Search - Highwaymen :: Best of

Terrific collection of memorable songs

Richard E. "Nick" Noble | Southborough, MA USA | 04/08/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Highwaymen were among my favorite groups when I was growing up, and I listened over and over again to their first five albums. This collection includes many songs from those LPs, and much more, including selections from three additional albums, a long-lost single, and the original cut of their delightfully self-referential reunion song: "Number #1".Also: the liner notes are fabulous!I highly recommend this CD!"

The original Michael Row Your Boat Ashore and some competent

David Pearlman | Arlington, MA | 04/27/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Their big hit was "Michael, Row Your Boat Ashore," a 1960 original that

performed the rare trick of sounding extremely old and traditional. That

track, and 23 more, are present here. There are a few interesting stones to

unturn, including an early pop version of "Big Rock Candy Mountain" and a

cover of "The First Time (Ever I Saw Your Face)" that predated Roberta

Flack's hit by nearly a decade. But overall, this is rather tame, unexciting

folk ensemble stuff, albeit reasonably well sung and arranged. They're the

biggest musical thing to ever come out of Wesleyan University, and the

Monkees ripped off their logo, but you probably don't need to know more than

that, unless you've already dug pretty deep into the early '60's folk scene.

"