by Peter Kurtz
Standard British Invasion fare, with the Hollies' Top Ten American hit leading off an album split evenly between pop and American R&B cover songs. As far as the R&B goes, there were English groups that did it much better, like the Stones, Animals, Yardbirds, and Small Faces. &We're Through& has an arrangement borrowed from the Johnny Rivers hit &Secret Agent Man,& not coincidentally recorded for the same label. The most unusual cuts are the cover of Simon and Garfunkel's &I Am a Rock,& notable for Graham Nash's high harmony vocals atop Allan Clarke's lead, and &Oriental Sadness,& with its piercing chorus vocals by Nash. The best cuts reflect what the group is fondly remembered for: crackling, Merseybeat pop, as in the bouncy &Don't Run and Hide& and the sweet, harmony-laden &Baby That's All.&