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33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the Best Albums of Its Era, July 23, 2002
"Straight Up" may be one of the most underrated albums in rock. From FM radio classics "Baby Blue" and "Day After Day," to the haunting gem "Name of the Game," this is British power pop at its best. There's not a bad song on the disc, and the production talents of George Harrison and Todd Rundgren bring out the best of the band's sound. Pick up a "greatest hits" package if you must, but "Straight Up" is essential listening for any fan of Badfinger, '70s power pop, or British rock. A masterpiece!
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19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic Album from the most underrated rock group ever!, February 14, 2006
Every track from this rich, warm LP blows you away. Everything from Pete Ham's and George Harrison's slide guitars on "Day After Day" to Ham's hauntingly aching "Take It All." Every rock and pop fan should pick this CD up before it slips out of print. Badfinger initially were on the Beatles' Apple Records label before they moved to Warner Brothers in 1973/74. Every album recorded by this incredibly gifted band is worth it - "Magic Christian Music," "No Dice" (which ties with "Straight Up" as the best LP, "Ass," "Badfinger," "Wish You Were Here" and "Head First." Any fan of the Beatles, The Who, Hendrix, Cream/Clapton and everyone else from the late 1960s/early 1970s should pick up Badfinger's discs. This was the band that Rolling Stone magazine said, in 1970, is the group "to watch for" in the coming years.
It's a shame their manager, S. Polly, was such a thief and robbed the band of royalties and potential fame, which concluded with Ham's suicide in 1975 and bassist Tom Evans' suicide in 1983. Drummer MIke Gibbons, sadly, passed away late last year, leaving only guitarist-vocalist Joey Molland as the band's sole survivor. Rest in peace guys!
P.S. Don't be turned off by The Beatles comparisons - Badfinger had a sound, song structures and style all to their own, which will please both fans of The Beatles and those who don't care for the Fab Four. Power pop-rock was never better than the early 1970s records from Badfinger. (Actually, Badfinger's output was as good as most of the solo Beatles work in the early 1970s.)
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bona-Fide Classic Rock, September 8, 2003
By the time Badfinger went into the studio to record Straight Up, the band had its act fully together. There was no attempt to hide the huge Beatles influence - and working with Paul and George, what would one expect? The big hits were Baby Blue and Day After Day, but the album as a whole is excellent and has a fluidity uncommon to the era. I wore out three copies of the vinyl back in the day, yet I'm still picking out clues of how some of these tunes were inspired by (or should that be: "derived from"?) Beatles songs.This album has aged well. The lively spirit of the music still cuts through. The recording quality is typical of the better Rock recordings of the early '70s (this was released in '72), but don't expect an audiophile masterpiece. By working with McCartney, Harrison and Rundgren, the group couldn't help but to learn how to record mucic that has the ability to sound up front, dynamic and clear without being overly cluttered. I personally like some of the alternate cuts better than the originals and find that programming so that I hear no duplication is most satisfying - but that's probably due to hearing the original LP so many times.
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