Ticket 2 Ride

Musical artists don’t always have control of albums compiled by their record companies of hits or unreleased material. Contractual obligations tend to favor the record companies, especially in the old days. These albums were a way to cash-in with minimal expense.

Compilation albums, I won’t call them greatest hits or best of, because that’s not always the case. Compilation albums can include leftover tracks that were left off albums, B-sides of singles, live versions, and newly recorded songs to satisfy contractual obligations.

Compilation albums are an inexpensive ways to get the better and most familiar songs without purchasing the entire catalogue. That’s one reason artists like to control their work – why kill off your back catalogue?

Boxed sets are excluded, that will be a separate blog entry. Here are some favorites from years ago.

Through the Past, Darkly (1969) – The Rolling Stones. Read my review.

So Far (1974) – Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Constructed from two albums and singles, not a lot of material, and just one album representing the four. Imagine if these guys hadn’t fought so much or Neil Young had not loved being a solo artist. The material here touched the pulse of American youth during a critical time.

This is the Moody Blues (1974) – The Moody Blues. In 1972, the Moody Blues didn’t breakup, but they took a break from each other. In 1974, their record company released a compilation from their previous seven studio albums. Not a “best of”, this was a tour through the group’s music, edited to segue from track to track, and create a unique listening experience. This two-vinyl LP set is one of the staples of my vinyl collection.

Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy (1971) – The Who. Not the best title for an album, but the material inside gives a person chills. Opinions varied, as not all of these songs were known in the U.S. Despite that issue, this album captures what made The Who special. Released several months after Who’s Next, this album was an essential collection for Who fans.

Yesterdays (1975) – Yes. Early Yes, from the first two albums and a couple of other songs. “Dear Father” was unreleased, this version of “America” is the ten-plus minute version of the Simon & Garfunkel song, where Steve Howe and Rick Wakeman lend a hand. The rest of the songs, from Yes and Time and a Word, feature original members Tony Kaye and Peter Banks. This was my introduction to early Yes.

M.U. – The Best of Jethro Tull (1976) – Jethro Tull. Admittedly, not the best collection of hits from the first few albums, but a worthy sampling of what made this folk-blues-rock band special. Instead of killing off album sales, you wanted the rest of the songs not represented on this album.

Donovan’s Greatest Hits (1969) – Donovan. The psychedelic-folk guru of the hippy generation. Donovan was a big deal in the 1960s. Not only could he write trippy lyrics, but his melodies were beautiful. This single vinyl album sparkles with hits.

Retrospective: The Best of Buffalo Springfield (1969) – Buffalo Springfield. This single vinyl LP is compiled of songs released on Buffalo Springfield’s three studio albums. While it doesn’t include all the worthy tracks, it covers the absolutely required songs. I wore out this album.

Alice Cooper’s Greatest Hits (1974) – Alice Cooper Group. I liked, but not loved, this compilation from the ACG. Some stronger songs were overlooked in favor of lesser singles. The band behind Alice has never received the credit they deserved. I will say, start with this album and then dive deeper into the albums.

Shaved Fish (1975) – John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band. This was the last recorded product by Lennon for five years. This album finished his obligation to EMI, which happened at the same time Yoko Ono became pregnant. Shaved Fish compiles a fistful of singles that did not appear on albums, with tracks that did. Several songs had to edited to mere snippets to fit on the vinyl LP. I played the heck out of this album.

Changesonebowie (1976) – David Bowie. My first introduction to the world of Bowie. A great set, and I still play the vinyl. Covering 1969-1976, it couldn’t contain all the hits, but it featured enough of them.

Simon and Garfunkel’s Greatest Hits (1972) – Simon & Garfunkel. Not all of these songs great songs, but many of them. This album really closed the door on the duo’s studio work together. All of these songs are wonderful, but you need the last three albums in particular to fully appreciate the magic this duo gave us in a relatively short period of time.

Chicago IX: Chicago’s Greatest Hits (1975) – Chicago. This single vinyl album in no way covered the gold that Chicago spun, but it included the biggest songs on the radio. Chicago released four double albums in their first five years, so there was a wealth of music, including multi-song suites and experimental music.

Decade (1977) – Neil Young. This album is an outlier on this list. Originally, a three vinyl disk set, which today is on two CDs, so is it really a boxed set? Who cares, it’s a great collection of songs covering the 1966-1976 period. This compilation includes his “hits” which is almost a dirty word to Young, but also some never-released songs, some obscure songs, and alternate versions. This compilation format would be adopted by many as a way of sharing with fans valuable music from the artists’ vault.

We Sold Our Soul for Rock ‘n’ Roll (1976) – Black Sabbath. This two-LP set contains material recorded 1970-1975, drawing mostly from their first, four albums. If you want to drive your parents out of the house, play this set, over and over.

Greatest Hits (1968) – The Association. Sunshine Pop is the genre the Association are placed. Dreamy, polished, lush, soft rock. I guess they were that. A string of hits kept the band on the charts through the end of the 1960s.

The Worst of Jefferson Airplane (1970) – Jefferson Airplane. Exactly the opposite. In just a few albums, this band generated hits, but also some of the most mind-bending music. That was the best period in the band’s existence, lineup changes and a disappearing focus led the band into disarray, only to reemerge as a starship instead of an airplane.

Gold: Their Great Hits (1971) – Steppenwolf. The heavy rock darlings of the late 1960s, only middling success in the following decade. They had some good material beyond the two big radio hits.

The Best of The Guess Who (1971) – The Guess Who. These guys had some amazing hit in the last years of the 1960s. It fell off after Randy Bachman left, but Burton Cummings was still a songwriting force.

Best of The Doobies (1976) – Doobie Brothers. Far from perfect, this single LP issue contains the biggest radio hits and a few album tracks, but ignores a few better album tracks. No worries, that’s why you buy the studio albums. Now, there are better compilations, but this one was aimed at the casual fan.

The Best of Bread (1973) – Bread. The ultimate make-out album. So many soft-rock hits on this single vinyl album. Bread ruled AM radio during the first half of the 1970s. They could also rock, but they were rewarded for staying in their lane.

Chronicle (1976) – Creedence Clearwater Revival. A two-record set. The many top 40 hits, along with some album tracks that could have been hits, and the long version of “I Heard it Through the Grapevine.”

Frank Sinatra’s Greatest Hits (1968) – Frank Sinatra. It was cool to have the one vinyl album edition. The ladies liked it too.

Time Circle (1991) – Spirit. A two-disc set that didn’t just focus on the commercial albums. Spirit produced film soundtrack material, and ventured into jazz and progressive, alongside their psychedelic moods. A great showcase for a band is forgotten by time.

The Essential Jimi Hendrix (1978) – Jimi Hendrix. This two-vinyl LP set came out before the vault was mined of Hendrix product. In 1978, another generation discovered Hendrix.

Heavy Cream (1972) – Cream. I was only somewhat familiar with this band until I played this two-record set. This was a great sampling of their brief recording output.

Eric Clapton at His Best (1972) – Eric Clapton. This collection pulls from Derek & the Dominoes, Blind Faith, and solo Clapton, sticking to the early 1970s. At the time, the best compilation of Clapton, although there was another set that included a few Cream songs and some Clapton playing older blues. Pick your poison.

Endless Summer (1974) – The Beach Boys. Released in 1974, Capitol Records sought to re-launch the Beach Boys sales career by mining their back catalogue to take advantage of the nostalgia craze of the 1970s, particularly after American Graffiti. This two-LP set, Endless Summer, was followed by another two-LP set the following years, Spirit of America. Drawing on the hits from 1962-1965, this was a gold mine.