Crispian St. Peters - The Pied Piper. The Complete Recordings 1965-1974 (@320)

 

Crispian St. Peters - The Pied Piper. The Complete Recordings 1965-1974

Crispian St. Peters was a folk/pop singer-songwriter who enjoyed significant success in the mid-60s, his career fuelled by some infamous boasts about his musical talents (his claim that he was better than Elvis and The Beatles caused an outrage at the time).

Signing to Decca in 1965, Crispian broke through with the UK No. 2 hit ‘You Were On My Mind’ in 1966 (it also made the Top 40 Stateside), followed by perhaps his most famous song, ‘The Pied Piper’, which was Top 5 on both sides of the Atlantic. He also had a minor UK/US hit with ‘Changes’.

The Pied Piper does exactly what it says on the package: for the first time, this remastered 2-CD set offers Crispian’s complete recorded output for various labels across nigh on a decade, starting with early singles ‘At This Moment’ and ‘No, No, No’ and ending with a one-off single for Santa Ponsa.

Both of Crispian’s albums are represented in their entirety: his 1966 Decca album Follow Me… (issued in similar form on Jamie in the US as The Pied Piper); and his scarce 1970 album for the obscure Square label, Simply Crispian St. Peters.

Several recordings on this authoritative 50-track package made their debut on this 2CD set. Also included are his single under the pseudonym Country Smith, and several tracks boasting sessioneers Jimmy Page and Big Jim Sullivan on guitar.

The Pied Piper offers Crispian St. Peters’s entire recordings from 1965-1974 in one place, remastered with detailed sleeve-notes in the accompanying booklet. Sadly, Crispian passed away in 2010 but this new package offers a fitting epitaph to his musical legacy.

 

Tracklist:

 

Disc 1:

 

1. AT THIS MOMENT

2. YOU’LL FORGET ME, GOODBYE

3. NO, NO, NO

4. THREE GOODBYES

5. YOU WERE ON MY MIND

6. WHAT I’M GONNA BE

7. THE PIED PIPER

8. SWEET DAWN MY TRUE LOVE

9. YOUR LOVE HAS GONE

10. JILLY HONEY

11. WHEN WE MEET

12. IT’S A FUNNY FEELING

13. SO LONG

14. BUT SHE’S UNTRUE

15. GOODBYE TO YOU

16. WILLINGLY

17. WITHOUT YOU

18. THAT’S THE WAY I FEEL

19. THAT LITTLE CHAIN

20. CHANGES

21. MY LITTLE BROWN EYES

22. YOUR EVER CHANGIN’ MIND

23. ALMOST PERSUADED

24. YOU HAVE GONE

25. FREE SPIRIT

26. I’M ALWAYS CRYING

 

DISC 2:

 

1. LAURA

2. I FALL TO PIECES

3. SWEET LIES

4. THAT’S THE TIME

5. THE SILENT TIMES

6. LOW BAD HURTING (as Country Smith)

7. NO LONGER MINE (as Country Smith)

8. LOOK INTO MY TEARDROPS

9. CAROLINA

10. THAT’S WHY WE ARE THROUGH

11. WANDERING HOBO

12. NO LONGER MINE

13. ON AND ON

14. I MADE HER THAT WAY

15. I MET YOU

16. PLEASE TAKE ME BACK

17. LOOK INTO MY TEARDROPS

18. MONUMENTAL QUEEN

19. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE

20. I’M GONNA HAVE A LITTLE TALK WITH YOU FRIEND

21. SOFT AS A ROSE

22. I’VE CRIED A MILE

23. DO DADDY DO

24. EVERY TIME YOU SINNED

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