More than his contemporaries, Wilde was able to take the big American hits of the 50s and make them (almost) his own. Endless Sleep, Donna and Teenager In Love were, on the surface, standard teen laments, but reworked with a subtly brooding menace, especially compared to the cosiness of his Oh Boy! TV costar Cliff Richard. Wilde looked like a Brandoesque tough guy you couldn’t take home to mother, and played the part perfectly.
No less a rock god than Robert Plant cites the former Reginald Smith an influence, and the lion’s share of this 25-track collection displays a leaner, meaner edge than the normal homegrown fare of the time. He was limited, though, as his awkward attempt at the protopower ballad By The Time I Get To Phoenix suggests, but he has continued to flourish on the nostalgia circuit. Indeed, Wilde’s off on a 32-date tour this spring.
Better known in recent times as the father of Kim, his offspring lends a hand here on a previously unreleased duet of Elton John’s Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word. A bit too showbizzy, perhaps, but the first half of this compilation represents embryonic English rock’n’roll at its best.
