Radio Fun

This is an essential purchase for any devoted Hollies fan, especially those who prefer the classic 1963-68 era wth Graham Nash. They had been one of the few British Invasion bands to not have their BBC sessions officially released, until this package came out. Of the 32 songs collected here, only two are from the post-Nash era (Too Young To Be Married and He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother, both taken from TOTP appearances). The rest show the Hollies working in the same fashion as the Beatles and others in the BBC studios: three hours, live with maybe vocal overdubs, but everything cut as fast as possible for replay on the Beeb. You get rough-and-ready versions of songs from their singles and albums, plus a few covers they otherwise never did in the studio; the band's take on Lee Dorsey's "Ride Your Pony" being one example. One big advantage this set has over other mid-60s BBC collections is that they cut off the spoken intros and outros by the DJs; if that bothered you on the Beatles/Bowie/etc releases it's pretty much absent here. It also shows beyond doubt their ability to pull off their recorded harmonies live; Allan Clarke, Tony Hicks, and Nash were excellent harmony singers, and that is shown to good effect here. In fact, I think Nash brought more of their blend to his subsequent work in CSNY than is often acknowledged. So this is a good release. However, if you don't have any of their studio recordings, I suggest getting those first. They are great examples of mid '60s pop in and of themselves, and how they and producer Ron Richards wanted these songs to sound. Once you have some of those, then grab this. Sound quality is OK given that many of these were taken off private home recordings of radio broadcasts or transcription discs, but are certainly listenable. Nice liner notes by the band's drummer Bobby Elliott, giving some background on these sessions and what it was like for the Hollies to make them. A final note is that the recordings are not presented in chronological order, but have been arranged to flow more like a studio album would be.

I have been a lifelong fan of the Hollies, however i messed up on my history of the groups beginnings when I e-mailed drummer Bobby Elliot on how their name originated. Sorry for my error Bobby. I did learn later that the band was named after Buddy Holly. A very spectacular collection of clean BBC broadcasts.

This collection of THE HOLLIES on the BBC will excite fans of the band. This disc is crammed with performances from 1964 to 1971, with the majority from the mid/late 60's. The mono sound is very good-one of the BBC's better releases of vintage music from the period. The tracks were edited and mastered by the well respected Peter Mews of Abbey Road Studios. The booklet has a short interesting essay on the BBC era and the band by drummer Bobby Elliott, along with several great period photos of the band in both color and b&w. But I do have to say that I miss a bit of the DJ "patter" between songs. It seemed to give everything a period feel, which I like. Some fans don't care for the intrusion-to each his own. Also included is a list of all the tracks with dates and which radio show the music was first heard-important for those of us who want to know such things. Another nice touch is a list (under the disc tray) of band members during these years-another nice touch. All the tracks (except one from 1969 and one from 1971) feature Graham Nash, Tony Hicks, and Allan Clarke on vocals. Except for a couple of exceptions all the tracks feature just the band (guitar, bass, and drums) without strings and/or horns backing the vocals. These recordings are a great look at what the band was performing on the radio during their (arguably) best period. A few of the great tracks include "Here I Go Again", "Bus Stop", "Wings", "I Can't Let Go", "Hard Hard Year", "Look Through Any Window", "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother", "So Lonely", "To Many People", "Too Young To Be Married" (with some good acoustic guitar playing), and a number of others. There's also some great covers of "Shake", "Little Bitty Pretty One", "If I Needed Someone", "That's How Strong My Love Is", "You Must Believe Me", and others the band was performing during this prime era. But picking the better tunes is pretty much impossible. If you're a HOLLIES fan you'll like pretty much everything here. This collection of live tracks can easily sit next to any other previously released live tracks from the band. This set is a perfect snapshot of the band from their early stages up to just after Graham Nash left the band. Hearing these tunes is to go back to a time when radio was so important to a band and their fans. This is a good example of just how good THE HOLLIES were live. The vocals are alive and (at their best) thrilling to hear. And once again you can hear just how good the band was instrumentally-nothing fancy-just good, solid playing. If you're a HOLLIES fan/collector you need to check this out.

This is what we Hollies fans have waited a long time for! Each song is amazing and there is never one miss out of the whole lot of them! I highly recommend for any Hollies fan!

If you're a Hollies fan, this is a must. Brings you right back to the good ol' music day of the 60s and 70s.

Muy bueno

まさかＵＫと日本で同じ時期に買えるとは思いませんでした。 感謝です。 ホリーズのサイトから予告メール来てたんです。楽しみにしてました。 なんかういういしいです。かわいいなぁ。（こんなこと言ったら失礼かな？）かっこいいなあ。 あっこんな曲もやってるんだ！なんて熱狂しながらいま聴いています。 私はベスト盤中心で聴いているので、知らない曲が多いのも新鮮です。 聴き終わってませんが、星５つです。 音質も思っていた以上にいいし、最高です。 ご一聴ではなく永久保存版ですよ！

Much better than the later version as this has more tracks. Great radio broadcasts of the Hollies proving they were good live too. Nice to hear slightly different arrangements of some tracks and a raw more immediate sound to the band. No irritating announcements between tracks either. I really dislike those Matthews intros and chats on the Beatles at the BBC discs, so trendy old man cringe worthy, thank goodness they do not appear here. Worth Getting? Yes. yes, if you are a Hollies fan you will enjoy this collection, excellent pop pickers. Oh and the sound is good too

For years, both Hollies fans and fans of general 1960's music have often wondered why the Hollies have never had their own 'Live at the BBC' type compilation. Just about every other major 1960's artist has had one, and the Hollies are rumoured to have recorded over 60 tracks for the BBC over the years. Whatever the reason it took them so long to get around to it, you can imagine the excitement that this compilation generated when it was announced back in March. What we have here is an excellent collection of rare live recordings. Not much survives or was ever recorded of the Hollies performing live on tour with Graham Nash in their 1960's heyday. Bizarre when you think about it, especially as the Hollies frequently topped the polls in various music magazines of the day for being the best live act. There's no less than 32 tracks here - and all of the performances are excellent. There's virtually no 'fillers' to be found here. Some real highlights include "Wings" (with alternative lyrics), "Shake", "Ride Your Pony", "I Take What I Want", "Hard Hard Year", "To You My Love", "Too Young To Be Married" and "The Games We Play". The packaging is tasteful and features a few rare and unseen images of the band from the early 1960's. There's also an excellent commentary from Bobby Elliott himself. However, there are some things to bear in mind with this compilation; Firstly, the BBC erased most of the original master tapes for the Hollies' sessions over the years. So most clips here are either from transcription discs or from amateur recordings made at the time. This is acceptable, but the remastering isn't particularly anything to write home about. There is certainly room for improvement. Secondly, the tracks are in no particular order - much like most Hollies' greatest hits collections. This makes the listening experience a little difficult. For example - to hear them sing "Look Through Any Window" and launch into "Too Young To Be Married" really disrupts the flow of the album. Thirdly, and most importantly, there's no ambience on the album at all. All other BBC compilations from other artists feature introductions from radio presenters and dialogue with the band. All of this has been cut from 'Radio Fun' at the expense of the first and final few seconds of each track, making the already complicated running order much more jagged. As a huge Hollies fan myself, I have many bootlegs of the Hollies performing at the BBC (some even better quality than those presented here, which shows up the remastering on this set), and they sound so much better with the introductions in place. Not only that, but the interviews with the band themselves were always interesting and humorous. It's a shame that this set has these issues because most of them could have been rectified. It has to be said though, the music is what really matters - and it is truly excellent. These few issues don't detract from the sheer talent that those five lads from Manchester had. Whether you are a big Hollies fan or just enjoy general 1960's music, this compilation is a worthwhile addition to your collection.

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