One of the less essential '60s albums by
the Hollies, whose capabilities were arguably stretched by the two-album-a-year-pace-in-addition-to-three-hit-singles model established by
the Beatles during this time. Their version of
Paul Simon's "I Am a Rock" is nice, but the soul and early rock covers of
Sam & Dave,
Otis Redding, and
Chuck Berry are pretty dispensable;
the Hollies were not
the Stones or
the Animals, lacking their soul and interpretative imagination. Some of the originals are pretty ho-hum too (including the pathetic "Fifi the Flea," which was covered by
the Everly Brothers). But every
Hollies album of the '60s has some strong overlooked tracks. On this one, they're the surprisingly tough folk-rockers "Hard, Hard Year" and "I've Got a Way of My Own." The ultra-catchy "Don't You Even Care," written by Clint Ballard, Jr. (also responsible for their number one British hit "I'm Alive," as well as "The Game of Love" and "You're No Good"), is the real obscure gem here and could have well been a hit under its own steam. The album's last song, "I Can't Let Go," was a big hit in Britain (and a small one in the U.S.) and one of
the Hollies' best performances. The record was issued in America, in a slightly amended version, as Beat Group! ~ Richie Unterberger