Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From The First Psychedelic Era 1965-1968 2LP

Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time - Rated 405/500!

Reissue of this absolutely classic compilation of psychedelic and garage gems from the mid-'60s compiled by Jack Holzman and music historian Lenny Kaye. First released in 1972 on Elektra Records, this compilation is among the only 'various artists' titles to consistently wind up on published lists of 'all-time top albums'. Nuggets spawned more than 200 like-minded collections under such titles as Pebbles and Back From The Grave, and is a consistent compilation favourite and has carved out a genre of its own.

Tracks include "I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night" (Electric Prunes), "Dirty Water" (The Standells), "Lies" (The Knickerbockers), "Pushin' Too Hard" (The Seeds), "Hey Joe" (The Leaves), "Let's Talk About Girls" (Chocolate Watch Band) and more. Nuggets remains quite possibly the most influential compilation released during the Rock 'N Roll era.

Nuggets proved to be of seismic importance in the years after its release, but just as importantly, it's a blast to listen to; Kaye's sequencing gives the album the joyous flow of a great afternoon of AM radio, and the album blends hits both big and small with high-quality obscurities and early efforts by future stars. And while many of the garage compilations that would follow would focus relentlessly on the obscure and the noisy, Kaye's set not only demonstrates that some of this stuff actually made the charts, but that there was as much great pop as snotty proto-punk pouring out of America's rec rooms back in the day. And Kaye's liner notes were nearly as important as the music in defining the importance of this music and its era. Very few 'oldies' compilations have had an influence approaching that of Nuggets, and even fewer are as rewarding to listen to; if you care about rock music in the '60s, you need to own this album.

Musically, this collection is superb. It has been a favortie of rock-genre deep divers since it came out. Streamers miss out on such classics (included here) as the cover of 'Hey Joe' by the Leaves and 'It's-A-Happening' by the Magic Mushrooms, an acid-on-speed romp released on A&M at a time when Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass were the label's main offering. The album was cut, for better or worse, from the analog two-track master by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering. Soundwise, this version is worse off for using the old tape. The copy I was sent is somewhat ticky, and there's a whoosh-rumble throughout. It sounds like 1972. But lo-fi sound can't keep this great music down; in fact it may enhance it. The cover art and liner notes are great physical artifacts.