Ricky Nelson - Rick Nelson - Greatest Hits

Fine Re-Recordings!

Done in 1985 these recordings were among the very last Rick Nelson lived to do. All songs, exept "Do You Know What I Mean", are remakes of his early hits and favourites.

The arrangements are very true to the originals and his band, featuring the terrific Bobby Neal on guitar, is great. The Jordanaires are backing Rick on several tracks.

When I first bought the record, I actually thought they were the original recordings, and this album was in fact the one that started my interest in Rick Nelson's music.

Having heard most of his Imperial catalogue, I would say that in most cases the originals are slightly better. But in some cases I prefer these newer recordings, for example "It's Up to You", which is one of my all-time Rick Nelson favourites.

At the time of his death ( a plane crash with his band ) Rick was still writing songs and recording, and his last studio album ( of new material ) "Playing to Win" shows that he still had it in him.



October 14, 2004

Not original recordings

This album is a collection of songs that were re-recorded by Ricky Nelson in the 1990s. The orignal recordings are better. I thought they were the originals so I was somewhat dissapointed. May 19, 2003

good collection for the money

I liked it. You really have to listen close to tell they were re-recorded. The background music is identical. The selection of songs is great September 6, 2002

For real Rick Nelson fans

The ONLY way to buy this cd is with the knowledge that all the songs are rerecordings by a grown-up Rick Nelson. With that in
mind, I'll say that this is a GREAT disc. I missed an opportunity to see Nelson in concert before he died, so for me,
this was a way to hear what he had to offer in his later
years. The arrangements are very faithful renditions of the original hit versions and the work of the musicians and backing vocalists is flawless. I can see how anyone expecting Ricky's hit radio versions would be disappointed, and honestly, his voice is the weakest link in these remakes but still, he does sound pretty good on the rockin' tunes and a bit mournful and mature on the ballads.
If you really like Rick Nelson you should love this cd. August 6, 2002

Great Collection Of Rick Nelson's Greatest Hits

Rick Nelson is one of the least celebrated and yet most profoundly memorable of all the rock stars of the late fifties and early sixties. His work spanned a time frame that included a lot of rock greats, and yet he stood shoulder to shoulder to them in delivering a phenomenal string of successes which no one other than Elvis Presley could keep pace with in his time. Yet today he is often seen in less than flattering terms, even though he is likely one of the greatest balladeers of the day. Anyone taking a good listen to such songs as "Lonesome Town", "Young World' and ""Never Be Anyone Else But You" can hardly deny his powerful and sensitive voice as a perfect vehicle for the songs. Unfortunately, Nelson is too often treated as more of a star than an artist.

Yet all of the proof of his ability is here in a collection of his greatest hits, which range from the early "Stood Up" to the more complex and appealing "Travelin' Man". There is quite a range of work here, from "Waiting In School" to "Be-bop Baby", from "Poor Little Fool" to "It's Late", and from "Hello, Mary Lou" to "Believe What You Say". My favorites here are a rocking rendition of "Just A Little Too Much", with some terrific guitar licks by his preferred studio back-up man, James Burton, and "Teenage idol", which shows Rick to considerable advantage later in his recording career. He later did some great covers of songs by everyone from Eric Andersen (a personal friend of Nelson's) to Dylan to his own "garden party" With a career that spanned more than thirty years before his untimely demise in an airplane crash, Rick Nelson remains one of rock's most under-appreciated artists. July 22, 2002

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