| The Best of Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | September 1980 May 1982 (re-issue) | |||
| Genre | Pop, Rock | |||
| Length | 57:44 | |||
| Label | EMI Records/Fame | |||
| Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel chronology | ||||
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The Best of Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel is a compilation album by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released by EMI in September 1980. [1] It features material from the original line-up of Cockney Rebel, the Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel line-up, and two tracks from Harley's solo career.
Following the disappointing sales of his second solo album The Candidate in 1979, EMI Records dropped Harley from their label. A year later, EMI released a compilation album of Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel's work. Colin Miles was selected to compile the album and The Best of Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel was released in September 1980 as the band's first compilation to be released in the UK. The compilation features twelve tracks spanning from 1973 to 1978. Six are Cockney Rebel tracks from 1973–74, four are Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel tracks from 1975–76, and two are from Harley's solo career, which were 1974's "Big Big Deal" and 1978's "Riding the Waves (For Virginia Woolf)". Of the chosen inclusions, "Cavaliers" and "Riding the Waves (For Virginia Woolf)" were never released as singles. [2]
To promote the compilation, EMI re-issued the band's 1975 UK number one hit "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" as a 7-inch single on 3 October 1980, with "Sebastian" as the B-side. [3] The single came with a full picture sleeve, which featured the same photographs of Cockney Rebel, on both the front and back of the sleeve, as would appear on the sleeve of the compilation album. [4] Like the album, the single did not make a chart appearance in the UK. [5]
After the release of the compilation, Harley and a new line-up of Cockney Rebel embarked on a UK Christmas tour. During this tour, Harley introduced three new songs; "Warm My Cold Heart", "I Can Be Anyone" and "Such is Life", as well as a reggae-version of "Mr. Soft". [5]
The album was released by EMI on vinyl and cassette in the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Portugal, and Australia. [2] The front cover features a photograph of the original Cockney Rebel line-up and the back sleeve features a photograph of the Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel line-up. Both photographs were taken by Mick Rock. [2] The back sleeve biography and overview was written in 1980 by Chris Welch.
In May 1982, the compilation was reissued in the UK on EMI's new mid-price label, Fame. [6] [7]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Hull Daily Mail |   [8] |
On its release, Mike Nicholls of Record Mirror felt the compilation "well lives up to its name". He wrote, "Present and correct are [the] singles and early epics 'Sebastian' and 'Tumbling Down', and another half dozen album cuts which kept the flag of style and individuality flying throughout the predominantly barren early seventies." [9] James Belsey of the Bristol Evening Post stated, "This well-chosen compilation - good liner notes too - shows the enduring quality of cuts like 'Make Me Smile', 'Judy Teen', 'Mr Raffles' and the classic 'Sebastian'." [10] Alan Burgess of the Hull Daily Mail described Harley as one of the "most essential pop stars of the early 1970s" and felt that "today Cockney Rebel's music still stands tall". He commented, "'Make Me Smile' is a classic pop tune, and 'Mr. Soft' and 'Psychomodo' illustrate a unique and original rhythmic jerk crowned by Harley's highly derivative, but unmistakable warble." [8]
All songs written and composed by Steve Harley, except "Here Comes the Sun" composed by George Harrison.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" | 3:56 |
| 2. | "Big Big Deal" | 4:30 |
| 3. | "Psychomodo" | 4:00 |
| 4. | "Mr. Soft" | 3:18 |
| 5. | "Judy Teen" | 3:39 |
| 6. | "Cavaliers" | 8:07 |
| 7. | "Sebastian" | 6:50 |
| 8. | "Here Comes the Sun" | 2:56 |
| 9. | "Riding the Waves (For Virginia Woolf)" | 4:27 |
| 10. | "Black or White" | 5:43 |
| 11. | "Mr. Raffles (Man, It Was Mean)" | 4:32 |
| 12. | "Tumbling Down" | 5:46 |
Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel were an English rock band who formed in the early 1970s in London. Their music covered a range of styles from pop to progressive rock. Over the years, they have had five albums on the UK Albums Chart and twelve singles on the UK Singles Chart.
Stephen Malcolm Ronald Nice, known by his stage name Steve Harley, was an English singer-songwriter and frontman of the rock group Cockney Rebel. The band achieved six UK hit singles in the mid-1970s, including "Judy Teen", "Mr. Soft", and the number one "Make Me Smile ". Harley later scored a further three UK hit singles as a solo artist, including "The Phantom of the Opera", a duet with Sarah Brightman.
"Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" is a song by the English rock band Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released on 31 January 1975 by EMI as the lead single from the band's third studio album The Best Years of Our Lives. The song was written by Harley, and produced by Harley and Alan Parsons. In February 1975, the song reached number one on the UK chart and received a gold certification from the British Phonographic Industry in October 2021. It spent nine weeks in the Top 50, and as of 2015, has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. The song is one of the most-played songs in British broadcasting history.
The Human Menagerie is the debut studio album by Cockney Rebel, which was released by EMI in 1973. It was produced by Neil Harrison.
The Psychomodo is the second studio album by Cockney Rebel, released on 2 June 1974 by EMI. It was produced by Steve Harley and Alan Parsons.
The Best Years of Our Lives is the third studio album by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released by EMI on 7 March 1975. It was the first album to feature Harley's name ahead of the band's. The album was produced by Harley and Alan Parsons, and contains the band's only UK number one, the million-selling "Make Me Smile ".
"(I Believe) Love's a Prima Donna" is a song by the British rock band Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released on 1 October 1976 as the second single from their fifth studio album Love's a Prima Donna. The song was written and produced by Harley. It reached number 41 in the UK Singles Chart and would be the band's last charting single before their split in 1977.
"Roll the Dice" is a song by English singer-songwriter Steve Harley, which was released in 1978 as the lead single from his debut solo album Hobo with a Grin. The song was written by Harley and Jo Partridge, and produced by Michael J. Jackson.
"Irresistible" is a song written and recorded by British singer-songwriter Steve Harley. It was released three times as a single; the first being in 1985 as a non-album single under his band's name Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel. In 1986, a remixed version of the song was released by Harley as a solo single in the UK, and in 1992, he re-released this version as a single in Europe from his solo album Yes You Can. "Irresistible" was written by Harley and produced by English producer Mickie Most.
"I Can't Even Touch You" is a song by the English singer-songwriter Steve Harley, released under his band's name Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel by Chrysalis as a non-album single on 12 March 1982. The song was written by Harley and produced by Midge Ure.
"Someone's Coming" is a song by English singer-songwriter Steve Harley, released in 1979 as the second and final single from his 1978 debut solo studio album, Hobo with a Grin. The song was written by Harley and Jo Partridge, and was produced by Harley.
The Cockney Rebel – A Steve Harley Anthology is a remastered three-disc box-set anthology by Steve Harley, released in 2006. The anthology features material from Cockney Rebel, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel and Harley's solo career. It covers all of Harley's albums, spanning over 33 years, from 1973's The Human Menagerie to 2005's The Quality of Mercy. The anthology was released by EMI Music UK. It was released on CD in the UK only. Today, the physical CD release is out-of-print.
More Than Somewhat – The Very Best of Steve Harley is a compilation album by Steve Harley, which was released by EMI in 1998. It features sixteen tracks recorded by Cockney Rebel, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel and Harley as a solo artist, spanning from Cockney Rebel's 1973 debut album The Human Menagerie to Harley's 1996 solo album Poetic Justice. At least one song from each studio album is included, with the exception of Harley's 1979 album The Candidate.
"Sebastian" is a song by the British rock band Cockney Rebel, fronted by Steve Harley. It was released as the band's debut single in 1973 from their album The Human Menagerie. The song was written by Harley and produced by Neil Harrison.
"Hideaway" is a song by the British rock band Cockney Rebel, fronted by Steve Harley. Released as the opening track on the band's 1973 debut album The Human Menagerie, "Hideaway" was released in 1974 as a single in Denmark only. It was written by Harley and produced by Neil Harrison.
"The Best Years of Our Lives" is a song by the British rock band Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released in 1975 as the title track from the band's third studio album The Best Years of Our Lives. In 1977, a live version of the song was released as a single from the album Face to Face: A Live Recording.
A Closer Look is a compilation album by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, which was released by EMI Records in the United States in 1975. It features material recorded by the original Cockney Rebel as well as the reformed Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel line-up.
Cavaliers: An Anthology 1973–1974 is a remastered four-disc box-set anthology by Cockney Rebel, released in 2012. The set chronicles the recording career of the original line-up of Cockney Rebel, between 1973 and 1974. It includes both of the band's albums The Human Menagerie (1973) and The Psychomodo (1974), as well as all the singles and non-album B-Sides. It also features early alternative versions and mixes of tracks from both albums, as well as live sessions for the BBC, including a John Peel session and on the Old Grey Whistle Test.
Live at the BBC is a live compilation album by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released by Windsong International Records in 1995. The compilation features three different sessions by the band for the BBC: two in 1974 and one in 1992.
Beam of Light is the second studio album from Dutch singer Patricia Paay, which was released by EMI in 1975.
