The Singles Plus

Their biggest hits were Make it easy on yourself (a Bacharach-David song) and The sun ain't gonna shine anymore (a Four seasons song, never released as a single by them). Both those songs were number one hits in the UK, also reaching the top twenty in the USA. My ship is coming in, a number three UK hit provided their only other (minor) USA hit.

Of their other UK hits, the biggest were No regrets (7), Another tear falls (12), You don't have to tell me (13) and a Scott solo, Lights of Cincinatti (13). Gary topped the charts in Spain with You don't love me, but it was only a top thirty hit in the UK. There is much to enjoy besides the hits, including covers of Living above your head (Jay and the Americans), Sunny (Bobby Hebb) and Stay with me baby (Lorraine Ellison).

Scott was the lead (and best) singer. John became jealous and the trio went their separate ways. Their solo recordings make up most of the second CD, although the last few tracks see them re-united. As my friend who posted the first review of this collection notes, the quality dips a little occasionally, but the standards they set are so much higher than many of their rivals.

Among the highlights of the second CD apart from the previously mentioned No regrets are Jackie (from a Scott solo album of Jacques Brel songs), Joanna (another Scott solo, written by Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent, better known via Petula's sixties hits) and We're all alone (a Boz Scaggs song that provided Rita Coolidge with a UK hit).

You could get the essentials on a single CD. I did that some years ago, but it left me wanting more, so I was very pleased to be able to buy this.


mostly great   November 29, 2002
Alejandra Vernon (Long Beach, California)
27 out of 27 found this review helpful

This collection of 45 songs includes a few fillers, but Scott's amazing talent overrides many of the bumps in the road, though there are 4 tracks in a row on disc 2 that go from bad to worse, therefore I'm giving it 4 stars, instead of the 5 I'd like to give it for "Scott content".

Scott Walker (AKA Scott Engel for a short time), with a voice so full of a quality and beauty so few mortals possess, shines in their hits from the mid '60's like "Make it Easy on Yourself" and "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore", through his early solo career like "Joanne" (1968), to their short reunion with "Regrets" (1975), and the final cut in this compilation, which is also my favorite track, "Shutout", from 1981. He never managed to "click" in America, perhaps being too private and enigmatic for the press or promoters to get a handle on, but remains a cult figure to this day.

The packaging is excellent, with a sturdy 2 door jewel case and a nice insert that includes a picture of all the single covers, and the info pertaining to it. Total time is 75'31 for disc # 1 and 66'33 for # 2.