The Lovin' Spoonful Greatest Hits
The Lovin' Spoonful Greatest Hits is a compilation album by the folk rock group The Lovin' Spoonful, released on Buddha Records on February 22, 2000. The album contains every Top 40 hit single enjoyed by the band in the United States including its only chart-topper, "Summer in the City." The original recordings were produced by Erik Jacobsen, and originally released on Kama Sutra Records.
| The Lovin' Spoonful Greatest Hits | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | February 22, 2000 | |||
| Recorded | June 1965 - May 1968 | |||
| Genre | Folk rock | |||
| Length | 67:28 | |||
| Label | Buddha Records | |||
| Producer | Rob Santos | |||
| The Lovin' Spoonful chronology | ||||
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Content
This compilation contains all eleven singles released by the band in the United States during the 1965-1968 tenure of its principal songwriter, John Sebastian. Of those, all charted and the first seven made the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100. The song "Never Going Back" appeared in the summer of 1968 as the first single after Sebastian had left the band. An additional single, "Jug Band Music," was released in Canada only but appeared on the band's second album in the US. The title song to the Francis Ford Coppola film You're A Big Boy Now was intended as a single but withdrawn at the time; it and its b-side "Lonely (Amy's Theme)" are included in this compilation.
Five of these tracks appeared as b-sides, and all 26 tracks appeared on the five albums and two soundtrack albums released by the group during its lifetime. The song "Younger Generation" was performed by Sebastian in his unscheduled appearance at Woodstock; it also appears in the film.
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |  [1] |
In his Allmusic review, music critic Hal Horowitz wrote "...the 2000 issue of the umpteenth collection from this short-lived '60s band gets the nod over all others. Taken from the original first-generation masters, apparently for the first time, the sound quality - with a crispness and definition previously unheard - and even track selection, is the finest yet."[1] This release is the website's album pick in the compilation section of the band's AllMusic discography.
Track listing
All tracks are written by John Sebastian except as noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Do You Believe in Magic" (Kama Sutra 201 Billboard #9) | 2:07 | |
| 2. | "You Didn't Have to Be So Nice" (Kama Sutra 205 Billboard #10) | John Sebastian, Steve Boone | 2:29 |
| 3. | "Daydream" (Kama Sutra 208 Billboard #2) | 2:21 | |
| 4. | "You Baby" | Barry Mann, Phil Spector, Cynthia Weil | 2:56 |
| 5. | "Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind?" (Kama Sutra 209 Billboard #2) | 1:59 | |
| 6. | "Wild About My Lovin'" | traditional | 2:36 |
| 7. | "Younger Girl" | 2:20 | |
| 8. | "On the Road Again" (Kama Sutra 201b) | 1:51 | |
| 9. | "Didn't Want to Have to Do It" (Kama Sutra 209b) | 2:06 | |
| 10. | "Jug Band Music" (Kama Sutra 301x RPM #2) | 2:53 | |
| 11. | "Summer in the City" (Kama Sutra 211 Billboard #1) | John Sebastian, Mark Sebastian, Steve Boone | 2:45 |
| 12. | "Rain on the Roof" (Kama Sutra 216 Billboard #10) | 2:13 | |
| 13. | "Pow! (Theme from What's Up, Tiger Lily?)" (Kama Sutra 216b) | John Sebastian, Skip Boone, Steve Boone, Joe Butler, Zal Yanovsky | 2:26 |
| 14. | "Nashville Cats" (Kama Sutra 219 Billboard #8) | 2:35 | |
| 15. | "Lovin' You" | 2:29 | |
| 16. | "Darlin' Companion" (Kama Sutra 220b) | 2:22 | |
| 17. | "Coconut Grove" | John Sebastian, Zal Yanovsky | 2:43 |
| 18. | "Full Measure" (Kama Sutra 219b Billboard #87) | John Sebastian, Steve Boone | 2:42 |
| 19. | "Darling Be Home Soon" (Kama Sutra 220 Billboard #15) | 3:34 | |
| 20. | "Lonely (Amy's Theme)" (Kama Sutra 231b withdrawn) | 3:20 | |
| 21. | "You're a Big Boy Now" (Kama Sutra 231 withdrawn) | 2:32 | |
| 22. | "Six O'Clock" (Kama Sutra 225 Billboard #18) | 2:43 | |
| 23. | "She Is Still a Mystery" (Kama Sutra 239 Billboard #27) | 3:01 | |
| 24. | "Money" (Kama Sutra 241 Billboard #48) | 1:55 | |
| 25. | "Younger Generation" | 2:42 | |
| 26. | "Never Going Back" (Kama Sutra 250 Billboard #73) | John Stewart | 2:48 |
| Total length: | 67:28 | ||
Personnel
- John Sebastian — vocals, guitars, autoharp, harmonica, organ all tracks except "Never Going Back"
- Steve Boone — bass, vocals
- Joe Butler — drums, percussion, vocals
- Zal Yanovsky — electric and acoustic guitars, vocals tracks 1-22
- Jerry Yester — guitars, banjo, keyboards, vocals tracks 23-26
References
- Horowitz, Hal. "Greatest Hits > Review". Allmusic. Retrieved October 19, 2017.