The Best of Herman's Hermits: The 50th Anniversary Anthology (2015)
The Best of Herman's Hermits: The 50th Anniversary Anthology is a 2-CD set by British group Herman's Hermits, released in 2015 on Bear Family Records. The set was produced and compiled by Grammy-nominated producer Ron Furmanek and includes the band's greatest hits along with demos, stereo mixes and session outtakes.[1]
In Stephen Thomas Erlewine's review of the album for AllMusic, he believes the anthology is "a little light, particularly on the earliest recordings" but that this two-disc set is smartly assembled, so it gains momentum as it proceeds headlong through its 66 tracks." Although not sequenced chronologically, Erlewine says that is a benefit because it ends giving emphasis to both the early and later parts of the band's career on each disc. "Like no other compilation in their catalog, [it] makes a convincing case for the quintet as pleasing purveyors of pure pop".[2]
Track listing
Disc 1
"Only Last Night" (Demo) (Silverman*, Lisberg) - 2:18
"It's Alright Now" (David Most, Hillary, Peter Noone) - 2:41
"Smile Please" (A. King, D. Most, Peter Noone) - 2:41
"Bet Yer Life I Do" (Undubbed Mix) (Errol Brown, T. Wilson) - 2:47
Credits
Artwork – Mychael Gerstenberger
Engineer [Original] – Dave Siddle (tracks: 1-1 to 1-15, 1-17 to 1-32, 2-1 to 2-29), Dick Bogert (tracks: 1-16), Martin Birch (tracks: 1-33, 2-30 to 2-33)
Engineer [Remix] – Mike Jarratt
Mastered by Mark Mathews
Photography by [Picture Restoration] – Sam Malbuch
Producer [Original] – Mickie Most (tracks: 1-2 to 1-33, 2-2 to 2-33), Ron Richards (tracks: 1-1, 2-1)
Reissue producer, compiled by – Ron Furmanek
Remix – Ron Furmanek
Special audio help
Notes
All songs remixed from the original 2-, 3-, 4-, and 8-track master tapes.
All songs are first time stereo except tracks 1-16, 1-19, 1-31, 2-15 to 2-17, 2-19 and 2-20
Songwriting credit for track 2-23 listed as unknown
Songwriting credit for track 2-30 mistakenly given to Kenny Young and Mireille Noone
Songwriting credit for track 2-31 mistakenly given to Mickie Most