo. Only two tracks in this collection are (Gotta Get Away, Make Me Happy). These stereo cuts would've made fodder for disc 4 but most likely would've pushed this into a 5-disc collection.

What is wrong:
Haphazard compilation:
Of all the 4-disc collections EMI has put out so far for several of their British Invasion artists (Gerry and the Pacemakers, Swinging Blue Jeans, Manfred Mann), this one has simply been thrown together. In fact, it appears as though the Toshiba reissues were simply pasted together (Herman's Hermits LP followed by bonus tracks, Both Sides LP followed by bonus tracks, etc), one after the other, making the collection a chronological mess compared to the other collections. "You Won't Be Leaving" inexplicably appeared as bonus track on the Toshiba "Both Sides" disc, presumably because it was a non-LP single. However, the Japanese compilers failed to note that the song is in fact on the "There's A Kind Of Hush" LP and so it appears on that CD as well, in the context of the LP. It appears twice on this collection too, both times on Disc 2. Ooops! I suppose no one at EMI UK noticed this either. Also, the bonus stereo mix of "Moonshine Man" is really an electronically-reprocessed fake stereo mix.

Mastering problems:
The tracks breaks are slightly off for a handful of songs, starting with the beginning of "There's A Kind Of Hush" stuck on the tail end of "Make Me Happy". This continues up to our old friend "You Won't Be Leaving"

Sound:
This release is somewhat stifled sound-wise by the overuse of noise reduction. It sucks the "air" and the ambience from the recordings. Also, there is a large amount of compression and volume boosting that increases over the set making the tracks sound overly loud and bass-y (the "loudness wars" effect). Disc 1 doesn't have the excessive loudness but by the time you get to Disc 3, Herman and pals sound as loud and as booming as a Red Hot Chili Pepper's CD. Check out the ABKCO "Retrospective" CD for how to make these old recordings louder without sacrificing ambience and dynamic range.

The dream box (dream on, that's all I can do):
1. All the tracks in rough chronological order, in MONO except for the "Mrs. Brown (soundtrack) songs which can be left in stereo.
2. The rare tracks (minus the worthless "stereo" Moonshine Man)
3. The Peter Noone singles as included here.
4. A bonus disc with the stereo mixes for the Hold On and Blaze and any stereo other stereo alternates that I may have missed.
5. Oh yes, and please...ease up on the noise reduction, compression, and excessive volume boosting so that the recordings can "breathe" a little and sound a bit more natural.

...not going to happen? I guess that is what turntables and CD burners are for.

Overall, this box is really no worse than the collections preceding it. It is the cheapest alternative to those collections and the best place to get all of this in one concise package. For the budget conscious person who wants it all, here it is.

More than you're going to need
Review date: 2008-08-12 Rating: 8 out of 10

This is a complete(or nearly complete) works of the group's 1964-1972 recordings for producer Mickie Most. Certainly they were a real group(for recording purposes) at the start, then they changed over to having professional session musicians play the instruments while the group still contributed lead & background vocals(and occasional songwriting), but eventually(partway through disc 3) only singer Peter Noone has any studio involvement, and the group's distinctive sound is lost. The quality of the music goes downhill, producer Mickie Most loses his knack for selecting the right songs, and the records are struggling to keep up with the times.

At this point, the group stars in 2 movies and they make 2 soundtrack albums, which involve doing several mediocre selections in which they back up some awful singing actors. And Disc 2 ends with several tracks which convincingly simulate a drunken pub singalong.

On the plus side, all of the great UK & U.S.A. hits are included, such as "Mrs. Brown You've Got a Lovely Daughter","I'm Henry The 8th I Am","Dandy","No Milk Today","Can't You Hear My Heart Beat","Silhouettes", "There's a Kind of Hush","A Must To Avoid","Where Were You When I Needed You" etc.

80% of these recordings exist only in mono sound. EMI generally presents the stereo version if one is available, but they glaringly overlook the fact that there is a stereo version of "A Must to Avoid". The recording quality of the tracks on Discs 1 & 2 is quite crude, even by 1964-65 standards.

Some may wonder whether the reason for no stereo versions on the majority of these tracks is because they were recorded at studios that were not equiped for multitrack recording or because producer Mickie Most abandoned the multitracks at the studios(and the studios disposed of them) after mono mixes were finalised. Actually, it's a combination of both of these reasons.

By the early 1970's, singer Peter Noone recognized the fact that(for recording purposes) he had been a solo artist for some time,and he left the group. Surprisingly, his solo recordings(which conclude Disc 4) mark an improvement over the so-called "Herman's Hermits" tracks(with no actual involvement from the group) which populate the second half of Disc 3.

This is for completists. All others would be best advised to check out one of the numerous greatest hits CD's on the market.

Product Details/Specifications


Artist(s):
Herman's Hermits

Recording label: EMI
Manufacturer: EMI
EAN: 5099922841728
Binding: Audio CD
Format: Box set,
Release date: 2008-08-04
Number of discs: 4

Disc 1 Tracks:
1. Heartbeat
2. Travelin' Light
3. I'll Never Dance Again
4. Walkin' With My Angel
5. Dream On
6. I Wonder
7. For Your Love
8. Don't Try To Hurt Me
9. Tell Me Baby
10. I'm Henery The Eighth I Am
11. End Of World
12. Mrs Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter
13. I'm Into Something Good
14. Your Hand In Mine
15. Show Me Girl
16. I Know Why
17. Silhouettes
18. Can't You Hear My Heartbeat
19. Wonderful World
20. Just A Little Bit Better
21. Take Love Give Love
22. Must To Avoid
23. Man With Cigar
24. Sea Cruise
25. Mother In Law
26. I Understand (Just How You Feel)
27. Thinkin' Of You
28. Little Boy Sad
29. Story Of My Life
30. My Reservation's Been Confirmed
31. Bus Stop
32. For Love


Disc 2 Tracks:
1. Where Were You When I Needed You
2. All The Things I Do For You Baby
3. Leaning On A Lamp Post
4. Dial My Number
5. Oo Ee Baby
6. Je Suis Anglais (L'Autre Jour)
7. Listen People
8. You Won't Be Leaving
9. This Door Swings Both Ways
10. Hold On
11. George And The Dragon
12. Wild Love
13. What Is Wrong What Is Right
14. Bidin' My Time
15. Got A Feeling
16. Kansas City Loving
17. Gotta Get Away
18. Make Me Happy
19. There's A Kind Of Hush (All Over The World)
20. Saturday's Child
21. If You're Thinking What I'm Thinking
22. You Won't Be Leaving
23. Dandy
24. Jezebel
25. No Milk Today
26. Little Miss Sorrow Child Of Tomorrow
27. Gaslite Street
28. Rattler
29. East West
30. Future Mrs 'Awkins
31. Oh Mr Porter
32. Two Lovely Black Eyes
33. My Old Dutch


Disc 3 Tracks:
1. I Can Take Or Leave Your Loving
2. Marcel's
3. It's Nice To Be Out In The Morining
4. Holiday Inn
5. Ooh She's Done It Again
6. Lemon And Lime
7. Most Beautiful Thing In My Life
8. Daisy Chain
9. Daisy Chain
10. World Is For Young
11. London Look
12. Museum
13. Upstairs Downstairs
14. Busy Line
15. Moonshine Man
16. Green Street Green
17. Don't Go Out Into The Rain (You're Gonna Melt)
18. I Call Out Her Name
19. One Little Packet Of Cigarettes
20. Last Bus Home
21. Ace King Queen Jack
22. Sleepy Joe
23. Just One Girl
24. Sunshine Girl
25. Nobody Needs To Know
26. Something Is Happening
27. My Sentimental Friend
28. My Lady
29. Here Comes The Star
30. It's Alright Now
31. Years May Come Years May Go


Disc 4 Tracks:
1. Smile Please
2. Bet Yer Life I Do
3. Searching For The Southern Sun
4. Lady Barbara
5. Don't Just Stand There
6. Mum And Dad
7. Moonshine Man
8. My Old Dutch/Show Me The Way To Go Home
9. Wings of Love
10. Big Man
11. Wait For Me Here I Come
12. Regardez Moi (Here Comes The Star)
13. Year Ago Today
14. Colder It Gets
15. Big Ship
16. Oh You Pretty Things
17. Together Forever
18. Right On Mother
19. Walnut Whirl
20. Shoo Be Doo Ah
21. Because You're There
22. Should I (Have Loved You)
23. Each And Every Minute
24. Green Green Rocky Road
25. I Do Believe (In Music)

Publishers: EMI

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