Little Feat Down on The Farm

Perhaps realizing that Down on the Farm wasn't the proper swan song for Little Feat, the group persuaded Warner Brothers to release a compilation of rarities and overlooked tracks as a swan song and farewell to fans. Filled with live performances, obscurities, album tracks, and a new song apiece from Bill Payne and Paul Barrere, Hoy Hoy is a bit scattered, a bit incoherent, a little bewildering, and wholly delightful – a perfect summation of a group filled with quirks, character, and funk, traits which were as much a blessing as they were a curse. Hoy Hoy is one of those rare albums that may be designed for diehards – who else really needs radio performances, early recordings from before the band was signed, and outtakes, especially if they're surrounded by early album tracks? – but still is a great introduction for novices. That doesn't mean it's as good as such masterpieces as Sailin' Shoes, Dixie Chicken, or Waiting for Columbus, but it does capture the group's careening, freewheeling spirit, humor, and musical versatility, arguably better than any single album.

Little Feat were on Warner Bros Records from 1971's Little Feat through 1990's Representing the Mambo, but for a full decade of those 20 years, the band was inactive. …these albums have the songs and sensibility that built their legacy, which does include their remarkably successful return in 1988. All the albums are presented as mini-LPs and the set is affordable, making this a very appealing bargain for all kinds of Feat fanatics.