CoronaVinyl Day 309 (H): The Hollies' Greatest Hits by The Hollies

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Today's CoronaVinyl category is "H," and I had planned to listen to a Hollies' album that I have, 1975's Another Night.  But when I pulled the album off the shelf, it felt a little thick.  Turns out, in addition to Another Night, it also had the band's 1967 Greatest Hits album.  Not needing 1975 Hollies in my life today, I went with the Greatest Hits.

The Hollies, of course, were one of the '60s British Invasion bands, having been formed in Manchester in 1962.  Their distinctive 3-part harmony distinguished them from a lot of other British Invasion and Merseybeat bands at the time.  In 1967, they had done well enough to release their first greatest hits album.

The album was only released in the U.S. and Canada, and it went to #11 on the Billboard album chart, making it the band's highest-charting album ever in America.  A year later, Graham Nash would leave the band to form Crosby, Stills & Nash.  The Hollies, though, have stayed together in one form or another since then, though only two original members -- Tony Hicks and Bobby Elliott -- are still in the band.  In 2010, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In total, they have had 12 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including 6 Top 10s.  In their native UK, they have had 28 Top 40 hits on the UK pop chart, including 18 Top 10s and 2 #1s.

Spotify didn't have this particular greatest hits album, so I embedded a massive one with 47 songs, though unfortunately, not all the songs on the 1967 Greatest Hits album.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Look Through Any Window"
This one was the band's first Top 40 hit in the U.S., reaching #32 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1966.  It has a 12-string guitar, which gives it a Byrds feel, but then the harmonies kick in, and there's no doubt it's a Hollies song.  It's just a great '60s pop song.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "On a Carousel"
"On a Carousel" was released in 1967, and you can tell the difference that the year made, as music was shifting in general.  It's still a nice pop song, but it's a little more heady than their earlier stuff.  It went to #4 in the UK and #11 in the U.S.