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A real standout from Ray Davies and crew – heavy-hitting here with guitars that seem a bit more amped up than usual, and a slight post-punkish groove that's almost a reinvention of the group's sound for an 80s new wave market! The album's a surprisingly hard rocker in parts, and has a darkness that's a nice change from some of the late 70s Kinks material – but also shows Ray still able to come up with some more tender numbers in just the right spots. Tracks include "Add It Up", "Destroyer", "Yo Yo", "Art Lover", "Better Things", "Killer's Eyes", "Around The Dial", and "Give The People What They Want".

A great follow-up EP to Anika's addictive Stones Throw debut – a darkness-tinged batch of covers – bringing some great songs by The Kinks, The Crystals, Chromatics and Shocking Blue along with a pair of dubbed up versions of earlier Anika singles. There's a bit of no wave vibe of stark electronics and moody vocals, but Anika's got an overall presense unlike anyone else. Once again she gets some excellent production by Geoff Barrow of Beak> and Portishead. Titles include "I Go To Sleep", "He Hit Me", "Love Buzz", "In The City", "No One's There (Dub)" and "Yang Yang (Dub)".

A dream of a record from Chad & Jeremy – a fantastic bit of psychedelic pop produced by Gary Usher! The album's got quite a different feel than the rest of the duo's work – as their standard Brit pop style is augmented by lots of extra strings and woodwinds, super-baroque in a beautiful post-Pet Sounds sort of way. The songs are wonderful, too – with themes on the rise and fall of modern life, very much in a Kinks sort of style – with titles like "Busman's Holiday", "Rest In Peace", "Family Way", "Can I See You", and the extended "Progress Suite". Plus, the CD features 6 bonus tracks, a few previously unissued – including "Manners Maketh Man", "Cautionary Tale", "Sister Marie", and "Painted Dayglow Smile".

The complete early 70s sessions of Hotlegs – the group that hit the charts for brief moment thanks to the unforgettable, sparely drum-heavy, kinda Kinks-ian "Neanderthal Man" single – and later went on to shuffle the line-up a bit and reintroduce themselves as 10CC! We've heard and loved "Neanderthal Man", but it's with thanks to this stellar compilation that we're being hipped to the hook-laden, pop rock excellence their other '70-'71 recordings! Hotlegs is at its core the trio of Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley and Lol Creme – all soon-to-be 10CC (Graham Gouldman actually plays bass on one song, too) – and the eclectic soft rock genius of that group is indeed on display here, albeit at a formative level! Witty and catchy, yet restlessly creative songs from players who were really just getting started! Titles include "Neanderthal Man", "How Many Times", "Desperate Dan", "Um Wah, Um Woh", "Fly Way", "Run Baby Run", "The Loser", "Today", "Lady Sadie", "YOu Didn't Like It Because You Didn't Think Of It", "Neanderthal Man (Alternative US Mix)" and more.

A goofy title track, and a groovy little album from Jan & Dean – a set that has them settling nicely into their role as one of the most playful pairs in west coast pop – with a heck of a lot more staying power than some of their more surf-washed contemporaries! The album's got a number of tracks that follow in the similar LA-environs mode as the title track – but instead of being gimmicky, they almost come across with this whimsical sort of charm – like they're Jan & Dean's version of British tunes from The Kinks – a wonderfully playful picture postcard version of California, with more wit than you might expect! Titles include "The Little Old Lady From Pasadena", "The Anaheim Azusa & Cuckamonga Sewing Circle", "Summer Means Fun", "Old Ladies Seldom Power Shift", "Sidewalk Surfin", "One Piece Topless Bathing Suit", and "Horace The Swinging School Bus Driver".

A goofy title track, and a groovy little album from Jan & Dean – a set that has them settling nicely into their role as one of the most playful pairs in west coast pop – with a heck of a lot more staying power than some of their more surf-washed contemporaries! The album's got a number of tracks that follow in the similar LA-environs mode as the title track – but instead of being gimmicky, they almost come across with this whimsical sort of charm – like they're Jan & Dean's version of British tunes from The Kinks – a wonderfully playful picture postcard version of California, with more wit than you might expect! Titles include "The Little Old Lady From Pasadena", "The Anaheim Azusa & Cuckamonga Sewing Circle", "Summer Means Fun", "Old Ladies Seldom Power Shift", "Sidewalk Surfin", "One Piece Topless Bathing Suit", and "Horace The Swinging School Bus Driver".

A really cool record from the late 60s Spanish rock scene – done with a pop-ready simplicity, but accented with some gritty, garage psych touches too! Contrabando features a newer line-up of the group, after Juan Pardo and Antonio "Junior" Morales left the group to for Juan Y Junior (who were replaced by a couple members of The Shakers) – and the group succeeds with a mix of UK and US rock influences (the album was recorded in London) – a little bit of Byrds in the vocals, some Kinks-y angst and some Beatles psychedelic pop – without compromising their Spanish style one bit, particularly with some brass in the arrangements and the mostly Spanish language vocals. A real gem! Includes "Lola", "Pequeno Pajaro", "El Pasaporte", "Rapidamente", "The Train", "Nadie Te Quiere Ya", "Contrabando", "Big Temptation", "Soy Como Quiero", "Nunca Cambiaras" and more. CD features loads of bonus tracks too – a whopping 26 titles in all!

A killer couple of Danish freakout records from Young Flowers – '68's Blomsterpistolen and No. 2 from '69 – a pair of outstanding albums for Sonet and a slew of bonus tracks in a 2CD set! Blomsterpistolen kicks off with a couple minutes-long "Overture" of guitar noise that mimics radio static as much as it does bugged-out rock & roll, but the punchier psych-styled grooves kick in soon after. From there it moves into to spookier, piano-led bits, to a psych funk version of Dylan's "Down Along The Cove" and beyond! Other titles include "The Moment Life Appeared", "To You", "April '68" and more. Bonus tracks on disc one include "Like Birds", "City of Friends", "Party Beat" and more. Disc two features the group's appropriate-titled No. 2, another tripped out experience with a loose, lumbering bluesy psych style with raw edge and some eerie acoustic numbers. Includes "You Upset Me Baby", "And Who I Should Be 4", the kinda Kinks-y "Calypso 4", "Slow Down Driver", "Kragerne Vender" and more, plus bonus tracks "Hey Princess", "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You" (another killer Dylan cover) and "Won't You Sit Down".

A great follow-up EP to Anika's addictive Stones Throw debut – a darkness-tinged batch of covers – bringing some great songs by The Kinks, The Crystals, Chromatics and Shocking Blue along with a pair of dubbed up versions of earlier Anika singles. There's a bit of no wave vibe of stark electronics and moody vocals, but Anika's got an overall presense unlike anyone else. Once again she gets some excellent production by Geoff Barrow of Beak> and Portishead. Titles include "I Go To Sleep", "He Hit Me", "Love Buzz", "In The City", "No One's There (Dub)" and "Yang Yang (Dub)".

Fab early work from unsung British studio genius John Carter – 2 albums from his Ministry Of Sound group in the 60s! Carter's best known for his later, more baroque productions – but here he's working in a great blend of jangle pop and trippier influences – almost the British equivalent of some of the hipper LA groups of the time, but with bits of Hollies and Kinks-era pop in the mix as well! Tracks are relatively short and straightforward – based around catchy choruses, but often hitting on deeper themes, especially on the later work represented on the set. The 2CD package features the full tracks from the albums Men From The Ministry (1966) and Midsummer Nights Dreaming (1968), plus 11 more bonus singles from the group's Sunny Records sessions of the time. Titles include "I'm Coming Home", "Something Very Good", "Goodbye To Rosalie", "White Collar Worker", "In The Sky", "Sequin Sally", "Rain Raiin Rain", "Roberto Billow", "Love Equals Love", "Memory", "Turn Around", "Time & Motion Man", "Sunday In The Park", and "Magic People".

A wild little concept album from the Four Seasons – one that's packaged in newspaper-style cover, and which presents tunes that almost have that late 60s British "snapshots of life" approach to pop – particularly that put forth by The Kinks on Village Green Preservation Society. The album's a true genius effort from Bob Gaudio – now risen to the ranks of producer for the group, and also the key songwriter for the album too – working here in tandem with the great Jake Holmes, a wonderful choice for a record like this! Arrangements are inventive, playful, and definitely at a level that shows some influence from Pet Sounds or Sgt Peppers – but there's also a focused, all-pop approach to the tunes too – one that's hook-heavy even when trippy, and which shows that the Four Seasons were as great at psychedelic and Sunshine Pop as any of the groups they'd inspired over the years. Titles include "Saturday's Father", "Wall Street Village Day", "Wonder What You'll Be", "Soul Of A Woman", "Something's On Her Mind", "American Crucifixion Resurrection", and "Mrs Stately's Garden".

The Raspberries fourth album has an ironic title – as it was the group's final pre-comback effort – and a pretty sharp one, with lots of biting, Kinks-esque discontent and crunching guitars! The group was clearly fed up with the industry at this point, but the songs are still quite tuneful, if a bit heavier. Certainly a step away from their more sunny pop of the first few records – but still a catchy, worthy effort from a largely unheralded group! Tracks include "Overnight Sensation (Hit Record)", "Play On", "Party's Over", "Rose Coloured Glasses", "Cruisin' Music", "I Can Hardly Believe You're Mine", "Hands On You", "Starting Over" and more.

Jacco Gardner covers Billy Nicholls' "Always On My Mind," The Resonars cover Fairport Convention's "It's Alright Ma, It's Only Witchcraft," MMOSS covers the Everly Brothers' "Cathy's Clow "and Maston takes on the Kinks classic "I Go To Sleep."