The Hollies Not the Hits Again

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I know absolutely nothing about the Hollies' recording career, and I figure they'd be worth getting into. The thing is, there're about 5409830543 issues of their material on CD: Sundazed, EMI, and BGO all dip their grimy fingers into the pot.
So can someone here help me sort out their catalogue, including what's worth getting?

-D
The old EMI 20 Golden Greats on CD. Start there. If you like, then there is always more....
The Hollies - 20 Golden Greats. 20 great sounds that grew out of the north. EMI 46238. (Capitol/Emi CDP 7 46238-2)
Found here.
Here's Steve's post from awhile ago.
This is THE one to find:

THE HOLLIES/20 GOLDEN GREATS EMI CDP 7 46238 2 This came out in 1986 on CD, from England using the 1978 LP for the song selection. However, the tapes used were first generation stereo mixes, mastered flat! The ONLY way to hear the original stereo mixes in their good/bad glory.

THE HOLLIES ALL THE HITS AND MORE - THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION EMI CDS 7 90850 2 This came out in 1988, as a two CD set from England. More songs than on the CD I mentioned above, but not as "warm" sounding. Still, this is the last Hollies British import to use original tapes without SIGNAL PROCESSING!!!

THE HOLLIES NOT THE HITS AGAIN! French See For Miles CD 63. A great compilation using many stereo masters of songs you might have never heard, but need to. No signal processing, thank God!

THE HOLLIES THE EP COLLECTION French See For Miles CD 94 Mono. The only way to get a non-signal processed version of the great mono mix of "I Can't Let Go", and other great Hollies songs, some unknown in this country. Sound quality? About as good as the original mono EP copy tapes are...But still way better than the 90's...

Last, but not least: For the later stuff.

THE HOLLIES/ANTHOLOGY From The Original Master Tapes (hey, I should have copyrighted that slogan when I had the chance!) US EPIC EGK 46161

As mentioned earlier, the above disc created by Bob Irwin sounds pretty good, but nothing from the Columbia vault on the Hollies was first generation, so I would stick with (if you can find it) the "20 Golden Greats" disc.

Hope this helps. All of the later Hollies stuff has been computerized, and made to sound even tinnier. The remixes that were done a while back should be avoided as well, IMO.

Good luck!
Glad you found that Mike!
Had no idea where it was.

Thanks!!!!!
What about original albums, though? Sundazed has a version, and BGO has a version (and when I'm getting into bands, I prefer avoiding Greatest Hits packages).
-D
Gary Nauga Gort! Staff

I agree with you, David. I'd prefer *all* their albums, not just the greatest hits.
Can anyone comment on Sundazed or BGO?
The BGO versions were released on both CD and vinyl in the 80's and are straight reissues of the original British LP's up until Distant Light, yet not *every* album was done in the CD format. Also, some of the tape sources were a tad dodgy and the mono/stereo decision was a bit strange. "For Certain Because" and "Evolution" used the mono mix on CD (Evolution using a particularly bad tape), while For Certain Because on the BGO vinyl release was the stereo version, as well as some of the earlier albums. Thus, some of the mono and stereo designations were mismarked on the packages!
A couple years back, EMI did their own *deluxe* reissue campaign of these albums - issuing everyting up to "Butterfly" as a mono/stereo twofer. After that.....everything up to "Distant Light" in stereo only. Problem is..they were "Mewtilated" by you know who. Heavy, heavy noise reduction. Very unnatural sounding, IMO.

The Sundazed series used the respective US albums as its starting point, padding the CD's out with bonus cuts to line them up with their British counterparts, as well as some singles and B sides. Strangely, on a couple of the single bonus cuts...Irwin chose to use Ron Furmaneks stereo remixes (e.g. "Do the Best You Can), while using the original mono ("Open Up Your Eyes") in other cases.

What makes the original UK "20 Golden Greats" CD nice is that despite what the packaging says, they use the original stereo mixes in all cases. Many were done in 1968 (for the for the UK "Hollies Greatest" LP). The rest were original stereo mixes from before and after (some crude hard left/right type) Someone recently posted on the ICE Board that this CD was remixed.....simply not true. The Furmanek "30th Anniversary Collection" 3 CD set is the one with the new stereo remixes.

So..the bottom line is you pick your poisons. Sonically, "20 Golden Greats" is the best. The "All the Hits and More" set that CD described is kind of "early digital" harsh IMO and it uses the mono single mixes of the early hits...yet this might be of interest to some.

Also, on a side note, the Epic "From the Original Master Tapes" CD actually used copies of the masters in some cases. It's a great collection, but not the last word in sonics for all of the cuts.

Again, pick your poison! : )
Although I'm by no means a Hollies expert, my personal picks as their two best LP's are Evolution(the UK version) and Butterfly. Although the sonics on the EMI reissues are not great they do retain the original UK running order. The Parlophone vinyl is actually the way to go but they are real tough to find (it took me about 6 months to find mint copies). The Sundaze versions of Evolution and King Midas in Reverse (US version of Butterfly) offer better sonics but mess with the track order. Just stay away from the original US Epic Lp versions.
I wanted to add another interesting release to my list...if you're in a collecting mood. Though definitely not the last word in sonics, the 80's Euro Polydor version of "Butterfly" features the unique German album stereo mix. A couple of the songs are edited differently ("Elevated Observations was edited to repeat twice...very cool!) or have different sound effects in places (i.e. "Pegasus").
Lastly, if you wanna hear a great tribute album (and I usually hate these things!), seek out the Eggbert "Sing Hollies in Reverse" CD. Some very cool and interesting interpretations on there (e.g. the Posies doing "King Midas In Reverse" and our newly posting board member Andrew Sandoval doing "Heading For A Fall"). Also, former "Hollie for a day" Mike Rickfors doing a remake duet of "Touch" with Carla Olsen. Continental Drifters doing "I Can't Let Go"...etc.
RetroSmith Forum Hall Of Fame<br>(Formerly Mikey5967)

Disagree
Guys, I have to disagree here.

I happen to really like the Ron Furmanek 3 Cd set.

The sonics on THAT set are the best out there on The Hollies, period. It is like The Hollies are in the room with you!!

ok, you may not feel that Rons mixes are not *exactly* like the 45s but to me, the clarity and the stunning sound make up for it.

I would take this set over the crappy two track stereo mixes ANY day of the week, flat or not.

just my opinion.

Mikey
mikey5967 wrote:
I happen to really like the Ron Furmanek 3 Cd set

I add:

I have to agree with mikey5967. I have several different collections, including the first one "20 Golden Greats" that was mentioned, but the Furmanek set really has the best sound. There's a real "presence" to the early tracks that you don't find on the more "authentic" mixes. I guess that if you want the authentic mixes you shouldn't choose the Furmanek set, but if you want something which is eminently listenable, then try out the Furmanek set.
It was on my hard drive in a file called "Hoffman's Choice".
Thanks for taking the time to compile the list - much appreciated. I am just the messenger.
Anyone here ever seen a Hollies album from the late 70s that had the numbers "5317704" for the title? On a calculator it would spell "hOLLIES" upside down. I've never seen one and was curious if it indeed existed.
I found the following catalog number for The Hollies "20 Golden Hits" on HMV.com:
Release Date: 1991-01-01
Catalogue Number: S21Y46238

Any idea if this titile is the same as the "20 Golden Greats"? The last five digits are identical, but the title is slightly different.
5317704 does exist, but, IMHO, it's barrel scraping time.
This CD has been released in different countries over the years, probably with different catalog numbers - but always on the EMI label. Mine is an 80's West German issue - CDP 7 46238 2.
Sounds like your is the same one too...going by the last 5 digits. It should be on EMI -is it? : )
I actually think it's one of their better later period albums - a little darker and not quite as 70's trendy as the three before it. It can actually be had on CD too - but for a price. It's on the 4 CD EMI UK box set - "Four Hollies Originals".