Poets - Scotland's No.1 Group (2000 DynoVox) 1963 - 1967

Biography: For most purposes, this is a fine and definitive overview of the output of the band that was indeed Scotland's number one group in the 1960s, in quality if not commercial success. Both sides of all six of the Poets' 1964-1967 singles are here, as well as no less than 11 demos that were not released at the time. One flaw worth noting is that the singles are not mastered from the best possible tapes; however, the difference in fidelity between this and a compilation from more, shall we say, above-the-board sources is so minimal as to be almost meaningless. Fans of the Poets (and they are more numerous than one might suppose) might well already have another, quite similar compilation, In Your Tower, which includes much but not all of the contents from Scotland's No. 1 Group. So, how does one choose? Well, that's a tough one. Each disc has the essential core of the band's discography: both sides of those half-dozen singles. Each also has the quite good, if a little scratchy and muffled, 1965 demos "I'll Keep My Pride" and "It's So Different Now." In Your Tower, however, does have some items not on Scotland's No. 1 Group, and although some of those are pretty dispensable, two are noteworthy: the hypnotic George Gallacher post-Poets track "Dawn," and the mysterious unreleased late-'60s song "Never Thought She Would." Scotland's No. 1 Group, however, has no less than nine 1963-1964 demos not on the other compilation, and although their fidelity veers from substandard to downright treacherous, these include some very good originals: the folk-rockish "Love Is Fading Away," the doomy pseudo-Merseybeat of "This Woman Mine," and the chipper "With You By Me" (the last two of these songs are each presented in two different versions). Those interested enough in the Poets in the first place to want a compilation should throw in the towel and get both. It's still frustrating that the optimum Poets anthology which would include all the singles from the master tapes, everything from these two discs, and other unreleased tracks rumored to exist in the vaults has yet to be assembled. Review by Richie Unterberger

Tracklist:
01.With You by Me
02.Why You Still Go On
03.Miss Queen Bee
04.This Woman Mine
05.Love Is Fading Away
06.Now We're Thru
07.There Are Some
08.That's the Way It's Got to Be
09.I'll Cry With the Moon
10.I Am So Blue
11.I Love Her Still
12.I'll Keep My Pride
13.It's So Different Now
14.Some Things I Can't Forget
15.Call Again
16.I'll Come Home
17.Baby Don't You Do It
18.Wooden Spoon
19.In Your Tower
20.With You by Me (Demo)
21.Why You Still Go On (Demo)
22.This Woman Mine (Demo)
23.Why Willows Weep (Demo)

Poets:
George Gallacher - vocals
Hume Paton - lead guitar
Tony Myles - rhythm guitar
John Dawson - bass guitar
Alan Weir - drums