For anyone who wants to get more Turtles than a greatest-hits collection offers, yet isn't interested in getting everything the Turtles did, this 51-song, two-CD compilation is the ticket. Mind you, most average '60s rock fans will still be more than satisfied by the average greatest-hits collection, as the band's familiar hits were truly the best things they did. If you want to fill in the gaps with lesser-known (and sometimes downright flop) singles and relatively seldom-heard LP tracks, this does so well. However, though the Turtles were more adventurous than much of their AM radio competition, those lesser-known efforts are pretty erratic and often not that interesting, which might disappoint those wondering if this set could lead to a serious re-evaluation of the group's importance.
On the plus side, on disc one there are some good, and not great, solid folk-rock obscurities, like their cover of P.F. Sloan's "I Get out of Breath"; the little-known, very early Warren Zevon songs "Outside Chance" and "Like the Seasons"; the almost early Kinks-like "Almost There"; and the spooky pop/rock of "She'll Come Back." On the minus side, much of the non-hit material on both discs is well-crafted pop/rock without the hooks of the hits and without the inspiration of greater bands like the Beatles, the Kinks (the cover of Judee Sill's "Lady-O" sounds rather like a blend of early solo Paul McCartney and turn-of-the-decade Ray Davies), and the Byrds, though it's apparent they were trying to reach those heights with their more sophisticated and/or stranger tracks. Just two cuts were previously unreleased, neither of them special: demos of "Marmeny Mill," later done by Flo & Eddie, and "How You Loved Me" (re-recorded for Turtle Soup), in which the Ray Davies influence was especially strong. As a minor criticism of a very well-assembled package, it would have been good if one or two items from the surf band the Turtles evolved from (the Crossfires) had been included at the expense of some of the more dispensable selections, like their cover of Kenny Dino's "Your Maw Said You Cried."
by Richie Unterberger
Tracks
Disc 1
1. It Ain't Me Babe (Bob Dylan) - 2:14
2. Almost There - 2:16
3. Let Me Be (P.F. Sloan) - 2:24
4. Wanderin' Kind - 2:08
5. Your Maw Said You Cried (Robert Glazer, Steve Schloks) - 1:44
6. Glitter And Gold (Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil) - 2:09
7. It Was A Very Good Year (Ervin Drake) - 1:57
8. Let The Cold Winds Blow - 2:20
9. Eve Of Destruction (P.F. Sloan) - 2:45
10.Flyin' High (Al Nichol) - 1:47
11.You Baby - 2:19
12.I Know That You'll Be There - 2:16
13.Just A Room (Artie Kornfeld, Steve Duboff) - 2:31
14.She'll Come Back (Howard Kaylan, Nita Garfield) - 2:40
15.Tie Me Down (David Gates) - 2:04
16.I Can't Stop (Dennis Lambert) - 2:08
17.I Get Out Of Breath - 3:16
18.So Goes Love (Gerry Goffin, Carole King) - 2:39
19.Grim Reaper Of Love (Al Nichol, Chuck Portz) - 2:25
20.Is It Any Wonder? - 2:34
21.Like The Seasons (Warren Zevon) - 1:54
22.We'll Meet Again (Hugh Charles, Ross Parker) - 2:01
23.Outside Chance (Glenn Crocker, Warren Zevon) - 2:09
24.Makin' My Mind Up (Gary Montgomery, Ray Roberts) - 2:41
25.Can I Get To Know You Better - 2:37
Tracks 2,4,8 written by Howard Kaylan
Tracks 11,12,17,20,25 written by P.F. Sloan, Steve Barri
Disc 2
1. Happy Together - 2:54
2. Too Young To Be One (Eric Eisner) - 2:00
3. Me About You - 2:32
4. She'd Rather Be With Me - 2:21
5. Guide For The Married Man (John Williams, Leslie Bricusse) - 2:44
6. You Know What I Mean - 2:01
7. She's My Girl - 2:35
8. Cat In The Window - 1:39
9. Sound Asleep (Mark Volman) - 2:47
10.The Last Thing I Remember (The First Thing I Knew) (Mark Volman) - 3:32
11.The Story Of Rock And Roll (Harry Nilsson) - 2:48
12.The Battle Of The Bands (Harry Nilsson, Chip Douglas) - 2:16
13.Elenore (Howard Kaylan, Al Nichol, Jim Pons, John Barbata) - 2:31
14.You Showed Me (Gene Clark, Roger McGuinn) - 3:13
15.Surfer Dan (Howard Kaylan, Al Nichol, Jim Pons, John Barbata) - 2:41
16.Earth Anthem (Bill Martin) - 3:57
17.Somewhere Friday Nite (Howard Kaylan, Al Nichol, Jim Pons, John Seiter) - 3:23
18.Marmendy Mill - 3:15
19.How You Loved Me (Howard Kaylan, Al Nichol, Jim Pons, John Seiter) - 3:43
20.House On The Hill (Howard Kaylan, Al Nichol, Jim Pons, John Seiter) - 3:00
21.You Don't Have To Walk In The Rain (Howard Kaylan, Al Nichol, Jim Pons, John Seiter) - 2:45
22.Love In The City (Howard Kaylan, Al Nichol, Jim Pons, John Seiter) - 3:43
23.There You Sit Lonely - 3:43
24.Goodbye Surprise - 2:57
25.We Ain't Gonna Party No More - 4:58
26.Lady-O (Judee Sill) - 2:53
Tracks 1,3,4,6,7,8,24 written by Alan Gordon, Garry Bonner
Tracks 9,10,23, 25 written by Howard Kaylan
The Turtles
*Howard Kaylan - Guitar, Keyboards, Organ, Percussion, Vocals
*Mark Volman - Harmonium, Percussion, Special Effects, Tambourine, Vocals
*Al Nichol - Lead Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals
*Jim Tucker - Rhythm Guitar (1965-67)
*Chuck Portz - Bass (1965-66)
*Don Murray - Drums (1965-66)
*Joel Larson - Drums (1966)
*Chip Douglas - Bass, Horn Arrangements, Keyboards, Pump Organ (1966-67)
*John Barbata - Drums, Percussion, Vocals (1966-69)
*Jim Pons - Bass, Guitar, Vocals (1967-70)
*John Seiter - Drums, Piano, Vocals (1969-70)
With
*Alan Robinson - French Horn
*Allan Harshman - Viola
*Amy Utstein Project Assistant
*Art Pepper - Alto Sax
*Bill Holman - Horn Arrangements, Tenor Sax
*Bill Perkins - Tenor Sax
*Bob Edmondson - Trombone
*Bob Jenkins - Bongos, Congas
*Bobby Bruce - Violin
*Bobby Knight - Trombone
*Bones Howe - Percussion
*Bonnie Douglas - Violin
*Bud Brisbois - Horn Arrangements, String Arrangements, Trumpet
*Charlie Shoemake Vibraphone
*Darrel Terwilliger - Viola
*David Duke - French Horn
*Dick Hyde - Trombone
*Don Randi - Piano
*Donald Peake - Horn Arrangements
*Douglas Davis - Cello
*Dwight Tunji Trio- Percussion, Special Effects
*Francis Fitzpatrick - Trumpet
*Freddie Hill - Trumpet
*Gareth "Garry" Nuttycombe - Viola
*George Hyde - French Horn
*George Poole - Violin
*Hal Blaine - Drums
*Harry Nilsson - Piano
*Henry Sigismonti - French Horn
*Irving Lipschultz - Cello
*Isadore Roman - Violin
*Jack Nitzsche - Orchestral Arrangements
*Jerry Yester - Organ, Piano, String Arrangements
*Jesse Ehrlich - Cello
*Jim Horn - Saxophone
*John Audino - Trumpet
*John DeVoogdt - Violin
*John Santulis - Violin
*John Thomas Johnson - Tuba
*Joseph Saxon - Cello
*Judee Sill - Acoustic Guitar
*Jules Chaikin - Trumpet
*Larry Knechtel - Bass, Piano
*Lee Lasseff - Percussion, Special Effects
*Leigh Hall - A&R
*Leonard Malarsky - Violin
*Lew McCreary - Trombone
*Lou Blackburn - Trombone
*Lynn Blessing - Vibraphone
*Manny Klein Trumpet
*Michel Rubini - Keyboards
*Nick Pisani - Violin
*Norman Botnick - Viola
*Ollie Mitchell - Trumpet
*Paul Beaver- Moog Synthesizer
*Paul Shure - Violin
*Plas Johnson - Saxophone
*Ray Kelley - Cello
*Ray Pohlman - Horn Arrangements, String Arrangements
*Ray Triscari - Trumpet
*Richard Leith - Trombone
*Roy Caton - Horn Arrangements, String Arrangements, Trumpet
*Sidney Miller - Bassoon
*Thomas Shepard - Trombone
*Tibor Zelig - Violin
*Tom Scott - Saxophone
*Tony Terran - Horn Arrangements, String Arrangements
*Warren Zevon - Guitar
*Wilbert Nuttycombe - Violin
*William Hinshaw - French Horn
