Search - America :: Definitive Pop

Perfect summary of the original trio known as America

J. Wade | USA | 11/25/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From 1972 to 1977 Dan Peek, Dewey Bunnell, and Gerry Beckley made seven studio albums of original (only one cover, Willis Alan Ramsey's - "Muskrat Love")material that were organic, well-written, and above all a pleasure to listen to. They were young and inspired and it really shows when you consider that during this same time the pop music scene was exploding with singer-songwriter combinations. At the same time Neil Young's "Heart of Gold" was ascending the charts, America's first single, "A Horse With No Name" sung by Dewey Bunnell was also making its run up the charts. Many people confused Bunnell's voice with that of Neil Young. "Heart of Gold" was sitting at the #1 spot on Billboard's Hot 100 on 18 March 1972 where it was bumped by "Horse With No Name" the following week. The self-titled debut album produced a second hit single with "I Need You" and "Sandman" became an album FM radio hit. The debut album is like that of so many other singer-songwriter acts of the era. (The Eagles, CSN, Jackson Browne) It is near perfect.



America continued to score hits with their self-produced second (Homecoming) and third albums (Hat Trick). When the latter failed to produce a top forty hit, America turned to George Martin for their remaining tenure with Warner Brothers Records. The four albums he produced retain the folksy charms of the earlier albums, but with an added sophistication to the arrangments. Tracks like "Tin Man", "Lonely People" and especially "Another Try" have string and horn arrangments that are reminiscent of "Penny Lane" or "Eleanor Rigby". With the fifth album, Hearts, America would score their second #1 single with "Sister Golden Hair". "Daisy Jane" and "Company" are lovely tracks that again benefit from Martin's beautiful arrangments and very fine vocal performances from Beckley and Bunnell respectively.



In 1975 Martin assembled a premature greatest hits (History)album for Warner Brothers. In the process, he remixed seven tracks from the first three albums which he did not produce. The remixes are for the most part subtle when compared to the original versions, but for purists it should be noted that technically those tracks are not the hit versions. For many of us, History is/was our introduction to America. Even with the remixes, it was the defintive hits package until this new collection from Warner/Rhino.



The last two studio albums on Warner Bros by America were Hideaway (1976) which contained their last top 40 hit as a trio, the lovely "Today's The Day". This was a love song by Dan Peek with the signature George Martin orchestral backing. The second single, "Amber Cascades" from Dewey is an uptempo track that should have been a bigger hit, but sputtered out at #75 in the summer of 1976. America would retreat to Hawaii to record their final album with Dan Peek, Harbor (1977) In my opinion, Harbor was a stronger album than Hideaway, but its singles failed to make the charts. Two of Gerry's finest compositions, "Sergeant Darkness" and "God Of The Sun" opened sides one and two of the vinyl. Either one seemed like a natural for a hit, but it didn't happen. Dan's "Slow Down" and "Don't Cry Baby" also seemed prime for hits. For whatever reason, the fickle public seemed to be through with America.



Dan Peek left shortly after Harbor as he had recently had a major religious epiphany. (On a personal note, I met Dan Peek once in 1986 after a solo concert, and you couldn't meet a nicer person. I had in my car all of his America albums and his two (at the time) solo albums, and I asked him if he would consider autographing them for me, and he didn't hesitate to say yes. He wrote a personal message on each one, and told me I was the first person to present his entire recorded output for an autograph) By the way, Dan's first solo album, All Things Are Possible, feature Gerry and Dewey on two tracks, and is a fine record in its own right.



This two disc Definitive Collection is exactly as the title states -- defintive. Gerry and Dewey would continue as a America, and even though they made some fine records [noteably Silent Letter (1979) and Alibi (1981)], the trio had a synergy that was missing from the duo or from Dan alone. I have always hoped they would make a new record as a trio someday, but reunions rarely seem to be very satisfying at least on record. I would urge anyone who really likes History or this Definitive Collection to seek out the original seven albums. You won't be disappointed."

Excellent Warner Brothers Summary

James Fenos | Columbus, OH United States | 09/22/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This entry into Rhino's Definitive series should have been subtitled "The Definitive Warner Brothers Pop Collection" since it contains every single released for that label and each Warner album is represented. It stops at 1977 and the final Warner Brother album "Harbor" and it's the year Dan Peek left the group. The space left on disc one could have been filled with more album tracks, but what is here is the absolute essential. The mastering of this set is superb, America's Capital work and beyond is well represented on the previously released boxed set, the only "hit" missing from that excellent collection is "Right Before Your Eyes" which found a home on the cross-licensed "The Complete Greatest Hits" which dropped the hit "Can't Fall Asleep To A Lullaby" for a new track, but I'm picking at straws here. Stylistically, this set represents the early folk-rock sound of America before going commercial in all it's shimmering glory."

An excellent overview of their WB yeas

A Fan | VA | 02/10/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This collection is a great overview of their Warner Brother's albums from the early and mid-70's, which were their most sucessful albums. It includes all the hits from the WB heyday and many of their popular album cuts (it does not include any of their 80's hits because they were recorded for Capitol and this is a WB release). What this does include is two number 1 singles (Horse With No Name and Sister Golden Hair), four top 10 songs (I Need You, Ventura Highway, Tin Man, and Lonely People), three more top 40 hits (Don't Cross the River, Daisy Jane, and Today's the Day), four other songs that charted (Only in Your Heart, Muskrat Love, Woman Tonight, and Amber Cascades), and several songs that received significant airplay on FM stations that played album cuts (Sandman, To Each His Own, Another Try, Baby It's Up to You, and Jet Boy Blue). If you are looking for all of America's hits, then you should get "The Complete Greatest Hits" CD instead of this one. However, if you are wanting a collection of great America songs that goes beyond the hits, this is an excellent set!"