Just Like Eddie: The Heinz Anthology CD

This two-CD, 49-track set beats the 44-track double-CD The Complete Heinz by a nose as the most complete Heinz anthology ever likely to be assembled. Everything he released with Joe Meek as producer between 1963 and 1966 is here, including all of his A- and B-sides, everything from his sole LP, everything from his two EPs, and even a couple of live tracks from the obscure 1964 live At the Cavern LP. On top of all that are three previously unreleased tracks: a 1964 cover of Ritchie Valens' "Come on Let's Go" and raw live versions of the single "Questions I Can't Answer" and "Hound Dog," both of those live cuts coming from an October 1964 BBC television broadcast. (Note, by the way, that this two-CD set really contains 47 tracks, not 49; "Just Like Eddie," issued on both 45 and LP, and "Dreams Do Come True," released on both 45 and the Live It Up EP, appear on both discs.) Is all this too much Heinz? Perhaps; you could easily boil this down to a little less than half the quantity without losing much in quality. Still, the best dozen or so cuts -- "Just Like Eddie," "I'm Not a Bad Guy," "Dreams Do Come True," "That Lucky Old Sun," "You Were There," "Big Fat Spider," "The Beating of My Heart," "Movin' In," and "Heart Full of Sorrow" foremost among them -- are genuinely good obscure British Invasion-era recordings. Heinz wasn't much of a singer, but he summoned some likable enthusiasm; Meek's production for his fair-haired boy could be unceasingly creative, though his taste in the material he selected (and sometimes wrote) for Heinz was sometimes quite poor; and there is some incredible, at times ferocious guitar playing on the best (and particularly the hardest-rocking) Heinz sides. David Wells' notes are quite thorough and enjoyable as well, making this something both Heinz and Meek fans should own. ~ Richie Unterberger

Audio Remasterer: Peter Reynolds.