The Mavericks Album: “Super Colossal Smash Hits of the 90's: The Best of the Mavericks [Re-Release]”

The last eight tracks (beginning with Dance the night away, which gave them a UK top five pop hit) summarize, in reverse order, the career of the Mavericks during the nineties. It includes three tracks from What a crying shame (the title track, There goes my heart, I should have been true), which remains the most popular of their albums in America. My favorite album, Music for all occasions, is represented by two tracks (Here comes the rain, All you ever do is bring me down). Two tracks from their commercial debut, From hell to paradise (the title track, This broken heart) complete a look at their music from 1991 to 1998.

This European compilation is based on an American compilation (Super colossal hits of the nineties) but has three extra tracks, (World without love, Are you lonesome tonight, I've got this feeling). World without love (a cover of the Peter and Gordon sixties hit) is the rarest of these, this version never having appeared anywhere prior to its inclusion here. Are you lonesome tonight (a cover of the Elvis classic) had appeared on a various artists album (I can't remember if it was an Elvis tribute or a soundtrack) while I've got this feeling is taken from Trampoline, an album that was very popular in Britain.

The remaining four songs, all newly recorded, include two original songs (Things I cannot change, Pizzirico), a Cat Stevens cover (Here comes my baby, which provided the Tremeloes with a UK top five hit in the sixties) and a Buck Owens cover (Think of me). Thus, the Mavericks maintain their maverick tradition of recording a variety of material from different sources - you just never know what they will do next. Actually, they have been somewhat less productive (at least as far as recorded music is concerned) in the new millennium.

This compilation (whether in its European or American form) provides a great introduction to the music of the Mavericks. I generally prefer listening to their original albums, but several tracks here are not available elsewhere so even die-hard Mavericks fans need this.