Just received this today. Not played it yet, but it looks great. A compact sized hardback book format with two overlapping discs clipped on the inside of both the front and back covers. The inner booklet is also really nice, written by John Reed. Lots of colour band, picture sleeve and label shots with potted biogs of the groups. I think if you like the 'Lookin' Back' and 'Keep Lookin' box sets, this goes well with those as a more modern counterpoint.

PM

I have now played this set and I must say I found it really enjoyable. The catalogue is drawn from Cherry Red and Detour so there's a lot of obscure groups as well as more well known ones. The first thing it has made me do is start pulling out my Makin' Time and Chords and Jolt CD anthologies amongst others which I haven't played in some years.

The overall sound is the energy and enthusiasm of punk harnessed to melodic and strident melody. On the one hand you could, as is reiterated in the booklet, hear this as power pop, and a lot of it is. But don't assume by the term 'power pop' it's a purly American phenomenon. As on the other hand, you can listen to a lot of these 45s and hear them as Creation (the band) type neo-freakbeat.

It is also interesting how undefined the mod revival was musically. A lot of the potted band biogs include caveats about one band or another not really being mod as such, but a pub rock band or a soul group or a new wave or power pop group, but whose chosen cut on the set is as mod revival sounding as anything more purist. It's true as well. If you listen to this set right through without reading the liners, I bet there wouldn't be more than one or two that you could point to as sounding outside the remit.

With Detour's input as well, there's a good few unissued demo and live recordings of obscure groups that never made it to wax or issued one self-pressed DIY 45. There's cuts from period showcase compilatiopn albums as well of groups who never made a 45. Hence, the genereal overview is a really good and in-depth musical appraisal of the scene, especially in the 79-80 period.

I'd recommend this set to anyone who digs any of the sounds or styles mentioned above. It's a great collection and I can see myself playing this all over again really soon.

PM

I was a little too young to become involved, but there was a lot of friction between the mods and punks at the time I remember and I was on the side of the punks, despite loving a lot of the 60s mod bands at the time.

I have to say this is not a genre that really appeals to me that much. I remember all the parker wearing pork pie hatted skins first time around and the music sounded pretty uninspired and safe compared to punk at the time from what I remember.

Having said that I didn't really listen to it much and so maybe I am just uninformed. Could you maybe direct me to the top 5 classics of the genre or in the box in your opinion.

Hi Austin,
I know what you mean, I was there as well. People forget the in-fighting about weather the Jam were a punk band or a Mod band in their early days for instance. Nonetheless, once past the teenage sectarianism, the music is great.

If I were you, I'd pop over to Youtube and check out some of these below, all of which are included in the set:

The Chords - Now It's Gone
The Chords- Maybe Tomorrow
The Purple Hearts - Millions Like Us
Makin' Time - Here is My Number
The James Taylor Quartet - Blow Up
The Prisoners - Hurricane
The Circles - Opening Up
The Teenbeats - Strength Of The Nation

PM

I was a youngster at the time too.
Thought the Chords and Purple Hearts were pretty good but the Lambrettas
and Merton Parkas were lame...
I will be picking up this set at some point as I've not heard a lot of this music in years and a lot of it not at all.

I think you'll enjoy it. I know what you mean about the Merton Parkas and Lambrettas. Unfortunately there seems to have been a tendancy by record companies to opt for novelty or cover records by a lot of these bands (The Parkas 'You need Wheels' or Lambrettas 'Posion Ivy'). The cuts by both of them on this comp are much better. I've also just ordered the Secret Affair 35th anniversary box as well (in a nice clam shell box).

PM