Lulu (real name: Marie McDonald McLaughlin Lawrie) burst onto the scene in 1964 with her earthy, throaty rendition of The Isley Brothers' "Shout!"  The fifteen-year old parlayed that memorable U.K. top ten hit into an international career that remains vibrant and active to this very day.  Lulu remained on Decca Records, the home of "Shout!," for a two-year stint, departing the label in late 1966 to sign with producer Mickie Most EMI's Columbia Records arm (not to be confused with the CBS-affiliated U.S. label).  Over the next, career-defining decade (which saw her move from Columbia to the Atco and Chelsea labels) Lulu recorded her signature song, appeared in a popular film, and championed songs by Elton John, Neil Diamond, Randy Newman, and of course, The Bee Gees.  That remarkable period has recently been collected on a superb 5-CD media book-style box set from Demon Music Group's Edsel imprint.  Decade: 1967-1976 brings together virtually all of Lulu's recordings for Columbia, Atco, and Chelsea, plus a generous helping of rarities and a handful of new-to-CD tracks.  While most of this material has been available on CD before, it's never been presented in such handy, comprehensive fashion.

The first two discs are built around the artist's two Columbia albums: Love Loves to Love Lulu (1967) and Lulu's Album (1968).  The first LP kicked off with "To Sir, With Love," the chart-topping Mark London/Don Black tune from the movie of the same name that earned Lulu the U.S.' biggest hit of 1967.  The album also included her U.K. top ten rendition of Neil Diamond's "The Boat That I Row," and sublime covers of The Beatles ("Day Tripper") and The Bee Gees ("To Love Somebody").  Lulu's Album cast its net wider, encompassing tracks by Burt Bacharach and Hal David ("A House is Not a Home"), Bob Dylan ("The Mighty Quinn"), and The Spencer Davis Group ("Gimme Some Lovin'') while still making room for another Bee Gees cut, "I Started a Joke."  These two discs have been bolstered by all of the non-LP singles from the period plus all six of Lulu's songs related to 1969's Eurovision Song Contest for which she represented Great Britain.  Peter Moorhouse and Alan Warne's "Boom Bang-a-Bang" was the song she sang at the festival, chosen by viewers of her BBC1 series and on a TV special from a total of six songs.  All six songs are here, including the early Elton John/Bernie Taupin composition "I Can't Go On Living Without You," as well as French, German, Italian, and Spanish versions of "Boom Bang-a-Bang."  (The song won in a four-way tie with the entries from Spain, The Netherlands, and France.)  1969 was another landmark year for the artist, for it's when she married Maurice Gibb of The Bee Gees.

The third and fourth discs chronicle Lulu's journey to the United States and Atco Records.  Producers Jerry Wexler, Tom Dowd, and Arif Mardin brought out the singer's innate R&B sensibility on two deservedly well-received albums, New Routes and Melody Fair (both from 1970) in which she was backed by the cream of the crop including Duane Allman and the seasoned session veterans at Muscle Shoals and Miami's Criteria Studios.  The American South brought out the raw honesty and deep authenticity in Lulu's voice, inspiring her most powerfully soulful, from-the-heart performances including "Oh Me, Oh My (I'm a Fool for You Baby)," "Where's Eddie," and "Feelin' Alright."  Songs by Burt Bacharach and Bob Hilliard (the Drifters hit "(Don't Go) Please Stay") and Randy Newman ("Vine Street") were among the more unexpected selections that dotted her Atco efforts.

Happily, all of the bonus material included on the 2007 Rhino release The Atco Sessions is reprised here, including the never-released third album and various singles and alternate versions.  Additionally, Edsel has included Lulu's four new-to-CD German-language singles helmed by future disco pioneer Giorgio Moroder for Atlantic's German division.  While these brash pop-rock tracks written by Moroder and Michael Kunze are far-removed from Moroder's later works, they're fascinating listens, nonetheless.  (One track, "Ich Brauche Deine Liebe," even sounds a bit like "Walking to New Orleans," of all things!)

The fifth and final CD echoes Edsel's 2017 two-fer comprising both of Lulu's albums for Wes Farrell's Chelsea Records. At Chelsea, she released two albums: 1973's Lulu and 1976's Heaven and Earth and the Stars.  These eclectic albums filled with pop, rock, and soul included songs and productions by talents ranging from John Barry (the Bond theme "The Man with the Golden Gun") to David Bowie ("The Man Who Sold the World," "Watch That Man") including Alan O'Day ("Easy Evil"), Willie Nelson ("Funny How Time Slips Away"), Tony Macaulay ("Make Believe World"), and numerous other A-listers.

Decade: 1967-1976 boasts new liner notes by Alan Robinson as part of the lavishly illustrated 36-page hardcover media book.  Phil Kinrade, who previously mastered the Lulu/Heaven and Earth and the Stars two-fer, has handled the remastering here, as well.  Whether starring on the West End or "Shout!"-ing to her heart's content, Lulu has always exuded confidence, power, and soul.  With any luck, Edsel will move onto her later albums still unavailable on CD from the Alfa and Rocket labels.  In the meantime, this essential Decade is one filled with tremendous musical riches from Lulu, with love.

Lulu, Decade: 1967-1976 (Edsel, 2018) (Amazon U.S. Link TBD / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1

LOVE LOVES TO LOVE LULU(Columbia LP SCX 6201, 1967)

1. To Sir With Love
2. Morning Dew
3. You And I
4. Rattler
5. Day Tripper
6. Love Loves To Love Love
7. To Love Somebody
8. The Boat That I Row
9. Let's Pretend
10. Take Me In Your Arms And Love Me
11. Best Of Both Worlds

SINGLES As and Bs

12. Dreary Days And Nights (Columbia single DB 8169, 1967)
13. You And I [mono single version] (Columbia single DB 8295, 1967)
14. Me, The Peaceful Heart (Columbia single DB 8358, 1968)
15. Lookout (Columbia single DB 8358, 1968)
16. Boy (Columbia single DB 8425, 1968)
17. Sad Memories (Columbia single DB 8425, 1968)
18. I'm A Tiger (Columbia single DB 8500, 1968)
19. Without Him (Columbia single DB 8500, 1968)
20. This Time (Bistro) [from the film Hot Millions] (Epic single 5-10403, 1968)
21. I Keep Forgettin' (included on To Sir with Love: The Complete Mickie Most Recordings, EMI 7243 5 60369 2 5, 2005)

CD 2

LULU'S ALBUM (Columbia LP SCX 6365, 1969)

1. Show Me
2. The Mighty Quinn
3. My Ain Folk
4. Where Did You Come From
5. Gimme Some Lovin'
6. I Started A Joke
7. Why Did I Choose You?
8. The Boy Next Door
9. A House Is Not A Home
10. Cry Like A Baby

THE EUROVISION SONGS

11. Are You Ready For Love (Columbia (Portugal) EP SLEM 2344, 1969)
12. March! (Columbia single DB 8550, 1969)
13. Come September (from Lulu's Album, Columbia LP SCX 6365, 1969)
14. I Can't Go On Living Without You (included on Columbia (Israel) EPOC 40090, 1969)
15. Boom Bang-A-Bang (Columbia single DB 8550, 1969)
16. Bet Yer (Columbia (Portugal) EP SLEM 2344, 1969)

THE EUROPEAN VERSIONS

17. Boom Bang-A-Bang [French version] (included on To Sir with Love: The Complete Mickie Most Recordings, EMI 7243 5 60369 2 5, 2005)
18. Boom Bang-A-Bang [Italian version] (included on To Sir with Love: The Complete Mickie Most Recordings, EMI 7243 5 60369 2 5, 2005)
19. Boom Bang-A-Bang [German version] (Columbia (Germany) single 1C 006-04 074, 1969) (*)
20. Boom Bang-A-Bang [Spanish version] (La Voz De Su Amo single VSL 122, 1969) (*)

CD 3

NEW ROUTES (Atco LP SD 33-310, 1970)

1. Marley Purt Drive
2. In The Morning
3. People In Love
4. After All (I Live My Life)
5. Feelin' Alright
6. Dirty Old Man
7. Oh Me Oh My (I'm A Fool For You Baby)
8. Is That You Love
9. Mr. Bojangles
10. Where's Eddie
11. Sweep Around Your Own Back Door

MELODY FAIR (Atco LP 33-330, 1970)

12. Good Day Sunshine
13. After The Feeling Is Gone
14. I Don't Care Anymore
15. (Don't Go) Please Stay
16. Melody Fair
17. Take Good Care Of Yourself
18. Vine Street
19. Move To My Rhythm
20. To The Other Woman (I'm The Other Woman)
21. Hum A Song (From Your Heart)
22. Sweet Memories
23. Saved

CD 4

THE ATCO RECORDINGS: THE UNRELEASED THIRD ALBUM (first released on The Atco Sessions, Rhino 8122 79948-8, 2007)

1. Bury Me Down By The River
2. Got To Believe In Love
3. Jokers Wild
4. Come Down In Time
5. Back Home
6. Things Are Getting Better
7. Love Song
8. Goodbye My Love, Goodbye

SINGLES As and Bs

9. Everybody's Got To Clap (Atco single 45-6819, 1971)
10. It Takes A Real Man (To Bring Out The Woman In Me) (Atco single 45-6885, 1972)
11. You Ain't Wrong You Just Ain't Right (Atco single 45-6885, 1972)
12. Even If I Could Change (Atlantic (U.K.) single K 10185, 1972)

BONUS TRACKS first released on The Atco Sessions, Rhino 8122 79948-8, 2007)

13. Hum A Song (From Your Heart) [Session Version]
14. I Don't Care Anymore [Early Mix]
15. Got To Believe In Love [Early Version]
16. Povera Me (Oh Me Oh My) [Italian version]

THE GERMAN SINGLES

17. Warum Tust Du Mir Weh? (Why Do You Hurt Me?) (Atlantic (Germany) single 10.013, 1971) (*)
18. Traurig, Aber Wahr (Sad But True) (Atlantic (Germany) single 10.013, 1971) (*)
19. Ich Brauche Deine Liebe (I Need Your Love) (Atlantic (Germany) single 10.083, 1971) (*)
20. Wach' Ich Oder Traum' Ich (Wake Me Or Dream Me) (Atlantic (Germany) single 10.083, 1971) (*)

CD 5

LULU (Chelsea LP BCL1-0144, 1973)

1. Make Believe World
2. Groovin'
3. Easy Evil
4. I Wish
5. A Boy Like You
6. Hold On To What You've Got
7. Could It Be Forever?
8. Funny How Time Slips Away
9. Do Right Woman, Do Right Man
10. Help Me Help You

HEAVEN AND EARTH AND THE STARS (Chelsea  LP CHL 518, 1976)

11. Heaven And Earth And The Stars
12. Boy Meets Girl
13. Mama's Little Corner Of The World
14. The Man With The Golden Gun [Main Title]
15. Baby I Don't Care
16. Take Your Mama For A Ride [Pt. 1]
17. Honey You Can't Take It Back
18. The Man Who Sold The World
19. Watch That Man
20. Old Fashioned Girl
21. Take Your Mama For A Ride [Pt. 2]

(*) previously unreleased on CD

Lulu, The Best Of: 1967-1976 Red Vinyl (Edsel, 2018) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

1. To Sir With Love
2. The Boat That I Row
3. Let's Pretend
4. Love Loves to Love Love
5. Me, the Peaceful Heart
6. Boy
7. I'm a Tiger
8. Boom Bang-a-bang
9. Oh Me Oh My (I'm a Fool for You Baby)
10. Everybody's Got to Clap
11. The Man With the Golden Gun
12. The Man Who Sold the World
13. Watch That Man
14. Take Your Mama for a Ride