The Very Best of Buddy Holly [Import]

Buddy Holly | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 18, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Mca UK
• ASIN: B0000259BR
• Also Available in: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #145,951 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Heartbeat - Buddy Holly, Montgomery

2. That'll Be the Day - Buddy Holly, Allison, Jerry

3. Peggy Sue - Buddy Holly, Allison

4. Oh, Boy! - Buddy Holly, West

5. Rave On - Buddy Holly, West

6. Think It Over - Buddy Holly, Holly, Buddy

7. Brown Eyed Handsome Man - Buddy Holly, Berry

8. Love's Made a Fool of You - Buddy Holly, Holly

9. True Love Ways - Buddy Holly, Holly, Buddy

10. Raining in My Heart - Buddy Holly, Bryant, B.

11. Everyday - Buddy Holly, Hardin, Charles

12. Wishing - Buddy Holly, Holly

13. It's So Easy - Buddy Holly, Holly, Buddy

14. Listen to Me - Buddy Holly, Hardin

15. It Doesn't Matter Anymore - Buddy Holly, Anka, Paul

16. Words of Love - Buddy Holly, Holly

17. I'm Gonna Love You Too - Buddy Holly, Mauldin, Joe

18. Well...All Right - Buddy Holly, Holly

19. Bo Diddley - Buddy Holly, McDaniel

20. Blue Suede Shoes - Buddy Holly, Perkins

See all 35 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

The definitive compilation from the MCA vaults. 36 tracks including, 'That'll Be the Day', 'Words of Love', 'Peggy Sue', 'Oh, Boy!', 'Maybe Baby', 'Think It Over', 'Rave On', 'Early in the Morning', 'Heartbeat', 'It Doesn't Matter Anymore' and 'Raining in My Heart'. 1999 release. Standard jewel case.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best one volume Holly collection, April 17, 2004

By 

Candace Scott (Lake Arrowhead, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Very Best of Buddy Holly (Audio CD)

This is a marvelous collection and by far the best single-CD collection out there on Buddy's music. Most people listening to Buddy's music for the first time can never stop at just one CD, so this will serve as a fine introduction to some of the best music you'll ever hear. Though these songs are all more than 45 years old, they wear well and are timeless.

Most casual rock fans can name only a few Holly tunes: "That'll Be the Day" and "Peggy Sue," but there is so much more than that. This collection includes two of his most haunting, beautiful ballads, "True Love Ways" and "Raining in My Heart." Listen to the innovative string arrangements on these tunes and you'll plainly know why Paul McCartney (who owns the Holly musical catalogue), adopted these arrangements ten years later as a Beatle. In addition, this CD includes the musicians and Buddy counting down as an intro to these two songs. It's sad to realize that just months later, he would be dead.

Perhaps the best song on the album is the amazing It Doesn't Matter Anymore, about a love gone wrong. Again, the string arrangement is years ahead of its time and makes you ponder what might have been had Holly's life not ended so tragically and prematurely. He was a genuine innovator and talent. This compilation proves that. The sound quality is superb, I can't recommend this CD enough.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brief life but a lasting legacy, January 31, 2003

By 

Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Very Best of Buddy Holly (Audio CD)

Buddy Holly's place in popular music history is significant. He was a major influence on the Beatles and Rolling Stones as well as many other singers in a variety of genres. Whole tribute albums have been devoted to him. The Hollies named themselves after him. Yet, all this was achieved despite his limited recorded output.

On this album, you get all the classics - Heartbeat, That'll be the day, Peggy Sue, Oh boy, Rave on, True love ways, Raining in my heart, Everyday, It's so easy, Listen to me and It doesn't matter anymore among them. Many of these (and others) have been covered frequently down the years, and new versions continue to appear on a regular basis. The Rolling Stones covered Not fade away and it first appeared on one of their early B-sides. In 2002, British jazz singer Claire Martin recorded a magical version of Raining in my heart, perhaps the best cover of a Buddy Holly song I've ever heard - and I've heard a lot.

Besides those classic songs, there are some great covers here, some of which were also hits for Buddy. They include Blue Suede shoes (Carl Perkins), also covered by Elvis, and Brown eyed handsome man (Chuck Berry). With 36 tracks, there is still enough room to include some interesting but seldom-heard songs, such as What to do, Learning the Game, Look at me and Take your time.

This is the best single-CD collection of Buddy's music that you are ever likely to find.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best single-disc Holly offering; presentation varies but overall quite good, December 27, 2007

By 

Scott MacGillivray (Massachusetts, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Very Best of Buddy Holly (Audio CD)

This 1999 release is a 36-song sampler of Buddy Holly's best recordings. Unlike some Holly collections, which include an overdose of his earliest, pre-stardom stuff, this material showcases Buddy at his height. You get all the hit singles ("That'll Be the Day," "Peggy Sue," "Maybe Baby," "Oh Boy!," "Rave On," etc.) as well as some good B-sides ("Take Your Time," "Everyday," etc.). The music itself ranges from good-time rock-'n'-roll to catchy pop, to funky rhythm-and-blues to introspective ballads, and Holly does justice to all of it.

Buddy Holly recorded so prolifically that his record label kept issuing new singles for 10 years after his death. One-third of this CD consists of Holly vocals overdubbed by studio musicians and released posthumously. Of his last six compositions (known among fans as "the apartment tapes," because he recorded the demonstration vocals at home), four are included here. "What to Do," "Crying, Waiting, Hoping," and "Learning the Game" are the 1964 versions, with surf-guitar arrangements; "Peggy Sue Got Married" is the 1959 version with backing vocals added. Holly's last single, "Love Is Strange," is also featured here.

Considering that three dozen songs are crammed onto a single disc, the fidelity for the most part is surprisingly good, with a few exceptions ("Peggy Sue Got Married" is muffled, with the last couple of seconds abruptly chopped off).

The price tag for this one disc may be a bit high in some situations; some dealers price it high, so you could get multiple-disc Holly sets for the same money. But if you're looking for single-disc portability and convenience, this CD has the best overall assortment. Incidentally, there is a production error: the track listing in the liner notes cites only 35 songs. So you might call track #36 a hidden "Easter egg": it's "Not Fade Away," the B-side of "Oh Boy!"