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Post by sandy on Apr 16, 2021 8:28:26 GMT
So now the 60th anniversary tour is announced, what does everyone think about how this huge year for the band could be celebrated on record?
Surely all the compilations have been done by now? Any glaring omissions?
I would LOVE to see a compilation of live oddities right from the beginning, covering all the stuff in 80's and 90's with Allan especially. We know they were recorded. It would be fantastic to have vinyl of it all🙂
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Post by JamesT on Apr 16, 2021 15:56:46 GMT
My prediction: another compilation with one new song.
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Post by thejanitor on Apr 16, 2021 19:44:18 GMT
Hopefully both Allan and Graham's album and the Ron Furmanek archival project (although we haven't heard anything about that for an awful long time) can be finished and released later this year. Would immensely make up in terms of 60th anniversary celebrations if the group themselves decide to release nothing or just another compilation.
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Post by baz on Apr 16, 2021 21:17:11 GMT
My prediction: another compilation with one new song. And don't forget the obligatory "remix" with Tony or Bobby re-recording a part on one of the hits for no logical reason! |
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Post by johnt on Apr 16, 2021 22:25:23 GMT
David Peck to release the Don't Get Sunburnt DVD from the Reelin' In The Years archive to all Hollies fans.
Oh look, a flying pig!
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Post by stuball on Apr 17, 2021 13:27:46 GMT
David Peck to release the Don't Get Sunburnt DVD from the Reelin' In The Years archive to all Hollies fans. Oh look, a flying pig! A serious contender for post of the year! |
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Post by anthony on Apr 18, 2021 2:13:41 GMT
I would imagine another hits album, has any group in history had as many greatest hits collection over the years. What I'd love to see is DVD's a collection of the Hollies over the years, Even as late as the Carl wayne years there was talk they recorded a concert on film, as per always nothing ever came of it.
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Post by cameron on Apr 18, 2021 9:20:53 GMT
Logically:
- The Hollies need to jump on this 3-CD "Gold" collection bandwagon which fill up the supermarket shelves and seem to sell really well. The recent 10cc one even made the top 50 charts in the UK and has stuck around there for months.
- They should reissue the 1968 "Greatest" LP, in mono, for Record Store Day with the really good authentic flipback sleeve that all the other Parlophone RSD specials have received over the years. That should get record collectors whipped into a frenzy.
- Perhaps issue a new, stripped back short and sweet, Best-Of compilation with fresh sounding stereo remixes of all their top-20 hits only to date. I'm sure that Ron Furmanek has already done these, but they should be re-mastered to correct whatever EMI in America did to mess them up back in 1993.
Ideally:
- If the sales of the 3-CD collection and Hollies Greatest do well, they should get the Ron Furmanek Rarities project over the line as a standalone release.
- There really ought to be a vinyl reissue campaign of at least the original Parlophone years from 1963-1971. The Hollies are surely the only major 60s band to not have their music reissued on vinyl at this moment in time? I know Parlophone have put out '20 Golden Greats', but who is buying that for £20 when you can very easily find mint original copies for less than £5? The slightly strange "two-fer" reissue of 'Evolution' seemed to sell out in HMV at the time, though 'Butterfly' appeared to get more limited distribution. There has just been a fairly low-priced box produced for Manfred Mann's HMV years on vinyl for about £60. The Kinks in mono and Rolling Stones in mono vinyl boxes sold very well. The Hollies' box would have 11 LPs in it, so would retail at around £160-£190 when you look at similar sized boxsets.
In a dream world:
- A reissue/remaster campaign of the core 1963-1981 albums with bonus tracks on CD. The Ron Furmanek rarities can be added as bonus tracks because that will get the hardcore fans buying the whole set of albums just for those. It's now over 20 years since the Nash era albums were put onto CD in their original form.
- An authentic "Nash Years" vinyl boxset in mono with replica flipback sleeves cut from the analogue tapes, more akin to the Beatles' mono box. Such a lavish thing would retail over the £200 mark, but I think if done right, would sell really well. But it has to be done well, not as cheaply as the aforementioned Rolling Stones and Kinks vinyl boxsets, which was their main criticism from collectors and stopped a lot of us from buying them.
- Some kind of celebration of their live recordings. Perhaps a multi-CD set with the complete 1966 Stockholm and 1968 Lewisham Odeon concerts for the first time, plus a 1971 live recording from Australia, 1976's Live Hits (with the two missing tracks) and round it off with the Nash reunion concert recording from 1983. I can see that having a broad appeal for the content with Graham Nash plus the song contents themselves.
- Some kind of DVD or re-broadcast of the legendary 'Don't Get Sunburnt' concert footage from 1971.
However, I don't really expect that we will get anything. I can't imagine that '50 at 50' sold very well, I know a lot of fans who refused to buy it on principal at the time because it seemed to appear in a year where we got a lot of Hollies compilations, and a new Peter Howarth era recording wasn't enough to excite us. I'm sure that it's up to Parlophone/Warners/whoever to propose such releases, and it has to be okayed by Tony, Bobby and Allan. It seems that unless there's someone actively pushing for something, it doesn't happen. Their marketing strategy is almost non-existant too. It's so frustrating to watch when there's such an excellent and well-loved recorded legacy there.
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Post by sandy on Apr 18, 2021 13:32:46 GMT
There's a huge difference in what ' avid collectors ' would like released, and Joe public who just want reminding of fun times.
I don't think a release of alternative mixes etc would create a big enough mass market to be honest,sad though it may be. I reckon a regurgitating of some greatest hits will probably be a better seller in real terms, like the ones you mentioned.That would then be a pension top up for the lads before they now out gracefully?
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Apr 18, 2021 13:57:17 GMT
There's a huge difference in what ' avid collectors ' would like released, and Joe public who just want reminding of fun times. I don't think a release of alternative mixes etc would create a big enough mass market to be honest,sad though it may be. I reckon a regurgitating of some greatest hits will probably be a better seller in real terms, like the ones you mentioned.That would then be a pension top up for the lads before they now out gracefully? Yeah, unfortunately, after so many years of catering to the Bus Stop fans, it may be too late (and unprofitable) to cater to the avid collectors. And the newest ones are the streamers... |
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Post by Gralto on Apr 18, 2021 16:07:49 GMT
Hi All
Ron has dropped me a line to inform he has serious intentions to get the long awaited - and we have been waiting a LONG time! - collection of Hollies unheard 60s recordings out in time for the 60th anniversary next year.
For all the archival trawls over the years that have seen assorted outtakes released (beginning with 1988's Rarities CD/LP, itself originally compiled "from an idea by Ron Furmanek" as the liner notes state), this one will prove just how many excellent alternate versions of tracks we know so well survive on the session tapes. Plus...a few genuine surprises including one 1967 recording not found in the official sessionography.
Bobby Elliott himself was very impressed at the quality of the tracks Ron sent him, having previously been on record as stating his belief there was nothing left in the vaults worth releasing.
Hopefully, there will be further updates in the coming months - I'll be sure to pass on anything Ron forwards with his best wishes.
cheers
Simon
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Post by The Dude on Apr 18, 2021 18:22:22 GMT
Hi All Ron has dropped me a line to inform he has serious intentions to get the long awaited - and we have been waiting a LONG time! - collection of Hollies unheard 60s recordings out in time for the 60th anniversary next year. For all the archival trawls over the years that have seen assorted outtakes released (beginning with 1988's Rarities CD/LP, itself originally compiled "from an idea by Ron Furnamek" as the liner notes state), this one will prove just how many excellent alternate versions of tracks we know so well survive on the session tapes. Plus...a few genuine surprises including one 1967 recording not found in the official sessionography. Bobby Elliott himself was very impressed at the quality of the tracks Ron sent him, having previously been on record as stating his belief there was nothing left in the vaults worth releasing. Hopefully, there will be further updates in the coming months - I'll be sure to pass on anything Ron forwards with his best wishes. cheers Simon That would be awesome... |
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Post by thejanitor on Apr 19, 2021 10:09:19 GMT
Great news! 😁 Really looking forward to this release. Maybe some of the legendary unreleased outtakes like Ashes to Ashes, the Nash version of Survival of The Fittest and a few others will see the light of day on this set?
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Post by baz on Apr 19, 2021 12:42:30 GMT
I just can't help but get the sinking feeling The Hollies are gonna miss the boat on all this stuff given their immaculate track record for bungling the most basic things. Some great ideas listed above and indeed if ever there was a band for the GOLD treatment, it's The Hollies. It's also shocking to realise how long its now been since the original albums have been out of print... time flies as one gets older to the degree the years whizz on by! They really need to start again from scratch and go the full "deluxe" double disc treatment for the classic albums - newly remastered (ie : not brickwalled) with both mono and stereo mixes where applicable, singles tracks and whatever rarities from the relevant era complete with decent little booklets. Fix up the old blunders and get rid of the many years of compilations and packages where they used almost random remasters, some no-noised, some not... stereo and mono mixes chosen with no logic to them... maybe even create new mixes for some of those awful split stereo monstrosities as they have most of the tapes and could produce something far better... just keep Bobby and Tony away from the studio in case they feel like touching up or replacing parts they don't like (or worse, get Peter Howarth in to record new vocals - I doubt they'd DARE consider that!)
Wouldn't it be nice even if for just ONE gig, old chums Allan and Graham made an appearance? Think its fair to guess Terry would never be invited!
My guess is all we'll end up with is hits compilation number 926 with the obligatory sole "new" track and I get the sinking feeling that could well be that version of "Air" they did a few months back for that lockdown video.
Frustrating being a Hollies fan when we see how their catalogue has been mishandled too many times. The clock is ticking and they truly deserve a full on campaign to restore their classic work as it holds up just as well as many other artistes who have been treated far better and now have legacies which gain more admirers and listeners.
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Post by gee on Apr 19, 2021 15:12:14 GMT
As the Sixty Year Anniversary looms we might perhaps stop and consider for all their success what IF The Hollies had been pushed and promoted properly...?
For all the belittlement he often gets really no one ever 'pushed' The Hollies like Graham Nash did....
Producer Ron Richards seemed to see them as very 'secondary' to The Beatles and even considered his production work for P.J. Proby to rank above any of his Hollies productions...
Allan Clarke never seemed to have anywhere near as much faith in the group as he should and could have done (Nash era and thereafter) having been a co-founder, jumping ship a few times and back in 1966 could not even remember the name of their then latest album title...!
Tony Hicks doesn't seem that bothered - in the seventies chucking out 'slow ballard after slow ballard' and quite happy with sporadic hits compilations (that often actually annoy older fans as much loved hits get 'tampered with')
Bobby's book left out vast interesting portions of their career, especially re their music...
Terry Sylvester seems 'at odds' with almost everyone involved bar Bernie Calvert...
their various management over the decades seemed content to just 'let it ride' as it were effectively coasting along instead of aiming onwards and upwards - probably why they were slow to partake in the so called 'British invasion' and only later took off in the USA with the whole 'Hollies in America' being a mixture of inept organisation and missed opportunities combined with some sporadic fine success...
in retrospect for all his later 'distancing' himself it was Nash who when in the group most seemed to take The Hollies seriously...until by 1968 he lost hope as EMI just wanted a 'Greatest Hits' package ('volume two' being sloppily thrown together in 1971 says everything - that set COULD have been SO much stronger)
with Clarke-Nash...Hicks-Elliott...and Sylvester-Calvert all being so far apart now it's surprising to hold out much hope beyond a obligatary hits compilation
however Malcolm's forthcoming book and Ron Furmanek's archive project COULD yet see the 60th anniversary pick up....with hopefully a decent sonic upgraded back catalogue re-issue programme and maybe some vintage live concerts shows covering sixties (any earlier and 1966 - 1968 concert full show surviving tracks) and seventies on up to a few years before Allan's retirement (when his voice was still 100% strong) plus of course 'Don't Get Sunburnt' and the first proper CD / vinyl remastered release of 'Out On The Road' together with a full 'B' sides CD set (mono/stereo) and a decent latter Clarke era 80's/ 90's studio recordings compilation
but don't hold your breath for these....
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Post by Mevrouw Bee on Apr 19, 2021 16:33:33 GMT
I just can't help but get the sinking feeling The Hollies are gonna miss the boat on all this stuff given their immaculate track record for bungling the most basic things. Some great ideas listed above and indeed if ever there was a band for the GOLD treatment, it's The Hollies. It's also shocking to realise how long its now been since the original albums have been out of print... Just the other day, some guy on Twitter said he was looking for Write On on CD and couldn't find it. Had to direct him to ebay. Sorry, that just ain't right (on)... |
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Post by sandy on Apr 19, 2021 16:48:43 GMT
I wonder how much it was record companies, producers etc not ' pushing' the band, or if it was a combination of that, plus lack of large scale ambition on the part of the band themselves? They all seem to have said at one point or another that they ' happened to be in the right place at the right time', as if they never set out to dominate the world .They seemed happy to do their stuff, enjoy it, and go home. Graham was the one striving for more, yes, but I believe the others weren't bothered at all by not conquering the world on a larger scale. As many of you have said, the band members constantly under sell themselves and their back catalogue even now. They have comfortable modest lives from what they did, don't seem to have had a yearning to make millions off it......so maybe they were just happy as it was, and didn't strive for more ambitious times.We tend to say ' What if, what if..? ' But they would say, ( and indeed DO say)' Look what we did, we're happy!' 😉
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Post by cameron on Apr 19, 2021 19:05:32 GMT
We've touched on this before on this forum: the Hollies sold records on their own merit alone. There was no "industry shark" pulling strings for them like Brian Epstein buying enough copies of 'Love Me Do' to get it to chart high enough to get radio play, for example. Even Ron Richards didn't particularly push them that hard, and saw 'We're Through', their first in-house writing credit, as a comparative failure compared with their other singles (still reached No.7 in the UK charts!), and subsequently perhaps delayed them a full 18 months before they blossomed as songwriters around the 'For Certain Because...' era, though I believe that was largely thanks to the Everly Brothers' intervention...
After their "leasing back" deal with EMI was struck in 1966, EMI put next to no promotion into their releases unless they were really flying up the charts and/or had pre-1966 material on that was owned by EMI at the time, such as 'Hollies' Greatest' in 1968. Look at the releases that got huge promotions after 1966: 'Hollies' Greatest' was No.1 for six weeks, 'Hollies Sing Dylan' got a lot of PR in the music press and a TV special, it was No.2 in the UK album charts despite having no lead single (compared to the last album 'Butterfly', which didn't even chart in the UK), 'Live Hits' in 1976 having a TV advert and reaching No.4 in the UK charts but also being one of the best-selling albums of 1976 on Polydor's roster, '20 Golden Greats' having another (questionable) TV ad in 1978, and finally 'Midas Touch' in 2010, which was their last compilation to chart in the UK and it had a TV advert campaign. The proof is in the pudding that a bit of PR and advertising WORKS.
I recall the 'Changin Times' boxset getting merely a mention on their Facebook page about five weeks before it hit the shops and Tony and Bobby did just ONE radio interview to promote it, and didn't recognise half of their own songs that Mark Radcliffe played them on his show on BBC Radio 6! I also recall the vinyl reissues of 'Evolution' and 'Butterfly' getting a mention on their website just a few days before they hit the shops, and 'Butterfly' didn't actually hit the shops, it was a mail order only item! If Tony and Bobby aren't interested in their recorded legacy, they should let someone manage it who is. They will be the main ones that benefit financially from it after all.
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