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> The Bobby Fuller Four
The
Bobby Fuller Four
Never
To Be Forgotten (Del-Fi DFBK 3903) ©1997
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Copyright © 2004
PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved.
Posted: January 9,
2004. |
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Description: |
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It may seem a little
excessive to release a three-disc package from a mid-60s one-hit wonder who died
mysteriously after releasing only two albums. Best known for the superb single
"I Fought The Law (The Law Won)" (later covered by the Clash and Tom Petty &
the Heartbreakers), Never To Be Forgotten makes a strong case for Fuller as one
of the lost talents of the 60s -- a missing link in Lone Star rock between Buddy
Holly and Z.Z. Top. |
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What's
Good About It?: |
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At the time of his brief
brush with the limelight, songs like "Daydream Believer" and "Ballad of the
Green Berets" ruled the airwaves. Fuller was an oasis of Texas-fried
rock'n'roll on the radio, kicking open the door for bands which would expand his sound
like Creedence Clearwater Revival and Cream. Fuller was a tight singer/songwriter
and he also had an adventurous ear for covers... his Merseybeat cover of
"Greensleeves" has to be heard to be believed. The all-live third disc
also proves the band was a tight little live combo. |
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What's
Bad About It?: |
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Much like Del-Fi's
similar box set for Ritchie Valens (see our review of that one too), Fuller's untimely
death left a paucity of material, forcing the set to be just a little over-padded to get
three discs worth of material. |
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What's
Missing?: |
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All the songs Fuller may
have written and performed had he lived longer. |
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PopEntertainment.com
final grade:
B |
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Fuller's suspicious death at 23-years-old... he was found in his
mother's car with his face strangely puffy and purple with gasoline poured all over his
body (and it was ruled a suicide!) only adds to his legend. Never To Be
Forgotten has a lingering message, Fuller was more than a footnote in music history;
he was an innovator.
Jay S. Jacobs
Copyright
© 2004 PopEntertainment.com.
All rights reserved. Posted:
January 9, 2004. |
