Rick Nelson - Rick Nelson Greatest Hits (20 tracks) +Album Reviews

Essential Rick Nelson

AntiochAndy | Antioch, CA USA | 07/10/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Rick Nelson was a TV personality before becoming a "teen idol". He established a pattern, followed by a number of other young TV personalities (Shelley Fabares, Johnny Crawford, etc.), by using his TV visibility as a springboard to the recording studio. Nelson, however, was easily the most musically talented and ultimately the most successful of the lot. Through the late 1950's and early 1960's he had a string of "Top-40" hits that established him as one of the leading recording artists of the time. His number one single, "Travelin' Man", dominated radio play for months in the spring and summer of 1961 and was a staple at school dances (it was my eighth grade year). Despite achieving enormous success at an early age, however, Nelson struggled to be taken seriously as an artist. Buried, along with many other artists of the time, when the Beatles turned the music world upside down, his later work was largely ignored by a more mature public that seemed to want him to forever remain the quintessential "teen idol". Nevertheless, he continued recording and performing until he was killed in a plane crash in 1985. Now a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he has begun to receive some of the recognition he deserves.This "Greatest Hits" CD is a super collection. You get Rick's essential tunes, including "She Belongs To Me" and "Garden Party" (his last chart appearances, the only ones recorded with the Stone Canyon Band, and among my personal favorites). Other great "golden oldies" include "Stood Up", "Believe What You Say", "Poor Little Fool", "It's Late", "Just A Little Too Much", "Travelin' Man", "Hello Mary Lou", and more. Most also feature James Burton, Rick's great lead guitarist.This is probably the most complete set available on a single disc for a single-disc price. It has the major hits from Nelson's vintage years and is especially well-suited to casual fans or those looking for an introduction to his work. If you have an interest in American pop/rock music from the pre-Beatles era, this collection is a must."

A Great Sampler

T. C Lane | Marina, CA USA | 02/20/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From his first Top 40 hit in 1957 to his last in 1972 this is a superb beginning to anyone interested in Rick Nelson. Only 2 of his Top 10 hits are missing (57's "A Teenager's Romance" and 62's "It's Up To You") but all his other Top 10's are here. Hard-core Nelson fans might find a favorite track missing, but this is geared for the Nelson novice, and succeeds on that level. Up-to-date liner notes, photos and chart information make this an ideal sampler. If you want to venture further into his career pick up the Legacy Box Set which goes from 1957-1985. If that's too much than 3 budget compilations will do the trick: Legendary Masters Vol. 1 and 2 go up to 1963. While the out-of-print (but easy to find used) Best of 63-75 covers the rest. P.S. Also try the remastered Ricky Sings Again/Songs By Ricky (Capitol 1959) just in case you're wondering if Nelson could cut it for a whole album (he could)."

Rick is the greatest

tiggermist | Highlands Ranch, Colorado | 03/06/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Rick Nelson is one of the greatest, but also one of the most overlooked singers around. His songs are as famous as his name and family tree. This collection contains most of Rick's greatest hits like "Fools Rush In","For You", "Travelin' Man", "Hello Mary Lou", and many more. I encourage you to buy this CD if you are a fan of Rick Nelson or just a music lover in general. He's Great!"

Original recordings of twenty classic hits

Peter Durward Harris | Leicester England | 05/26/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ricky had more than twenty hits in America but all the important ones are in this collection. Ricky's hottest period was from May 1957 to June 1959, during which time he scored many American top ten hits including several double-sided singles that yielded two top ten hits. Ricky was much less successful in the UK although it's not clear why as he didn't suffer from competition by British cover versions as (for example) the Drifters did. During this period, Ricky made the UK top ten with Poor little fool (an American number one hit), Someday and It's late, although Someday is omitted from this compilation. Ricky's American top ten hits from this period included I'm walking, Be-bop baby, Stood up and Believe what you say, all of which made the top five, as well as Never be anyone else but you, which may well be the most-covered of all Ricky's songs. Saying that, covers of Ricky's songs are far less common than covers of some of his contemporaries' songs, such as Buddy Holly or the Everly Brothers.

Following the double-sided American top ten hit, Just a little too much / Sweeter than you, Ricky's career went into a bit of a decline. All that changed in 1961 when he had another double-sided hit - the biggest of his career. On one side was Travelin' man, which gave him his second and last American number one hit, selling over six million copies. On the other side was Hello Mary Lou, written by Gene Pitney who (at the time) was known only as a songwriter. It was also an American top ten hit, but it made number two in the UK, where it became his biggest ever hit.

The revival in Ricky's career was short-lived. He scored two further American top five hits (Young world, Teenage idol) before changing record labels, when he also changed his name from Ricky to Rick. After a promising start in which he nearly made the American top ten with a cover of Fools rush in (Glenn Miller) and did even better with For you, the hits dried up.

With his hit-making days over, Rick tried various things including country music. He eventually formed the Stone Canyon Band. Two of their American hits are included here, the most notable of which is Garden party, in which Rick sings about how his audiences are only interested in his old songs while he wants to sing contemporary material.

While this collection omits the UK top ten hit Someday and also omits some notable American hits that didn't make the top ten there, the twenty tracks here represent Ricky's career fairly and include all the essential. It's particularly satisfying to see that this compilation encompasses the whole range of his hits from the fifties to the seventies - and they are all original recordings."

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