Customer Reviews

Action: The Sweet Anthology

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Sweet have always been one of my guilty pleasure bands. There was just something about them that always struck a chord with me. I have quite a few of their albums on vinyl, but had nothing besides the "Live At The Marquee" album on CD (which only contained two original members). When this two CD anthology was released this year I went on a nostalgia kick decided to pick it up. The material has all been remasterd and sounds excellent. Sweet went through several stages of their career. They started off as a bubblegum pop band that had several hits in England. They never made much of a dent in the U.S. market until they adopted a more hard rocking sound on the "Desolation Boulevard" album. The band continued in this style, and then eventually morphed into a more sophisticated band that even dabbled in progressive rock. On the anthology the first half of disc one focuses on the band's early bubble gum rock recordings that were mainly the product of outside songwriters Chinn and Chapman. Of these songs "Little Willy" was the only one to be a hit here in the states so most of this stuff is new to me. I am not a huge fan of bubblegum rock, but this material is so catchy that it is difficult not to like it. The real meat of this collection though is contained in the second half of disc 1 and 1st half of disc 2. These were the years where Sweet moved into harder rocking territory with big hits like "Ballroom Blitz" and "Fox On The Run" two songs which in my opinion are two of the greatest singles of the 70's. Other classics like "Action", "Sweet F.A.", "4th Of July" and "Lost Angels' are also included. After their hard rock period the band appeared to want to garner a more mature approach and incorporated elements of progressive rock into their sound for albums like "Off The Record" and "Level Headed". A great example is the band's last major hit "Love Is Like Oxygen" in which the longer album version is included here with it's extended instrumental middle section. The band's later material is a bit more hit and miss, but songs like "California Nights" and "Big Apple Waltz" are good ones from the latter period. This two disc set covers a lot of ground and although there is a lot missing for Sweet completists it is a very nice collection of their work remastered to perfection. Listening to this album is a reminder that this band has probably been underrated over the years.

Simply put, Sweet were one of the greatest bands ever. Period. And I appreciate all their eras equally, from their delightfully bubblegummy early days, their hard rockin' middle period, and their proggish last days...but there's one common thread thru it all...an amazing powerpop sensibility and an Englishness which never translated fully on this side of the pond...even tho Sweet had 5 big US hit singles...which rendered them a cultish band in the US...and their records STILL sound unbelievable fresh all these years later.

This newly released 2CD anthology is simply amazing...all their hit singles in the UK and US, a coupla cool B-sides, and covering their entire career, from 1971 to 1982, and AMAZINGLY written and thorough liner notes, and a KILLER remastering job...the only eras missing are their 4 early flop singles from 1968 to 1971 on Fontana and Parlophone, and their final, German-only album from 1982 called "Identity Crisis"...licensing problems perhaps??? I just have 1 minor quibble...the writer talks about singer Brian Connolly using character voices in the songs...is he mistaking that for counterpoint lead vocals by bassist Steve Priest??? Also, while there are plenty of great photos in the booklet, none exude their heavily-makeup-ed glam tendencies...lots of eyeliner and (even now) wild stage attire, like Indian feathers during "Wig Wam Bam", worn by Steve.

But like I said, minor quibbles. Sweet's songs hold up amazingly well, and the fact that they were never taken seriously in their heyday, their music being overlooked, renders their catalogue a freshness that works in their favour. Maybe it's their catchiness and energy that works better now with people into pop-punk and all, and even a better take on pop-metal favored by 80s hair bands??? Sweet are definitely the precursor to Def Leppard and even Poison, an English equivalent of Cheap Trick, perhaps???

So many great songs: "Ballroom Blitz", "Fox On The Run", the full-length "Love Is Like Oxygen", even the bubblegummy and killer "Little Willy" & "Wig Wam Bam" & "Hell Raiser"...all amazing and fresh.

Now, I want to get their complete English album catalogue on CD...the singles on this 2CD set is not enough anymore...totally irresistible...and Queen ripped off their high harmonies, no doubt.

A NEAR PERFECT OVERVIEW OF SWEET'S CAREER BUT IT IS MISSING THEIR FANTASIC VERSION OF "PEPPERMINT TWIST".

Quick notice to all Sweet fans: this 2 disc collection via Shout Factory is...ahem...sweet music to the ears! It's got all the right songs from every part of the group's history. From the early bubblegum glam songs (Wig Wam Bam, Blockbuster) to the hitmaking stuff (Ballroom Blitz, Action, Love Is Like Oxygen) to fan faves (The Six-Teens, No You Don't, AC/DC), it's all here. Superb liner notes with photos and real info. Expert remastering job. All in all, the anthology long-time fans have been waiting for!

This is a great 2 CD pack. Originaly I just wanted to here a song _Fox on the run_ and I ended with this and I found soou many good songs. I am more than happy. This isthe best of sweet. Very much recommended for everyone.

Yes, The Sweet started off doing teenie bopper tracks like "Little Willy" and "Wig-Wam Bam" but they later turned out to be a very good rock band with songs like "Action". They had many hit singles in the US and even more in Europe but really, if you want to hear a complete collection of Sweet tracks, get this one, the previous greatest hits package just skimmed the surface. This one completes it. Google me sometime at "Judemac Forever".

Standout tracks:

Blockbuster
Action
Fox On The Run
Ballroom Blitz