Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Elton John - Greatest Hits (1974) and Greatest Hits Volume II (1977)

(U.K 1962 - 2023)

The 'Greatest Hits' (1974) compilation, remains as the best seller album of Elton John's catalog. In the States, it became the first hits package to reach number one. In Canada, it’s one of few albums to ever ship one million copies. Volume II 1977 wasn't far behind but never reached the heights of its predecessor.

About Greatest Hits Volume I:

In 1974, there was no bigger music star than Elton John. His Greatest Hits collection came out at the peak of his career and not only topped the charts in the U.S. – a rarity for a compilation – but stayed there for 10 weeks. It captured many of the songs which still remain highlights today from "Your Song" to "Rocket Man" to "Crocodile Rock" to "Candle In The Wind". On the international version of the album, "Candle in the Wind replaced “Bennie and the Jets”. The 1992 reissue on CD included both songs.

It did skip over a couple of lesser hits from this era, most notably "Levon" and "Tiny Dancer", but added them to Elton’s next greatest hits collection - Vol 2 (depending on the version)

Track Listing (Australian Pressing):
01 - Your Song
02 - Daniel
03 - Honky Cat
04 - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
05 - Saturday Nights Alright For Fighting
06 - Rocket Man
07 - Candle In The Wind
08 - Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me
09 - Border Song
10 - Crocodile Rock


About Greatest Hits Volume II:


While it wasn’t nearly as successful as the first volume, this is as chock-full of hits, including non-album #1 singles Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, and Philadelphia Freedom. Also included is John’s version of Pinball Wizard, taken from the soundtrack to Tommy. In short, it’s an excellent continuation of the first collection, and taken together, they function as an ideal singles retrospective of the most successful singles artist of the early ‘70s.

The original international version replaced Levon with Bennie and the Jets. The 1992 CD reissue included Tiny Dancer and I Feel Like a Bullet in the Gun of Robert Ford.

Track Listing (Australian Pressing):
01 - The Bitch Is Back
02 - Pinball Wizard
03 - Grow Some Funk Of Your Own
04 - Somebody Saved My Life Tonight
05 - Bennie And The Jets
06 - Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds
07 - Philadelphia Freedom
08 - Country Comfort
09 - Island Girl
10 - Levon
11 - Tiny Dancer (Bonus Track)

* Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds (11/23/74, 1 US, 1 CL, 10 UK, 1 CN, 3 AU, gold single)
* Philadelphia Freedom (3/7/75, 1 US, 32 RB, 1 CL, 12 UK, 1 CN, 4 AU, platinum single)
* Pinball Wizard (3/20/76, 9 CL, 7 UK, 88 AU)

Bernie Taupin (Lyrics) & Elton John (Music)

Featured Albums on Greatest Hits Vol I & II


Elton John (1970)
Elton John’s self-titled album was a top-5 hit in the UK and U.S., largely thanks to Your Song, which was Elton’s breakthrough hit and has become one of, if not, the signature song of his career.

* Border Song (3/70, 92 US, 20 CL, 34 CN)
* Your Song (11/28/70, 8 US, 9 AC, 1 CL, 7 UK, 3 CN, 11 AU, 2x platinum)

Elton's Band
Madman Across the Water (1971)

This was another top-10 album in the U.S., but only peaked at #41 in the UK. Tiny Dancer wasn’t a big hit at the time, but has become an Elton John favorite.

* Levon (11/29/71, 24 US, 4 CL, 6 CN, 94 AU, gold single)
* Tiny Dancer (2/7/72, 41 US, 35 AC, 1 CL, 19 CN, 13 AU, 3x platinum)

Honky Château (1972):
This was Elton John’s first of seven consecutive #1 albums in the U.S. It peaked at #2 in the UK. In addition to the album’s two top-10 hits, it also produced the album cut “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters.”

* Rocket Man (4/22/72, 6 US, 39 AC, 1 CL, 3 UK, 8 CN, 13 AU, 3x platinum)
* Honky Cat (8/12/72, 8 US, 6 AC, 3 CL, 31 UK, 10 CN, 78 AU)

Don’t Shoot Me, I’m Only the Piano Player (1973):
This was Elton’s first album to top the charts in both the U.S. and the UK. It also produced Crocodile Rock, his first U.S. #1. In addition to the two hit singles, the album produced the popular cut “Elderberry Wine.”

* Crocodile Rock (11/4/72, 1 US, 11 AC, 1 CL, 5 UK, 1 CN, 2 AU, platinum single)
* Daniel (1/20/73, 2 US, 1 AC, 1 CL, 4 UK, 1 CN, 7 AU, platinum single)


Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973):
The best-selling studio album of Elton’s career is also widely considered his crowning achievement. It was a #1 hit in the U.S. and UK. It gave him his second U.S. #1 song with Bennie and the Jets and Candle in the Wind become one of the biggest hits of all time when Elton performed it with new lyrics in 1997 as a memorial to Princess Diana.

* Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting (7/7/73, 12 US, 2 CL, 7 UK, 12 CN, 31 AU, gold single)
* Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (9/29/73, 2 US, 7 AC, 1 CL, 6 UK, 1 CN, 4 AU, 2x platinum)
* Bennie and the Jets (2/16/74, 1 US, 15 RB, 1 CL, 37 UK, 1 CN, 5 AU, 2x platinum)
* Candle in the Wind (3/2/74, 6 US, 2 AC, 2 CL, 5 UK, 5 CN, 5 AU)

Elton On The Muppet Show 1977
Caribou (1974):
This was Elton’s third consecutive album to top the charts in both the U.S. and UK. The 1973 Christmas single "Step into Christmas" was not on the original album, but was featured as a bonus track on the 1995 reissue.

* Step into Christmas (12/8/73, 20 CL, 8 UK, 44 AU) D
* Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me (6/1/74, 2 US, 3 AC, 1 CL, 16 UK, 1 CN, 13 AU, gold single)
* The Bitch Is Back (9/7/74, 4 US, 3 CL, 15 UK, 1 CN, 53 AU, gold single)

Elton John - The Pinball Wizard
Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy (1975):
Elton John made history when this album debuted atop the Billboard album chart, the first ever to do so. It reportedly sold 1.4 million copies within the first four days of release. Someone Saved My Life Tonight was the only single featured from the album.

* Someone Saved My Life Tonight (6/23/75, 4 US, 36 AC, 1 CL, 22 UK, 2 CN, 54 AU, gold single)

Rock of the Westies (1975):
This was the last of Elton’s #1 U.S. albums. Like its predecessor, it debuted atop the Billboard album chart. It also gave Elton another #1 song in the U.S. with Island Girl.

* Island Girl (10/4/75, 1 US, 27 AC, 1 CL, 14 UK, 4 CN, 12 AU, platinum single)
* Grow Some Funk of Your Own (1/24/76, 14 US, 8 CL, 8 CN)

Thanks to Dave's Music Database for chart & album details


This post consists of FLACs ripped from my vinyl copies, both Australian Pressings. The Australian track listings are different to those of the US, UK and European releases, making them somewhat unique I believe. Both posts come with full artwork for vinyl - including label scans. However, I have only been able to source CD artwork for his first Greatest Hits album and suspect the Volume II was never released on CD in Australia. 

My only criticism of the Australian releases are that they did not include one of his most popular hits (and ratified by Elton himself, only recently), namely  "Tiny Dancer".
I am therefore including "Tiny Dancer" as a bonus track to rectify this huge oversight.
Nevertheless, I have always believed that Elton's first "Greatest Hits" album is one of the BEST and STRONGEST compilation albums ever released by an artist, hands down.  



Thursday, March 21, 2024

REPOST: Pat Travers Band - Live! Go For What You Know (1979)

(Canadian 1976-Present)
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Pat Travers was thirteen when he saw Jimi Hendrix play live in Ottawa in 1968, and by fourteen the Toronto native was playing guitar with a competence that belied his age.
By fifteen he was playing in his first group, Red Hot, before Merge then featured the teenage Travers.
Pat then grabbed the opportunity to play with rock and roll / rockabilly artist Ronnie Hawkins, a move that allowed him to gain valuable touring experience.
However in the seventies the other side of the Atlantic was the place to be for any budding rock musician, and in May 1975 Pat left his homeland for London. A successful demo led to a recording contract with Polydor Records and that eponymous 1976 debut release, with the album featuring right-hand man Peter ‘Mars’ Cowling on bass (an ever present for nearly three decades) and Roy Dyke on drums.

That same year Pat and band toured the U.K. in support of the album, and an appearance at the Reading Festival certainly did no harm as regards musical exposure.
The ‘Pat Travers’ album proved this was no one-dimensional rock musician, featuring tracks such as the heavy rock of fan favourite ‘Makes No Difference’, his interpretation of J.J. Cale’s ‘Magnolia’, and the song now most associated with Pat – the old rocking blues standard ‘Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights)’.
‘Makin’ Magic’ and ‘Putting it Straight’ followed in quick succession in 1977, with Nico McBrain replacing Ron Dyke (drummer Clive Edwards and guitarist Mick Dyche also had stints in the 1977 touring band). Not only is Pat’s sophomore release a classic Travers album, it’s a classic rock album, period. Highlights include the Hendrix-esque title track, ‘Rock and Roll Suzie’, a smokin’ cover of Willie McTell’s ‘Statesboro’ Blues’, and the powerful ‘Stevie’.

In 1978 the group was truly defined as such when the talents of drummer Tommy Aldridge and guitarist Pat Thrall were enlisted, and this particular line-up led to Pat’s most commercially successful period.
Their first album together, ‘Heat in the Street’, was very much a hard rock release with the twin guitars featured well up front, yet there was melody throughout the album and some lighter moments. Heavy highlights are the title track, and the blistering instrumental ‘Hammerhead’.
In 1979 the band co-headlined a tour in the U.K. and parts of Europe with Journey before the live album ‘Go For What You Know’ was released, which became one of Pat’s best known and biggest selling albums [extract from Pat Travers' Website]
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Album Review
Recorded live at the Opry House, Austin, Texas; Great Southern Music Hall, Orlando, Florida; Great Southern Music Hall, Gainesville, Florida; Gusman Hall, Miami, Florida in January and February 1979.
Pat Travers never sounded more focused and inspired than he does on Live! Go for What You Know, which was recorded during the Canadian hard rocker/blues-rocker's U.S. tour of early 1979. Travers can really burn on stage, and this album reflects that. Backed by guitarist Pat Thrall (who had been a member of the obscure space rock band Automatic Man in 1976 and 1977), bassist Mars Gowling, and drummer Tommy Aldridge, the singer is in top form on explosive, definitive versions of funky originals like "Heat in the Street," "Gettin' Betta," and "Makes No Difference." But the best-known thing on the album is Travers' gutsy performance of Stan Lewis' blues classic "Boom Boom (Out Go the Lights)," which should not be confused with the John Lee Hooker favorite "Boom Boom." For Travers, "Boom Boom (Out Go the Lights)" has been a major crowd pleaser, and the version heard on this release was a staple of album rock radio in 1979 and the early '80s. If you're exploring Travers' music for the first time, 'Live! Go for What You Know' is the LP to start with.
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This album was my first introduction to Pat Travers and what a intro it was. This album contains so much power and raw energy and it was certainly a 'baptism by fire' experience for me when I first heard it. I have since acquired most of Traver's albums, 'Crash and Burn' being my favourite studio album.
If there is enough interest in this post (via comments), I might be convinced to post 'Crash and Burn' in the near future.

This post contains a rip from my vinyl 'pristine' copy in FLAC format and includes artwork from both LP and CD, plus label scans. If you haven't heard this album before then prepare yourself to be blown away but be warned: Don't play it too loud at night, otherwise, it will be.... Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights) !
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             NEW IMPROVED RIP

Track Listing
01 - Hooked On Music

02 - Gettin' Betta

03 - Go All Night

04 - Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights)

05 - Stevie

06 - Makin' Magic

07 - Heat In The Street

08 - It Makes No Difference

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Band Members:
Pat Travers (vocals, guitar)

Pat Thrall (vocals, guitar)

Mars Cowling (bass guitar)

Tommy Aldridge (drums)

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Pat Travers Live Link (265Mb) New Link 21/03/2024
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Friday, March 15, 2024

Yes - 9012Live: The Solos (1985) + Bonus Tracks

(U.K 1968 - 2004, 2009 - Present)

9012Live: The Solos is the third live album by English rock band Yes, released as a mini-LP on 7 November 1985 by Atco Records. 
Recorded during their 1984 world tour in support of their eleventh studio album, 90125 (1983), the album features a selection of solo tracks performed by each of the five band members [Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Trevor Rabin, Alan White and Tony Kaye], plus live versions of two songs from 90125. The album was an accompany release to the band's 1985 concert film, 9012Live.

In March of 1984, the long overdue show went on the road. Aside from seeing three continents, three tour managers, one small army of Argentinean security, encountering numerous threats, one ticket office bombing, some minor bickering and moaning, one squadron of flying saucers over Denver, lots of vodka and surviving two international escapes, the tour went smoothly and without incident. In spite of, or perhaps as a result of this, what ensued was a series of shows that delighted audiences everywhere.


Yes chose to redefine their image: dispensing, for the second time, with Roger Dean, and embracing a new design style based on computer graphics. The 1980s Yes utilised a new updated YES logo and released only their second promotional video in sixteen years, a live recording of their tour. The young filmmaker Steve Gottenburg produced 9012Live for the Charlex Company, using state-of-the-art video technology – incorporating over 60 stunning visual effects. Nominated for various awards, 9012Live provides an accurate portrait of the reformed band.


With a massive hit album and a number one single, the finances were available to put on a big show. To complement their new sound, Roger Dean’s eerie landscapes were replaced by starker, but still spectacular lasers and computer graphics. Playing only in large arenas on this tour, the stage was multi­-levelled, and sparse, its high-tech design reflecting the new album cover. The front of the stage sloped down to the audience while the rear sloped upwards, all band members on the same level except for Alan, whose drum pedestal was raised above the rest.

Rabin, Anderson, Squire
The Album

This album (or mini-LP) was released to promote the then forthcoming VHS video called "9012LIVE". 

This album could have been better if it was released with more songs played by the entire band and not with the solo performances by each member of the band which were omitted in the video.

"Hold on" is a good live version, but Tony Kaye`s keyboards are more in the background. The other song performed by the whole band is "Changes", with very good keyboards by Tony Kaye (with brief additional keyboards by Jon Anderson, as seen in the video) and better mix.

The other tracks are performed as solos by each member. Tony Kaye`s solo is brief and it seems that he doesn`t like very much to do this kind of performances on stage. He plays with Trevor Rabin in Rabin`s acoustic guitar solo called "Solly`s Beard", the best of the solos. Jon Anderson`s solo is the "Soon" part of "The Gates of Delirium", played differently with Tony Kaye on keyboards. Chris Squire`s solo is a brief and distorted bass guitar and bass pedals version of "Amazing Grace", followed by "White Fish", which has Chris Squire and Alan White playing their "solos" in a medley of fragments of songs like "The Fish", "Tempus Fugit", "Sound Chaser" and others.

Rabin and Squire
In 2009, the album was reissued in Japan by Isao Kikuchi for Warner Music Japan, with two bonus tracks. These two additional songs had both been previously released:

"It Can Happen" - as the B-side of  the studio version "It Can Happen" (Atlanta 4/16/84)

"City of Love" - as the B-side of "Rhythm of Love" (from 9012Live - Edmonton '84)

...and they're nice to have, certainly, but I think it would have been possible and also desirable to include something from that tour which technically had never been released before, such as a recording of  "Hearts." We know there is audio of complete shows in the archives, even though it's very likely it will simply remain there. I also think it's entirely reasonable to state that "Cinema" should have been included as the first track as it represents a collective solo set piece of sorts and makes for a nice overture.

1984 Tour T-Shirt
Final Say

I recall when the LP was first released back in the mid 80s and having purchased it in good faith, was somewhat pissed to discover that it was a 30 minute album selling at full price. It really is a pity they didn’t include more of the live 90125 tracks they played on that tour on this vinyl release. The two additional tracks included on the CD release come across well (and could have fitted on the original vinyl release) but it is a real shame this is the only official release from this tour.

1984 Tour Programme Booklet
To me this is such low hanging fruit - a full live recording would be the perfect accompaniment to the popular film (released on Video) and would be a nice way to celebrate their best selling studio album. I know there are probably good boots available but the Rabin era deserves more official live releases than the solos album and the handful of songs on the Word is Live . I guess if I'm shooting for the stars, I'd also want an official BG, and Talk tour release, but I suspect those are less appealing from a commercial standpoint.

Tony Kaye
Side Note 
On their 1984 World Tour, Tony Kaye was using a bank of synths and samplers hidden under the stage, all triggered from a pair of Yamaha remote MIDI control keyboards (KX-76 or KX-88 would be the model). Well, this was still the early days of MIDI, and sometimes the keyboard sends a note on but forgets to send the note off message. Thus, there's a couple bits where the instrument is sustaining notes that it's not supposed to, and during Tony's solo no less! So you see him reaching over and trying to retrigger the "stuck" notes, so that they'll silence. He must have been thinking, "Bollocks to all of this high tech MIDI gear!".


On the 9012Live album, an extra credit is found for keyboardist Casey Young. It was revealed that while Kaye played keyboards on stage for the tour, Young played additional keyboards backstage, while remaining unseen from the audience. This is not surprising given the technology of the time and the demands placed on the keyboards by the intricate 90125 songs.

Jon Anderson
This post consists of FLACs ripped from my mint condition vinyl which I purchased from a pop up record stall at the Victoria Market in Melbourne, back in the mid eighties.   It is an import pressing as it features a trademark hole punch in the top corner of its cover.  Even though I felt cheated when I bought it (due to the short play time), I still enjoy the recordings - although I think Jon Anderson's edited rendition of "Soon" was far too short, and does no justice for this beautiful song. 
Full album artwork for both vinyl and CD media are included along with the usual obligatory label scans.   I have also decided to include those two additional tracks from the CD release (as listed above), as bonus tracks.   



Tracks Listing:
1. Hold On (6:57)
2. Si (2:40)
3. Solly's Beard (4:39)
4. Soon (2:18)
5. Changes (7:00)
6. Amazing Grace (2:10)
7. Whitefish (8:40)
Bonus tracks
8. City of Love (6:31)
9. It Can Happen (6:29)

Line-up / Musicians:
- Jon Anderson / vocals
- Chris Squire / bass, vocals
- Tony Kaye / keyboards
- Alan White / drums
- Trevor Rabin / guitars, vocals
 

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

REPOST: Contraband - Selftitled (1979) + Bonus Single

(Australian 1973-1979)
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Initially formed in Sydney and originally called Stillwater, the band changed its name to Finch in 1973 and then, in mid-1978, they changed their name to to Contraband. Owen Orford was the only remaining member of the original 1973 line-up.
The band didn't work fulltime until 1976 when, as Finch, they recorded their first album, 'Thunderbird'. They produced and financed the recording themselves and its release, on the Eagle label, coincided with an upsurge in their popularity.
Originally Sydney-based, they toured Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and country areas of New South Wales. At the end of 1976, they moved to Melbourne and released a single, 'Short Changed Again'. The disc enjoyed moderate success, but its release was followed by a major upheaval. BOB SPENCER (guitar) left to join Skyhooks; then the group split completely leaving only PETER McFARLANE (drums) and Owen. The two of them spent the next three months (April '77 to July '77) auditioning new members. Eventually they came up with David Hinds, who replaced CHRIS JONES as second guitarist, Mark Evans (ex-AC/DC), and an old school friend of Mark's, Graham Kennedy.


Meanwhile the band was signed by CBS. In February 1978, their 'Nothing to Hide' album was released. A single, 'Where Were You', was lifted from it and, in March, became their first national hit.
The band's big break coincided with the album's release — they were picked up for worldwide distribution by American label Portrait. However, as there was already a Dutch band called Finch, Portrait recommended a change of name (to Contraband). Until October '78 the group used both the old and new names to help fans adjust.

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In March, Contraband set off on a national ten week tour with Dragon and, nearing the tour's end, released a re-mixed, edited version of 'Nothing To Hide' as a single. The band then headlined its own tour and, in July, supported Status Quo on its Australian jaunt. The same month, Contraband's album was released in the US. Apart from receiving favourable reviews, the LP got airplay on some of the major FM stations.
In October '78, Peter McFarlane left the band, basically over differing musical taste. He was replaced by Barry Cram (ex-Front Page and Russell Morris Band). Coinciding with the split they released another single, 'That's Your Way' (also a re-mix).
Contraband was scheduled to leave for the US in January '79 to record an album. However Portrait, which was financing the project, pulled out at the last minute without explanation. Undaunted, the band decided to go ahead on its own, record the album at Albert Studios in Sydney and aim at getting to the US later in the year. This selftitled album is the final LP that they recorded before splitting total later in 1979.  [extract from Noel McGrath's Australian Encyclopedia of Rock 1978-79 Yearbook, p14-16].
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Finch (Contraband) On Countdown 1979
This post consists of FLACs ripped from my cassette tape (plays just fine) and includes full album artwork (which was sourced from Midoztouch with thanks). Also included is the non-album B-Side single from Rainin' Again.
Not a bad collection of tracks - probably their best songs musically, but I still preferred their heavier rock material from their early Finch days (see previous post)

NEW IMPROVED RIP
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Track Listing
01. Lead Me to the Slaughter
02. C-61
03. Rainin' Again
04. Twisted
05. Shot Down in Flames
06. Gimme Some Lovin'
07. Only a Fool
08. Jodie on the Break
09. Sittin' Pretty
10. I Want La-Huv
11. Too Drunk To Know (B-Side Single)

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Band Members:
Barry Cram (drums)
Owen Orford (vocals)
David Hinds (guitar)
Graham Kennedy (guitar)
Mark Evans (bass)
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Contraband Link (304Mb)
New Link 12/03/2024

Friday, March 8, 2024

Sherbet - The Sherbet Phenomenon (1981) + Bonus Tracks

(Australian 1969-1984)

'The Sherbet Phenomenon' - How else might one explain a run of twenty consecutive hit singles (to say nothing of five for Daryl), twelve albums yielding ten platinum and eight gold discs, every possible Australian music award of the seventies and the honor of being not only the biggest domestic record sellers of all but the first act to sell a million dollars worth of records in Australia.

Sherbet were the first Australian band to insist on taking their music to the people - all the people - on long, tedious national tours.

Lugging seven tons of equipment, they would set out in Greyhound coaches for up to three months - poking their noses into dark corners of the continent which had not seen a rock band since The Easybeats in 1965. They did this not once or twice ... the figure is more like twenty.


Those who were a part of those intense and exciting spectacles called 'Sherbet concerts' will always remember not just the carefully orchestrated visual majesty or the powerfully constructed music, they will also recall the extraordinary warmth and rapport which existed between the stage and the stalls; from the Hordern Pavilion to remote North Queensland council halls.


This release is as close to the perfect Sherbet collection as one might wish to possess on a single vinyl album. Nineteen pieces of carefully crafted and executed pop music from five guys who understood it better than any other Australian band before or after them. Listen to the music ... remember the magic.



FREE THE PEOPLE
The third single and second hit Number five in Sydney in November, l971. A Delaney ond Bonnie track featuring original bassist Bruce Worrall on tuba.

YOU'RE ALL WOMAN
Written by old mate (and later touring companion) Ted Mulry, this was the first track to feature Tony Mitchell, and the first hit to crack the Melbourne top twenty (thirteen), in August 1972.

HOUND DOG
A raucous version of the Lieber/Staller rock classic which found its way on to tape in around three hours. Top thirty in July, 1973 For many years this was the obligatory Sherbet show closer.

CASSANDRA
The first indication of the pop masterpieces that were to come and a perfect national top five summer hit, in October, 1973

SLIPSTREAM
The extremely ambitious title track to their third album and possibly the first truly expensive track to be cut in this country. A national top ten single in July 1974.

SILVERY MOON
Also from 'Slipstream', a highly commercial ballad and another national top ten hit in September 1974.


YOU'RE MY WORLD
Daryl Braithwaite's first solo hit and what a hit! A double platinum national number one (before Sherbet had had done it) over Christmas 1974 and the key to breaking Sherbet in the mass market.

SUMMER LOVE
Another pop classic and the first single to be released in England. National top five. From this point there was really no looking back - March 1975.

LIFE
The dramatic title cut to the 'Life ... Is For Living' album, featuring Clive Shakespeare on acoustic classical guitar. As a single, number seven nationally in August 1975.

ONLY ONE YOU/MATTER OF TIME
A powerful double sided hit from the 'Life' album, One side a weepy ballad, the other a rolling rocker featuring Garth Porter on lead vocals. National top ten in November 1975.

Sherbet 'Howzat Era' 1976
(L-R) Tony Mitchell, Alan Sandow, Daryl Braithwaite, Harvey James, Garth Porter

CHILD'S PLAY
A top ten single in February, 1976 and marked Clive Shakespeare's final recording with Sherbet.

HOWZAT!
From the rubble of turmoil arose - an even stronger Sherbet, with new guitarist Harvey James and a first single that rose to number one in Australia, Thailand and many parts of Europe, and number two in England. From the 'Howzat' album in May, 1976. This was the beginning of Sherbet as an international entity.

ROCK ME GENTLY
A pleasant, soft rocker which had the unfortunate task of following a gorilla like 'Howzat'. It made top ten in October 1976.

YOU'VE GOT THE GUN
Featured as a 'double A side' with 'Rock Me Gently', this was a rather more sophisticated reworking of their original 1972 single.

LOVE HAS NO PRIDE
Daryl's fourth solo single, a quality version of Eric Koz's classic ballad. A hit in April 1977.

MAGAZINE MADONNA
The first single from the 'Photoplay' album which, like 'Howzat', was released all over the world. A top 5 national hit in June 1977.

SLIPPIN' AWAY
The mature and imaginative opening track from the eleventh album titled simply 'Sherbet'. This album was recorded at United Western Studios in Los Angeles. A number 22 hit in March 1978.

ANOTHER NIGHT ON THE ROAD
A second song from the 'Sherbet' album and a band favourite which tells the story of their decade of touring, recording and playing a game so very few people ever really understand. A number 17 hit in August 1978.   [Taken from album Liner Notes]

Glenn A Baker.
Australian Editor Billboard November, 1980

This post consists of FLACs ripped from my 'Hammard' vinyl and includes full album artwork and label scans. Because Hammard Records were a low budget label that released a variety of music genre during the 70's and 80's, I usually tended to avoid them due to their poor sound quality (similar to K-Tel records). However, in this case I made an exception due to the great 'bang for bucks' that this compilation offered - over 60 minutes of music.
Of course, the compromise is the lack of bass that exists with these type of releases, however I have applied some minor bass enhancement to this rip to improve the sound. 

One other gripe that I have with this release is the inclusion of two of Daryl Braithwaite's solo releases, at the expense of excluding some classic Sherbet tracks; such as "Freedom", "Wishing Well" and a personnel favourite "Wild Love" (from their Slipstream album, with its heavy, funky bass line). I have therefore added these as Bonus Tracks.

Tracklist
01 Sherbet–Free The People  2:37
02 Sherbet–You're All Woman  2:52
03 Sherbet–Hound Dog  2:24
04 Sherbet–Cassandra 3:15
05 Sherbet–Slipstream 2:57
06 Sherbet–Silvery Moon 3:21
07 Daryl Braithwaite–You're My World  3:06
08 Sherbet–Summer Love 3:34
09 Sherbet–Life  3:26
10 Sherbet–Only One You 3:27
11 Sherbet–Matter Of Time  2:57
12 Sherbet–Child's Play 3:17
13 Sherbet–Howzat! 3:42
14 Sherbet–Rock Me Gently  3:34
15 Sherbet–You've Got The Gun 3:30
16 Daryl Braithwaite– Love Has No Pride  3:18
17 Sherbet–Magazine Madonna 4:05
18 Sherbet–(Feel Like It's) Slippin' Away  3:21
19 Sherbet–Another Night On The Road   3:46
20    Sherbet-Wild Love (Bonus Track) 3:19
21 Sherbet-Freedom (Bonus Track)  3:48
22 Sherbet-Wishing Well (Bonus Live)  3:54

Sherbet Were:
Daryl Braithwaite (vocals) 1969-84
Gunther Gorman (guitar) 1976
Harvey James (guitar, vocals) 1976-84
Dennis Laughlin (lead vocals) 1969
Tony Mitchell (bass) 1972-84
Garth Porter (keyboards, vcls) 1970-84
Doug Rae (bass) 1969
Alan Sandow (drums) 1969-84
Sam See (keyboards) 1969-70
Clive Shakespeare (guitar, vocals) 1969-76
Danny Taylor (drums) 1969
Bruce Worrall (bass) 1969-72