The Buckinghams - The Hit Singles Collection (2018)

If everyone on the northwest side of Chicago who claims to have hung out with the Buckinghams during their heyday had faithfully bought all their releases, the rock group might have sold more records than the Beatles. Popular attractions while still in high school, the quintet changed its name from the Pulsations to the Buckinghams to reflect the British Invasion craze and signed with Chicago's USA Records in 1966. Backing Dennis Tufano's buoyant lead vocals with prominent harmonies and punchy soul-styled brass, the group came across the wistful "Kind of a Drag," and in short order, the Buckinghams had a million-selling pop chart-topper on their hands. They quickly graduated to recording for Columbia. As long as songwriter Jim Holvay supplied more material of the same high quality as "Kind of a Drag," the Buckinghams were sitting pretty. Holvay co-wrote "Don't You Care," "Hey Baby (They're Playing Our Song)," and the pseudo-psychedelic "Susan," and they all proved to be major hits for the band. The group's R&B roots surfaced on a vocal adaptation of Cannonball Adderley's jazz standard "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy," their second-biggest hit.

Tracklist:

01. I'll Go Crazy
02. I Call Your Name
03. I've Been Wrong
04. Kind of a Drag
05. Lawdy Miss Clawdy
06. Summertime (7" Version)
07. Don't You Care
08. Mercy, Mercy, Mercy (Mono Single Version)
09. Hey Baby (They're Playing Our Song)
10. Susan (Radio Edit)
11. Back In Love Again
12. Where Did You Come From
13. This Is How Much I Love You
14. It's a Beautiful Day (For Lovin')
15. I Got a Feelin' (7" Version)