Last year, Cherry Red's RPM imprint closed up shop after almost 30 years and some 600+ releases.  But a new imprint was announced to pick up where RPM left off: Strawberry.  Its inaugural collection, Halcyon Days: '60s Mod, R&B, Brit Soul, and Freakbeat Nuggets has proved an auspicious debut for the imprint with big shoes to fill.

The 3-CD collection traces the development of '60s British soul and R&B from the mod period to the first flowering of psychedelia featuring a blend of names both familiar (The Animals, The Kinks, David Bowie, The Yardbirds) and all-but-unknown (The Trendbender Band, Rainbow Ffolly, The Worrying Kinde, Paul's Troubles) and everybody in between.

The first disc of the set draws in large part upon the mod artists that made a splash on the U.K. club scene at venues such as The Flamingo, The Marquee, The Birdcage, and The Twisted Wheel.  These artists drew upon the American soul sounds coming from Memphis and Detroit as well as the ska of Jamaica, filtering them through the fashion and sensibility of Swingin' London (and environs) and keeping dancers transfixed on the floor.  The boldfaced names on this disc include Chris Farlowe in his pre-Immediate Records days ("Buzz with the Fuzz"), Zoot Money's Big Roll Band ("Big Time Operator"), The Animals ("Don't Bring Me Down"), the young Rod Stewart (his cover of Sam Cooke's "Shake"), Geno Washington and The Ram Jam Band ("All I Need"), and Cuban-born, Jamaica-raised Laurel Aitken ("I've Been Weeping and Crying," "Looking for My Baby").  A number of these artists have previously been anthologized by Cherry Red, including the aforementioned Aitken as well as The Stormsville Shakers, The Mike Cotton Sound, and The Bo Street Runners.  The treasures here are many, from Tony Rivers and The Castaways' early "I Love the Way You Walk" before the group transitioned from beat to harmony-pop, to The Chantelles' girl-group nugget "Gonna Get Burned."

The second disc finds the artists' soul influences transforming into an edgier rock style with R&B grit.  See: The Creation's Batman-inspired "Biff, Bang, Bow" (the flipside to "Painter Man"), The Kinks' "She's Got Everything" with its distorted Dave Davies solo, David Bowie and The Buzz's "Do Anything You Say" (with a production by Tony Hatch of Petula Clark and The Searchers fame), The Pretty Things' fuzz-laden "Buzz the Jerk," The Yardbirds' "Stroll On" featuring both Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck on twin guitars, Brian Auger and The Trinity's funky "Tiger," and the original, pre-Lodge and Hayward Moody Blues' "He Can Win." While these groups' styles were diverse, all of these tracks found them pushing the boundaries of what was expected on the pop charts.   Among this disc's many curious is The Graham Bond Organisation's "Waltz for a Pig," released under the unusual moniker of The Who Orchestra as the B-side of the band's "Substitute" after a legal tussle between Shel Talmy and The Who.  An early Eddie Holland Motown number which The Who also recorded, "Leavin' Here," is heard in a 1965 version by The Favourite Sons that remained on the shelf until 2002.  Once again, there are a few artists here with RPM and Cherry Red anthologies including the Them offshoot Belfast Gypsies, Katch 22, Wynder K. Frog, and The Artwoods.

The final disc of Halcyon Days is arguably the most eclectic, as the birth of psychedelia allowed bands the freedom to explore new sounds in more intricate productions.  The Spencer Davis Group makes a couple of appearances with the jazz-influenced "Moonshine" and soundtrack selection "Picture of Her" from the Swingin' London classic Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush.  The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, best known for "Fire," appears with the less manic but still intense, slow-burning "Rest Cure."  The Action is one of the bands here with the greatest pedigree, having worked at Parlophone with producer George Martin.  The raw, urgent "Look at the View" hails from their post-Martin days.

The prolific Mike Hurst - whose collaborators include Cat Stevens, P.P. Arnold, Cilla Black, Manfred Mann, and Marc Bolan - shows up with quite a few productions (Sleepy's "Mrs. Bailey's Barbecue and Grill," Double Feature's Cat Stevens cover "Baby Get Your Head Screwed On," The Oscar Bicycle's catchy slice of freakbeat, "The Room Revolves Around Me," Truly Smith's "This Is the First Time").  Halcyon Days also shares rarities from a pre-King Crimson Greg Lake (The Shame's "Dreams Don't Bother Me") and Quiet Melon (the bluesy "Engine 4444").  The latter group is the missing link between The Small Faces and The Faces, featuring Art Wood, Ronnie Wood, Ronnie Lane, Ian McLagan, Kenney Jones, and Rod Stewart.  They only recorded one four-song session and played a handful of performances but "Engine 4444" is strong evidence of this great rock 'n' roll might-have-been.

Halcyon Days is packaged within the familiar clamshell case and includes a comprehensive 48-page book with track-by-track liner notes by John Harrington who co-compiled the set with John Reed.  Simon Murphy has remastered all of the tracks.  With this release, Strawberry is off to a fine start, indeed.  This set is currently available from third-party sellers at the links below.

Various Artists, Halcyon Days: '60s Mod, R&B, Brit Soul, and Freakbeat Nuggets (Cherry Red/Strawberry CRJAMBOX001, 2020) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

CD 1:

1. BUZZ WITH THE FUZZ - Chris Farlowe & The Thunderbirds
2. WHAT'D I SAY - Duffy Power with The Graham Bond Quartet
3. BIG TIME OPERATOR - Zoot Money's Big Roll Band
4. DON'T BRING ME DOWN - The Animals
5. SHAKE - Rod Stewart
6. LITTLE BITTY PRETTY ONE - Ronnie Jones
7. I FEEL ALRIGHT - Jimmy James & The Vagabonds
8. JUST A LITTLE MISUNDERSTANDING - The Richard Kent Style
9. NUMBER ONE - The Stormsville Shakers
10. SEE SAW - The Union *
11. HARLEM SHUFFLE - The Mike Cotton Sound
12. I CAN'T STAND IT - The Athenians
13. ALL I NEED - Geno Washington & The Ram Jam Band
14. I'VE BEEN WEEPING AND CRYING - Laurel Aitken
15. TRY ME - Laris McLennon
16. WELL I DO - The Candy Dates
17. SHAME, SHAME, SHAME - The SW4 *
18. I LOVE THE WAY YOU WALK - Tony Rivers & The Castaways
19. LOOK AWAY - The Fingers
20. HUSH YOUR MOUTH - Mickey Finn & The Blue Men
21. EVERYTIME I DO - Rupert & The Red Devils
22. LOOKING FOR MY BABY (SKA BEAT VERSION) - Laurel Aitken
23. CAN'T STAND THE PAIN - Barney J. Barnes & The Intro
24. WATERMELON MAN - The Mark Wirtz Orchestra & Chorus
25. BABY NEVER SAY GOODBYE - The Bo Street Runners
26. (YOU GOT) THE POWER OF LOVE - Kevin 'King' Lear
27. GONNA GET BURNED - The Chantelles
28. GOTTA BRAND NEW MAN - Barry St. John
29. STUPIDITY - The Trendbender Band *

CD 2:

1. BIFF, BANG, POW - The Creation
2. SHE'S GOT EVERYTHING (MONO SINGLE MIX) - The Kinks
3. DO ANYTHING YOU SAY - David Bowie
4. I TAKE WHAT I WANT - The Artwoods
5. BUZZ THE JERK - The Pretty Things
6. BO STREET RUNNER (SINGLE VERSION) - The Bo Street Runners
7. STROLL ON - The Yardbirds
8. WALTZ FOR A PIG - The Graham Bond Organisation (A.K.A. The Who Orchestra)
9. TIGER - Brian Auger & The Trinity
10. PEARLY - Kevin 'King' Lear
11. GET GOIN' BABY - Dorian Gray
12. LEAVIN' HERE - The Favourite Sons
13. COME ON GO (DEMO) - Force Four
14. GLORIA'S DREAM (SINGLE MIX) - Belfast Gypsies
15. REMEMBER THOMAS À BECKET - John's Children
16. WHY - The End
17. GIMME LITTLE SIGN - Rainbow Ffolly
18. NO PROBLEM - Phillip Goodhand-Tait & The Stormsville Shakers
19. MAKIN' MY MIND UP - Katch 22
20. COME ON BABY - Double Feature
21. HE CAN WIN - The Moody Blues
22. AM I GLAD TO SEE YOU - The In Crowd
23. DIGGIN' FOR GOLD - David John & The Mood
24. I'M NOT A BAD GUY - Heinz
25. GOT THE BLAME - The Worrying Kynde
26. YOU'VE GOT SOMETHING - Paul's Troubles
27. WALKING DOWN A BACKSTREET - Dorian Gray
28. GUN ME DOWN - Ray French
29. SHE'S DANGEROUS - The Secrets
30. GREEN DOOR (MONO SINGLE MIX) - Wynder K. Frog

CD 3:

1. HALCYON DAYS - The Tages
2. LOOK AT THE VIEW - The Action
3. ONE GIRL CITY - Fleur De Lys
4. I'M A MAN - The Web
5. MOONSHINE (STEREO) - The Spencer Davis Group
6. BAILEY'S BARBECUE AND GRILL - Sleepy
7. HOLD ON - Jason Crest
8. BABY GET YOUR HEAD SCREWED ON - Double Feature
9. THE ROOM REVOLVES AROUND ME - The Oscar Bicycle
10. DREAMS DON'T BOTHER ME - The Shame
11. TECHNICOLOUR DREAM (MONO SINGLE MIX) - The Alan Bown!
12. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME - Truly Smith
13. KEEP IT OUT OF SIGHT - Paul & Barry Ryan
14. YOUR WAY TO TELL ME - Plastic Penny
15. THE STAMPING MACHINE (DEMO) - July
16. SAD - The Australian Playboys
17. PINK DAWN - The Human Instinct
18. BABY YOU'RE NOT TO BLAME - Plastic Penny
19. FOOL FROM UPPER EDEN - Andy Ellison
20. 53 SUMMER STREET - Turquoise
21. YES - Grapefruit
22. FOURPENNY BUS RIDE - Dantalian's Chariot
23. DOCTOR ROCK (SINGLE MIX) - Apple
24. PEOPLE! LET'S FREAK OUT (SINGLE MIX) - The Freaks Of Nature (Alias Belfast Gypsies)
25. ENGINE 4444 - Quiet Melon
26. PICTURE OF HER - The Spencer Davis Group
27. I'M COMING 'ROUND (TO HER WAY OF THINKING) - Kris Ife
28. REST CURE - The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown

(*) previously unreleased