Search - Babys :: Anthology (Exp)

GONNA BE SOMEBODY - SOMEDAY!!!

Steve Wyzard | Lomita, CA | 09/08/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Here follows 7 reasons why the Babys are not considered part of the pantheon of "classic rock" deities:



#1: Their name. In England, most people got the joke, but in America it caused them to be dismissed as teenyboppers, which led to:



#2: Problems with the media. In every interview, they continually had to assert, "We're not the Bay City Rollers, we're more like UFO or Bad Company," and boast about their bad-boy exploits to gain credibility, which led to:



#3: Overblown machismo. Their 5 studio albums all contain the requisite share of "Come hither little girl" clinkers, three of which ("Head First", "Midnight Rendezvous", and "Sweet 17") unfortunately appear on this collection. While good for a few laughs today, this led to:



#4: Record company interference. One can only imagine the meetings with the suits where they were told, "If you'd just be good boys and do everything we tell you, we'll all make lots of money," and the band replying, "We want to play ROCK'N'ROLL, not bubble gum," which led to:



#5: Cover versions/strings/horns/female backing vocals/session musicians. Some of these were really successful and became their biggest hits ("Isn't it time?", "Every time I think of you", and "Silver Dreams"), while others were only saved by John Waite's wonderful belt-it-out voice ("I love how you love me" and "Money").



#6: Spinal Tap-like daffiness. Space does not allow a recounting of all the hard knocks and bad luck this band survived, but how can you not love a band that straight-facedly uses a lyric like: "Give me your love - oh I need that thing real bad."



Greatest hits collections usually exist to take songs out of their original context and repackage them to make money for the record company. Since The Babys' songs had no real context to begin with, I can highly recommend this album in spite of the inevitable clinkers. This brilliant but snake-bitten band was the absolute best at what they did: power pop meets arena rock. Forget the Knack and listen to their best songs: "If you've got the time", "Love don't prove I'm right", "Back on my feet again", "Anytime", and "Turn and walk away". All still sound great today (love those remasters) and are nothing to be ashamed of or laughed at.



Let's not forget reason #7: No "Stairway to Heaven"-like anthem for the "classic rock" radio stations. I would like to hereby nominate the last and best song on this collection for that notoriety. "Gonna be somebody" PERFECTLY epitomizes what this band was all about: the desire for respect, the chance to "make it" that is never quite achieved. Oh, and if they ever do a reunion tour, I will not be able to get my money out fast enough."

Oh Baby!

S. Rojek | Maryland, USA | 09/03/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I remember my brother getting a Baby's cassette back in the day. It was a few years after the hay-day of The Baby's, so for him it was a nostaglic trip. Needless to say I was an unwitting bystander to the music. It eventually grew on me.



When I was perusing some music from that time, I came across a couple of Baby's songs and as my brother probably experienced, the nostalgia trip ensued.



This album is a great buy. It has quite a number of memorable Baby's tunes. There's definitely more than on the album (cassette) my brother had that I must have heard from other sources.



Normally I cannot stand live albums and get even more annoyed when a single live track is slipped into a normal album. The quality always gets to me and the audience is not very enjoyable to me. The live track on this one is actually worth listening to.



"

No reason to cry, Babys

Tim Brough | Springfield, PA United States | 06/25/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Emerging as a pretty faced bubble-pop band in the 70's, The Babys quickly evolved into a first rate power-pop outfit and scored several top-40 hits. Eventual solo star and Bad English member Johnathan Waite was the focal point, with his clean and soulful vocals. Keyboardist Jonathan Caine, while not an original member, found later success as a member of Journey.



The band excelled at pop-rock, like "Midnight Rendezvous" and "Back On My Feet Again." While no-one would ever classify them as heavy, a song like "Head First" had echoes of "Hot Blooded", or maybe Rick Springfield fronting Cheap Trick. The ballads pretty much are what you'd expect if you followed Waite's solo career. Much better than average, and good for 70's nostalgia, The Babys called it quits in 1981."