Simply Halston

This two-disc, European import serves up a nice career overview of U.K.-based, blue-eyed soul/Sophisti-Pop outfit Simply Red. Split into two parts, disc one ("Hold Me") focuses on the ballads ("Holding Back the Years," "If You Don't Know Me by Now," "Stars," and "We're in This Together"), while the second disc ("Thrill Me") narrows its sights on the group's penchant for radio-friendly dance-pop ("The Right Thing," "Moneys Too Tight (To Mention)," "Something Got Me Started," and "Fairground"). At 38 tracks, Very Best of Simply Red may be a bit much for the casual fan (2008's definitive 25: The Greatest Hits remains the group's most cohesive and streamlined collection), but it's a goldmine for listeners who have followed Mick "Red" Hucknall and his rotating cast of players since 1985.

Simply Red's second major hits collection not only celebrates their illustrious 25-year career but also marks the end of it, thanks to Mick Hucknall's announcement that he will henceforth only be working under his own name. The much more comprehensive 25 features all but two of the tracks included on 1996's Greatest Hits, plus several tracks from the commercially inconsistent last decade. Of course, it's the late-'80s and early-'90s material that made Simply Red, essentially a solo vehicle for Hucknall, a household name. The likes of "A New Flame," "Holding Back the Years," and debut hit "Money's Too Tight (To Mention)" all showcase their signature blue-eyed soul sound, which has helped to sell over 50 million records worldwide.

This October, Simply Red will release Remixed Vol. 1 (1985-2000) a two-CD collection of their hit singles in remixed form from the band’s first 15 years.

Simply Red entered a holding pattern after 1991's Stars, turning out two records in a row that essentially replicated its charms, only with diminishing returns. Mick Hucknall must have realized he was stagnating, since 1999's Love and the Russian Winter is the first time since Stars that he's shaken up his sound. It's still recognizably Simply Red, as it trades in '70s soul and jazz-pop influences, but there are a number of reasonably contemporary influences added into the mix. As it turns out, these influences are largely based in house music, which means that Simply Red took some weird middle ground between Everything But the Girl and Soul II Soul.

As the second release on Simply Red's own label, Simplified finds the smooth soulsters reworking classics of their back catalog as well as introducing some new songs all in a stripped-down and stylish manner. Featuring such Simply Red classics as "Holding Back the Years" and "More," Simplified works well as a reintroduction to the band. And that's probably the main intention here. Although lead vocalist Mick Hucknall – whose burnished vocals sound superb here – and the band have largely kept a low profile since the early '90s, they haven't stopped touring and recording and as such have cultivated a devoted fanbase.