Search - Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel :: Best Years of Our Lives

Steve Harley's Best Album

James Choma | 05/04/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

""Best Years of Our Lives" is the definitive Cockney Rebel album. If you've never heard of the band before, that won't mean much, so let me put things into perspective. Cockney Rebel came onto the UK music scene in the early 70's. Their music could be described as touching on elements of T.Rex, David Bowie, and Roxy Music, but over time they were able to craft their own signature sound. With Cockney Rebel, you got a lot of variety: rock, jazz, opera, and avante garde -- quite a wide style range! They were very big for a time in the UK, but never really made a dent in the USA. This album contains one of their biggest hits, "Make Me Smile," (which has been covered by a ton of bands and shows up in a bunch of movie soundtracks) but the album as a whole provides the perfect listening experience from beginning to end. My favorite tracks are "Mad, Mad Moonlight," "Best Years of Our Lives," "Make Me Smile," and "Panorama." Steve Harley is still around and performs several dates a year in the UK. The man can still put on an excellent show and still retains a devoted fan following. If you are a fan of Steve Harley or 70's Glam Rock, do not pass this album up. This is a definite entry on my top ten desert island discs."

Greatest Commercial Success for Steve Harley

Paul Allaer | Cincinnati | 04/02/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Only 1 year after the staggering and brooding album "Psychomodo" (see my review there), we find Steve Harley taking a 45 degree turn towards more accessible music and consequently broad commercial success. The original premise of Cockney Rebel (no electric guitars) is abandoned here (albeit only occasionally).1975's "Best Years of Our Lives" boasts 3 genuine hit singles, including of course the worldwide smash "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)", but the equally delightful "Mr. Raffles", as well as "Mad, Mad Moonlight". Other key tracks include a paranoid "It Wasn't Me", a funky-sounding "49th Parallel", and of course the beautiful title track.Unlike the "Psychomodo" reissue, this album does contain bonus tracks, and what a find they are! First there is "Another Journey", the B-side of the "Make Me Smile" single, a great track that would have fitted nicely on the original album. Even more interesting is the 11 min. live version of "Sebastian", still perhaps the signature Harley song, from a 1975 Hammersmith Odeon show according to the liner notes. While the track initially stays close to the original, it eventually gives way to an ear-splitting electric guitar solo, which must have come to somewhat of a shock to audiences then, given what Cockney Rebel started out as. A must for any Steve Harley fan!"

Top stuff from Harley

Gaz | England | 06/25/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"They say you either love or hate Cockney Rebel. Personally this album has to be up there in my personal Top 5 of all time. It's strange really, I bought the singles, some of the albums but not, probably, the best in terms of sales until it was released on cd. Tracks such as Mr. Raffles, Back to the Farm, It wasn't me and Mad, Mad Moonlight make the writing here so good it's a wonder the US didn't get into Harley the first time around. Catch Timeless Flight if you can!"