In a way, the Searchers are a footnote. Never entering the upper echelon of British Invasion beat groups, the band nevertheless had legs, outlasting all but the titans of the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, and the Who. The Searchers always flew just below the radar, even if they had something of a renaissance at the tail end of the '70s with a new lineup headed by lead singer – and only constant – John McNally, with his lead guitarist companion Mike Pender directing the band through two superb power pop LPs and their jangle echoing in the stable of Shelter Records, heard strongly in the early records of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers. They are best known for their earliest hits – 1963's "Sweets for My Sweet," 1964's "Needles and Pins" – which may be because they were their biggest hits but it's also because the Searchers never abandoned their pure pop template throughout their entire career, something that becomes blindingly evident over the course of the four-disc box set Hearts in Their Eyes.
There are some box sets that seem like overkill, beyond the pale for all but the very most hardcore fans, and others - a little more obvious in their justification - that never achieve much currency beyond the ranks of the serious fans and as easy Christmas ideas for their relatives. And then there are the ones that, based on the sheer credibility of the artists involved - Eric Clapton, Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra - become practically standard-issue for any serious music listener; you expect to find at least one, and more likely two of them on a lot of shelves. The Classic Years 1927-1940 ought to fit into the latter category, despite the fact that Blind Willie McTell never had a hit record in a recording career lasting nearly 30 years - he also didn't make Rolling Stone's list of the 100 greatest guitarists of the twentieth century, even though he could play circles about three-fourths of those who did…
B.B. King is one of America's few, long-standing musical treasures whose stature has grown to an unassailable, international level. Despite his 85 years, King continues to tour, perform and to grow in influence, casting a shadow that reaches far beyond the blues scene from whence he first came. His warm, down-home vocal style, his distinctive, talking blues guitar playing, and his songs that sing of love's joys and hardships Sweet Sixteen, How Blue Can You Get?, Help The Poor, The Thrill Is Gone and countless others are all indelibly imprinted elements in the modern musical heritage. Celebrating his 50th Anniversary signing to ABC-Paramount Records in 1962 we bring you this multi-format career retrospective. Leading the way with a slick 10 CD, 194 track collection chronicling his entire career from his first recordings in 1949 through to his most recent studio album.
Japanese original release. Special box set release from The Doors contains 28 tracks total, including 17 ones available as CD format for the first time. EP covers faithfully replicate the ones released from Victor from 1967 to 1972.
2009 ten CD collection from the '80s Rockabilly/Pop superstar containing digitally remastered and expanded editions of all nine of his original Epic Records albums plus a bonus disc containing twelve inch single remixes of eight tracks. Each individual album is packaged in a mini LP sleeve and all 10 titles come housed in an attractive flip-top box. The studio albums included on this set all contain bonus tracks including non album singles. Contains the albums Take One!, This Ole House, Shaky, Give Me Your Heart Tonight, The Bop Won't Stop, Lipstick Powder & Paint, Let's Boogie, A Whole Lotta Shaky and There Are Two Kinds of Music…Rock'n'Roll.