Manfred Chaily

The very idea that Manfred Mann, perhaps Great Britain's longest running rock band - other than the Rolling Stones - would have "hits" in the 21st century is rather odd and inaccurate (perhaps "hits according to who?" is the question). This set nonetheless features two CDs and 36 tracks. Virtually every single from the earliest Manfred Mann band is here, including "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," "Mighty Quinn," "5-4-3-2-1," "Sha La La," "Hubble Bubble (Toil And Trouble)," as well as wild covers of the hits of the day - because after all, Manfred Mann were, more than anything else, a cover band - "Fox on the Run," "Handbags and Glad Rags," "Just Like a Woman," "If You Gotta Go, Go Now," and of course, the tracks that put retirement money in Bruce Springsteen's bank account: "Blinded By The Light," "For You," and "Spirits In the Night"…

The very idea that Manfred Mann, perhaps Great Britain's longest running rock band - other than the Rolling Stones - would have "hits" in the 21st century is rather odd and inaccurate (perhaps "hits according to who?" is the question). This set nonetheless features two CDs and 36 tracks. Virtually every single from the earliest Manfred Mann band is here, including "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," "Mighty Quinn," "5-4-3-2-1," "Sha La La," "Hubble Bubble (Toil And Trouble)," as well as wild covers of the hits of the day - because after all, Manfred Mann were, more than anything else, a cover band - "Fox on the Run," "Handbags and Glad Rags," "Just Like a Woman," "If You Gotta Go, Go Now," and of course, the tracks that put retirement money in Bruce Springsteen's bank account: "Blinded By The Light," "For You," and "Spirits In the Night"…

A celebration to mark 50 years of Manfred Mann’s Earth Band! Mannthology brings together all of the band’s singles from 1971 to date, including some from solo projects, and contains previously unreleased tracks, hard-to-obtain B sides and rare mixes. The set showcases Manfred’s striking ability to identify, arrange and perform other people’s songs to make them his own, including songs by Dylan, Springsteen, Marley, Weller and Sting.

Manfred Mann released two albums while signed to EMI in the early 1960s but used the EP format to showcase new material, especially tracks which were not considered as singles. These Eps, featuring vocalist Paul Jones, proved so popular that three of them hit the No 1 spot of the EP charts, while 'The One In The Middle' also reached No 10 in the UK singles chart a remarkable achievement for an EP at that time…

An R&B band that only played pop to get on the charts, Manfred Mann and its various permutations ranked among the most adept British Invasion acts in both styles. South African-born keyboardist Manfred Mann was originally an aspiring jazz player, moving toward R&B when more blues-oriented sounds became in vogue in England in the early '60s. Original Manfred Mann singer Paul Jones was one of the best British Invasion singers, and his resonant vocals were the best feature of their early R&B sides, which had a slightly jazzier and smoother touch than the early work of the Rolling Stones and Animals…

The departure of frontman Paul Jones left Manfred Mann with a large void to fill in the summer of 1966. Not only was Jones a charismatic vocalist, he was also a writer and one of Manfred Mann's key selling points with the record buying public. The group's record company, HMV, realised this and hedged their bets by signing Jones for a new solo deal, but dropping the band from its roster. In late 1966 while Jones was enjoying success with his first solo single, "High Time," a new version of Manfred Mann emerged with a cover of Bob Dylan's "Just Like A Woman" on Fontana. The new line up featured Mike D'Abo as vocalist (previously with A Band Of Angels) and was augmented by Klaus Voorman on bass, with Tom McGuiness switching to lead guitar. Despite the magnitude of this personnel change, the single was a top 10 hit and paved the way for this album, As Is.

Manfred Mann always used the long-play format to showcase its virtuosity and range of influences away from the world of pop singles. This was evident early in the band's career with albums such as The Five Faces of Manfred Mann, which was a hardcore R&B album, far removed from the pop sensibilities of singles like "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" and "Sha La La." The contrast between this album and their singles output of 1968 is not quite as stark, as the LP contains pop material such as "It's So Easy Falling" and "The Vicar's Daughter." More unorthodox selections include "Cubist Town," "Harry the One-Man Band," and "Country Dancing," which showcase the eclectic side of the group.