Post by gee on Oct 16, 2022 23:12:03 GMT
The album which for me was the one where at a key time they really 'blew it'...!
yet each song does have it's merits...notably strong vocals !
Coming at a point just after when Polydor's 'Hollies Live Hits' reached no.4 in the UK album chart in 1977 (thanks to a TV commercial plug no doubt)....and then EMI's 'Twenty Golden Greats' made no.2 in the UK in 1978 (again with a TV commercial promotion) the group were back in the wider public eye at home, so another chance for a comeback beckoned with an all important new studio album ...
so what do they serve up ?
- a very 'put together' sounding collection of mostly slow, melodramatic serious indeed 'ponderous' ballads even reaching back inexplicably over two years to the February 1976 single 'Boulder To Birmingham' which despite charting overseas had been a complete flop at home and was more of the 'Write On' era - what was that older RELEASED song doing on this March 1978 studio album...??
I can't imagine say 'Yes I Will' or 'I'm Alive' (both 1965) going on either of the 1967 studio albums 'Evolution' or 'Butterfly'....can you ?
only two songs; 'Burn Out' and 'Caracas' are more uptempo and each stand out amid a heap of slow songs with maybe the Steely Dan sophistication inspired 'Let it Pour' and bluesy 'Clown Service' being the only other non ballad tracks included on what Bobby Elliott later significantly referred to as;
'A collection of 'TIRED' songs...'
the album cover had to be one of their worst too - a weird shot of the group (not looking their best it has to be said) walking wearily towards...a soft drinks machine !
with a title that might have sounded quite apt considering the fact that THREE of the tracks had already appeared on 'flop' Polydor singles beforehand - so many devoted Hollies fans found themselves paying out full price for just seven new tracks...
A Crazy Steal indeed !
The most annoying thing to me was that they did have at least TWO decent livelier songs plus another that could have gone on instead which whilst not making the album 100% would at least have lifted the melacholic indeed dreary mood, injected a bit of life and fire onto the album and given it better balance so that the slow ballads were more 'distanced' from each other overall and thus given more of a chance to shine
at the time Allan Clarke's 'Samuel' was still unfinished so presumably unavailable BUT Tony's song the powering 'Tip of The Iceberg' and the pulsating 'Mexico Gold' (both from 1974) were then unissued and indeed little if at all known (both later debuting on 'Rarities' ten years on in 1988)
while clearly the great 'Crossfire' with fine Hicks guitarwork surely ought to have also been used as an album track ? - maybe placed to open 'side two' of the vinyl album, instead of being totally wasted as a mere 'B' side on a single ?
By dropping the two years old already released track 'Boulder' and adding these three (then) unissued songs to the album it would have made a twelve track longer album thus giving better value for money plus more importantly a more varied 'livelier' set of songs style wise
I would have revised the tracks running order somewhat:
'side one':
1. Writing On The Wall
2. What Am I Gonna Do ?
3. Tip of The Iceberg
4. Let it Pour
5. Burn Out
6. Hello To Romance
'side two':
1. Crossfire
2. Mexico Gold
3. Caracas
4. Amnesty
5. Clown Service
6. Feet On The Ground
ALL of these songs would have been freshly released in 1978 for the first time so could have made a complete album, I would most CERTAINLY have had a better album cover - not a soft drinks machine in sight ! - and maybe re-titled the set perhaps 'Amnesty' ?
Not perfect maybe but I don't think this suggested revised version of the album is any worse than what we got, and at least has some 'life' in it re song style
as it was the rather doom laden set overblown with slow ballads proved a disaster failing to capitalise on the recent two chart albums they had just had at home and got zilch promotion from Polydor - tho' it did obtain a USA release but hardly did the group's standing any favors stateside !
the very 'put together' feel of the released album rather detracted from the fact that both 'Burn Out' - which featured Allan joining Tony on guitar - and 'Caracus' were excellent tracks with a snappy Hicks guitar solo on the first and a cool saxophone on the second
also 'Amnesty' has superb harmonies with an unaccompanied vocal intro that the members of Queen watched them recording at Basing Street Studios...the vocal intro is not unlike Queen's vocal style (tho' likely a case of the other way around re influences etc)
Including two older tracks from 1974 I think would have been o.k. as both were rather more "typical" Hollies style items and would crucially have lifted the rather gloomy mood - and allowed songs such as 'Hello To Romance', 'Amnesty', 'Writing On The Wall' to shine a bit more
'What Am I Gonna Do ?' is interesting in that both Clarke and Sylvester harmonise in their respective higher ranges on the chorus
the tracks each had their notable points but gathering together so many slow, mega serious songs just did not work as was pretty obvious and allowed a key chance to restore their wider public profile at home to slip away...
we know that Allan Clarke was mega unhappy about this album (tho' strangely his name appears as co-writer on all but two of the songs included !) - and his 1978 solo album 'I Wasn't Born Yesterday' full of more powering and commercial sounding rock flavoured songs could not have been further distant from 'A Crazy Steal' (with maybe the exception of 'Burn Out')
My guess was that Tony Hicks probably supported by Bobby Elliott was chiefly behind the track listing...
Clarke once again departed to the USA (hardly helping the album's chances)...tho' as Terry Sylvester put it;
'he returned with his tail between his legs...'
so what did they do....? - they repeated the idea on the next album...with identical failure as the result !!
'Burn Out' might at least have made a better choice of UK single
yet each song does have it's merits...notably strong vocals !
Coming at a point just after when Polydor's 'Hollies Live Hits' reached no.4 in the UK album chart in 1977 (thanks to a TV commercial plug no doubt)....and then EMI's 'Twenty Golden Greats' made no.2 in the UK in 1978 (again with a TV commercial promotion) the group were back in the wider public eye at home, so another chance for a comeback beckoned with an all important new studio album ...
so what do they serve up ?
- a very 'put together' sounding collection of mostly slow, melodramatic serious indeed 'ponderous' ballads even reaching back inexplicably over two years to the February 1976 single 'Boulder To Birmingham' which despite charting overseas had been a complete flop at home and was more of the 'Write On' era - what was that older RELEASED song doing on this March 1978 studio album...??
I can't imagine say 'Yes I Will' or 'I'm Alive' (both 1965) going on either of the 1967 studio albums 'Evolution' or 'Butterfly'....can you ?
only two songs; 'Burn Out' and 'Caracas' are more uptempo and each stand out amid a heap of slow songs with maybe the Steely Dan sophistication inspired 'Let it Pour' and bluesy 'Clown Service' being the only other non ballad tracks included on what Bobby Elliott later significantly referred to as;
'A collection of 'TIRED' songs...'
the album cover had to be one of their worst too - a weird shot of the group (not looking their best it has to be said) walking wearily towards...a soft drinks machine !
with a title that might have sounded quite apt considering the fact that THREE of the tracks had already appeared on 'flop' Polydor singles beforehand - so many devoted Hollies fans found themselves paying out full price for just seven new tracks...
A Crazy Steal indeed !
The most annoying thing to me was that they did have at least TWO decent livelier songs plus another that could have gone on instead which whilst not making the album 100% would at least have lifted the melacholic indeed dreary mood, injected a bit of life and fire onto the album and given it better balance so that the slow ballads were more 'distanced' from each other overall and thus given more of a chance to shine
at the time Allan Clarke's 'Samuel' was still unfinished so presumably unavailable BUT Tony's song the powering 'Tip of The Iceberg' and the pulsating 'Mexico Gold' (both from 1974) were then unissued and indeed little if at all known (both later debuting on 'Rarities' ten years on in 1988)
while clearly the great 'Crossfire' with fine Hicks guitarwork surely ought to have also been used as an album track ? - maybe placed to open 'side two' of the vinyl album, instead of being totally wasted as a mere 'B' side on a single ?
By dropping the two years old already released track 'Boulder' and adding these three (then) unissued songs to the album it would have made a twelve track longer album thus giving better value for money plus more importantly a more varied 'livelier' set of songs style wise
I would have revised the tracks running order somewhat:
'side one':
1. Writing On The Wall
2. What Am I Gonna Do ?
3. Tip of The Iceberg
4. Let it Pour
5. Burn Out
6. Hello To Romance
'side two':
1. Crossfire
2. Mexico Gold
3. Caracas
4. Amnesty
5. Clown Service
6. Feet On The Ground
ALL of these songs would have been freshly released in 1978 for the first time so could have made a complete album, I would most CERTAINLY have had a better album cover - not a soft drinks machine in sight ! - and maybe re-titled the set perhaps 'Amnesty' ?
Not perfect maybe but I don't think this suggested revised version of the album is any worse than what we got, and at least has some 'life' in it re song style
as it was the rather doom laden set overblown with slow ballads proved a disaster failing to capitalise on the recent two chart albums they had just had at home and got zilch promotion from Polydor - tho' it did obtain a USA release but hardly did the group's standing any favors stateside !
the very 'put together' feel of the released album rather detracted from the fact that both 'Burn Out' - which featured Allan joining Tony on guitar - and 'Caracus' were excellent tracks with a snappy Hicks guitar solo on the first and a cool saxophone on the second
also 'Amnesty' has superb harmonies with an unaccompanied vocal intro that the members of Queen watched them recording at Basing Street Studios...the vocal intro is not unlike Queen's vocal style (tho' likely a case of the other way around re influences etc)
Including two older tracks from 1974 I think would have been o.k. as both were rather more "typical" Hollies style items and would crucially have lifted the rather gloomy mood - and allowed songs such as 'Hello To Romance', 'Amnesty', 'Writing On The Wall' to shine a bit more
'What Am I Gonna Do ?' is interesting in that both Clarke and Sylvester harmonise in their respective higher ranges on the chorus
the tracks each had their notable points but gathering together so many slow, mega serious songs just did not work as was pretty obvious and allowed a key chance to restore their wider public profile at home to slip away...
we know that Allan Clarke was mega unhappy about this album (tho' strangely his name appears as co-writer on all but two of the songs included !) - and his 1978 solo album 'I Wasn't Born Yesterday' full of more powering and commercial sounding rock flavoured songs could not have been further distant from 'A Crazy Steal' (with maybe the exception of 'Burn Out')
My guess was that Tony Hicks probably supported by Bobby Elliott was chiefly behind the track listing...
Clarke once again departed to the USA (hardly helping the album's chances)...tho' as Terry Sylvester put it;
'he returned with his tail between his legs...'
so what did they do....? - they repeated the idea on the next album...with identical failure as the result !!
'Burn Out' might at least have made a better choice of UK single
