Hits+&+rarities

All Music Guide ReviewHits & Rarities/ Singles A's & B's is a nicely put together double-CD set from Repertoire Records – it's actually a more expansive version of Edsel Records' Omnibus: The 60s Singles A's & B's issued that same year, assembling the Move's 40 official U.K. single releases (or, more properly, non-LP releases, since there are some EP sides represented), all dating between 1966 and 1974 (that latter date is a result of the belated 45 rpm issue of "Do Ya"). It's safe to say that no band this side of the Beatles (and perhaps not even them) ever packed more creative and challenging elements into their 45's, on the A-sides as well as the B-sides, than the Move did. Though they released four albums during this same period, the latter were so infrequent that they couldn't be the group's main vehicle for expression or experimentation – it was the 7" platters that served this purpose, and it's even more to the credit of Roy Wood and company that they were able to pull that off successfully for five years.

A top-notch overview of this feisty New York indie’s 70s soul catalogue.

I feel this album to be one of Numan's best; sure, it's not Replicas or Pleasure Principle, but fans of an ever-evolving artist have to keep up with him in taste and style, which this album clearly has great value in. 1983's Warriors was a mislead and equally misleading album that paired Numan's signature style with dancier beats and instrumentation; for me, it misses the mark. Berserker was a great album, though found Numan in the same strange place that Warriors was trying to get out of.