Very Best of [Import]

The Fivepenny Piece | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 21, 2007)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: EMI
• ASIN: B000026K1W
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #673,623 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Watercolour Morning

2. Ee By Gum

3. Pete Was A Lonely Mongrel Dog Who Lived In Central Wigan (Lancashire)

4. Down Our Street

5. King Cotton

6. Mi Grandfather's Day

7. Stories From The Wishing Well

8. Gradely Prayer

9. Gotta Get Away

10. Tell You Owt

11. Mountain Climber

12. Spanish Holiday

13. I Don't Know If I Wanna Go Home

14. Tuppence Chance

15. Fred Fannakapan

16. Stalybridge Station

17. Homemade Brew

18. Winter Sun

19. Molly Kershaw

20. Stalybridge Market

See all 24 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lancashire folk group of the seventies, April 4, 2005

By 

Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

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

Although they never had any hits, the Fivepenny Piece acquired plenty of fans in the seventies, particularly via their appearances on television. Many of their songs provided amusing insights into Lancashire life but some of their songs were slightly silly so critics scorned them. As we all know, the critics do not always reflect the views of the public, many of whom enjoyed their fun songs as well as their more serious stuff.

The group comprised Lynda Meeks (vocals), John Meeks (guitar and vocals), Colin Radcliffe (electric guitar and harmonica), George Radcliffe (bass guitar) and Eddie Crotty (12-string acoustic guitar and vocal). Additional musicians were employed on some tracks.

The best example of the serious side of Fivepenny Piece is King Cotton. This song tells the story of the cotton industry, which came to Lancashire, making a few owners rich while providing plenty of people with jobs although it didn't treat them kindly. Eventually, King Cotton moved to foreign lands leaving a legacy of empty mills and unskilled workers doing even more tedious jobs.

If their music were made up entirely of such serious songs, they might please the critics but I doubt if they would have been popular. So the Fivepenny Piece sing about all aspects of Lancashire life - the good and the bad, the happy and the sad, the serious and the funny. Obviously, this will have particular appeal to Lancastrians but most people will be able to relate to the songs in some way - many of the stories have universal appeal. For example, the basic story of King Cotton is also the story of mining, shipbuilding and many other traditional industries.

Whether this compilation is truly the best of their music is a moot point. It is certainly representative. I have six of their vinyl albums and I know there was at least one other. Some of my favorite tracks are here and some aren't but this is the only CD compilation I've seen, although it has been repackaged with different artwork. If you want a CD of their music, this is all there is. If you want more, you have to track down their vinyl albums or hope that a record label will release more of their music on CD.