The Hollies - The Clarke, Hicks & Nash Years (1963-1968 uk uk rock'n'roll, rhythm and blues, psychedelic, pop psych - 6 CD boxset - MP3 320K and FLAC)

At first sight, the title of this box set may confuse. Lead singer Allan Clarke retired from the enduring harmony hitmakers in 1999, while guitarist Tony Hicks is still at the helm today… But Graham Nash jumped ship more than 40 years ago, so the 158 tracks here come from the period between 1963 and ’68, when all three were in the line-up.

While calling the release The Graham Nash Years might have been more pedantically accurate, it would serve only to undermine the contributions of his bandmates. Hicks, in particular, deserves credit for the third dimension he brings to the vocal sound, pitched between the two more traditional parts like a kind of mad scientist extra Everly Brother.

It was an inspired triumvirate, fashioning material to be sung in a folk idiom three-part harmony, something rarely attempted in the pop world outside of The Beatles.

The approach added a thrilling texture to covers such as Just One Look and Stay, and made even more sense on their self-penned hits – most powerfully King Midas In Reverse and On A Carousel.

Every single the band released between late ’66 and Nash’s departure two years later was written by the trio.

Beyond the hits, however, The Hollies haven’t always been given enough credit for the boldness of their albums, so this set is welcome for giving us every track of pop-psych collections such as Butterfly (Dear Eloise, Elevated Observations) and the slightly more trippy Evolution (Heading For A Fall, Signs That Will Never Change).

If Nash is to be acknowledged as the architect of some of the most elaborate harmony arrangements the band ever attempted, Hicks should be equally lauded for the instrumental daring – it was very rare indeed to hear a banjo on a pop record in the mid-60s, as we do on Stop Stop Stop.

History suggests Nash’s departure was prompted by what he saw as a retrograde move by the group.

After the envelope-pushing albums mentioned above, he was unhappy that the next long-player was to be comprised entirely of Bob Dylan covers.

He was also tiring of the band’s relentless touring schedule. In terms of vocal innovation, Nash clearly took the template he helped forge in the UK over to the US when he became a cornerstone of another harmony-based trio with David Crosby and Stephen Stills. Clearly, this is a release geared towards the completist, and if some of the more tentative and by-the-numbers beat group offerings on the first two discs don’t quite gel, it’s nonetheless intriguing to listen to three intuitive musicians learning their craft step by step, misfires and all.

As any serious Hollies fan may already know, Nash returned to the fold for one album in 1983.

What Goes Around was a curious affair that quickly sank without a trace, awash with the synth-heavy production style of the era, all but burying the voices. Its absence here is just as well, frankly, as it would only taint the beauty of what went before (by Records Collector).

Disc 1:
01.The Hollies - Whole World Over (1997 Digital Remaster)
02.(Ain't That) Just Like Me (1997 Digital Remaster)
03.Hey What's Wrong With Me (1997 Digital Remaster)
04.Now's the Time (1997 Digital Remaster)
05.Little Lover
06.Zip A Dee Doo Dah (Song of the South) (2011 - Rema
07.I Understand (2011 - Remaster)
08.Searchin' (2003 Digital Remaster)
09.Stay (1997 Digital Remaster)
10.Poison Ivy (Takes 10-12) (1997 Digital Remaster)
11.Memphis
12.Talkin' 'bout You
13.It's Only Make Believe
14.Lucille
15.Baby Don't Cry
16.Do You Love Me
17.Mr Moonlight
18.You Better Move On
19.Whatcha Gonna Do 'bout It
20.What Kind of Girl are You
21.Rockin' Robin
22.Keep Off That Friend of Mine (1997 Digital Remaste
23.Just One Look (2003 Digital Remaster)
24.Candy Man
25.When I'M Not There (2011 - Remaster)
26.What Kind of Love (2011 - Remaster)
27.Here I Go Again (2003 Remaster)
28.Baby That's All (1997 Digital Remaster)

Disk 2:
01.Time for Love (1997 Digital Remaster)
02.Don't You Know (1997 Digital Remaster)
03.You'll Be Mine (1997 Digital Remaster)
04.It's In Her Kiss (Mono) (1997 Digital Remaster)
05.Come On Home (1997 Digital Remaster)
06.Too Much Monkey Business (1997 Digital Remaster)
07.I Thought of You Last Night (1997 Digital Remaster
08.Come On Back (1997 Digital Remaster)
09.Set Me Free (1997 Digital Remaster)
10.Please Don't Feel Too Bad (1997 Digital Remaster)
11.What Kind of Boy (1997 Digital Remaster)
12.We're Through (Alternative Arrangement) (1997 Digi
13.We're Through (1997 Digital Remaster)
14.To You My Love (1997 Digital Remaster)
15.Nitty Gritty/Something's Got A Hold On Me (1997 Di
16.Put Yourself In My Place (1997 Digital Remaster)
17.She Said Yeah
18.Yes I Will (Alternate Version) (2011 - Remaster)
19.When I Come Home To You (1997 Digital Remaster)
20.Nobody (1997 Digital Remaster)
21.You Know He Did (1997 Digital Remaster)
22.Yes I Will
23.Mickey's Monkey (1997 Digital Remaster)
24.That's My Desire (1997 Digital Remaster)
25.The Very Last Day (1997 Digital Remaster)
26.Honey and Wine (2003 Digital Remaster)

Disc 3:
01.Listen Here To Me (Bell Studios Demo)
02.So Lonely (Bell Studios Demo)
03.Bring Back Your Love To Me (Bell Studios Demo)
04.I'M Alive (2003 Digital Remaster)
05.Look Through Any Window
06.Lawdy Miss Clawdy (1997 Digital Remaster)
07.You Must Believe Me (1997 Digital Remaster)
08.Little Bitty Pretty One (2011 - Remaster)
09.Down the Line (1997 Digital Remaster)
10.Fortune Teller (1997 Digital Remaster)
11.Too Many People (1997 Digital Remaster)
12.So Lonely (1997 Digital Remaster)
13.I'Ve Been Wrong (1997 Digital Remaster)
14.Stewball (1998 Digital Remaster)
15.She Gives Me Everything I Want (2011 - Remaster)
16.I Can't Get Nowhere With You (2011 - Remaster)
17.I'Ve Got A Way of My Own (2003 Digital Remaster)
18.You In My Arms (2011 - Remaster)
19.Don't Ever Think About Changing (1999 Digital Rema
20.If I Needed Someone
21.Running Through the Night (2011 - Remaster)
22.Don't You Even Care (What's Gonna Happen To Me?) (
23.I Can't Let Go (1997 Digital Remaster)
24.Oriental Sadness (1998 Digital Remaster)
25.Stewball (French Lyric Version)
26.Look Through Any Window (French Lyric Version) (20
27.You Know He Did (French Lyric Version)
28.We're Through (French Lyric Version)

Disc 4:
01.I Take What I Want (1998 Digital Remaster)
02.Hard Hard Year (Mono) (1998 Digital Remaster)
03.A Taste of Honey (2011 - Remaster)
04.That's How Strong My Love is (1998 Digital Remaste
05.Take Your Time (1998 Digital Remaster)
06.Fifi the Flea (1998 Digital Remaster)
07.Sweet Little Sixteen (1998 Digital Remaster)
08.I Am A Rock (Mono) (1998 Digital Remaster)
09.After the Fox (2011 - Remaster)
10.Don't Run and Hide (2011 - Remaster)
11.Bus Stop (2003 Digital Remaster)
12.Peculiar Situation (1999 Digital Remaster)
13.Suspicious Look In Your Eyes (1999 Digital Remaste
14.Stop Stop Stop
15.Tell Me To My Face (Stereo) (1999 Digital Remaster
16.Pay You Back With Interest (1999 Digital Remaster)
17.Clown (Stereo) (1999 Digital Remaster)
18.It's You (1999 Digital Remaster)

Disc 5:
01.Lullaby To Tim (1999 Digital Remaster)
02.On A Carousel
03.We're Alive (2003 Digital Remaster)
04.Kill Me Quick (2003 Digital Remaster)
05.Leave Me (1999 Digital Remaster)
06.The Games We Play (1999 Digital Remaster)
07.Schoolgirl
08.Rain On The Window (1999 Digital Remaster)
09.Then The Heartaches Begin (1999 Digital Remaster)
10.Ye Olde Toffee Shoppe (1999 Digital Remaster)
11.You Need Love (1999 Digital Remaster)
12.Stop Right There (1999 Digital Remaster)
13.Water On The Brain (1999 Digital Remaster)
14.Heading For A Fall (1999 Digital Remaster)
15.Carrie Anne (2003 Digital Remaster)
16.Signs That Will Never Change (2003 Digital Remaster)
17.King Midas In Reverse (2003 Digital Remaster)
18.Try It (1999 Digital Remaster)
19.Everything Is Sunshine (2003 Digital Remaster)
20.Wishyouawish (1999 Digital Remaster)
21.Postcard (Stereo) (1999 Digital Remaster)
22.Step Inside (Stereo) (1999 Digital Remaster)
23.Pegasus (1999 Digital Remaster)
24.Dear Eloise (1999 Digital Remaster)

Disc 6:
01.Elevated Observations (1999 Digital Remaster)
02.Would You Believe (1999 Digital Remaster)
03.Away Away Away (Stereo) (1999 Digital Remaster)
04.Charlie And Fred (1999 Digital Remaster)
05.Butterfly (1999 Digital Remaster)
06.Maker (1999 Digital Remaster)
07.Open Up Your Eyes (2011 - Remaster)
08.Wings (2003 Digital Remaster)
09.Jennifer Eccles
10.Tomorrow When It Comes (2011 - Remaster)
11.Relax (2003 Digital Remaster)
12.Do The Best You Can (2011 - Remaster)
13.Like Every Time Before (2003 Digital Remaster)
14.Man With No Expression (Horses Through A Rainstorm) (1998 Digital Remaster)
15.Blowin' In The Wind (Nash Version) (2003 Digital Remaster)
16.A Taste Of Honey
17.Listen To Me
18.Stop Stop Stop (Live at Lewisham Odeon)
19.Look Through Any Window (Live at Lewisham Odeon)
20.The Times They Are A Changin' (Live At Lewisham Odeon)
21.On A Carousel (Live At Lewisham Odeon)
22.King Midas In Reverse (Live At Lewisham Odeon)
23.Butterfly (Live At Lewisham Odeon)
24.Jennifer Eccles (Live At Lewisham Odeon)
25.Carrie Anne (Live At Lewisham Odeon)


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